Spanish life is not always likeable but it is compellingly loveable.
- Christopher Howse: A
Pilgrim in Spain.
I did finally write a short blog late last night. Scroll down for this . . .
A CAMINO SPECIAL
I'm now in Toledo, for a day's sightseeing before returning to Madrid tomorrow morning and then to Pontevedra on the train (I hope) tomorrow night. Reader Q-10 has requested a map of how I got here, so here it is:-
This doesn't show our actual walking route, as this was on camino tracks, not the roads shown by
Google Maps.
Why this odd trajectory on 2 caminos - the Camino de Madrid going north and the Camino de Levante going south? Well, it's because our long-established practice is to combine 5 or 6 days walking with 2-3 days sighseeing in Spain's major cities. This time round it was a ratio of 6:3. Madrid wasn't actually included and we set off, as shown, from Colmenar de Viejo, having taken the cercanias train to that starting point. And we didn't walk from Segovia to Ávila but, rather, went by taxi, along with our luggage. Not our original plan but an enterprising taxi driver en route to the bus station convinced us it would be worth the premium. Which wasn't exactly a tough challenge given that we could divide the price by 6.
Neither of these caminos is well walked. In 3 days on the Camino de Madrid, we saw only 5 other people, 3 of these in the same place and the other 2 in our hotels in Colmenar and Cercedilla. In 3 days on the Camino de Levante, we saw absolutely no one. As someone has written - in a classic bit of understatement - This camino is seriously solitary.
An additional problem is that - as is surely clear - heading south to Toledo and not north from there is walking the Camino de Levante in the wrong direction.
But the biggest problem is that there's very little practical information available for either camino, especially the Levante. And reading about the stages in Spanish and trying to 'work backwards' from the text can lead to errors.
So it was that, yesterday, we mistakenly thought we had to pass thought Cadalso de los Vidrios en route to Almorox, where we planned to get a 15.30 bus to Toledo.
But this wasn't our biggest problem. At some stage in the last few years the route north from Almorox to Sanmartín de Valdegleisias has been changed. Unwittingly, we followed the old route until the yellow camino signs suddenly stopped when the track hit the N-403, leaving us in total confusion. In error, we made our way alongside this busy N road northwards and then took the M-507 west to Cadalos de Vidrios, 7km off the camino. What we should have done is walk southwards alongside the N-403 directly to Almorox. In our defence, I cite this paragraph from a relevant forum:- Beware between Almorox and Sanmartín de V. My guide book advises that, after crossing the N403, about 6k after Almorox, the path goes into woods and turns north and continues straight to M507, about 1-2k later. What they don't mention is that there is a cross-roads where [like us] I could find absolutely no signs. So I continued straight and, like an idiot, I kept going and in the end I finished back on the N403 2 hours later. I would add that a site - Gronze - which offers good information on the Madrid camino gives nothing on this stage, saying simply that they are updating their understanding. They're very probably pretty confused as well.
But this wasn't our biggest problem. At some stage in the last few years the route north from Almorox to Sanmartín de Valdegleisias has been changed. Unwittingly, we followed the old route until the yellow camino signs suddenly stopped when the track hit the N-403, leaving us in total confusion. In error, we made our way alongside this busy N road northwards and then took the M-507 west to Cadalos de Vidrios, 7km off the camino. What we should have done is walk southwards alongside the N-403 directly to Almorox. In our defence, I cite this paragraph from a relevant forum:- Beware between Almorox and Sanmartín de V. My guide book advises that, after crossing the N403, about 6k after Almorox, the path goes into woods and turns north and continues straight to M507, about 1-2k later. What they don't mention is that there is a cross-roads where [like us] I could find absolutely no signs. So I continued straight and, like an idiot, I kept going and in the end I finished back on the N403 2 hours later. I would add that a site - Gronze - which offers good information on the Madrid camino gives nothing on this stage, saying simply that they are updating their understanding. They're very probably pretty confused as well.
Anyway, we lost so much time that our chances of getting the 15.30 bus into Almorox went up in smoke. Worse, when we arrived at Cadalos de Vidrios, it was to find - as in every one of our stopovers except Segovia - that a fiesta that day or the day before or even the previous week meant that most of the bars and restaurants were closed. Clearly, late September is not a good time to be doing the 2 caminos from this point of view. Though it is as regards the weather.
But we struck lucky in Cadalos. An old lady took us in hand and finally found us a bar that was open. As it belonged to her son, we wondered why she hadn't taken us straight to it. We checked on bus times from Almorox and found there was no bus after the 15.30 one we'd already missed. So, we had no option but to go to Toledo by taxi. But there was no taxi company in Cadalos and a phone call to the only one in Almorox established it would cost us €150 to get to Toledo in 2 taxis, there being too many of us for just one. So, I asked the barman if he had 2 friends who had a car and would take us to Toldedo for €50 each. He said not. So I then asked if there was anyone with a 7-seater car. The only guy in the place volunteered he had a 9-seater and accepted my offer of €80 to take us to our hotel in Toledo.
So, here we are - ensconced in a very pleasant Hotel Medina, very close to the centre of the city. More about that tomorrow.
To end on 2 positive notes:-
- Our hotel in Sanmartín de V - Casa de Labranza - was a truly delightful place, with a very pleasant owner. And:-
- There was ony one restaurant open in the town and this was only a few metres away from the hotel - Cafe Teatro. We entered this unpretentious place with misgivings but the food was great and the service even better. We went to bed very happy. But, then, we had no idea of the calvario which awaited us the next day . . .
By the way, as for every place I've ever stayed in, the reviews for Casa Labranza range from Excellent to Terrible. We certainly come down at the positive extreme, finding the enchantment of the place more than enough to compensate for its deficiencies.
I'm aware that the above will bore many readers to death. So, here's a foto of my latest success in getting my Mac charger to work:-
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