Gemilas en Burgos - Part I

After Doro and I split up from Ingeborg, we walked across a busy road towards the cathedral, whose spires we could see not far away. In fact, just about anywhere in Burgos you can see the spires of the cathedral, even though it is a fairly large city. We walked through a long, tree-lined paseo, where the trees were so dense and dark overhead that the street lights were on underneath even though it was early afternoon.


As we reached the end, we rounded a corner which would take us into the man plaza and we saw what was probably a mid-range hotel, so we decided to duck in and try our luck. As soon as we entered the small lobby and the man behind the desk took a look at our obvious pilgrim attire, I knew what the answer would be--no rooms available. No trouble. I was certainly not going to push to stay were pilgrims were obviously not wanted, so we headed out and back towards the plaza. Doro had a map, and so we eventually got to a church-run alberque that would open around 1 p.m. There was a cafe across just a few yards away so we sat gratefully at a table and (what else), got a coffee. I had already decided that I didn't want a dorm-style hostal so Doro was kind enough to let me use her cell phone to call a number that was on the map. Sorry, that one was full, but the woman on the line gave me the number of another place, the Hostal Manjon on Calle Gran Teatro. I called, and explained who I was and did they have rooms? Yes, certainly. Could I come see them? Yes? Around 1:30? Yes. Great! I thanked the woman and then just had to figure out how to get there. Doro decided to wander around some of the wide streets and shops:

And I decided to have some lunch at the little cafe and see if the man inside could give me directions. Luckily, he had some maps of the main area around the cathedral that were like placemats and so was able to show me where Calle Gran Teatro was. I was happy to see that it was only several blocks further on from the paseo and the hotel where I had just been, so I ate my lunch, thanked the gentleman again and headed off to see what my luck would be at the Hostal Manjon.

When I got to the address, it was simply a door off the sidewalk in between a couple of office buildings. There was an intercom buzzer, so I pushed the button and identified myself to the voice that answered and the door was buzzed open. For the first time since leaving the US, I found myself in a building with an elevator! The small entry way had a flight of about 5 steps going up to the elevator door, and to the left another flight of steps leading down to---I couldn't see. The voice had told me to come up to the 7th floor so I was incredibly grateful for the lift, even though once I got in, it was barely big enough to hold me and my backpack.

When I reached the floor, the opposite door opened and I stepped out into a narrow hallway. I could only turn to the right, and walked a few steps into what looked like the waiting room in a doctor's office. There were a few chairs and a coffee table with a lamp and a couple of magazines, but no people, and no place for a receptionist or similar. However, the long hallway in front of me on the left continued, so I followed it until it finally turned right into another reception type area, this one with a small, trim young woman in a white smock behind a desk. Again, I identified myself, and she said she was Elena and could take me to see the room.

I followed her through a maze of narrow hallways, some dark, some lighter, with old flooring and linoleum, turning and twisting until I wasn't sure I would be able to find my way out on my own. I also noticed, however, that everything, though well used and not new, was spotless. Finally, we turned one last corner and Elena opened the door to a room. It contained a sink directly across from the door, with a small tub/shower combo right next to it on the left and on the far left, a double bed by a window. There was also a TV! And a chair. It looked like heaven. I told her at once I would take it and could I have it for 2 nights? I could. We then returned the way we came, me following behind, frantically trying to remember the way, and at the desk we made all the arrangements. She gave me the key to the room which was an old-fashioned skeleton key and I spent the rest of my time there wrestling with that key. I think you had to hold your mouth just right in order to make that silly key work!

Elena was kind enough to walk back to the room with me to demonstrate the key and show me where the toilet was--just down the hall. She stood with me while I sweated and swore under my breath trying to make the key work. Finally I got into the room by myself and told her I thought I would be okay locking it later. Then she really surprised me by asking if I cared to have any clothes washed. What a blessing! I would be able to start the next leg of my journey with all clean clothes. I told her yes, I would have some for her later and thanked her very much.

Then, I went back to the room, rummaged around to see if I had enough snack type food for some kind of dinner and gratefully took a shower in my own room and lay down for a nap!