Camino Inglés Return 14 - 15/10/2023

 


Well, this did not go as scheduled at all! At 9 o’clock I was having what the French call a “grasse matinée” with my bus only leaving around 11 o’clock. However I looked up the exact departure time and discovered that that was 8:50h!!! Where I had got this idea of 11ish from I do not know and cannot imagine!

Panik! 

Here I was lying in bed, having happily sorted out the blog, some more photos - now I knew how to do it - my belongings scattered all over the place, nothing packed, not having had a shower, nor breakfast.  And what do I do now???  I did not even try to see whether there was anything available via Bordeaux to Rennes on the Flixbus site like my originally planned trip. Did briefly consider stayng another night in Santiago, but seeing the difficulties we or rather Andrea had in finding this apart hotel I quickly discarded that idea. Thursday had been a national holiday - the day of “Spanishness” - so lots of people took the Friday off work and everywhere was packed with tourists. On the Flixbus site I found a bus to Paris at 11:35h which I booked and paid by Paypal, my favourite way of paying. Except that it did not work. Paypal informed me that my bank refused making the payment “Use some other means of payment.” I did not have another means of payment. The card had caused a problem once before when I wanted to pay my hotel - 45 € - so should not present a problem with touch, but no, and then using the pin, the pin was confirmed as correct and still the system refused payment. So I went out and got cash and paid the hotel that way. NOT normal! Now in the internet of course I could not pay cash. Panik again! So in the end my daughter Alison bought the ticket for me.

Then I tried to find a train from Paris to Lannion. Available only late in the afternoon, everything earlier complete! So later, on the bus, I tried Flixbus again and managed to buy a ticket Paris to Rennes (I am sitting in this bus now). And a train ticket Rennes to Lannion changing trains in Guingamp. And for both tickets payment by my credit card was accepted !  Have to go and see my bank about this. Never have I had a problem before!

On the whole this has been a very satisfactory walk. Very enjoyable. I managed to do everything I had set out to do. More slowly than some others, but I found there were quite a few people who walked even shorter stages than I did. The right number of people to come across, not too few, not too many. No blisters, no hurting knee or toe  - not more than what I have always had at the end of the day - very tired feet (and all the rest, but not as tired as the feet), glad of a shower and lying in bed! And next time as soon as I have decided where I want to stay overnight I make the reservation….

So, everything is well which ends well! Do I want to do it again? Yes, definitely! Now looking foward to a nice apéro when I pass the house of my friend Marie-Claude!



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