Camino Day 24: Calzadilla de los Hermanillos to Religios

Today was our last day of long, empty stretches of meseta. We had the usual pilgrim breakfast of toast or croissant, butter, jam, cafe con leche, and fresh orange juice, and were excited to find yogurt among the fare. We then headed out across 11 miles of empty farmland, bocadillos in our packs.

The sun was warm at our backs and a light breeze blew. It is always difficilt, no matter the weather, to face a long, empty stretch of land, without shade, picnic areas, or even interesting features. We spend much of the day guessing at how far we've traveled and how far we've left to walk, judging by the slightly abstracted markers in our guide.

At 11 miles, we found Religios. Though we intended to continue on another 4 miles to Mansilla de los Mulas, it was getting late and we couldn't reach the alburgue there. Rather than risk continuing without beds in our future, we called it an early day and stayed in Religios. 7 days ago, I would have felt bitter, maybe even slow and lazy, but not any more. I considered the surprise early stop a gift from the Camino, and settled down in the sun to enjoy cerveza con limon-- beer mixed with lemonade.