Rest day in Najera – Distance walked 0km

13th May

3 star hotel
€60
Weather - I wouldn’t know as I didn’t leave our room the entire day.
　
“ I feel like I have been run over by a truck. Swollen glands, sore feet and now mastitis. Give us a break.

There was no way we were walking today and I demanded we check in to the hotel - I barely made it the 300m to the hotel with my pack on. As we were leaving the albergue I saw two other pilgrims in the albergue who were sick. One lady was taking a bus to a monastery further along the camino that was known for looking after pilgrims.

The other woman, and her partner, were having a heated conversation with the volunteer. She was obviously unwell and I doubted whether she would be able to get to the dr’s. Her partner was asking whether a dr could come to the alberque to see her. The volunteer was telling them to get out with all their stuff, go and see a dr and come back when they had a letter to prove to him they were sick. Then he would let them stay an extra night.

In my mind albergues are no place to be when you don’t feel well.

Having a bath in the hotel room was a luxury as I spent the whole day sweating, shaking, moaning, and combining paracetamol, antibiotics, frequent breastfeeds and warm baths to manage the symptoms.

The day in bed meant my feet could be elevated all day which did them the world of good. Nick had been struggling with his knee so a day without the pack was a welcome relief. Poor Raya had diarrhoea we suspect from the milk on her cereal that morning and so the timing of the rest day ended up suiting everybody.

Aside from feeling unwell we welcomed the rest day as we are starting to feel like a spectacle now on the camino with Aurelia. We acknowledge that it is only natural with her being so little, and utterly gorgeous, that people would talk about her and us but being the ‘talk of the town’ is beginning to grate on our nerves.

People will sit at the same communal meal table as us in the albergue speaking in their own language about us only addressing us in English to ask a question. One pilgrim then said “see I told you I was right” when we answered his question and they continued talking in German. The people who get their camera out and take photos of Aurelia in front of us without even asking irritate us the most.

Everyone says “gee you’re brave” (in fact we’ve heard this so much this is what our daily travel blog is called) and tell us what an inspiration we are - but we don’t feel that way. We are finding the going really tough and we just want to be able to walk the camino without all the attention and fuss we feel like we are receiving at every turn. We certainly appreciate the friendly reception Aurelia receives but there are cultural differences in how people interact with children and having to negotiate these each and every day while still being polite and friendly is taking a toll. When you are tired, hot and don’t feel well or when Aurelia is tired/hot and doesn’t want her cheeks squeezed anymore we would happily hand back the newly acquired “legend status”.

That night Nick watched the Bilbao vs. Barcelona grand final soccer game on TV, with Barcelona winning 4-1. He, who has never followed soccer, now proudly claims Barcelona as “his team”.

The pillows on the bed in Spain are unusual, one long common pillow on a double bed, and I don’t like it. Raya is snoring softly in her Kindakot on top of a pile of plush blankets.

Tomorrow we are going to see how I feel but most likely we will check out late and keep walking. After a teary conversation about the viability of fulfilling our dream of walking the camino, we both feel that if we stay off the trail for longer than 1-2 days we will feel too comfortable in the hotel and not return to the camino. Wanting to stay in the hotel and needing to stay in the hotel are two different things and so we agree to be adults and “suck it up” and only stay if we really need to - not just because we are finding it harder than we would like.

I plan to enjoy one last long soak in the bath in the morning before we head off again and I am thankful I am not having to put up with any full frontal stranger nudity in the bathroom - coping with my one-sided pilgrim tanned, blistered, mastitis’ed body in the mirror is confronting enough.

Perhaps I should have packed less undies after all.