9/27 We arrive in the outskirts of Burgos mid-day. There was Camino talk of danger in the outskirt neighborhoods, but I don’t feel it. In fact, we aren’t seeing anyone at all. I’m excited to reach the first major city on the Camino where I plan to spend two nights. My guidebook recommends securing a place to stay before sightseeing, so I’m anxious to do that. Clara is anxious about finding a place to print her boarding pass. My head starts to hurt, so I take my migraine medicine. But the medicine makes me jittery, and I feel my blood sugar plummet. This happens sometimes if I wait too long to eat. Besides wanting to reach the city center to find a place to stay, I also need to find some food quickly. My mood is dropping with my blood sugar, and Clara seems confused by my irritability. I don’t want this tension for our last day together.

Finally, I find an open bakery and buy a croissant which helps a little. As we reach the city center, I start looking for a room at the hostels my guidebook suggests. Most hostels won’t allow two nights, only one. I don’t understand this until later when a pilgrim tells me that hostels are required to rent rooms at a discounted rate for pilgrims so they limit stays to one night. I’d have to move to a different hostel for the second night. My other option was the communal albergues, but I opted out of that. Clara and I spot a luxury hotel and Clara is able to persuade them to help her print her boarding pass. I’m anxious to return to the one moderate hostel we came across that would rent two nights. Clara and I part ways and agree to meet back at the hotel.

When we meet up again we find a place to have a sitdown, late lunch al fresco. I’m aware that after this meal I will be saying goodbye to Clara. I feel sad and long for an emotional conversation that gives me closure. But Clara is sensible and maybe keeping her feelings to herself. I can’t tell. But I’m disappointed when we finally do say goodbye with thoughts divided. When will I get to ever see Clara again? When never seeing someone again is the case, the goodbye especially stings with the finality. Clara was special to me. She really helped me recover from my painful ambivalence about being on the Camino. She helped me survive the extraordinary heatwave. She alleviated some of the ever-haunting loneliness of being a solo traveler. Goodbye Clara. Thank you, Clara. She walks away and disappears like a bubble.

Disengaged from Clara, I feel the rush of freedom that drives my solo adventure. I walk around a bit deciding what sightseeing I’ll do tomorrow. When I’m not sightseeing I want to stay off my feet to give them a rest. So I head back to my room and turn on Spanish television. Just the sound in the background keeps me company. Later I go out to find a grocery where I buy a can of smoked oysters, a box of crackers, and some fruit for dinner. Walking back to my hostel I almost get hit by a car. These narrow, curving, stone streets are blocked from cars in the daytime, but in the evening I notice the metal poles that had blocked some of the streets sunk down and disappeared. Soon the sun follows suit, and I sleep early in order to end the difficult day.