<HTML><FONT FACE=arial,helvetica><FONT SIZE=2>To:<A HREF="mailto:ed_maddenaLINEONE.NET">ed_maddenaLINEONE.NET</A> <BR>
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Your backpack and clothes will be safe in the refugios. Take a fanny pack so that you can carry valuables with you anywhere, even to the bathroom if you'd like. Don't leave valuables like cameras around. I only lost one pair of pretty new hiking socks the entire month I traveled. They were drying outside on a clothes dryer at a refugio in Logrono. Someone may have taken them by mistake.<BR>
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A friend lost a new pair of boots elsewhere. If the boots look old, I doubt if anyone would take them. Another good reason to break them in! In the refugios, people look out for each other. Most of the time another pregrino is in the dormitory room, napping, reading or writing. It is unlikely that anyone would go through your belongings.<BR>
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By the way, don't be reticent about asking questions. You may not always get a coureous reply, but that is the nature of this forum I have learned.<BR>
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Howard Mendes, NYC</FONT></HTML>