From Villacázar de Sirga to Terradillos de Templarios, Day 17, 33km

Am sitting in the reception of my Albergue watching a conversation unfold between some very tired pilgrims who just arrived after walking 35km and were told the whole town was full. The woman broke down in tears after being told that the next town was another 5km. The heat is back and the day was a long one...

Today was the 'crazy' stretch! It is 'crazy' because it was 17km of nothing but flat straight road ahead, and after walking around 4 hours on it, you felt a little crazy in your mind. The little yellow and blue birds perching themselves on bare trees, flew from branch to branch and followed us all day. Every now and then there would be a picnic bench to sit on and half way along the great bland length of road, a man pulled up with a trailer selling cold drinks and food. This stretch of gravel road was built by the Romans and pilgrims have been using it for 2,000 years. It is an area of bogland devoid of the stones required to construct it. They estimate that 100,000 tons of rock were required to construct the base layer of the road to raise it! Pilgrims were a respected sort back then. These days, some of the Spanish welcome you with open arms, a warm 'buenos dias' and an open door. Others, however, look at you, and despite the sweetness of your smile or the cheeriness of your greeting, they look on, right through you. I am not surprised by this when I see the litter on the pilgrim trodden roads, but then, the pilgrims keep some of these small towns alive. It is encouraging to here the camino salute, 'buen camino' (have a good journey) from strangers walking by and toots and waves from the truck drivers.

My leg ached today. Last night I kept waking every time I turned over from the discomfort. If I was going to come across a pharmacy today, I was going to get I checked, but instead, after the 'crazy' stretch, I met the camino ambulance! The ambulance crew consisted of 3 rather large Spaniards who somehow all squeezed into the front seat of the small ambulance van... And none of them spoke a word of English! I stopped and had some lunch then approached them as they were having a break. "Do I need to make an appointment?" I joked. They ushered me in to the ambulance and all 4 of us squeezed in to the back. They took the process very seriously, looked at my leg, moved my ankle, proceeded to bandage it, did some dusting inside the van, got my name, age and nationality then told me to go 21km by taxi and see a doctor (a lovely American boy came and translated for me!) they then shoved a book in my face, gave me a pen and waited for me to write! I looked at the other messages and they were 'thank you's' from other injured pilgrims. By this stage, I was not actually sure what they had done and what I could be thankful for! I thought about it, smiled and wrote a thank you for the entertainment they provided! I did leave their company laughing.

I decided to walk the 9km to my destination and the doctor could wait until the morning. Mike (Canadian from yesterday) had met us at the cafe. As I walked away he asked if he could take anything from my pack to lighten my load. I responded with "I carry my own burdens Mike, but thank you!". He is lovely - a gentleman, but I don't like the feeling of owing anyone - or maybe it's a pride thing?

This last 9km was incredibly hard. I struggled and the Scottish man I was talking to for that last stretch was so lost in his own arrogance that my grimacing and occasional stops went unnoticed and he carried on talking about the most important thing to him, himself. Then the Albergue came into view. Thank heavens!

I laid on my bed and my eyes welled up. The last thing I want is a stress fracture or an injury that will effect me post camino. I got my washing organised and stood under the excuse for a shower (I know I sound like I am grumbling, but it was no more than a dribble in the shower and went from scorching hot to freezing! yeah yeah, I hear you, at least I have a bed! And it's better than nothing!)

So I set myself up in the reception to write the blog and my dear friends, Sylvia and Mike came in. "You need to get ice on your leg!" they said. So Mike went to the owner, the Albergue warden, to get it organised. She came over and placed her hand on my leg, which is really really hot (not looking hot, feeling hot!). She got me some ice, gave me a tube of voltaren to apply and some anti-inflammatory tablets to take. Her instructions were, take a tablet now, one at dinner and one in the morning. Keep my leg elevated, even over dinner. Don't walk long distances over the next 3 days and avoid the doctor as he will say 'no more camino.' This has left me feeling lost. I think when your body is dealing with pain, you are more tired and maybe I just need some time in the sun to relax for a bit and work out what to do.

The next town with a doctor is around 13km away, Sahagún. I might actually pull in here for the day and take it easy... Like the Albergue warden suggested. Will decide from there. There is a bit at stake... If I start taking it easy, I will lose Sylvia as she is on a tight schedule. Feeling sad today... Lost and sad and tired... Will end on that note before I start to cry... again! (sometimes its really inconvenient to be an emotionally sensitive female, damn it!)

For now, adios my dear ones...