A Pre-Camino Stay in Burgos, Spain

One of the odder biographical details about me is that my parents met in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in the 1980s. A couple years after my mom finished her two year around-the-world trip, she decided to up and move to Saudi Arabia with her friend Joan to work as a nurse at the King Faisal Hospital. My dad was stationed there in the army and they met at a house party, which was one of the major social outlets for expats in a country where alcohol was illegal.

My Dad has stayed friends with a couple he was friends with at the the time who also lived in Riyadh. Their names are Cullen and Palma. Cullen and Palma have “caught the bug” of the Camino. They walked the Frances in 2010 and Portugese in 2016. They’ve also acted as “hospitaleros” who host pilgrims along their journey to Camino de Santiago. When my dad found out I wanted to walk El Camino, he suggested I reach out to Cullen and Palma.

As luck would have it, Cullen and Palma were planning to be hospitaleros this spring in Burgos, Spain. Hospitaleros are volunteers who staff the albergues (pilgrim hostels) along the Camino. I didn’t want to pass up the opportunity to meet these friends of my parents from 35+ years ago, so I adjusted my plan so that I could meet up with them at their albergue in Burgos.

When I arrived in Burgos at Albergue parroquial Casa de Peregrinos Emaús I was greeted by a lovely French woman named Marie Nöelle who asked me where I was from and where I was coming from. Hosts ask this because they want to make sure you are a pilgrim and that you didn’t just drive up to the albergue. They later confirm this when they check the credentials pilgrims carry around in order to prove they are on The Way. I told her who I was and her face lit up. “Oh, Cullen and Palma!”

It was a thrill to meet this couple that knew my parents prior to my existence. Cullen reminded me a lot of my dad, both in his temperament and in the way he dressed. Palma could not have been nicer and was very curious to learn about my life and what led me to The Camino.

Prior to arriving Cullen gave me the rundown of the albergue:

“It is a parochial Albergue, ie religious . They highly recommend you go to evening mass
You are required to eat with the other pilgrims in a communal meal
After dinner there a little spiritual discussion and the we send you to bed
You can only stay one night. After breakfast at 7 am you have to leave. ”

This all worked perfectly for me since I needed to head off to Irun the next day to get my own pilgrimage started. I also knew my mom would love that I was coerced into going to mass as a part of my journey. The price of the albergue was right too, at 5€ a night. It was the perfect send-off for my Camino.

The albergue itself was very nice, with updated facilities. It shares the building with a chapel and priest residences, so they require that you be pretty quiet at all times. There are people praying in the chapel 24/7, so they do not want you to disturb them. The only other pilgrim at the albergue (It’s early in the season) was a camino veteran named Jose. After visiting with Cullen and Palma for a bit I headed out to Burgos Cathedral prior to mass.

The Cathedral is quite spectacular, but you’ll have to ask me again after I finish my Camino how it ranks compares to the dozens I will inevitably see.

The mass back at the albergue was a really cool experience. There was a lot more recitation than I remember from my days going to Catholic Mass every Sunday. It was, however, entirely in Spanish. I followed along as best as I could. After the Eucharist, the priest blessed the pilgrims and even said a blessing in honor of my mom. He then had the pilgrims walk to the front so he could directly bless us. He touched the top of my head with both of his hands and then did the sign of the cross on my forehead. It was a beautiful moment.

We all ate dinner together after Mass and then sat in a circle to recite a prayer for the pilgrims in three different languages. This was followed by each one of us sharing our reasons for doing the Camino. I explained that I am doing the Camino for my mom, because it was something she wanted to do but no longer could.

Monday night prayer circle is new for me.

I left the next morning energized to begin my Camino.