In my few previous travels in Spain — usually to major cities like Madrid or Barcelona — I remember how difficult it was to have dinner …

In my few previous travels in Spain — usually to major cities like Madrid or Barcelona — I remember how difficult it was to have dinner before 9 pm.

Here on the Camino, they’ve adapted themselves to the pilgrim schedule. We all want to get up early enough to start walking at first light, so dinner often starts as early as 6:30 pm, and the latest I’ve seen is 7 pm.

Tonight I’m in a village called Villalcázar de Sirga. The first albergue I stopped at had no beds left in dormitories, but they did have an individual room with a bath shared with only one other person. It sounded good to me, and I wasn’t in the mood to walk another step, so here I am.