Albergues in high season
Demetrio Sánchez Chamorro arrives in Zamora walking from Seville. He set off with a travel companion from Granada, but they eventually separated because they walked at different paces, and the idea is to enjoy the Camino in total freedom. It doesn’t matter; the Jacobean route offers excellent opportunities to meet people. And to practice languages. In fact, Demetrio was the only Spaniard among the dozen or so pilgrims who reached the capital of Zamora yesterday and were passing the time eating a sandwich until one in the afternoon, the official opening time of the facilities on Cuesta de San Cipriano.
The arrival of spring and good weather increases the number of pilgrims who take to the long paths of the Vía de la Plata, one of the historic routes to obtain the jubilee in Santiago de Compostela.
Demetrio says that, at least based on what he has seen along his journey, most pilgrims are German and Italian. And there were examples of both nationalities yesterday at the doors of the albergue. Dovid Fizcher was one of these Germans, a young man travelling the Camino de Santiago alone who gets by with his English, since he barely understands a few words of Spanish. He started the Camino in Mérida and yesterday completed the stage from the Villanueva de Campeán albergue to the city of Zamora, about twenty kilometres.
Italian pilgrim Simone Zacconi, speaking in perfect Spanish, shares his experience since he left Seville. “The Camino is well marked, except for the stretch from Galisteo to Baños de Montemayor.” Indeed, Demetrio confirms that this section is “very poorly marked; we had to climb fences, and you could see people lost everywhere.” In contrast, in the province of Zamora the yellow arrows are perfectly placed, and the albergues are good, both the one in El Cubo, where the Spaniard stayed, and the one in Villanueva, where Simone spent the night. “In Villanueva there are two albergues, one municipal and one private. I stayed in the private one, but they’re similar and cost the same, six euros.” There are certainly no complaints about the accommodation, since pilgrims avoid luxury, although they do need the basics in good condition: a place to take a shower, somewhere to rest, and a bed to sleep in before setting off again the next morning.
The most common type of pilgrims are those who travel the Camino on foot. Normally, as in Demetrio’s case, this is not their first time going to Santiago. “Last year I walked the French Way, I liked the experience and decided to repeat it. I plan to walk them all, there are 16, and I’m starting with the longest ones.” Although most people begin the adventure alone, there is no shortage of opportunities to meet others with whom to share experiences. “There’s no problem, because people who walk the Camino are very friendly,” the Spaniard says. The Italian agrees, adding that the interaction with locals in the places the Camino passes through is also good.
Pilgrims collect stamps on their credencial in the different albergues they pass through. In a few days they will reach Santiago, the final destination of a journey in which, as almost always, the most important part is not arriving, but the Camino itself.
Source: La Opinión de Zamora
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