Day 9 &10 I DON´T WANT A FLIPPIN´ COOKIE!!!

Mileage to date: 134 miles (in 9 days)

Let me tell you why I chose the title for the post.  We have been a bit behind schedule even though we have walked for 8-10 hours a day.  Yesterday, we decided to go for it and make up the mileage.  In 10 hours we walked 31 km (19 miles) to Santo Domingo.  There came a time during the day when I was having a lot of pain in my ankle and was going very slowly.  My mom was about 30 yards ahead of me and was waving something.  As I got closer, I could hear her saying, ¨Cookie, cookie, cookie!¨ She was trying to get me to walk faster by bribing me with a cookie!  I yelled out, ¨I don´t want a flippin´cookie!  In fact, I don´t even like those cookies!¨ LOL  Needless to say, I finally made it over to her.  We were in the midst of farmland and there was a shallow cement canal.  I took off my boot and soaked my ankle in the icy water. Ahhhh!  My left ankle has been swollen and feeling very bruised for the past 3 days.  I chalked it up to long days and many miles.  With the help of Motrin, everyday I was able to move on.  Although yesterday did push my limits.  During the last few miles into the town, all I could do was shuffle.  I had to stop and wiggle my ankle about every 100 yards.  This would help me go a little bit farther.  Finally, we reached the abergue!!  I was relieved to get off my feet.  In my mind, I wondered if I would be able to continue with this kind of pain.  At some of the albergues there are volunteers who massage your feet.  At the one we arrived at, there was a physical therapist--free of charge!!  He had many people wanting his help and I patiently waited.  When it was my turn, I explained that I had no blisters or sores, but that my ankle was very sore/bruised and the tips of my toes were numb.  Right away he started to poke & twist my ankle.  I cringed and yelped at the pain.  After a thorough inspection, he said, ¨You have a dangerous injury.  It seems to be a problem with your ligaments.  If you twist your foot on a rock, you will probably break your ankle.  This is something that you don´t want to mess with.  I can wrap it, but you need to stay off it for at least 1 day.  And you should not carry your backpack for 2 days.¨  I told him that I couldn´t stop and he warned me that if I kept going in this shape, I would severely injure my ankle.  He also said that I could just ship my backpack ahead and then I won´t have to carry it.

So, we received special permission to stay in the albergue one more day.  Unfortunately, we will have to take a bus to the next city, which is Burgos.  I´m disappointed because it will take a few miles off of my total, but I guess it will be worth it in the long run.  I must say that it has been nice to rest.  I am finishing a book and catching up on the blog.  I am also uploading a video and will post some more pics later today.

Overall, we are doing great!  Having fun, meeting so many new people and enjoying good food!