my Uncle Charlie, just because I love him and he is a peach! Everyone should be lucky enough to have an Uncle Charlie!
We leave Rabanal, another village I fell in love with, in a steady downpour of rain, at 7:00 am. It is our first real rainy day.
We are joined by a Kiwi, a lovely lady from New Zealand, who, because of the mist, is leery of hiking alone. Her name is Judith.
She joins us in the Druid like village of Foncebadon.
We chat. She has traveled widely and expresses a desire to visit Newfoundland someday, because of a book she read. She can't remember the name, and when I say was it "Colony of Unrequited Dreams", by Wayne Johnson (Are you reading this, CVF?), she is delighted! Canadian authors travel widely as well, it seems. Marvelous book by the way!
By 10 am we have climbed 300 metres to Cruz de Fero- one of the most iconic landmarks along the Camino.
I leave two rocks, one representing my past, and one representing the future. The one from my past came all the way with me from the Baie de Chaleur, and the other I picked up on the Camino, on the way to Rabanal.
Lucie, our Belgian friend, leaves behind a rock that her 57 year old friend painted and gave to Lucie, before she herself was euthanized at her request, due to early onset dementia. How sad for her friend, and yet how courageous, I feel, though I know not all would agree.
People deposit their rocks all around the cross. When you first look at it you think, "How tawdry!" All these items, but not just rocks. However, those items hold strong sentimental value to those who left them behind, and we must remember that. Whether the rock is symbolic of hope, remorse, sin, forgiveness, goodbye, or love... they are ALL significant.
This was a heartfelt moment for all of us. There were tears and hugs all around.
There continues to be buckets of rain, heavy at times, light drizzle at other times.
We only do 18 km today, but we hiked up not only Cruz de Fero, but also Alto Altar. Coming down was steep and treacherous, with the rain having left mud and rivulets everywhere.
The scenery would have been spectacular, some of the best on the Camino, were it not for the rain, but still many FA moments nevertheless.
I let the pictures for Day 25, speak for themselves, as I have already posted them.
We are happy, Nancy, Baerbel, Lucie and I, to be safe and warm by early afternoon, in the dormitory of an Albergue, while the downpour continues outside.
The others are napping. I am doing what I love, sharing my Camino with those of you who tell me that my posts are "leur vitamine du Jour", the first thing they read each day, and which they look forward to reading on a daily basis.
C'est le partage, tout simplement. Everything is better shared, and that too, is The Camino Way.
By the way:
J'ai perdu le tissu pour nettoyer mes lunettes, encore une fois. Hier, Nancy en a trouvé un près de la clôture des croix, entre des roches. Elle l'a lavé et me l'a présenté dans notre chambre hier soir, en surprise. Que j'étais contente. That is so Nancy, always thinking of others.
BTW, I lost it at Cruz de Fero!
Nancy is on her third poncho, in two days. I am still wearing the one Linda gave that she told me was twenty years old.
One last BTW:
I was trying to get onto my top bunk bed last night. There was no ladder. The closest chair had an apparatus for drying wet clothes, attached to it and attached to a second chair, so I dared not move either. A behemoth of a man, German, barely missing a stride on his way back from the bathroom, saw my predicament, threw me over his shoulder like a fireman and plopped me onto my bunk! Just like that! Then he kept going!
Bonne fête à mon neveu Jesse. Gros bisous!
Avec amour et reconnaissance de Acebo, Espagne.
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