Segovia

Les’ travel arrangements for taxi and the train to Segovia worked. We still had lots of energy to enjoy the beautiful city. On the way to the pensión, I stopped at a bank for cash, and then another and another. Five banks altogether rejected my bank card. I had only 60€ and Spain is a cash country. We asked at the info centre if there was any reason. They couldn’t think of one but did tell us that the next day was a fiesta day and all the banks would be closed if we wanted to ask a bank we had five minutes to do so as they were all closing st 2pm. We stood in line behind a few people who were being served by a woman who looked seriously sugar low. When it was our turn she looked at my card and said “it’s the Royal Bank!”  She has no clue so out we went. A few hours later Les tried a bank that we had never heard of and that charged us 4.50€ for the transaction but we were well past the point of caring. We are now in the money!!

And these are Les’ comments on the day which he wrote the next day. 

Last evening watching the sun go down before the food arrived. Mary was really hungry but it was amazing what a glass of really good wine can do to reduce the effects of low blood sugar.
We are now in a very small place called Sta Maria la Real de Nievo in a 6 bed albergue. We have still yet to see another pilgrim. We actually took a bus from Segovia...35 minutes rather than 7+ hours of walking. It is hot at 26 degrees in the shade and there is no shade and no services so we had no problem spending 2.60 Euros for the bus ride. The albergue is a renovated old barn where migrant farm workers used to sleep at harvest time. Quite nice but no hot water because there is a problem at present with the system and they have been waiting for three days for the electrician to fix it....ah, small village in Spain....but at 5€ a night who are we to complain. It has a small kitchen and bathroom with shower.....but the latter will not be used by us.

We are off to the one local store and then to the one (of two) bars that has wifi. 

Tomorrow we have about a 25km hike and we will start early to get some distance in before it gets into the mid to high 20’s (in the shade).