"I can see clearly now.." Belorado to Burgos

What a difference a bit of sun makes. A few days ago we toiled into Santa Domingo and all we could see ahead were ponchoed pilgrims hunched under heavy packs. In the sun the greetings of "Buon camino" as we pass people now seem more heartfelt and enthuisiastic. We´ve done 75 km in three days and we´re starting to enjoy the walking now that we´re healed up.

We did have a night in an old monastery in St Juan de Ortega where we shared a cold dorm with about 80 snoring pilgrims. Plenty of showers but no hot water and they still charged 5 Eu per night. The place closed at 10.00pm so we only saw the first half of the European Cup Final. The only bar in the village closed at 10.00 anyway (you could choose a variant on black pudding or an omlette for the meal-Jill would have loved it-divorce would have been imminent. Irv was so unhappy that he wanted out so much that I found him loading his rucksack by the light of his headlamp in the pre-dawn which is very unlike him. He kept muttering "medieval, bluddy medieval mun".

The walk to Burgos was great. We passed Neolithic stones, stopped to look at storks nesting and stopped to admire the landscape. Just lovely.

The good weather makes it easier to stop and talk to other pilgrims and we´ve met some great people. A smashing Kiwi couple who I just talked rugby with (not feet related!). A young guy from Cork who had to do 32km a day to keep on schedule. He only had a 5kg pack but at the expense of not having packed what some people consider as basics (sleeping bag and underpants). We´ve belted out "Sospan Fach" on the request from a couple of Ozzies and demanded "Waltzing Matila" in return. We¨ve even been wished "Iechyd da" by a Swedish lady (who had more than a hint of the Bridgette Neilson about her-she was about 2 foot taller than me) who had lived and worked in Cardiff and had taken Welsh lessons. Irv on left.

We reached Burgos and found a pension for 18 eu each per night which has two double beds, a bath and water that will take the skin off your hand. Never mind the Cathedral, the numerous bronzes and palaces (one where Isabella of Spain met Chris Colombus before his second trip). Just give me a soft bed and a hot bath.