Camino de Santiago del Norte
Day 4 (plus a rest day!)
This is a camino of gratitude for me. Each day, I choose something I am grateful for in my life and think and journal about it throughout the day. I will share an excerpt from my journal entries at the end of each day’s post.
Day 4: Liendo to Santoña ~ 6.9 miles
21 September 20172
This was a lovely and interesting day’s walk, shorter than the last two days. In the early morning I walked up and over a cliff to a lovely view of the seaside town of Laredo. Entering the city through the old gate was magical. At the end of the promenade I walked out onto the beach to catch the ferry to Santoña.
![View of beach and cliffs near Laredo, Spain](https://cathleensodyssey.com/wp-content/uploads/Day-4-1.jpg)
![View of Laredo Spain from the hills above](https://cathleensodyssey.com/wp-content/uploads/Day-4-2.jpg)
![Old gate to enter Laredo](https://cathleensodyssey.com/wp-content/uploads/Day-4-3.jpg)
![Ferry from Laredo to Santona](https://cathleensodyssey.com/wp-content/uploads/Day-4-4.jpg)
![Camino Journal Day 4](https://cathleensodyssey.com/wp-content/uploads/Journal-day-4.jpg)
Rest & Work Day in Santoña
23 September 20172
Occasionally I have to stop for a day to rest my bones and to catch up on the work I do while traveling: designing book interiors for clients back home. Right now, I am working on a hiking book. How appropriate! I feel so grateful that I can do this work from just about anywhere in the world!
I fell in love with this town across the bay from Laredo. I was lucky. This was a fiesta weekend in Laredo and I walked through the town on Friday early afternoon before the festivities started and thus avoided all the weekend crowds. Instead, I had a room on the second floor of the pilgrim’s albergue with a tiny balcony overlooking the plaza of Santoña.
![Overlooking the plaza in Santona](https://cathleensodyssey.com/wp-content/uploads/Day-4-7.jpg)
The families gather here in the evenings, especially on the weekends, and the chatter that I hear below late into the night reminds me that I am definitely not at home. The chatter provides a comfortable backdrop to my sleep for some reason.
The food here was stupendous—really amazing! For 11 Euros, a friend and I got the menu del dia at the restaurant next door (2 courses, a pitcher of wine, and dessert). My grilled red tuna was absolutely devine, and it was followed by a dessert that was like just the custard part of cheesecake. We both had to take a siesta after that.
![Pilgrim's meal of filet of tuna in Santona](https://cathleensodyssey.com/wp-content/uploads/Day-4-6.jpg)
![Fellow pilgrim pouring wine in Santona](https://cathleensodyssey.com/wp-content/uploads/Day-4-5.jpg)
Both evenings in Santoña , Marieanne (from Germany) and I visited an excellent tapas bar. The food was a work of art. It was so hard to decide what to try and they had different things each night.
How, you ask, was I able to eat anything after that full lunch?
I managed…
![Tapas in santona](https://cathleensodyssey.com/wp-content/uploads/Day-4-10.jpg)
![Tapas in santona](https://cathleensodyssey.com/wp-content/uploads/Day-4-9.jpg)
![Tapas in santona](https://cathleensodyssey.com/wp-content/uploads/Day-4-8.jpg)
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Camino: Day 17
The village was special enough just in itself…narrow cobbled streets, stone houses…exactly what you would think of for a traditional village in Spain. But imagine my surprise when I came upon these trompe l’oeil paintings!
![Old church steeple with a tree growing out of the side](https://cathleensodyssey.com/wp-content/uploads/Camino-Day-30-Bell-Tower.jpg)
Camino: Day 30
It is funny, I don’t tend to miss people much—that is probably why I can be gone from home for months on end. But I sometimes feel guilty because I think I should miss people more—like I am not being a very good friend.
![elevation map of the walk from La Mesa to Grande de Salime](https://cathleensodyssey.com/wp-content/uploads/Day-28-8.jpg)
Camino: Day 28
Today turned out to be a beautiful walk, even if it was tough in its own way. It was a clear fall day which made the pumpkins in the fields and beside the road pop out with their orange color.
1 thought on “Camino:: Day 4”
I bet with all this walking your calorie intact doesn’t matter at all. Lovely post.