Wait, what is an Albergue?

An albergue is essentially a hostel for pilgrims on The Camino. Most albergues are private; they are for-profit entities that are run like a business. Many private albergues are cozy, promote the spirit of the Camino and do communal dinners. Many are faceless macro-albergues – designed to be as minimal and functional as possible – yet lack any of the charm or human connection that embodies The Camino. These albergues do serve a purpose – sometimes a pilgrim just needs a good night of sleep and does not necessarily want to connect with others.

There are also municipal albergues. These are run by the local town government and often have a cheap price with very basic accommodations (think war hospital vibes). They are usually staffed by a local functionary or teenagers doing their community service for their civics class. These Albergues can sometimes be great places to meet and connect with other pilgrims – but it depends on the day and the setup. Sometimes there are no communal areas to facilitate connections, simply functional rooms with beds for sleeping.

My favorite type of albergue is an ‘Albergue Donativo.’ These albergues are staffed by volunteers, former pilgrims who want to participate in The Camino in a unique way; not as pilgrims, but as hospitaleros voluntarios. There is no price for the albergue and nothing is charged. There is simply a donation box to cover the maintenance costs (food, gas, electricity, etc). The ethos of Albergue Donativos are to unconditionally accept everyone without expecting anything in return and to facilitate the spirit of The Camino.

What is the spirit of The Camino? Communal dinners. Shared experiences. Pilgrim connections. A safe and comfortable place to take refuge from the rough day of walking. A place where everyone is included and everyone contributes. A break from the commercial albergues and a chance to connect with hospitalero voluntarios who are truly passionate about helping fellow pilgrims and facilitating Camino magic.

Why did I sign up for it?

I was first drawn to the idea of being a Hospitalero Voluntario when I walked from Bilbao to Santiago. I stayed at ‘Albergue de Peregrinos de Pobeña’ and had a wonderful time. The volunteers organized an outdoor dinner and celebration due to the local festivities. It was a cozy and basic accommodation, but the hosts did a great job to make us comfortable and facilitate connections through good vibes and delicious food. That was when the seed was first planted. How cool would it be to actually work in an albergue and give back to the community? To participate in the camino not as a pilgrim but as a Albergue administrator. Facilitate pilgrim connections, give the hospitality and warm welcome that I so desired as a pilgrim. Create a communal dinner for shared moments – something that I yearn for as a pilgrim – and something that can sometimes be so elusive.

After completing El Camino Norte, I decided to become a Hospitalero Voluntario. I emailed the coordinator and signed up for the required weekend course to learn about the ethos of Albergue Donativos. The course was set to start in the Spring of 2020 – but as we all know, COVID put a hold on that. Two years later in February of 2022, I was finally attending the weekend course – in none other than Logroño the place of my Spanish “birth” as I like to call it. It was the first city I lived in when I moved to Spain in the Fall of 2016 to have a year long european sabbatical (that still continues to this day). It was surreal to be back there, nearly 6 years later, this time as a wisened expat, learning how to be a Hospitalero Voluntario with 15 other camino ‘frikis’ (nerds) who were just as excited as me to join the club and run their own albergue for 2 weeks. The course was great fun – exciting to meet other Camino aficionados, hear their stories and learn about the theory of the hospitalero voluntario movement.

I completed the course and gave my availability for the year. The commitment is 1 quincena per year (quincena = 15 days). It’s either the first half or second half of the month. I was assigned to work at the Albergue Parroquial in Bercianos del Real Camino – a tiny pueblo 45 minutes outside of the city of Leon on El Camino Frances. First quincena of September. I put it on the calendar, the wacky finale of a summer full of hiking adventures.

I excitedly researched the town and looked at photos on google maps. Wow, it looks like a prison from the outside! The town is tiny and reminds me of South America. It’s nearly an 8 hour drive from Dénia. This will be an adventure.

The Preparation

In the weeks leading up to it, I started to become increasingly anxious. What have I gotten myself into?! I’m going to run an albergue with 2 other volunteers – complete strangers – for 15 days straight?! Will I survive? Will I run out of social energy? Will I have time to recharge my batteries? There were lot’s of unknowns. It would be completely outside my comfort zone; but I couldn’t be more excited for the experience.

The summer was a busy one – El Camino Portuguese in July followed by a few weeks of summer downtime. Then another hiking trip, this time an intense 6 days in the Pyrenees on La Senda de Camille with some friends. It was stunningly beautiful and super challenging mentally and physically: 7-8 hours of hiking per day through the most jaw-dropping mountain scenery I’ve ever experienced. After the Pyrenees, Steph and I spent some time touring the North – a day in Pamplona and 2 days in Logroño. Then, Steph grabbed a bus back to Logroño and I drove the 4 hours to Leon to start this wacky albergue experience. The nerves reached a crescendo on the day that I was due to start.

The hardest part is the initial arrival. The breaking of the ice. The complete unknown. I stopped in Burgos on the way and went on a bike ride – I needed some alone time to decompress and get myself mentally ready for the challenge that lay ahead.

The Arrival

I finally arrived at the albergue and saw a single pilgrim outside, calmly playing guitar. Before I exited the car, one of the current hospitaleros, Juan Manuel, greeted me and started showing me around. It was a whirlwind of information; a crash course in running the albergue. Juan Manuel explained to me the precise way he cleans the beds, the exact ratio of bleach to water, his technique for identifying bed bugs, where all the supplies are located, etc. It was a lot to absorb.

I met the other two current volunteers: Suzete and Regina. Suzete is a kind Brazilian woman who has walked many caminos – in Spain and Brazil. She’s very detail-oriented, great at explaining things, super helpful and a very hard worker. She didn’t speak English but through a combination of Portuguese and pseudo-Spanish, I was able to understand her based on the context. She seemed to understand most things I said to her in Spanish. However, if she tried to explain something to me with no context (details about her daughter, her previous life, etc) – it would be challenging to understand. Despite the language differences she proved to be a very valuable asset – showing us the ins and outs of how to run the albergue and patiently explaining everything. Regina is a French woman who spoke a high level of Spanish and was very much into the spiritual side of the Camino, leading the post-dinner Ceremonia de Luz (more on that later).

Just to clarify – these 3 hospitaleros were the current ones – they had already worked for 2 weeks. In a few days, they would be gone.

Later on that evening, I meet one of my new co-workers for the next 2 weeks: Walter, an Italian man in his mid 40’s. He had a big grin on his face when I first met him and I found out that he traveled 15 hours in car from Genova. He understood my initial question in Spanish but I quickly discovered that he has virtually no Spanish or English language skills. How are we going to run a 40-person Albergue when we can’t even verbally communicate with each other?? The arrival of the third hospitalero kept hope alive that this wouldn’t be a completely stressful and insane experience. Turns out, she never arrived – apparently she contracted COVID right before the start of her term. Madre Mia, it’s Walter and I for two weeks – this sounds like the premise to a wacky reality TV show

The first 24 hours was a blur of learning new things, seeing how the albergue is being run, and helping the pilgrims. Juan Manuel is very detail oriented, showed us all the specific little chores he does such as hammering the loose nails into the bench so that the pilgrims don’t get their clothes snagged. Each hospitalero has their own style, their own way of doing things. There’s no oversight, there’s no guidebook, there’s no gameplan, there’s no boss. We make it up on the fly and do our best. We’re in charge here!

After learning that we will only be 2 hospitaleros, Suzete decided to stay for a few extra days to help us out and show us the ropes. She’s on top of it; very organized, has efficient systems for everything, very thoughtful and helpful – a true pro hospitalero. Walter, on the other hand, seems completely lost and frustrated. He understands zero of what is being communicated by Suzete and Regina. This is a problem because it’s essentially our training to be prepared for the next two weeks! At times, it seems like he doesn’t want to be there; he checks his phone a lot, takes a nap 5 minutes before we’re opening the albergue, disappears for a coffee at important moments of the training. What will we do if 40 people show up on the first day it’s just the two of us?? I’m a bit stressed but confident that it will all work out. In the end it’s a donation-based albergue – not a five star hotel! We’ll do our best and make it work.

The Schedule

For 15 days straight, we essentially followed the same exact schedule. We did the same tasks, same procedures and same events. The only difference was that the wave of pilgrims was completely different. It was an interesting social experiment. For about 19 hours we shared space and time with an eclectic group of pilgrims, welcoming them into our albergue, helping resolve their problems, feeding them both with food and spiritual connections, and finally providing a safe place to sleep. The only thing that remained constant from day to day was Walter, myself, the town characters and the albergue. It was an oddly comforting rhythm. We felt a strong purpose to adhere to it, to execute on the plan, to prepare for it. All actions were meaningful, energy was conserved. At times, it was pure flow. There was never a dull moment.

6:00-10:00h Breakfast, Buen Camino and Chores

Breakfast was officially served from 6:00-7:30h; but the pilgrims could start it at 4AM if they wanted to – it was simply set up and left out the night before. By 7AM, most pilgrims were already starting their Camino. There was always a few stragglers that liked to take their time in the mornings.

Walter was in charge of breakfast and took pride in creating quite the extravagant spread; much more elaborate than the typical Camino desayuno of bread, jam and butter. He even offered to fry up some eggs – the Pilgrims were pleasantly surprised by this service.

For me, the morning was a time to give myself a proper meal (massive bowl of oats, peanut butter, banana and seeds) and prepare for the day. Towards the end of my stint, I made a habit of eating breakfast at the reception desk – a final chance to say goodbye to the pilgrims and get some nice dopamine boosting well-wishes: “Thanks for everything it was the highlight of my Camino experience!”

If I was feeling extra ambitious, I would immediately start on the morning chores the moment that the pilgrims left their beds. Spray and wipe down beds with bleach, launder the bedsheets, mop and sweep the sleeping areas, stairs and reception area. The goal of the morning chores is be to transform the place into an albergue ready to accept pilgrims. It was a race against time – the first pilgrims start entering when we open at 13:30 – so the earlier we finish the chores, the more free time we have before opening. As the days went on, we got it down to a science – and usually finished everything by 9AM.

After our chores, we would sit at the reception desk, open the donation box and count the previous days earnings. We were usually pleased with the results; the donations hovered around 10 euros / person. I’m sure some people left none and some people left more.

10:00-13:30h

Free time. The few hours of free time were made so much more enjoyable due to the scarcity; we didn’t have much of them so they were absolutely cherished. Some examples of free time activities:

• Episodes of Breaking Bad
• Bike ride around town or to the next/previous pueblo on The Camino
• Coffee at a local bar
• Walk my own 30 minute Camino
• Nap

13:30-17:30h La Acogida de Peregrinos

The welcoming of Pilgrims. This is one of the most important jobs of Hospitaleros. The Pilgrim has walked for many hours. They are tired, thirsty, hungry. They got lost trying to find the Albergue. Their blister started bleeding 5 KM ago. The tendonitis in their knee has reached a crescendo of near constant pain. They got stuck chatting with an annoying pilgrim who wouldn’t stop talking about his 67th Camino and The Camino it was much better 5 years ago. In short, they are exhausted and have finally reached the ‘end’ of their daily walk. They are in need of a warm welcome, a cold drink, a smiling face, a hot shower and a fresh bed. It’s the duty of the Hospitalero to provide that for them.

“Welcome!” “Would you like a cold drink?” “Have a seat, relax, you’re at home.”

The process is best when it’s done slowly and intentionally, without rushing. Sometimes there are over 30 pilgrims and the checkin is the only time that the hospitalero gets to interact with the pilgrim.

“Pilgrim credential and ID, please.”

Spanish and Camino regulations require all pilgrims to show an ID document and to record their ID number, name, country of origin, start of Camino and where they stayed the previous day. We keep all the data in a book, hand-recorded. It’s an important book – it tells us how many pilgrims we currently have, where they are from, how many beds are left.

La Acogida was one of my favorite parts of being a Hospitalero. The pilgrims arrive: miserable, smelly, exhausted, dead. At times, the reception hall looks like a bunch of soldiers returning from a war.

You are able to shine a bit of brightness on their day – their face lights up when they get offered a cold drink and a comfortable seat. Sometimes they are curious about my story – why and how I became a hospitalero, what is an American doing in deep Spain, am I walking the Camino myself. I also loved hearing their story. Sometimes they were quiet – understandably taciturn after a arduous day in the heat.

I would also explain the concept of the “Albergue Donativo” – that we are not a commercial albergue, that we are run by two volunteers, two former pilgrims. We are not a professional albergue. Have patience with us! There is no price, we don’t charge anything….but here is the donation box! But wait, don’t put it in now, we don’t want to see you do it – it’s a blind donation! We provide this service without expecting anything in return. We don’t want to know who donates and who doesn’t. Most people already had stayed in an albergue donativo – but everyday there were people who were experiencing it for the first time. Their faces looked a bit puzzled at first, but by the end of the experience I’m sure they had a better understanding of what makes the albergue donativo experience truly special.

You check them in, show them where to leave their boots, lead them to their bed. They are happy. They’ve arrived. They shower, rest, eat – then they are human again.

17:30-19:00h Communal Dinner Preparation

A big attraction of the Albergue Donativo is the Pilgrim’s Dinner. It’s a communal dinner where pilgrims can all hang out, share Camino war stories and break bread with people from all over the world, of different ages, religious backgrounds and socioeconomic statuses.

The communal dinner doesn’t cook itself – it requires a fair amount of work. It’s the Hospitalero’s job to enlist the help of Pilgrims. This is a donation-based albergue, everyone has to contribute; it’s a communal effort! There’s usually too many Pilgrims wanting to help and not enough jobs to be done. The main duties are chopping veggies for the main dish and salad, setting the table, filling jugs with wine and water. The Hospitaleros are the head chefs – running the industrial kitchen, coordinating the menu, buying the food, etc. It’s a challenging task; it requires meal planning, purchasing of supplies and delegation of duties.

The dinner-prep is usually a nice time to chat with pilgrims and facilitate pilgrim connections amongst themselves. When you work together, you bond. As a pilgrim, I know the feeling of wanting to participate more – it can become monotonous to just walk, arrive at the albergue and have food served to you. It’s sometimes fun to have a job, to have a duty, to participate as an active member of the pilgrim community. That is what the albergue donativo gives the pilgrim: community and purpose. For hospitaleros, it is taking that dopamine-producing act of working, contributing, participating in the community; distilling it down, chemically purifying it and then injecting it intravenously for 2 straight weeks. It’s a lot – but it’s also immensely rewarding.

19:00-20:00h La Cena Comunitaria

The communal dinner is the highlight of the day. A pilgrim dinner is a quintessential experience of the Camino. It’s a simple, family style dinner where bread, wine and food are shared amongst pilgrims. New friendships are forged, old friendships rekindled, random connections made. You may end up sitting next to a 79 year old German guy that you thought was unfriendly but turns out you both have the same taste in fantasy novels. Its where walls are broken down and despite age, language or class differences, everyone eats together and is equal at the table. Moments and laughs are shared. Bellies are filled. Without a doubt, the communal dinner will be the highlight of the camino for many pilgrims. Friendships may be created during the dinner that could last the rest of the camino, the rest of a lifetime.

The dinner consisted of a salad starter and then a main one-pot dish such as rice or pasta + veggies and chicken. I took control of the dinner for a few nights and made a delicious chunky vegetable garbanzo soup – making a point to not advertise it as vegan but rather as a delicious and hearty meal that stands on its own as a satisfying experience. Being a vegan, we would always have an option for fellow vegans/vegetarians. I was pleasantly surprised when people asked for it – and when they found out it was available, many people preferred it over the chicken option.

Walter was the kitchen manager most evenings, producing a hearty rice or pasta dish. At first, he didn’t want help from the pilgrims – he struggled with communication so it was easier for him to just plow through it on his own. Later on, as we improved our system, we were able to rely more on Pilgrim help to be our vegetable-chopping helpers.

The pilgrims were great help with the cleanup as well. In the beginning it was quite chaotic – everyone wanted to help but no one knew how to do it efficiently. At times there was 16 people in the small kitchen, each delivering the glass that they used – so inefficient and overly crowded! As the days went on, we improved our systems. We would enlist the help of specific people and give them jobs and in the end, there were some people that couldn’t help – there weren’t enough jobs! It was an efficient process – in 15 minutes, the dishes would be cleared and washed, tables cleaned, kitchen mopped and ready for breakfast.

20:30-21:00h La Reflexión y La Puesta del Sol

This event went by various names: Candle Ceremony, Ceremony of Light, Ceremonia de la luz. We’ll call it the Candle Ceremony.

There is a unique tradition at Bercianos to watch the sunset together after dinner. The landscape is super flat, but there happens to be a tiny hill overlooking a small pond and the surrounded farmland – that is the perfect spot to see the beautiful array of colors unleashed by the setting sun. In addition to watching the sunset, the hospitaleros usually lead a prayer or spiritual ceremony. Regina led the ceremony for the first two nights that I was there – I ended up taking the reins from her when she left and carried on the tradition.

It’s a very simple ceremony. We take a moment of silence and contemplate the sunset. Then, we read the directions of the ceremony in various languages – each page has the same exact directions:

This is the candle of The Camino.

This is the light of The Camino, light of life.

The Camino is different for everyone and everyone walks their own Camino.

When you have the candle, say what you think about The Camino, why you walk The Camino, or whatever you want to share with us.

If you don’t want to talk, pass the candle to the next person.

You may speak in your own language, and we will not translate; for don’t listen with our mind, we listen with our heart.

Basically, everyone has the chance to share why they are doing The Camino while the rest of the group listens. It is a powerful experience. Pilgrims open up about their reasons for walking and oftentimes they become emotional. Everyone listens respectfully, even if they don’t understand the words. People pour out their hearts in a therapeutic sharing of gratitude, of sorrow, of regret, of excitement. The themes are relatable and universal. It’s made even more special by the beautiful natural setting, the soft glow of golden hour light, the pink clouds, the soft breeze. Faces of emotion and tears, illuminated by an orange glow.

After the sharing, everyone holds hands and then the leader makes up a small prayer or group wish for positive vibes and no blisters on the Camino. Then everyone hugs each other and says ‘buen camino’. The night usually ends with smiles, tears, and full hearts. It’s obvious that it was a special experience for most pilgrims and it felt great to be able to provide that for them.

Some examples of things that were shared during the ceremony:

• An older Spanish man who had heart attack in NYC and began to re-evaluate his life.
• One Spanish man in his 60’s says he’s been waiting 30 years to do this – he can finally do it now that he’s retired! Lady from Navarra said the same. They seemed so damn happy.
• A young German man walked the Camino to help him with a single decision: leave his comfortable job as an engineer to open up his own alternative healing practice.
• Alba shared something really meaningful about how when she does The Camino she feels like she is her true self, but it’s much harder to feel that way in her normal life. Pretty relatable.
• “I spend all my waking hours on the computer. The Camino gives me a much needed reset in life.” -Laura, Spain.
• Casper has been walkin for 80 days – he started in Antwerp. Big smile, positive energy. He didn’t see anyone until Paris . “I’m lucky to be young and healthy. This Camino is about learning; speaking with others who are older and more experienced: and learning from them.” Learn and listen. Those seems to be recurring themes.
• A Ukrainian woman who walked 50km that day asked that everyone pray for peace and an end to the war.

21:00-22:00h Unwind

Get ready for bed, close albergue door and lock from inside.

22:00-6:00h Sleep

Retreat to albergue man cave, lock door and breathe sigh of relief. In the beginning, I found it really challenging to sleep. I would record my thoughts from the day – so much happened that I wanted to remember. I would also be emotionally charged up after leading the intense candle ceremony every night.

Characters of Bercianos

Besides Walter and Myself, there were recurring characters on the Real World Bercianos reality TV show.

Jorge. El cura del pueblo. The priest of the town. If anyone could be considered our ‘boss’ – it was him. He helps with the maintenance and logistical issues of the albergue. He checked in on us every 3-4 days to make sure we were ok, gave us advice and offered a helping hand. He was very welcoming, supportive and inclusive. He invited us to the festivities of the pueblo and I managed to join for a beautiful outdoor misa (mass) outside of a historical ermita. He was the person I turned to for any question or doubt about the albergue. He was a very helpful calming presence during the experience.

Emilio. The friendly neighbor. He has a wine cellar (a literal man-cave) next door to the albergue. He would randomly appear during the afternoon and chat with us over a glass of wine. He’s a jolly retired farmer; always offering a funny anecdote, a piece of advice or some words of wisdom. He regaled us with stories of 70+ pilgrim days when people had to sleep in the chapel on mats. He said one American hospitalero only lasted 4 days before quitting – apparently she thought it was a vacation! He would cruise around town on his old bicycle – he knows everyone. I once randomly saw him in Sahagun – the neighboring village 15km away. Small world! The final day I was able to see his bodega (wine cellar). It was originally a cave created by his grandparents – he fixed it up into a very respectable man-cave. It even has electricity and cable! He was a farmer all his life but now he’s retired. I asked him what he does all day – he says: “I wake up and if I feel like working, I work! I make wine and vinegar, I have a garden, I take care of cats. If I don’t feel like working, I don’t. It’s a good life!” Touche, Emilio – in the end it’s really having the freedom to choose which is the most important.

Maria Jesus. The garrulous owner of the only store in town. There was always quite the hullabaloo in her store; old ladies chit chatting, kids running around, people waiting in line, people yelling, sums be tallied by pencil, confused pilgrims wandering in and not following the rules to let her pick out the vegetables.

The Diaries

What follows is a day by day account my thoughts and memories of working as an Hospitalero Voluntario. I wrote them in the moment; they’ve been lightly edited for grammar and spelling.

Day 1

• I went to the pilgrim mass today in the town church. The majority of attendees were folks in their 80’s and 90’s. There were a handful of pilgrims as well – mostly young and fit. It was quite a contrast to to see the failing bodies of the local townspeople juxtaposed against the young and healthy pilgrims. I wonder if they’ve spent their whole life in the pueblo? It must be quite an experience to rarely leave the town you are from, yet you have pilgrims from all over the world passing through it every day.
• This Albergue is so creaky! You hear everything. Every step, every movement, every door being closed, every use of the bathroom.

Day 2 – Journal Notes

• I woke up at 3AM and couldn’t fall back to sleep. I was wide awake thinking about how today would go, planning out my chores, visualising the arrival of pilgrims. I eventually gave up trying to sleep, watched a few episodes of Breaking Bad and groggily rolled out of bed at 7AM.
• Today, the 4 of us went to the store and I volunteered to drive. Regina and Suzete wanted to show us the process of restocking on food, where the supermarket and vegetable warehouse is, etc. We basically have free reign to buy whatever we want, just need to save receipts. Trying to figure out what to buy in the store was comical. Walter continues to look absolutely lost and disengaged. The language is a big issue. He’s always on his phone. One good idea he had was “let’s cook the same thing every day”. When Suzete leaves, it’s going to be challenging!
• I’m getting into the rhythm. There’s always something to do, to clean, to organize, to prepare. Never a dull moment. Feeling super purposeful.
• I had some downtime when no pilgrims were arriving and decided to rip around on the bike to explore the pueblo – not a whole lot to see! It really is an aging population. A few bars, a few albergues. Not much but The Camino, old people and a church. I can do a lap on my bike in less than 2 minutes. I biked a few km’s up the camino – it’s a dead straight tree lined street. Tomorrow, hopefully will have more time for a proper ride.
• There were 6 pilgrims checked in – a French, Portuguese, 2 Australians and a Belgium. I thought it would be a slow day – but then there was another wave in the later afternoon! An interesting duo that entered was Jose from Uruguay and Paco from Spain. Both appeared to be in their late 60’s and were exhausted; their appearance was disheveled and haggard. Paco was rather overweight and had a giant bag with him. The poor guy looked to be in pain, he was gasping for breath. He seemed a bit out of it – not all there mentally. Subconscious judgements passed through my mind. “They’re not prepared pilgrims! They’re not doing it right! They’re homeless! They’re weirdos!” I tried to keep the spirit of the hospitalero in mind: we don’t judge anyone and we accept everyone without prejudice. Of course, I was completely wrong about my initial characterization. Ironically, I probably look like a homeless person 90% of the time on my Caminos. Anyway, they turned out to be such nice fellas: friendly vibes and more than willing to help despite the failing state of their Camino bodies. Both work in construction, and are familiar with building materials. They were having spirited talks about how the 300 year old albergue was constructed. Paco told me all these fascinating legends about The Camino, anecdotes from his native land in Aragon, the quirks of the Aragones mountain language. I would have loved to pick his brain if we ever ended up walking on the Camino together. Later on, he mentioned how the communal dinner was the essence of what pilgrims look for during their experience – the chance to connect with others over food.
• Matt, the photographer, told me about his second career as a travel photographer in Nepal. He and his wife have done all sorts of trekking in Asia but haven’t been to Europe in years. I need to get the sunset photos from him.
• I was able to act as a translator between Paco and Matt. It was a cool interaction – Paco started talking about a Minolta camera from the 60’s, then I facilitated them to interact by using my language skills. It felt like a classic hospitalero moment: helping pilgrims connect.
• La cena went really well. Suzete directed and managed it quite well. It is a lot, but she says it becomes second nature. It’s key to prepare the veggies to be cut – some for salad, some fo stir fry. People want to help.
• In the zone with helping, making things go smoothly, facilitating. 
• Lots of people interacting, joking, talking – so wonderful. The smiles, the stories. They seemed to like the food. 
• One of the other late groups to arrive was 2 young Italian guys, the young French girl and this older,  rough-looking Italian. Again, had very strong initial judgements of them – were they ‘real’ pilgrims?? Ironically, the same thing happened to me by a hospitalero during my first week on El Camino Norte! The Italian dude just looked shady, his bag was so small, he was still smoking a cigarette,he smelled terrible, and to top it off – he didn’t even have a real credential! But of course, my initial judgements were completely wrong. The Italian guys were super sweet – young guys, a little shy but opened up at the end. The older Italian was super nice – turns out he is a cook in Paris, he speaks 5 languages and had previously worked as a Hospitalero. He was very helpful with food.
• The Italian duo, one of them wants to be a hospitalero. They mentioned a donativo in “Vella” somewhere near Los Arcos or Logroño. They both had such a wonderful experience; the hospitalera treated them like they were her children and made them feel at home. He decided he wanted to be a hospitalero after that.
• The young French girl was excited to talk to me and practice English. I spoke quite slow – she said she was the only American she could understand.
• 2 nights here, this is like liquid flow. Emotions. To see the sun setting on the faces while sharing – incredible. The Brazilian woman crying and young German comforting her. Seeing the connection. This is powerful.
• It’s chaotic, anxiety-provoking and stressful. But it’s also thrilling. We’re making it up as we go. It’s surreal. Feels like a reality TV show or a sitcom. Running around with our heads cut off.
• Super engaging. Always working. Always fixing. Preparing. It needs to be done, it’s rewarding. Plenty of errands, tasks. A reason for doing it!

Day 3 – Journal Notes

• If I don’t write things down at the end of the day, it turns into a giant blur. All I have are my words, a few photos and scattered memories.
• This morning, I was up at 6am for coffee and oatmeal. Ended up giving my knee brace to Paco – so happy that I could pay it forward; I no longer needed it. He’s such a nice guy, all smiles, you could tell he enjoys the chit-chat.
• Snuck out for a walk down The Camino – so straight, lined with trees.
• Walking back, I saw the Italian chef and the Uruguayan from the night before, such genuine smiles, they thanked me with a firm handshake. “Buen camino, buena vida”, they said.
• Back to work at 8AM! Spray down beds, sweep, mop, laundry, empty trash.
• Walked around town to introduce ourselves to the bar people.
• Santa Clara Bar. Nice older guy and his wife. Most mornings he drives The Camino and counts pilgrims. Says there are very few these days. He’s worried. Pretty knowledgeable about The Camino. It’s his livelihood. Feel kind of bad for taking his business. Told him I would send pilgrims his way for the wifi.
• Swung by the church to chat with the old man that runs it. He had 4 teeth.
• I was hungry by then, so whipped up a meal, couscous, quinoa, broccoli. Suzete made really good green beans, sliced them real thin. She’s great, such a caring, thoughtful person. Always working. Very smart with how she spends her energy. Efficient.
• Before we know it, the pilgrims are here. I’m still fumbling through the rhythm of the check in at times. It’s a bit chaotic when they all arrive at once. People arrive utterly exhausted. You can see it in their eyes. I’m babbling on about the rules and the albergue and trying not to take it personally that they don’t seem engaged. All in all, people are usually nice and happy to finally arrive. The best part is seeing them after they rest and have a shower – they are human beings once again. I know how it is – but it’s so easy to forget when you’re back in the default world, no longer in the magical land of yellow arrows and albergues.
• Argentinian girl, Ana. She walks with her father, but they often do their own thing for days at a time. She was surprised to learn her dad had checked in before her! It’s interesting to know all the happenings of the albergue; what country people are from, how many people have checked in, etc. We ended up chatting later, talking about wanting to do something more meaningful. She worked in sales for 3 years and came home every day crying. Ended up going back to social work which she finds more fulfilling.
• Realizing that I really don’t have much time to interact with individual pilgrims: appreciate every moment you get with everyone. Learning to live in those moment, look directly in the eyes and be present. We are here for the pilgrims, to serve them.
• German dude, expressing gratitude for this type of albergue. 
• Meeting the American, Josephine, first one. Later on, saw her performing a Bob Marley song with the Albergue guitar in a group just outside the entrance. Pilgrims were gathered around in a circle. The sun was setting. People were smiling and had beers in their hand. There couldn’t have been a more perfectly constructed scene for a Camino marketing flyer, selling that elusive Camino juice of meeting people, connecting and sharing moments.
• Challenging to delegate tasks to the pilgrims! The problem is not lack of help, it’s communicating properly the most helpful task for them to do.
• Tomorrow, I will drive Suzete to Leon at 6AM. Sad to see her go. It’s going to be chaotic with Walter and I. I’m going to need to ask for a lot of help. Keep things simple. Minimal viable product. Only the essential. Beds must be clean and ready. And then produce some sort of edible food at roughly the right time.

Day 4 – Journal Notes

• Awake at 3:30 AM, couldn’t sleep couldn’t fall back to sleep. Watched episode of Breaking Bad, half measure – Wow. Amazing episode. I can’t believe Walter (White) executed those drug dealers. Such a phenomenal scene. I was whisper screaming to myself.
• Big oatmeal, saying goodby to Suzete, drove her to the train station. Easy drive. I like my car.
• Sad to see her go, she was so helpful. Would have loved to have worked with her. Would have made a good team.
• The morning chores were pretty smooth. Trying to be as efficient as possible while still giving positive experience. Ensure the Albergue smells good, beds wiped down, trash emptied. Walter was working this morning! Did his tasks. I think we’re starting to get this. Dinner was another story.
• Had some free time this morning once we were done with everything…didn’t know what to do. Puttered, made a name tag, organized. MOVED INTO MY NEW ROOM. Woo hoo! Much more comfortable here, I have my own key, privacy, my temporary albergue man-cave.
• I decided to cruise around on my bike. I cruised 7 KM to the next town and counted 36 pilgrims along the way. This was during a 15 minute time period at 11:30. We ended up having 12 total for the day. Maybe I’ll do it again tomorrow to see if it’s a good predictor. Run some Camino Data Analysis.
• Took a shower, got cleaned up, put on my best albergue master shirt, ready to greet pilgrims. Walter was begrudgingly there, slightly more engaged. “Better service, higher tips” he said. Ha! Whatever it takes to get motivated. I’m in charge of the communication, explaining the rules, the schedule, introducing ourselves. I record their info and then Walter shows them to their bed.
• 12 person group today. Quiet in the beginning but opening up during dinner and by the end, everyone hugging.
• It was just after dinner and I had some downtime before the candle ceremony began. Suddenly, a van screeches to a stop in front of the Albergue. A disheveled man in his 80’s stumbles out of the car and starts screaming at me, “QUE TAL, QUERIES FRUTA!?” I wasn’t sure if he was yelling because he was hard of hearing or if that’s his way of communicating. He chatted me up, asked a lot of questions and showed me the goods. I bought some ripe-looking melons and a few tomatoes. It’s a good idea to make friends with the locals. I wasn’t sure if he was drunk or just friendly. The best part was when he used an antique system of weights to weight the fruit.
• Dinner was a bit chaotic. It’s challenging to coordinate helpers. Especially when I’m the only one that can communicate. It would be much more smooth and less exhausting with a third hospitalero.
• The candle ceremony went well. The hand holding and hugs worked out well. By the end of everyone sharing, people just want to hug each other. You don’t need to even need to tell them what to do.
• Random thought this morning, I should write a book about the camino and why people do it. I could go gonzo and just do as many hospitalero gigs as possible. So much rich human emotions, encounters and personalities.
• Trying to take time for self care. Getting into the routine.
• I’m understanding how this is a complex, involving experience. As each hospitalero finds their rhythm – together and individually – it definitely gets better. We are playing it on hard mode. Tough communication and personality mix but we’re starting to become more smooth as we fall into our roles. Such a rich experience.
• Actually had some free time today. Soaked in the sun. My biggest challenge is to turn off my brain from thinking too much, planning, plotting. So many things to do, tasks, chores, prep. Busy bee. That’s me. Hard to sit still. But it’s what makes me happy.
• Feels like a reality TV show. Put people together that don’t know each other and they have to run an albergue. Walter has a relaxed attitude about everything. Everything that Suzete has explained to us – he doesn’t understand or try to listen. Each round of volunteers, they pass on the knowledge to the next round. All that knowledge is only with me, he doesn’t even try to absorb it or listen. It’s comical. We would be doing something important and Walter would just randomly walk out of the room. Should be a sitcom.
• Super engaging and intense. You meet people from all over. Challenging to manage all the things to do. Just have to prioritize. Figure out which tasks are important. If the camino were a plant, it’s like cooking off all the plant matter and distilling it down to the raw chemical compound of Camino Essence and then just snorting it 5 times a day; high on camino juice all the time. Feels like a trip.
• It’s chaotic, we’re checking people in, different languages, characters. There’s no system. Walter and I can’t understand each other. Total chaos! Challenging! Wacky. Making it up as we go along.
• Walter and I are in charge. No oversight. We are in charge of cleaning, buying the food, planning the dinner. Pilgrims do labor of cutting veg, setting table, moving tables. It’s the hospitaleros that are directing, cooking, running the kitchen. Lots of little tasks to do. To do it properly, in a good way, it’s not going to happen today! It’s me and Walter. He doesn’t understand anything I say. He’s like the kid in class that is in the back, looking around and lost. I think he means well….it’s just comical. Finding the rhythm, using whatsapp and google translate to communicate.
• Walter update: turns out he’s a successful businessman and owns over 10 bars and restaurants. His sister and brother in law arrived with camper with a moto attached to it. They were finishing up a vacation and were taking Walter’s Range Rover and living him the camper. The brother-in-law spoke good English and was telling me all about Walter’s business adventures, explaining how he is a highly respected businessman in his region of Italy. Later on, I saw Walter printing out graphs and analyzing the data of his business. Old School! Interesting how your perception of people changes as you get more information about them.
• We’re improving the communication, it’s mostly done through google translate. He’s in charge of the kitchen – he does it all and doens’t want help from pilgrims. He’s a bull in a china shop at times: a bit chaotic, but its working – the Pilgrims are getting fed and are happy. I’m learning to be flexible and go with the flow.
• He does chores efficiently, I do them too. Attack them with gusto – get everything ready for pilgrims arrival. Get er’ done as quick as possible so we have a tiny bit of free time. MVP.
• What job could I do that is like this? Constantly preparing, cleaning, meaningful tasks. Does a job like this exist? That one hour of free time before arrival is so nice! It’s all about the contrast. In the FLOW of doing all these things. What job can replicate that – working at an albergue? Your own albergue. Could you have your own albergue and make a living? Something in between soulless macro albergue and donativo? Is it sustainable? So many stories from people.
• I led the candle ceremony. I felt more confident doing it after working together to do the cena, seeing how welcoming and helpful everyone was. We started off with 3 minutes of silence – it felt like an eternity! The next step was to pass out the sheets to read aloud for each language – the idea of whoever holds the candle, to talk about why they are doing the camino and what they hope to get out of it. It was so beautiful to watch everyone share something so intimate – something that is very relatable – even between languages. The perfect, soft light. The emotional, moving faces. I especially remember the uruguayan man, who is on a one year sabbatical, taking it slow. He mentioned he did 40 km the day before but only 10 today – because he met the Spanish dude and were having such great conversation. So beautiful. He reflected on his desire to reach Santiago, that he’s an older man, that it’s hard physically.  You could tell he was being so genuine, just speaking his truth.
  

Day 5 – Journal Notes

• Woke up at 4AM and struggled to fall back to sleep. Eventually out of bed by 8AM. Way behind schedule. Every single one of the pilgrims was gone.
• Man, I still have improvements and refinements in Spanish. This is actually a stellar training camp for it. I never properly learned commands. 
• Walter’s brother-in-law was saying that a lot of people were mentioning me ‘oh Patrick was so great!’ Felt really wonderful. It was a quiet and less expressive group, so great to hear that everyone really enjoyed it. It’s incredible to think that I’m a part of so many people’s Camino experiences.
• Ripped through my chores, on automatic pilot now. Gaining efficiency!
• Met a random pueblo villager – Vidal. Such a friendly old man, with his cane and top hat. Asked where I was from, told me about the top 3 countries by ‘extension’. Said the fiesta starts on Thursday and that the kids will come back from the big cities such as Madrid and Bilbao Should be entertaining.
• The Irish girl incident! She was the first to arrive and so nervous about getting to a store before it closed. She wanted to rush through the check-in process – which messed up our rhythm! I explained to her all the events; the communal dinner, the candlelight ceremony and she told me with such a serious face: “I don’t want to do any of that”. She must have been spooked by Walter and his lack of ability to communicate. Made an excuse about wanting to stay in another albergue where her friends were and ran off. I suppose the albergue donativo vibes aren’t for everyone…
• It was slow for a bit and then people started to trickle in – basically one big group. Raul, Macarena, Pablo, Antonio – such good vibes, immediate happiness, saying how cool the place was, laid back, at ease. Some pilgrims are so awkward, quiet and SERIOUS. This group was such a breath of fresh air.
• Another memorable pilgrim, Jim from Bend, Oregon. Retired man in his 70’s. Previous boy scout. Told me that The Camino is like “Disneyland on steroids”. It was nice to chat with him about Camino and Life. He told me how he does speech to text to his wife through an email – he just walks and walks – and then she gets a babbling email. Then she edits it and puts it together with his photos. She then sends the email out to 150 people. Neat idea. Apparently it’s inspired a few friends to start taking their health seriously and begin training for their own Camino.
• Jim mentioned to me “This feels like something you’re very passionate about.” I told him with true honesty in that moment, “I’ve never felt so passionate and excited about anything as I am now.” He said that’s great – that it’s good to figure it out when your young.
• During the ceremony, he said he’s in great health – he can walk 50km a day – but asks God why his children are sick when he is in such good health. It’s something he’s trying to come to terms with on the Camino.
  
• Trying to learn to slow down and breath a bit. I do feel like I have this resting level of stress – but good stress. Once I finish one task it’s like – what’s the next!?! But today, more downtime, more idle time. Doodled and journaled. Chatted with the French girl and listened to her play guitar. Read some of the highlights from the Mallorca travel book.
• Walter and I are finding our rhythm, our tasks. It is funny how different we are – I’m way more into it than he is, lol. 

Day 6 – Journal Notes

• Again, woke up at 3AM and could not fall back to sleep. Watched an episode of B.B. and then went for a little sunrise bike ride to the next town. It’s so beautiful in the dark, the stars shining. Just straight, barely any change in elevation. I can definitely see how this part gets monotonous. Felt good to pedal a bit, but also groggy and sleep deprived. Each day is different!
• Jim and Roxanne were the last pilgrims leaving. He’s such a nice guy, walking with her because she was injured. Paying it forward for all the young French girls that helped him along the way.
• Whipped through my chores then after some back and forth with Walter, got him on board with me going to the store to get chicken, a few other things and a bunch of veggie stuff I wanted. Now I have more snacks, hummus and even found some peanut butter! PB! Self care is so important. If I’m not at 100% how can I serve the pilgrims?
• Nice small group today 4 Americans. One was a particularly funny guy and reminded me of the comedian Jim Gaffigan. We had a nice talk about Caminos, relationships and life.
• It was also nice chat with Russel, a retired man from Utah. He was very curious about my situation and supportive of my life choices “How cool that you decided to live in Spain and volunteer here!”. He mentioned The Camino experience was such a relief from the constant negativity of the news back home and that it was a great reset, that it restored his faith in humanity.
• Ignacio said he does the camino to learn how to listen. 
• Everyone was so nice today, very smiley, easy group, already sort of knew each other on the camino. Those are the best groups.
• I just let Walter do his thing in the kitchen – boom bam, splish splash. He does want to contribute and that’s really the only way since he can’t communicate with anyone very well.  Just let him do it his way. The best strategy would be to make my own vegan meals in the morning so that I have plenty of leftovers to feed myself and any other non-carnists.
• Today I was lower energy. Sleep deprived. But still enjoyed the chats with my fellow Americans. Fun to talk to my own people, in our own language.
• Learning how to take things slow, drew on my desk for awhile. Just sat back and took it in. 
• Also learning how to conserve energy. Only say the necessary, let the pilgrims talk. Just listen.
• I chatted with an Australian dude walking back from ceremony. He was curious about my life and how long I’ve been here. “6 years in spain…this is your identity now”, he said. Truth.
  

Day 7 – Journal Notes

• Almost at the halfway point of this camino.
• Finally slept well last night – I needed it.
• Finishing chores by 8AM. Bike ride.
• Cooked! Made a vegan stew with boñato, coconut milk, tomato, broccoli. Pretty damn good. Pilgrims ate it up, got a handful to sign up for the veg option. Nice to create, to share. Want to keep iterating on that recipe – I like the big soup idea.
• Thinking that this could be the new rhythm, cook lunch for myself, making extra and then offering it as the veg option. Let Walter do the work in the kitchen. Just help with orchestrating the prep, cleanup and telling people how they can help. 
• Big group today, 25 or so – plus late arrivals. A little chaotic at times. Didn’t connect with anyone too much. I’m losing my social energy. Conserving it as much as possible. Walter is feeling good in kitchen. There were a few italians. He gets excited when we check the donation box. Wants the donations to go up, thinking like a businessman.
• As routine of a day as it gets. Need to refine how I tell people to help, just give discreet jobs to small groups. Having each person clear their own glass was a terrible idea!
• Juan Manuel (previous hospitalero) came by to check on us. Nice guy. Showed me all the stats that the association in Leon keeps on the camino. Super cool! I should reach out and see if I can get the data – do a project on it. Same for the Santiago association. I’m sure there’s tons of stats. Would be interesting to see the trends.
• I always tell people that we are volunteers, we’re a pilgrim house – I want people to know it’s not a professional gig. People are super happy. Grateful. Hugs. We’re at the halfway mark – I see why people only do 15 days. Need some time off.

Day 8 – Journal Notes

• Big group again, 29 pilgrims. Definitely feeling the exhaustion after one week. Felt less connected to any individuals and more annoyed that people kept showing up. Learning to conserve energy and do the minimum while still creating a positive atmosphere.
• Fun group from the canary islands. Chatty, laughing, smiling. Funny accent. 
• Lot’s of italians but they were pretty quiet and didn’t seem to form Italian groups. Even Walter didn’t interact with them that much. It’s interesting to see the social dynamics of the various groups play out live every day.
• Poet dude from Soria, would have loved to connect with him more. 
• First Canadian, young lady from Vancouver Island.
• It’s so true, the check-in is one of the only times I’ll get to interact with the pilgrims, so take it slow – even if people are waiting. Once they’re ready, and shoes off, then I’ll call Walter. Otherwise he’ll pace around and look annoyed if they are taking too long.
• Bike ride yesterday to Sahagun which was nice. Good workout, seeing different things. Saw Emilio. Feel like I’m part of the pueblo.
• 14 days is definitely the upper limit of a hospitalero stint – especially at a crowded albergue. No days off! It’s intense. We really only have the mornings to chill. Today, we opened at 14:30, it’s fiestas del pueblo, so that will be our excuse.

Day 9 – Journal Notes

• Good day today! Finished chores by 9:00h and then went on a walk, caught up on audios, had a coffee at the local bar. Caught up on journaling.
• Cooked some delicious soup. Walter was gone. Nice to be alone.
• Went to to the fiesta del pueblo mass outside an ermitage on the edge of town. It was really beautiful; everyone was dressed up, together with friends and family, singing, flower displays, sun shining. Jorge led the mass and Emilio was there as well. I know people here!
• 21 pilgrims were waiting when we opened. Checked everyone in – took almost an hour. Sin prisa. No stranglers, stayed at 21 exactly. Lots of Italians and Brazilians, but also the first Swede.
• The highlight of the day was my stand-off with Walter. Earlier in the day I made a giant vegan soup. It was mostly for me and anyone else that requested the vegetarian option. When Walter saw it, he wanted to use it for the main dish and he demanded that we put his chicken in it. I refused – the soup was good as is – no need to put chicken in it! Then we argued over google translate. He was saying because everyone is not a vegetarian, they shouldn’t have vegetarian food. But I’m allowed to cook one night and if the food tastes good, the absence of meat is irrelevant. We had a frustrating exchange through Google translate and in the end I just stormed out – exasperated that he was texting business colleagues in the middle of our discussion – he wasn’t taking anything seriously! He said if you want to do it, fine, but I won’t help you prepare dinner – it’s all on you!! “What a baby”, I thought to myself.
• In the end, after our tempers cooled, he came into the kitchen and started helping me, asking how much rice we should make, preparing the veggies for a salad. We did do it as a team and I took that as an apology for his initially rigid stance on my vegan soup. I could tell he was trying and even though he was pouting in the beginning, he did come through and support me as a team. Everyone was really happy with the food; I got lots of compliments. Walter did a thing where he grinned at me, grabbed my head with both hands and playfully slapped my cheek – I assume that it’s Italian for “give me a hug, you bastard, you can be a stubborn jerk but I love ya!”.
• Although we have radically different work styles, by the end we developed a strong mutual respect for each other. Although his motivations for being there were never clear to me, he did his chores diligently, worked his butt off in the kitchen and produced the finest Camino breakfast west of Pamplona.
• Evening bike ride to the fiestas. Saw them set up the sound stage for the orchestra. Children playing in the dirt. Sun setting. Moon rising. Did a quick lap of the pueblo. Pilgrims examining their routes for the next days in the bars. The abuelas in the streets discussing things.
• Just like walking the camino, the Hospitalero Camino has its ups and downs. Each day is new, we get energy from the smiling pilgrims.
• Learning self-care. Bike rides, Breaking Bad, coffee and journal.
• I really do enjoy serving people, cooking for others, cleaning up, doing a job that is tangible. It’s so intrinsically satisfying! That sense of completion and purpose can be so elusive in the world of data analytics.
• Uncertain if I want to continue The Camino on bike. That would be an undertaking. Leaning towards no. I think I just need a few days of nothing to decompress and unload my thoughts.
• This is a new reality. I wake up excited with a specific purpose. Go to bed tired but satisfied with a busy, rewarding day. Pilgrims are so grateful. For them, it’s a break from the faceless, corporate, macro-albergues. An oasis, a bit of camino magic.

Day 10 – Journal Notes

• Knocked out the chores by 8-9. Walked Pilgrim Laura to the bus station this morning – can’t believe that was today, seems like so long ago [this was written at the end of the day]. Fun person to chat with. Runs a non-profit in Honduras. Her husband passed away a few years ago. Splits her time between there and Massachusetts. Listened to my quandary about doing something I love vs. earning money and said the balance was key. Yeah, it’s a problem we all have. Was really great to chat with her, just super good vibes. .
• Today was a record-breaker: over 30 pilgrims. Met some cool characters. A lot of young people. Definitely more rambunctious and party vibes.
• Busy day today. Working nonstop since 14:30-22:30. People were super appreciative. Really thrilled with the experiences. I could see it on their faces.
• Late-arriving woman – must have been in her 60’s or 70’s: very fit and such a fascinating person. Raised in the US but moved to Spain for college. Spanish parents. Likes to do El Camino de Madrid. Lived in Japan, France, U.S., Spain. Did her first Camino in 1983 when she was studying at Santiago de Compostela. No arrows back then. Also a cyclist. Helped me translate with the eccentric French man.
• Juan – a fellow cyclist, from Castellon. Police officer. Athletic and always smiling. Sat across from him during the dinner. We traded cycling stories and found common ground in enjoying the challenge, the suffering and the accomplishment of taking the harder yet more rewarding routes. Before he left, gifted me bike reflector with the name of his pueblo and police force on it.
• Spanish guy from Madrid, total hipster, long hair, mustache. Other young dude from Navarra. Young Germans. Young American who just graduated from UC Berkeley. Young Basque guy from San Sebastian. They were all in a group together. Such youthful vitality and vigor for life! One of them asked for the vegan option and a few minutes later the rest of the group opted in as well. Several came back for seconds and said how delicious it was. The Basque and American seemed to have a Camino romance developing. They arrived together and were holding hands later on. He told me “This place is so awesome” with a massive grin on his face.
• The Dane who was friends with the Camino Ninja creator who died during the heatwave walking the Camino Frances. We had heard about the story while we walked the Camino Portugues. He told me how he worked with him on the app, that he scouted routes and contributed to the development. He’s been walking the camino since 2010, several times a year. He’s walking this Camino to pick up his friend’s ashes. Nice guy, gave me encouragement on how I handled crazy french guy. Said that I did the right thing and that people need to remember that the Camino is for everyone, we help each other, even the mentally unbalanced. Total Camino veteran and class act.
• Group of French that didn’t speak any English. They were very polite. 
• Walter did a lot of work today – shopping, cooking, cleaning. He’s getting burned out. We both are. Not much patience for pilgrims that come in late. Tomorrow I should cook some soups again.
• Man, today was crowded. The French man in bike arriving late, wouldn’t listen to me or my translator. Such an ordeal. Then he tried eating the breakfast food that was laid out. He was a little wacko – but we accept everyone!
• The Bulgarian that kept trying to tell me boring stories.
• The couple that showed up at 9:30 asking for a shower. What an adventure – bike, baby, camping. Said it was really hard, putting everything to the test, mentally, physically, traveling as partners. Wow. Impressive. He was Argentine, she Turkish, they live in Germany. Such interesting stories.
• The day-to-day drudgery is taking its toll. We’re getting it down to a science. Delegating tasks.
• More smiles out of Walter. Finished at 9, off on his motorcycle.
• The big groups wear you down! Some people you barely see. I wish there was a cap on people: 12 would be ideal. Our principals is that we never turn away anyone and accept everyone – so can’t put a cap on it.
• People line up before it opens! Peeping in the windows. It can be stressful. From now on, all windows are down until we open.

Day 11 – Journal Notes

• Another packed day today. It was a rough start; local teenagers, drunk and crazed from the night before, harassed our albergue. They threw cookies at us, demanded milk and banged on the door. We told them we are volunteers and pleaded with them to stop bothering us – one of the more sensible hooligans said “es buena gente” and signaled for the gang to leave us alone.
• It was hotter today and everyone arrived looking absolutely dead. Just a blank look in their eyes, not saying anything. You really notice it when the weather changes. Even Walter noticed it, said something like ‘these pilgrims are ugly’ which I assume was a bad translation of an Italian phrase. People were just blank, did not ask many questions or show personality. Probably just exhausted and looking forward to a shower.
• First day of trying to check people in one by one. It was a little messy but nice to not have the place filled with people just staring at me as I checked them in. I think some people were annoyed. But whatever, it’s our damn albergue, I’ve had to wait plenty of times to check in places. Oh and in the midst of it, a particularly demanding pilgrim was trying to get his whole group into a room, asking me all these questions about capacity. It’s like dude, this is a donativo, you can’t make requests like that. We’re two people. They ended up leaving and we were better off for it.
• We had an incident with a mentally unstable vagabond. He was loudly drinking, eating and yelling to himself next to the side of of the albergue. He banged on the door, demanded a stamp and aggressively chastised us for keeping the door closed. I felt threatened and this man was unstable – so I called the 911 of Spain (112) and reported the incident. I was assured that the Guardia Civil would come by, but they never did. While I was on the line, the crazed man wandered off. Another day in the life of an Albergue manager.
• The two older women from Cantabria, good vibes, complimented my soup, engaging conversationalists. Participated in the candle ceremony, gave me a big hug – they were happy! I saw them on their Camino the next day when I took a ride to the next village. Running into pilgrims that I hosted was always a fun experience – an extra chance to say goodbye and with them well on their journey.
• Japanese man that spoke very good spanish. Helped out. Very chatty.
• Older dude from Murcia, super chatty, funny accent, always smiling. Me cae bien.
• Hosing off the group of girls that got covered in paint from the ‘color war’ event of the town festivities. So funny, like they were in prison.
• Walter and I have a better rapport going, feels even, we both work hard but get our stuff done. Even got a few smiles out of him. We both know we need a break. Only 4 more days togo!
• Exactly 6 years ago I came to Spain. Time flies. It is my identity now.
• First camino nearly 6 years ago.
• What an adventure it has been. And it continues.
• Feeling empowered, confident and slightly burnt out. It’s natural now. So many pilgrims, check-ins, problems resolved. Cooked and got some compliments.
• Looking forward to the end. Close out strong. Don’t become bitter. Don’t let the cranky pilgrims and annoying drunk kids get you down. Carry yourself with pride and integrity.

Day 13 – Journal Notes

• Officially Burned Out!
• 15 Days of hospitalero with 1 partner and 25+ pilgrims/ day is tough! Not enough time to recover.
• Yesterday, Walter left. A wacky, challenging, frustrating but memorable experience with him. Makes for a good story! Left me alone. Exhausted and dreading the arrival of dozens of pilgrims. Wanted to limit to 12 but in the end accepted everyone with the promises that they would help. Overall, pilgrims are nice, understanding and want to help.
• Looking forward for a break, downloading and compiling my thoughts.
• Definitely want to do this experience again, maybe be more involved in the organization.
• I do enjoy hospitality. Serving people. Helping. Creating a positive experience. Doing purposeful, meaningful work and seeing the result. How can I incorporate this into my day to day?
• How can I integrate back into society?
• I’ve lost my initial vigor and enthusiasm for meeting and connecting with pilgrims. Just very hard to do it when there are so many.

Day 14 – Journal Notes

• First day on my own. I was a bit worried about all the extra work, the management of 30+ pilgrims, etc. I thought about putting a limit on beds but in the end I wasn’t able to turn away people – just explained to them that I needed collaboration and help. 32 pilgrims showed up.
• Ever since Walter notified me of his departure, I’ve been desperately reaching into the network of hospitaleros to see if I can get some backup.
• Luckily, my backup squad arrived: Ferran and Lluis. Such good dudes. Beginner minds. Very helpful. Work oriented. Positive vibes. Went right to work: respecting my lead, didn’t try to tell me what to do. Like soldiers! Like a machine! Boom boom boom. Supportive. It was intense – I was running everything alone until 17:00h. Made a giant stew for everyone. Assigned tasks to pilgrims to make salad.
• Nervous about the soup, cooking for 31 people. Kept throwing in spices, tasting it. Turned out great: got some compliments.
• Not as many moments to share with people. Running around like a madman. Next experience, might be nice to have less pilgrims. Hard to find that perfect balance though.
• Ready to leave. Get the hell out of there. Tank on empty. Left on a good note, in a good place. Filled up on Camino related activities.

Post Albergue – Journal Notes

• Definitely lost energy in the second half. Too many pilgrims and not enough social energy units. But wow, look at what you did. Basically running a large albergue. Solving problems. Calling the cops. Switching out the gas tanks. Barking orders in the kitchen. What a guy! Who is that guy?
• I just like building stuff, fixing things, solving problems.
• I crave a little stress but with a fun, measurable challenge. That’s the elusive flow state as well.
• Do I ever make bad decisions? I deal with whatever comes. It’s the challenge and point of living. Solve problems and overcome challenges.
• I loved being able to help people. Pilgrims would come to me to solve their problems. “Patrick! Where can I wash my clothes? Where is the bus station? How to I send my bag to the next albergue? Can I buy beer? Is there wifi?”