Day 12: Najera to Santo Domingo ~ Roaming Rocks

Miles: 16.47/Steps: 36,063

Todays Selfie:

Isn’t the body an amazing thing. I have walked over 110 miles in the past 6 days. I have had the worst blisters that have all healed. I am positive I haven’t eaten enough calories or drank enough water that I should have, (not on purpose). I have used muscles I haven’t ever used before, the amount of time each day that I have an elevated heartbeat is sadly shocking, and yet it recharges every night and is ready to go every morning. It has made me realize how important sleep is and how magnificently we are built. The entire time on todays walk, I thought about ways to focus on self care. Treatments for my feet, stretches, hot showers, rest, food. I finished by 1pm today and was able to really refresh.

Todays second selfie:

Irish Dee and I ran into each other again at breakfast. I had Spanish tortilla, a croissant, fresh orange juice and a banana.

There were lots of beautiful views along the way.

There was even a golf course in a deserted town. And….there is a story about the deserted town. As I mentioned earlier, there are twice as many people doing the Camino as usual. Because of this a lot of alburgues are sold out and there is a struggle to find a place to sleep. This deserted town was 4 miles away from Santo Domingo and I booked it because I couldn’t find anything in Santo Domingo. On a whim I checked Santo Domingo 2 days ago and found a private room for $40. I was so happy that I gladly cancelled my reservation for this town. I had no idea at the time but it was a total ghost town. All of the houses were empty. Apparently the housing community was built but no one ever moved in. What a blessing! Again! Everything is just working out on this Camino.

This cat lived in the deserted town and got love from every single person who walked by.

It rained most of the day but the views were still beautiful.

I didn’t know it but Santo Domingo was in the middle of the Festival of Santo Domingo, a week long party. As I walked into town there was a choir singing and a statue being carried through the town with priests and other officials following the procession. It was as if they knew I was coming.

I checked into my room. It even had a hair dryer! I rested for a few hours and then went out to explore the town. I went to the cathedral and was amazed by how big it was.

Santo Domingo has a great story about chickens. It goes back several hundred years so there are a few versions but you will get the basic idea:

A devout German couple was making the pilgrimage to Santiago with their eighteen-year-old son. When they reached Santo Domingo, a local girl took a liking to the young German, who, being a good Christian, did not respond to her advances.

Hurt and angry, she put a silver cup into his bag and accused him of theft. The town believed her and hung the innocent boy. His parents, although they were sad, went on to Santiago, where they prayed for their son. On their return trip, they again stopped in Santo Domingo, this time to visit their son’s body. To their surprise, he was still alive, and still hanging from his rope. (At this point I always wonder how they didn’t notice that part before they left, but it’s best not to ask a lot of questions about these stories.) In some versions of the story, the boy spoke to them and told them that Saint James himself was keeping him alive. The parents rushed to the town’s sheriff and demanded that he release their son.

The good sheriff was just sitting down to a hearty poultry dinner, and laughed in their faces. “That boy is no more alive than these chickens on my plate,” he said.

(See where this is going?)

Yep, the roasted birds sprouted back their feathers and beaks, got up, and started walking around the dinner table. Properly chastened, the sheriff rushed to the gallows and released the young German, who was pardoned and allowed to go home.

So in the cathedral there are several statues with the chickens and there is actually a chicken coop in the church that has chickens in it. They could be heard clucking throughout the cathedral.