Walking the Camino de Santiago
Refugio Gaucelmo in Rabanal del Camino is one of my favourite albergues on the whole Camino. It’s operated by the UK Confraternity of Saint James, and it is an abosolute oasis of tranquillity. This is the view of the backyard, with all the pilgrim washing hung out to dry, ours included. As you can see, it turned out to be […]
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It seems appropriate that on today’s Solemnity of Saint Joseph, we see the interior of the Ermita de San José: the hermitage of Saint Joseph in Rabanal. Stijn impulsively went in, and we followed. Praise God for that, because this little place is a wonder; a place of peace and refreshment. May you have all the joy of the feast! […]
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Stijn impulsively leads us into a door at Rabanal del Camino that I’ve never actually been through before. What could possibly be inside? And what’s with the curtain? Date: 21 April 2016 Place: Rabanal del Camino (Castilla y León, Spain)
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This door in Rabanal del Camino probably has nothing to do with the Irish saint, but it was hard to resist posting it on Saint Patrick’s Day! No, the photo’s not crooked – the door is built to mirror the slope of the road. Look up at the windows, and they’re perfectly level! Date: 21 April 2016 Place: Rabanal del […]
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This is the entrance to the village of Rabanal del Camino. Or, as I like to call it, “the Disneyland of the Camino”. The village is impossibly orderly and clean, as if the Imagineers set out to create a “typical Camino village”. For all that, it’s a lovely place to spend the night. There are several churches, including a small […]
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We met these folks as we approached the entrance to the village of Rabanal del Camino. The seemed content, and they certainly didn’t appear to have walked nearly as far as we had today. Since most of the Camino is rural, hardly a day went by without meeting cows or sheep or chickens or horses or all of the above. […]
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On our approach to Rabanal, there are a couple of places where the path sort of vanished, and we were forced to walk on the road. This is not ideal, but at least there were signs to warn the motorists. On the far right, you can see the sign for Rabanal as well. Note the undulating terrain. We are walking […]
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This photo tells the tale of the afternoon. Walking beside the motorway under sudden rain squalls, followed by sunny breaks. By mid-afternoon, the storm clouds had left for good. The terrain, while not steep or rough, was a constant up, up, up into the hills. Here Francine and Stijn chat as we make our way up to Rabanal. Date: 21 […]
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The village of El Ganso dates back to at least the 11th century, when it had a hostel (which the town is probably named after) and a Premonstratensian monastery. Today, it has perhaps 25 inhabitants. This is the entrance to the parish church, dedicated to Santiago. Atop the bell tower, you will note a stork nest, a common feature of […]
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The Cowboy Bar in El Ganso is one of a kind on the Camino. The outside is distinctive, and the interior as you can see is crowded and… memorable. We stopped here just after noon and had our lunch here, including ice cream as I recall. Thus fortified, we would set out for Rabanal. Date: 21 April 2016 Place: El […]
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