A good day

A good day may be when the engine light comes on in your car and the repair is only a thermostat and $150. A good day may also be running into more than one old friend and having the chance to visit. Or it can also be the opportunity to apply for the job of a lifetime. Yesterday I had all three.

Now the job, I realize is a risky thing. The best jobs are competitive and even if you are well versed in the work and have plenty of experience to go with it, there will always be the chance that someone else is better. I know this. Yet the opportunity to seek out what you want and love is an experience as well and should not be missed. It is part of the greatness of opportunity. I once was the one who got the job among over 80 applicants and I will never forget that feeling of accomplishment. I have hope that I will have a chance to be considered for this new position. And if I am I will be ecstatic. If I don't, my path is ahead and I continue to search for that which will make me happy.

Meeting old friends is a pleasure beyond belief. When I was here a little over a year ago trying to decide what to do with myself I met a woman about my age and we hit it off right away. Maybe we don't have so much immediately in common but we communicate in the same way and thus it is a pleasure to be together. By chance I ran into her at, of all places, the laundromat. It was wonderful catching up after a year. She and her husband are buying a house at last and she is excited. That means, however, that the house they have been living in will be available for rent. This would be a much better location for me to live, but I don't know yet what I will be doing next summer. It is perhaps fortuitous that I ran into her on the same day that I found the opportunity to apply for my dream job.

Beyond all these great chance occurrences I stopped to see an old classmate of mine. I find it interesting to talk with people I knew so long ago. We are all so different, with such different experiences of life now. I hope I can reconnect with her more while I am here.

The journey continues

It has been 3 months since I made the decision to leave Spain and return home early because of my foot pain. While I can walk again for long distances I still have the plantar fasciitis that grew so intolerable on the walk. It usually passes overnight now but is a constant reminder of my camino and the friends I met along the way. I also remember and embrace the camino as an opportunity for change and that is one of the important results it had for me. I have finally made my move back to Minnesota as I have dreamed of doing for so many years. And now that I am here I find that I am experiencing a relief of anxieties I did not realize I was suffering from. I no longer need to look over my shoulder to watch my back. It is something akin to being finally free from a self imposed prison created to protect myself from a danger that was for a time, all too real.  And I know now that I have been suffering for many years. This will take a long time to heal.

Today is also the 24th anniversary of the day and date that the most important person in my life passed away. My father died on this day and date in 1988. It takes years before the date falls again on the same day of the week. So today I will celebrate my return to the place my father loved and called God's Country.  It is also, remarkably, the 21st anniversary of my wandering move to the west and now it is the date of my return to the north country where I call my home.  The wind is blowing and snow is in the forecast and to me all is right in the world. Perhaps there are no true coincidences and there is only the right path.

Santiago de Compostela

I have been spending my days resting. It is a good occupation. I went to see the ocean. And there I did some writing. I love big bodies of water. It was fairly calm while I was there. They call it the costa del morte. At one point I thought I saw wild horses come down to graze a hillside, then lasted some kind of mountain goat. But the distances are deceiving there. The ocean is so vast that everything becomes far away and creatures on the shore are small and insignificant. Returning to Santiago is like joining a festival. The part of the city in the medieval section is for tourists, principally geared to the concept of pilgrimage though not necessarily welcoming warmly the thousands of pilgrims dropping on their doorstep every week. The big hotel on the square, the Parador, a former pilgrims hospital won't willingly rent a room to anyone with a backpack. They turn away perhaps dozens of weary pilgrims seeking a rest and a place to celebrate their accomplishments every day. Yet the lifeblood of this community is what the pilgrims bring to it. Musicians play in the streets both day and night. Hundreds attend daily mass at the cathedral. Many more tour and search for the history of this monumental endeavor of people willing to give up time from their lives to suffer walking across country to the grave of Saint James. It is a beautiful community that emphasizes the love and sharing of good will despite hardship all around. I, for one, continue to suffer with the pain in my feet even after resting a week. I attribute my pain to the healing process. there is more than one healing going on as well. Not only are my feet struggling to right themselves but my mind as well. One of the remarkable changes that takes place in a pilgrims mind is the inward contemplation inherent in walking. A pilgrimage is a difficult thing to do with other people. Even in a group walking the distances to Santiago that one must do creates a level of mindfulness not common to human society. It is not something easily turned off and yet the exertion is very tiring. More than physical exhaustion the mental state necessary to walk the pilgrims road leaves one empty. It is one reason, perhaps that often those who have reached the end of their road return quickly to their other lives, often feeling a loss of something special, that is the camino-the way. They leave little time to return their minds to the real world and contemplate the lessons of the long distance walker. It is good to decompress your inner self after a journey such as this. All of the body needs time to heal. I'm heading off to the next stage of my journey today. Travel always gives me anxiety. I've learned to take taxis instead of walking now. And I've learned the Spanish transportation system enough to know I want to be one of the first in the bus to get a seat where I won't be trapped for 10 hours uncomfortably stuck on the inside of a row with a reclined seat in front of me. I hope it works and this long ride isn't a nightmare.

Touring the old town

Happy 4th of July America! I went to walk through Leon this morning and stumbled upon a museum exhibit of Alexander the Great. It was very interesting. They had a collection of ancient Mesopotamian artifacts through the early Christian era. Most impressive were the Torah scrolls in Hebrew. They were very old. I have heard of these scrolls before but have never seen one up close. Even more exciting were three Bible pages from the book of Exodus written in Hebrew from the first century. They were so delicate the case they were displayed in was partially covered with heavy fabric to cut out any light that might be reflected from other exhibits. I wished I could take photographs but it wasn't allowed. Toured the cathdral as well. The audio guide was very well done at this cathedral. The one in Burgos was so overwhelming it became tough to listen to. The Burgos cathedral was more dramatically beautiful but the narrative here and the historical development of this cathedral is more impressive. It is a huge church built at a time when this town only boasted a population of 5000 inhabitants. And, it was constructed in about 50 years. It was very much worth the cost to see. Later I went shopping for some new clothes. Pilgrim garb is not remotely appropriate for a tourist that I have become. I feel so much better now that I have decent clothes. I won't have to try to keep my pants from falling down anymore! No safety pins (Molly)!

A new turn in the road

Happy independence day! I am resting in Leon as I write today. Two days ago in Mansilla de las Mullas I went to see a doctor. While it was difficult to explain all my pains to him since he spoke little English an me little Spanish, he found I have a fractured metatarsal in my right foot. Well this has been a problem then since before Santo Domingo de la Calzada and I've been walking on it for over100km. I have extensive plantar fascia pain in both feet. Of course I made the effort, against doctors orders, to walk into Leon. It was only another 20 km after all. Well my feet hurt even worse yesterday so I've decided to end my walking here in Leon. I will go on to Santiago tomorrow by bus or train then visit Finisterre before returning to the states. I'm not as disappointed as I should be perhaps. I have walked almost 700 miles after all. And at some point the walking and the pilgrimage becomes rather redundant. I feel as though I have accomplished what I set out to do.

Good fortune

We have been traveling the meseta all week and our weather has been very good.  We started out fairly hot, in the 90´s but today didn´t get over 75, I think.  At least we have managed to have a breeze most days.  This is not living up to the harsh and hot reputation of this flat plain.  I feel blessed. 

My feet have become a permanent concern.  I have plantar fasciitis in which the weight of my pack and the distance I have travelled have begun to create small tears in the plantar tendon which creates the arch in my foot.  I bought new insoles for my boots, gel inserts, to no avail.  Stretching and yoga seem to help but I have had to send my backpack by courier so that I do not further cause injury.  I am hoping that I can make it the rest of the way to Santiago with only the pain I have now instead of creating a more serious problem.  Part of the issue is also the pronation of my right foot, or rolling inward that I naturally do with my gait.  I had purchased running shoes that corrected for this and I assumed the boots, because of their hard soles, prevented my foot rolling as I walked but I noticed today that it continues to do so.  With the weight of the backpack and the rough terrain I have sometimes been on it is not a surprise that my feet are breaking down.  Only time heals this problem and it will be another few weeks before the opportunity presents itself to heal. 

We passed the midway point today on the Camino from St. Jean Pied-de-Port to Santiago de Compostela.  It was somewhere on the plains, not marked, easily missed.  If we travel according to the book it will be 17 more days to Santiago, but we may take time off to rest.  Chantal isn´t feeling well today.  Maybe in Leon we will take a day off.  Leon is 3 more days away.  I am looking at having a couple weeks of nothing to do in Spain by the time we reach Santiago.  If I cannot walk to Finisterre I will take a bus.  Then I am not certain what I will do.  It might be more economical to take an early return flight, but then again, it may not be.  I know I will need the rest that the end of the road will provide. 

The scenery remains the same - wheat fields, a few trees, and open plains.  Some of the towns have been very run down.  We had planned to stay in Ledigos but it was not a welcoming town.  Many of the buildings were made of mud brick, or just mud with bits of straw, roof tiles, and whatever, stuck in to make it sturdy - a wall.  Amazing.  Moved along another 2.8 kilometers to a resort-like albergue.  It is nice and we may even have a room to ourselves.  The benefits of a room alone cannot be emphasized.  A few nights ago, in Fromista, I thought I would be sleeping in the backyard because there was some very unpleasant individuals in our bunkroom of 10 beds.  Last night we stayed in a convent, in an all girls dormitory, and I woke up in the middle of the night and swore the woman next to me had become a man.  I couldn´t sleep.  I´m quite certain she switched beds with a man as the person wasn´t wearing a shirt in the night!  Some nights are just plain weird. 

On the road again

Well, it looks like it has been a while since I wrote a post for this blog but I thought I wrote a long one from Burgos. Maybe my addition isn't showing on my iPod. At any rate I have walked into the Meseta, a burning hot Spanish plain with little shade(and lots of wheat fields). My feet are still giving me a great amount of pain. It did not improve by taking time off, although the holiday did help the rest of my body tremendously. I will try to have me feet examined when next I have an opportunity. The towns here are very small. The heat everyday doesn't help either, it makes the pain and swelling much worse. I'm taking ibuprofen regularly, which is very common among pilgrims. And last might in Hornillos del Camino a Croatian woman showed me how to do a yoga exercise that seems to help. Writing about it made me think I should do it so now as I write I am in a yoga position too. I am travelling now with a Canadian woman who goes the same distance as I do. We don't walk together each day as she walks fast, but I usually have been catching up to her for a morning break. Then we have been staying at the same place each night.it helps to have someone to go to dinner with. Tomorrow we go to Fromista. We are still about 6 days from Leon. Tonight I am in Castrojeriz and there is a semifinal soccer match on between Spain and Portugal so everyone in town is gathered around a television. It's late and I think I will take the opportunity to take a second shower before bed.

Back in Burgos

We had a nice and relaxing weekend in Bilbao and now Chantal and I have returned to Burgos to resume our trek.  Molly went on to Leon to meet her daughter who arrives tomorrow.  We had to take separate buses even though Molly´s bus came through Burgos on its way to Leon.  So I am hoping she has arrived safely and found an albergue for the night.  Chantal and I were not certain we would be allowed to stay in the same albergue as we had 4 nights ago but explained our trip to Bilbao when we arrived and they were very nice.  Remarkably, she and I are in the 2 bunks adjacent to where Molly and I slept when we were here.  Even the reception found that very coincidental and a bit humorous.  We did some laundry right away as the hotel didn´t have laundry facilities.  I went for a walk and the sun is scorching today.  I made a loop around the old section of town walking the part of the Camino out of town to the old wall of the city and the former location of El Cid´s home.  That inspired me to walk to the other end of the old city to see the statue of El Cid, something I didn´t see last week when here.  Unfortunately it is in the middle of a busy intersection, but it is a pretty fantastic sculpture. It is remarkably expressive of the handsome warrior in full regalia, with cape billowing in the wind, sword held high and his warhorse moving proudly across the interesection.

The city shuts down, except for bars and ice cream shops, from 2 pm to 4 pm.  It is frustrating if you are hungry as many of the restaurants do not provide food either.  Many restaurants then do not begin to serve dinner until 8 pm, which makes for a very long time to wait for a starving pilgrim.  There are usually some places to get a bite; tapas in the bars is pretty common; but you can´t plan to walk on that the next day.  Reports from friends who have gone on ahead say the meseta (between Burgos and Leon) is very hot.  Tomorrow I plan to head for Hornillos del Camino, a 20 km walk that is almost flat.  I hope to get going very early but the albergues discourage leaving before 6 am.  At least the location of the cathedral and this albergue are on the western end of the city so I should get out into the open country quickly.  I feel so much better since my weekend of rest.  I hope my body adjusts to walking easily again. 

In Bilbao we visited the Guggenheim Museum of modern art on Saturday.  It was a phenomenal building.  Very confusing to walk through, yet the design certainly compliments the art.  From the river the building is designed to look like a ship, a giant titanium ship.  Inside, all the odd extensions from the outside become rooms for the display of various types of art.  I cannot say I have a great appreciation for modern art, but there were parts of the David Hockney display that were very engaging.  He mounted something like 9 cameras on a car and drove slowly through the countryside near his home.  With 9 on each side he then was filming the sides in both directions, then they were displayed on 18 televisions for an incredible and peaceful though provoking and stimulating design of the natural world in various seasons.  It was very interesting.  Sunday, Molly and I took the Bilbao boat tour to the ocean, or rather to the breakwater.  We were a bit disappointed that we could not go through the breakwater into the Bay of Biscay, but it was a very enjoyable trip.  I took a photo of the view from the back of the boat as we returned upstream.  The ocean in the distance was beautiful.  For the most part in the afternoon we rested.  Actually, the boat ride was so relaxing both Molly and I began to doze off just before reaching the city again (it was a 2 hour round trip).  The extra rest was very much needed.  We enjoyed lots of vegetable salads, something that can be hard to find when walking, and plenty of Rioja wine.  It is back to the road tomorrow. 

Leaving the Way

For those of you who know "the prophecy" I am leaving the trail as was said.  I am taking a vacation to Bilbao with Molly and Chantal.  I ran into Molly again in San Juan de la Ortega, a small village of 20 inhabitants and a huge church containing the sarcophagus of San Juan.  The monastery had been converted to an albergue.  That day I had been walking alone and bumped into Anthony again.  Chantal and I kept catching up to each other and we all walked for a while.  Then I stopped and later they stopped, but we  all  went to San Juan in the end.  As Anthony and I were leaving the church after the pilgrim´s mass I saw Molly again in the distance.  It was remarkable because neither of us thought we were on the same daily track anymore.  Molly had the idea to go to see the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao over the weekend.  It is a short 2 hour bus ride from Burgos.  Since I am still having a difficult time with my feet and lower legs being overworked I thought it would be a good idea to take the weekend off.  I had dinner with Chantal and asked her if she had any  interest and she does.  So this morning (Friday) we are catching the bus.  The weather does not look sunny  and warm through Sunday, but we want to spend our time in the museum and at a hotel feeling clean and resting.  We plan to return to the Camino on Monday as there is no bus on Sunday.  So far I intend to return to Burgos and continue my pilgrimage.  Molly plans to go on by bus to Leon to meet her daughter who arrives on Tuesday.  It is tempting to do so as well.  I have walked, as of my arrival in Burgos, 500 miles or 767 kilometers.  But I also have so much time left.  Yesterday was my day 45, the middle day of my journey.  And yet, between Burgos and Leon is the meseta.  Nevertheless, I bought a sunhat yesterday in anticipation of the burning sunshine in the open country of the meseta and Chantal plans to return and start again at Burgos. 

Went to tour the Burgos cathedral last evening.  It was incredible.  Purchasing the tickets they give you a guided tour recording.  After a short while the details become fairly overwhelming.  Soon I simply walked around taking many photos and marveling at the beautiful works of art and sculpture spanning over one thousand years.  There are hardly words to explain the painted sculptures in stone, the intricacies of gothic carving, and the efforts of baroque designers to leave no empty space.  And most incredible are the windows in the roof that are designed to appear and bring in light as the artists interpretation of heaven.  Absolutely stunning. I had hoped to be able to share a photo but the device isn´t working to upload from my memory card.  In the end I will have thousands of photos to share with anyone who wishes to see them.  Meanwhile, it is almost time to leave for the bus station, and I will get some breakfast from the vending machine this morning before I go. 

Fatigue

I spent last night at a Parochial Albergu in Granon. My body and in particular my feet are giving me signs of exhaustion. I wasn't sure how long I could keep up the pace or if I could push through it but fortunately Georgette wanted to push onward further than I could go so it forced me to take stock of my condition. Today I walked only 16 km before the fatigue set in again. Now I am in bed for the night. I had supper at 3then met a young Canadian woman and we walked around town a bit. Since then I've been resting. I plan to seriously shorten the distances I walk so that I can get better. If I don't I'm afraid I won't be walking for a while. It's very painful. But I have plenty of time to take my time. The Parochial Albergues are free places supported by donations. They even provide a nice meal at night and a light breakfast in the morning. But, there are no beds. You sleep on a mat on the floor. I actually slept better last night than I have in many nights. There were 36 people there, most in the same large room I was in. The folks cooking and managing the place are all volunteers who come from all over Europe for 2 weeks to give back to the pilgrims. This is the second place that has been staffed this way. They are usually Christian based hostels and are very basic but have been rewarding places to stay.

A rest area

Today we walked 25 kilometers from Ventosa to Cereana. It was cloudy this morning but cleared and grew hot at noon. We didn't arrive till 4 pm after starting at 7. The days have been hot and long. Am now traveling with 3 companions, well at least today, including Georgette, Maureen from Connecticut, and Liat from Israel. We have been tracking the same routes and allergies at night since Lorca so we started together today. At nearly our destination we came upon the below sign. There was a nice little park for pilgrims to rest; with a fountain and benches and SHADE. Clearly the farmer adjacent to the park had been having issues with pilgrims going behind the fence.Sorry, I forgot I need to use a real computer to put a photo in the blog. Try my Facebook account. I'll post the photo when I get computer access.

It's hot

Walked from Torres del Rio today. Somewhere around another 20 kilometers. We started as a big group leaving at dawn because of the anticipated heat. Stopped in a little medieval town for a short break and arrived pretty early in the day at the municipal alburgue in Logrono. This is the last size able town for maybe a week or so. Caught up with the college girls who are here on a day of rest. These big albugues don't do food so I went out to eat early. Then there's really not much to do. I prefer to take advantage of washing machines whenever they are available and the biggest plus is the way they spin so much more of the water off your clothes. They dry so much better. Also, after a month my clothes are taking on their own smell so machine washing is helping with this terrible problem. We've had the luxury of a machine several days in the last week. It's fabulous! We are traveling through the countryside know as La Rioja, a world class wine making region. One of the best things about getting fed at the alburgue is that you get the wine with your meal. And no dishes to wash, of course. It's hard to feel creative about cooking when you walk all day. Yet tomorrow is another day and only God knows what the day will bring. I hear Anthony from Martin, SD is staying here tonight so I look forward to talking to him again. Still hoping some of our French friends will catch up, some were fun to hang with and are fast enough to show up anyday. That's life on the trail. Oh, but I should make note that the gnats in this area are terrible. They even bite! And with all this Internet I was sorely tempted to download a movie to my iPod last night, I couldn't decide which one! Buen camino my friends.

Country roads

Been walking onward for a couple days without posting. Stayed in Lorca 2 nights ago where I met Molly, from Newcastle, and Josephine, from rapid city. Wow! Josephine was heading back home due to an injury and Molly was continuing on her own. She is meeting 2 of her daughters at different times along the way. Since there has been a bit of a small group of folks that travel the same distance each day. This will be our 3rd night together. There is Molly, georgette and me, of course, and Maureen from Connecticut travelling with a woman from Israel. A middle aged couple, newlywed and a few others. Most I can't remember names for or don't know their names. We visit as they pass on the trail then again at night. Last night stayed in a 400 year old tiny building with 8 of us in the room. That was in Villamayor. Tonight is Torres del Rio. Tomorrow is supposed to be hot, in the 90's, and we plan to go to the city of Logrono. I don't care to stay in the city but there is really no other option. The countryside is full of wheat field much like eastern SD farms, and interrupted with fields of grapevines. We walk through enormous valleys bounded by mountains. When we look ahead it is with hope that we do not have to climb over those mountains but that there will be a level path as there was today. Lots of house sparrows and swallows. Heard a cuckoo today again.

Another BIG hill

Walked around Pamplona this morning, and even attended mass at the cathedral.  Looked for a sim card for our phones but the French sold both Georgette and I phones that are locked so cannot be used in Spain.  Getting out of Pamplona was long but we reached Cizur Menor at lunch time and stopped at a bar for Cokes.  The countryside is so big here, kind of like Montana when you think of "big sky" country.  There are mountains everywhere but Pamplona and the valley we walked through today were rather low so there was a big UP today.  It was nice walking through wheat fields and hay fields.  At the pass was the iron monument to the pilgrims put up in the 1990´s at Alto de Perdon, which for some reason resonates with perdition to me as that is what the trek up there was like.  Plus it was very windy, a sort of wind tunnel effect coming over the hill.  The surrounding hills are covered with wind turbines making electricity.  Then on the (oh no not another one!) downhill slope it started to rain so we had to pull out the rain gear quickly before it poured.  I am going to try to post a photo of the monument and you can see the clouds in the background:

Pamplona

Arrived before the heavy rains began today. For some reason, probably the Pyrenees crossing, we have been fatigued. Getting all the way to Pamplona today was very hard. It is easy to understand why so manny authors write about very sore knees the first week out of St. Jean. The hills going down are terribly steep. There is no such thing as a switchback here. The trails go directly to the bottom of the hill where they need to go. I've never had knee problems before but my right knee is so painful on the slope that I plan to wrap it tomorrow. Pamplona itself is another of those medieval villages that sit atop a hill and was formerly surrounded by a fortification wall. Part of that wall remains. Went by the cathedral, which was closed tonight. It is a gothic cathedral built over the remains of a Romanesque church, probably, I am guessing, of Cluniac (out of theCluny abbey from France)origin. We walked up the road where the running of the bulls takes place. It is another of those narrow roads between tall buildings typical of these medieval style towns. Nothing runs in a straight line. But perhaps being a larger city the buildings are a couple floors taller and hence on such a gloomy afternoon the streets too were dark and uninviting. Also because it is a Sunday there are few shops open. Graffiti is ever present. Tomorrow will be a short walk after trying to tour the cathedral and it takes a while to walk out of a city this size. The weather channel is forecasting a 90 percent chance of rain so it will be a good day to give the aches and pains a rest. I bought a cheap bottle of nail polish and painted my toenails tonight. One can't pamper your feet too much on a trip like this!

Zubiri

We hoed to get to Larrasoana today but there was another big downhill climb coming into Zubiri that wore us out after yesterday. The downhill climbs are absolutely the worst! The maps didn't show it to be so steep again. My knees still hurt from coming down from the Pyrenees. But we also started to see signs that the alburgue in Larrasoana was closed today and tomorrow about halfway here. That meant if we didn't find a lace in Larrasoana we would have had to keep walking. So it wis better that we stay in Zubiri. However, we want to get to Pamplona tomorrow so we will have a longer walk and it is supposed to rain all day. We plan to try to find a hotel in Pamplona and tour the city if that's possible so we have something to look forward to. The countryside is beautiful here with steep rolling hills. There's not much for towns and being a weekend there's nothing open. Actually we couldn't find a downtown here. That's disappointing. So, for a change of pace we place more emphasis on taking some time when we hit the cities. There's a group of college girls traveling about the same distances each day as we do. They are nice. This alburgue has a lot of middle aged people so I am sure they are bored.they just started in St. Jean so they are still adjusting to life on the camino. It is a big adjustment.

The Pyrenees

Walked 26 km over the mountains today. Wow, what an experience! It was a 4000 ft climb in 16 km. Very steep but incredibly beautiful, at least when not in the clouds. Here the Pyrenees are steep but the route consistently follows various roads. The mountains were almost like an alpine tundra environment that can be found above tree line. Yet there were, in places, unusual trees growing on the nearly vertical hillsides. The trees were crooked and had few low branches so it created an eerie effect in the fog. It rained a short time. There were many herds of sheep and horses grazing on the open range. I took a short video of the water flowing from the fountain of Roland. It is an artesian spring but it spurts water in bursts. Took photos on the border of France and Navarre. Never even saw a marker for the high point of the trail, it just suddenly started downhill. And you can hardly imagine a steeper or longer downhill climb! On the way I met a man from south Dakota, can you believe it, from Martin, SD. Then he was assigned a bunk in the cubicle 4 of us share, me, Georgette, a Michigan girl, and this guy from Martin. Strange how these things happen. Then these funny English guys I also met on the trail told me the showers were unisex so I showered in the men's room! How embarrassing! Oh well, I expect dinner at 7 will be quite an adventure too. It's been quite a day!

Part deux:

Today as we reached Lamothe we found ourselves walking along an old railroad grade similar to the trail system back home. The railroads had been completely removed from this region and the pilgrimage route moved onto the railroad grade. It has become a rails to trails system as in the US. We followed this route for 7 kilometers to reach Eauze for tonight. Tomorrow it is supposed to start raining until the end of the week do we plan to take the time to p ahead to St. Jean Pied-de-Port to get started on the spanish section. It is complicated to get anywhere here. We have to take the bus to Pau, then a train to Bayonne, then switch to a local train to go to St. Jean. We will spend two days there before crossing the Pyreness, if good weather moves in then. Happy trails.

Grapevines and railroads

Have been walking through a big farming area. Seems like everything grows here. There are corn and sunflower fields; hayfields; fields of fruit trees like cherry and maybe kiwi; and the further west we go the larger the vineyards become. I haven't had any really outstanding wine however since Cahors, which I am told is sold in Canada so might be available in the states. It is a very good wine. The most remarkable feature in this landscape has been the gardens at many homes. I may try to post a photo I took with my iPod today. The climbing and shrub roses here are outstanding. But this garden today had calla lilies by the road and a pond full of waterlilies that were huge. Rose bushes here and there and a cherry tree across the pond full of ripe red cherries! It was beautiful. So many gardens here are outstanding. More later....

Purpose on the Camino

I guess that it is true that on the Camino you meet the kinds of issues that challenge you to become a better person but I wonder if that is less a spiritual practice than a practical one. On this route you meet all kinds of different people because they are out walking too. It is easy to identify the people who rub you the wrong way because your sensitivities are supercharged with the exertion of every day. This leads one to recognize discomfort instantly. So I guess I don't see it as a spiritual connection made special by walking the Camino (in French it is called the Chemin). What becomes or has been a spiritually guided characteristic of the Camino has been the faith based belief that the saints will grant you pardon for your sins or heal your wounds. I think deep down those commited to the pilgrimage even today seek this faith in miracles. Today we were in a church in Saint Antoine and a religious relic, the right hand of Saint Antoine of the desert, was on display. I pointed the relic out to one of my companions to which she immediately replied that there is no way to say that it is really the hand of the Saint. Well that is my point precisely, pilgrims seek miracles large or small based on faith or their belief in those relics. It is important. It is not nor should it be a question of proof. When I went outside to tell my other companion what I had found, the type of relic I had been searching for these 275 miles, she jumped to her feet to see what it was like and was in as much awe as I had been. There are pilgrims on this trail and there are hikers too.

On the road...

I have had limited internet access and the most frustrating thing is when I find a computer the keyboard is in French so I have to work with keys in different places. Hopefully I will find places with wifi soon and it seems the closer I get to Spain, the better chance I have.  Even so it is tricky getting my ipod to work to post.  The countryside is still very pretty, lots of wildflowers, cows, and trees. Followed a Roman road yesterday all day but the paving stones were gone. Still the road was fairly straight, level - something not often seen here so far - and passed two Roman public baths and a roadside well.

I am dreaming of swimming at the lake everyday - it has been hot - and missing good friends so far away.  btw - Harleys are big here too! I see them in every big town.

A few new lessons

I find myself in Golinhac today. It has been a cold and rainy day all the way from Estaing. Yesterday in Espalion I wanted to buy some candy and the clerk suggested she could not make change so I thought I would buy some local chocolate too. Then she charged me more than double. I was angry and upset so I left town. Today Marie discovered a washer and drier after I assured her there were none, but by the time we got there our ungracious roommate for the night and one other person had taken advantage of the machines putting us an hour and a half out for clean clothing. This of course means no shower till the warm clothes are done drying. At least we will get machine washed clothes, the first since Sauges almost a week ago. We do hand washing as often as possible but as it is still may and cold at night it takes two days to dry many things. There have been few opportunities to get wireless access so far on this journey. Most of the places that have it are bigger than the gites that we have been in. Many cities run a hostel, which are no too bad really, but inNasbinal we had reservations at a gite communal, the city hostel, and the mayor gave us the boot in favor of a group she wanted more. She moved us, very rapidly and unexpectedly on our part, to her brothers' gite. It was an alright place and at least had heat. Tomorrow we go on to Conques. It is one of the most popular tourist places in France. Reservations have to be made at least a week in advance anywhere we go. People flock to the historic towns on the weekend. It is beautiful in the countryside. Yesterday a farmer ran his sheep down the road toward me to a new pasture. His dog shepherded them from behind. It was very fun to watch and the farmer clearly enjoyed his life. We are following the Lot river. Though following may not be the best term. Daily now we go up and down over the breaks of the river, through dense woodlands and open pastureland. We are not so high in elevation as when we walked through barren, wind blown highlands with boulder strewn fields. It continues to be beautiful country.I calculate that we are averaging 10.5 miles per day so far.

Another few days on the trail

Getting accustomed to walking with a heavy pack takes longer than I thought it might. My feet get to hurting terribly. The countryside the last few days has been incredibly beautiful. Interspersed with small pastures are dense woodlands of spruce and birch trees. The terrain undulates between river and highlands. Cows in small groups pasture in small glades and cheese and grass-fed beef is on the menu each evening. The night before last I dined on grass-fed veal,penne pasta in a mushroom sauce at a former Templar hospital for pilgrims in a wilderness where daffodils and violas fill the fields with wild spring colors. A little rain and fog have broken the hot weather but it is easier to walk in cooler temps up and down the hills. As I write tonight I am in Amont-Abrac at a place called La Ferme d'Barrie where we had a local speciality known as Aligot,a potato dish made with local cheese such that it hangs from the serving spoon like a heavy syrup and yet it is very much a mashed potato. It was excellent and I had two helpings. Tomorrow we walk 16 miles to Nasbinals, the next town that has beds available. The towns can be few in this region. Me and Marie are having the heavy portions of our backpacks hauled there by car and walking with full portions of the top of our sacks. It may not be purist but it is practical. I'm not here to exhaust myself early on. I only want to enjoy my trip. So far I am the only US resident on the route. There have been a number of Canadians and I met a couple Mexicans. Many are French, of course, some are German, and I had dinner with a couple from Australia the other night as well. More wen Internet is again accessible.

On the trail

I was glad to get out of Paris and on the road. My late arrival in Le Puy en Velay meant I didn't have much time to look around but wandering the streets to find my gite d'etape (hostel) showed me how beautiful the cities were going to be in the countryside. I somehow walked right up to the gite in an old cobblestoned (what we would consider) alleyway behind the cathedral. There was a nice stone courtyard and the people were very accommodating. I slept in a cubicle with a bed, chair and closet. The next morning, early (7 am) we attended a pilgrim's mass at the cathedral, received a blessing and a pendant and were sent on our pilgrimage. The cathedral was very interesting being up on top of a high hill (the whole town was more hilly than anything in the northern Hills). A grate in the floor opened up to become a stairway to the front doors of the church and the stairs just kept on going. This church was dedicated to the black virgin Mary. They also had a stone that the Virgin is said to have appeared upon, in a nave off the main church.

Walked down through the main street of Le Puy meeting up with people as I went. I walked alone for some time, preferring to follow behind so I could look at things as I went. Once out of town there were farms everywhere. Livestock are grazed in small sections fenced off with electric wires. Sheep and cows and horses. The barns they have around here are stupendous (very pretty for barns) and as I moved through the countryside it was common to see the barn extended to and attached to a living quarters of the same stonework. Old style farmhouses. Sometimes these beautiful and old homes were in small towns of half a dozen homes.

The wildflowers are blooming everywhere. It has been extremely warm since I arrived. But the humidity here makes everything very lush and green. First I noticed lots and lots of dandelions in the fields. Then as I proceeded along there appeared a greater and greater variety of wildflowers. Moss grows ten or more feet up trees in the deep valleys of creeks. There are few bugs except where there are cows. But I saw a number of black slugs, about 4 inches long.

Stayed the first night in Montbonnet in a nice gite and met a Canadian couple. Travelling with them somewhat now. They speak some French and have been very helpful. I'm taking lots of photos of roadside crosses and the small Romanesque and Gothic churches in every small town. It's very interesting. More on that later.

Today was extremely foggy and rained a bit. It has grown very cool especially compared to yesterday. The change has been appreciated after sweating up and down huge hills yesterday. It is supposed to clear and be cooler tomorrow. It was hard to see anything of the countryside in the fog today.

Time to go to supper! Au revoir!

Dreaming of Paris

It's countdown time!  And time for one last huzzah before flying away!  It's finally here and I am so excited.  My closest friends have been soooo supportive and eager to be part of this adventure and I am very thankful that you are my friends!  Thank you, especially, to the goddess who has first hand witnessed my panic attacks about being in town and not freaked out.  The time is short to tell you all how much I appreciate your friendship and how well your enthusiasm has helped me along.  Life changes are never easy but this one is so important to me and I couldn't have done it without all your good will.  All my best to you. 

Waiting

Waiting is awful.  I have things to do but I can hardly concentrate.  I am so ready to be on the pilgrim's trail I can hardly stand the delay.  Should I start counting hours?  I don't think I am that good at math.  I have one more essay to write for my Wars of Religion class then I am done with classes.  I have to organize in my storage garage but I think that won't take too long.  There is still some calling to cancel subscriptions and I'm rather undecided whether I should go to get my hair done again.  But I am ready to leave and the waiting is so tiresome.  Did I mention I tried to get an earlier flight?  Well, that was rather cost prohibitive.  There is plenty to keep me busy but I am still distracted and have started having nightmares again for some odd reason.  Must be the anxiety and the lack of immediate exercise.  I walked into town Saturday, 8 miles over various terrain, and it was terrific.  But I am concerned that I will have jumpy legs on the plane and there is little I can do to relax once that starts.  The best prevention seems to be not to exercise too much.  I'll be exercising a great deal soon enough.  However, getting a good physical workout could stem a large amount of my anxiety right now.  I'm so ready to leave, so, so ready to leave.  Are we there yet? 

Dreaming

I am dreaming of being in France on the pilgrim road at night.  I am transitioning to a pilgrim mindset, I think.  The daily routine of movement, thought, discovery, and subsistence.  It is very engaging to me these days and my leaving behind the immediate connections of the technological world are enticing.  It is peaceful and so much less stressful than being anxious and on the text or e-mail lines all the time.  The misty rain falls and the clouds move across the lightly greened hillsides.  There is a serenity in that lack of modern communications that makes me want to leave the modern world behind and join the pilgrims' road as a medieval wanderer.  Of course, without the hardships inherent in banditry and sleeping outside. 

The agony of patience

Time is slipping by quickly.  I am ready to go and repacking my backpack every other day.  I have storage garage organization to complete and my classes to finish up.  Also I have little reading material for my summer session classes lined up as yet.  Talk about last minute arrangements!  I have been exhausted simply from the strain of organizing, then I realize I can't find something that I need now, before I leave, and frustration ensues.  Well, it will all work out, and I will repack again tomorrow, but it would probably be better if I start living out of my backpack now so I don't get so confused every time I need something that I clearly have duplicates of because of my packing organization (one set to leave here, one set to take with me). 

My anxiety about travel is the most difficult.  I don't like to fly much at all.  Once I am on the ground I think I will be much better.  Once I get to Le Puy I think I will be ready.  But my stomach is in knots and I can't seem to sleep a night through.  This too shall pass.  I still have dental pain in my jaw.  I hope it isn't infection and just soreness from all the drilling on it. 

But the weather has been good here. The giant marshmallow has enjoyed playing with her cousins.  And I have moved out of the rat race, which feels great.  Time will pass and I will soon be on my way.  Thank God!

Trust

What is it about trusting others that enables people to have so little integrity?  How did it ever end up that putting trust in another person meant that ultimately you would be disappointed?  I wonder if this has always been so and the ideal is simply a notion that has no basis in the real world.  Otherwise cliche's such as 'dog eat dog world' wouldn't exist, right?  Generosity isn't appreciated, it is taken advantage of.  Dedication and loyalty are found so infrequently as to be almost non-existent.  Well, I decided to push back and not trust to someone elses integrity.  I've been taken advantage of too often perhaps.  But nothing is truly worth the benefit to someone else at my expense.  We shall see.  I am sad.  I am disappointed.  But I am also empowered.  I am saying that I am not going to give what is mine to someone simply because I want some thing.  They can meet me half-way and be fair. 

Not much time

I have passed the one month to go mark and I am getting nervous.  Suddenly I have so much to do.  I tried to get everything ready before April so that I would not feel so pressed for time but it has come and is almost mid-way through the month and I am beginning to get anxious.  If panic sets in I will be in real trouble.  Tomorrow morning I go in for a (surprise) root canal.  Oh joy!  At least it is before I go and I won't have tooth pain (I hope) for three months.  Then my annual physical, two tests for my classes, and get moved out of my rental.  Wow.  I am really counting the days. 

Promises and opportunities

It is funny how the most terrific things begin to happen when a few changes are made for the better.  Tough changes though they may be, they can create a landslide of positive opportunities that seem to crop up at the most exciting times.  The changes I made were to reconstruct my life by starting a new direction, confessing my sins and asking for forgiveness, and working to make myself a happier person all around by recognizing my own faults and limitations.  Yet since I began this effort my life has changed so dramatically for the better it can hardly be said that there is no greater power at work.  Whatever you recognize the power as being there is something in the universe that guides our paths and opens doors when they have been locked.  That reaction is engaging and creates a chain reaction that seems to keep on going the more involved I become with the positive direction I am to take. 

Risk is required for the changes to occur.  The greater the changes, the greater the risk.  Mistakes are inherent but the outcome of effort is always rewarded if not gloriously, then it is rewarded with insight.  The promise of a better existence, a heaven on earth, or an ultimate goal is waiting.  Somewhere between heaven and earth is where I find my peace.  And I have everything I need right here and now. 

An opportunity arose this past weekend.  I agonized one night over the choice.  I asked if I was holding on to a past that I should move on from.  Yet I think the past is so vitally important and a grounding is vital to human existence.  I chose to accept the opportunity.  It is exciting.  I will have my grounding, and I have my wings.  How better to explore heaven and earth?!

Summer days

In March? Well, the aspens are budding, the snow is almost all gone, no rain means even the ponds are drying up fast, and it's hot outside.  Today the wind is kicking up and it is cooler than it has been all week.  The marshmallow will like that.  The heat is unpleasant for her.  We've been combing her out along the trail and donating the excess to all the critters building nests for the year.  They should be happy for all that soft fluff to cuddle their young. 

This week is moving week again.  I've repacked a number of things and am ready to get it all into storage.  I've been packing my backpack and it's a bit heavy at 20 pounds and counting.  So I will re-pack that as well and see if I can't get the weight down.  It makes sense to me to go light but how light can one get when it has to last for 3 full months!  I'm sure the technology is the worst weight abuser but I have to have that to be able to work on my classes.  I'm getting awful excited though and counting the days.  Soon me and the marshmallow and uncle will take a trip to the old country to clear my technology through customs before I fly outta here.  Then it will hardly be any time before I leave.  More excitement....

Every Day

I've arrived at a point in which it feels necessary to walk every day.  I hoped to get to this point all along.  I've been there before and I know how good it feels to do something physical every day.  If I don't get to go my body misses something and it is harder to feel the energy the next day.  That is not to say there are no rest days, but the rest days become fewer in a week's time.  I averaged 7 miles a day last week despite my shoes being worn out and causing my feet to be sore most of the time.  I'm hoping to increase that this week.  My new shoes came in and were too big - a funny thing since they were the same size as my other pair, just a different style. So I'm making my way in my worn out shoes and loving it every step of the way. 

Perhaps the nicer temperatures helps a bit.  It's been in the 50's to 60's as I am walking. The giant marshmallow and her excitement daily has pulled my right shoulder muscles so we are working on walking on the left and not pulling, but that is a hard habit for her to break.  I've stopped carrying a backpack for a while, till my shoulder feels better.  It is as likely that the walking is causing part of the pain also.  I've been stretching in the mornings again, and that seems to help.  The workout my legs get seems to affect my back all the way up and hence, latent shoulder problems from my rock climbing days is probably irritated, muscles are tensing up, and I have a great deal of pain after a day out on the road.  I'm trying to think of it all as an adjustment to this new lifestyle that will be part of my daily life for the next 5 months, at least. 

Adventures in winter

Yesterday the goddess and I went walking our giant marshmallows through the deep and drifting snow on the road I usually like to hike.  It was a good walk.  The sun came out and was very warm while we were slogging through drifts. On the way home we slid off the road, just enough to be stuck, and having the back tire off the ground.  Well, all for adventure the goddess said the logging trucks would be coming down soon and sure enough they did.  The first guy said he was uncertain and didn't want to try to pull us out but the second guy did.  He put chains on his loaded truck (he was pulling a loaded trailer too), took a log chain off the trailer and wrapped it around my trailer hitch.  The he backed up.  It didn't take much and we were out! It was very slippery on that corner. 

The guys told us they will probably only be up the road hauling logs for another couple of weeks.  I said that was disappointing because we look forward to watching their progress and seeing them on the road.  I shared our story on facebook and with another friend whose boyfriend is formerly a logger.  He, and she, both know the guys that so graceously pulled us out and told me their 'names' are Wiener and Hickey.  She said I should call them by their names the next time I see them but I suggested that I didn't think I could possibly do that.  They are wonderful guys to have helped us out but I don't think I want to know how they got those names. 

Lions, and...oh my!

There have been many mountain lion hunters out in the area that I walk. Sometimes they stop and ask if I've seen any and I say I've never seen them.  Occassionally I see tracks but that has mostly been down the road to the dam and not where I usually walk.  I have seen two separate sets of tracks down there so I believe there is a breeding female with cubs around.  Then a couple of weeks ago one of the logging truck guys told me a big lion walked right up to a logger lower down the gulch.  Surprised him, I'm sure. 

I don't worry too much about lions when I am with the giant marshmallow.  I think that's probably why I never see them, though I am sure the lions are watching us pass by.  A couple times the marshmallow has frequently watched behind us so I think we have been paced by a lion for a couple of miles, but still I've never seen one. 

Then Sunday on our way back I thought I smelled one.  Perhaps it was off in the woods or up on the rocky hillside and I couldn't see it.  Yet this being a holiday weekend there were many hunters out and I spoke to several looking for sightings.  Still I've never seen tracks where I walk and then it snowed Sunday night.  As we walked around the big corner yesterday I saw a man's tracks come down the logging road and head up the hill ahead of us.  This I rarely see so I assumed it was a hunter tracking a lion in the new snow.  Not long later a truck came by with clearly two hunters in blaze orange caps.  As I rounded the hill and headed down to the cattle guard this truck came back by, along with another truck driven by a man we usually call the foreman, as he drives by checking on the logging progress pretty much daily.  He was very happy, something unusual since I've never seen him smile much. 

On I walked and once past the gate I noticed where the foreman had pulled off the road and ran up the hill.  Then, on the opposite side of the road I saw the lion tracks.  He must have been tracking that lion and I must have really smelled it the afternoon before! On the way back, sure enough, two sets of truck tracks led up the logging road where the footprints came down.  I'll bet they got that lion. 

I saw quite a few deer again yesterday.  That's something you don't see when there are lions in the area.  And the birds were singing yesterday too.

A Pilgrim School

I'm planning to do my graduate coursework while walking this pilgrimage over the summer.  My professor is developing a lesson plan through which I will study the lesser saints who have relics in the churches along the way.  The collection of relics or the bones of saints was a big tourist attraction from the 11th to the 14th centuries.  Monks even went to other churches to "collect" the bones of a favored saint. This improved the attraction of their own monastery in the pilgrimage trail.  Additionally, the representations of pilgrims among saints is prominent in many romanesque designs.  I am enthusiastic about this project and looking forward to fleshing out, as it were, the details of this project.  It is what can be termed "original" research and as such is important to my degree program.  Plus I get to take photos and incorporate them in the project.  This will be fun!

Valentine's Day

What can anyone say about a holiday that celebrates love? It is the best of days.  Yesterday felt like I began a new step on my road to a new life.  I cannot help but be overjoyed and enthusiastic to be on this path.  I have some truly good friends, friends who give instead of take.  Those are the kinds of people we celebrate on Valentines day!  Thank you for being my friends.  I take you with me in my heart.

What the psychic told the pilgrim

I read this book by Jane Christmas entitled What the Psychic Told the Pilgrim. It was about the 50th birthday celebration pilgrimage made by the author.  She was familiar with a psychic in her area and went to see her before she left to walk the Camino.  It was a funny book because she was guiding a group of women, there were 15 of them in all, on this pilgrimage.  The psychic told her she would be walking alone, that she would meet someone along the way, and that she should not take any personal belongings that she did not want to lose.  She proceeded to lose her companions during the first week of her walk on the Camino, she did meet a man that she was still in touch with three years after her pilgrimage, and she lost a pair of diamond earrings at a hotel in Lisbon as she was warned not to bring them along. 

I've had a long fascination with psychic ability and have known a few different people with clairvoyant abilities.  So I decided to contact a person that I was acquainted with sometime over a decade ago and try the same thing.  Her response recognized all the work I have done to create a better life for myself.  There is a sort of wheel of balance that is part of having a happy life which includes a spiritual, mental, physical and emotional balance.  Each one carries a gradation of balance, but of course the wheel is best balanced when each is equal distant apart.  I have reached a good balance mentally and spiritually, and now I must work on the physical and emotional.  The walking and the pilgrimage takes care of the physical for me.  She said she saw me walking with someone as well.  This will clearly be my emotional wellness challenge.  I am looking for a person, a place, and a home that is caring and kind.  That is something I have posted before. I have hoped I can find those things through this Camino.  The psychic I talked to said I would, I only need to be watchful of those people who do things solely for themselves.  I have had so many of those people in my life and she could see that. I have been taken advantage of so often I should be an expert at recognizing when someone is not a kind and sharing sort of person.  But we all seem to do our best to be good to others.  So my test is in saying "I'll think about it and get back to you soon".  That gives me time to analyze and understand where a person may be coming from and offers me an opportunity to make a decision that is for me and not for the benefit of others.  This is not selfish, it is balanced. 

I won't share all that I heard here and now.  But the expectation of this journey I am on is that it will end very well for me.  She told me to embrace my enthusiasm.  I am a person who loves adventure and I have created the opportunity for a great adventure in my life.  I will take it and see where it leads me.  I am open to the possibilities, whatever they may be.  And I look forward to whatever my bright future has in store. 

Pour qua?

Do reasons for jumping into a venture like this change?  Perhaps they change in becoming more refined.  What am I going on pilgrimage for?  I started thinking I would go to seek forgiveness for my sins and start a new life.  While that may still be a part of it, I have sought the forgiveness I wanted and my priest told me that the pilgrimage is more the start of the new life rather than penance for the old.  He said I had served my time in suffering for years.  Now what do I go on pilgrimage for?  To start a new life.  I go to find a new home.  I sold everything, really nearly everything I have.  I can go anywhere.  The question is: will it be better for me to leave here and start new elsewhere?  I have such good friends here.  I have had such a desire to return to the "old country".  I'm not real excited to go to on-campus school.  So whether a new home is a place or a state of mind, I think I am going to pilgrimage to find a new home.  Wherever that may be, there will I go. 

I am searching for a new life, a "do over".  I can start new by closing the book on this old life.  And from now on, I grow into a new beginning.  Perhaps that may entail new relationships.  I think I can take my dear friends along.  They are my family and everyone has to have family.  Maybe I can find someone to share my life with.  I hope so.  I cannot be afraid the rest of my life. I dream that a new man will come into my life; someone who respects who I am and will not seek to make me his property or change who I am.  Family is so important.  Love is vital to life. 

So when people ask me why I am going on the Camino, I will now say that I am looking for a new home.  A home with love, respect, and adventure.  That is to be my Camino.

Daily Walks

My giant marshmallow grew stir crazy and has been insistent on daily walks.  She does much better on the days we take the longer walks.  But any walk will do.  She knows the road I like to take very well and remembers spots she wants to check daily on all the routes.  When we go to a new area she gets very excited at the new scents and scenery around her.  Then on our return she sleeps off the rest of the day and through the night.  A good puppy at last. 

We haven't been walking less than 5 miles each day.  I think the daily walks, no matter the distance, are something of a challenge to get accustomed to. The giant marshmallow shows her weariness as, I am sure, do I.  But this is an important aspect of my training - I have to be able to walk every day on the Camino.  Once I have accomplished this daily routine of walking distance I must then increase my distance so that my body and, especially, my feet are ready.  Most documentation that I have read is inclined to a standard daily distance of around 15 miles.  Sometimes more, not often less.  I cannot really dedicate this much time at present.  Most accounts relegate this to a 5 or 6 hour walking period.  I set aside 4 hours to walk, eat, pick up the mail, and shower afterwards.  On the weekends I dedicate more time to more distance. 

The weather has been fairly cooperative but the sunny, warm days melt the snow which turns rapidly to ice around here.  I am clumsy on my best days, but ice compounds my balance problems.  I have fallen on the slippery road numerous times but Tuesday I took a very hard fall, on gravel that held some ice underneath.  I landed on my right knee, tore my jeans, and scraped and bloodied my kneecap.  Remarkably I did not hurt my joint terribly much and have rested to keep the inflammation down, though still walking 5 miles a day.  But not long after, on the trek back up the hill to my car, I twisted the same ankle.  There's a message in these minor injuries. I need to be more attentive so that I do not injure myself badly before May.  This means to stop and stand still when I am trying to adjust my I-pod!

All-weather training

My I-pod weather forecast never mentioned snow.  But by the time we reached our turn-around point the dark clouds moved in and the light snow swirled around us. A wonderful thing these I-pods really are.  I realized I could take pictures with it.  Here is the road I like to walk down best.  By the time we reached the car again, there were no tracks from any other vehicles and we were very much alone on the road.  Out of the wilderness you might say as there were no homes nearby either.  It was great and exactly what I used to search for years ago.   

Rain in January

As I was walking yesterday afternoon it began to sprinkle rain.  It was amazing.  It smelled like rain and springtime and all good things to come.  I breathed deeply and turned my face into the rain.  What a lovely way to spend an afternoon in January while thinking of my coming pilgrimage. 

The Shell

 
When you see the scallop shell in images or Romanesque art and architecture you will know that this is a reference to pilgrimage made to Santiago de Compostela.  It is used most frequently as a symbol along the trail, particularly in Spain.  However, the Romanesque cathedrals in France along the Le Puy route also have this symbol in their sculptures.  This is a good indicator that the true pilgrim route went through these communities one thousand years ago. 

The search for relics

For the first week of classes I read a book called The Cult of the Saints: Its Rise and Function in Latin Christianity by Peter Brown.  It is an interesting concept about the rise of Christianity and the veneration of the Saints.  I have not found much written specifically on this topic.  Peter Brown's lectures became part of this book, or rather part of this book follows his renown lectures.  Following I will include a few exerpts that I think might explain this.  But what is important is the concept of the veneration of Saints' relics - those parts of a Saint's remains that were kept at a Church where they could be honored and kept close to draw pilgrims to pray.  They are often associated with miracles gifted to the humble.

“The graves of the saints – whether these were the solemn rock tombs of the Jewish patriarchs in the Holy Land or, in Christian circles, tombs, fragments of bodies or, even physical objects that had made contact with these bodies – were privileged places, where contrasted poles of Heaven and Earth met.”

“…the saint in Heaven was believed to be ‘present’ at his tomb on earth.”

“To a Mediterranean man of traditional background, much of this would have been peripheral, and some of it, downright disgusting.”

“The rise of the Christian cult of saints took place in the great cemeteries that lay outside the cities of the Roman world; and, as for the handling of dead bodies, the Christian cult of saints rapidly came to involve the digging up, the moving, the dismemberment—quite apart from much avid touching and kissing—of the bones of the dead, and frequently, the placing of these in areas from which the dead had once been excluded….But the impact of the cult of saints on the topography of the Roman city was unambiguous: it gave greater prominence to areas that had been treated as antithetical to the public life of the living city….”

The idea was that Saint’s relics could redeem one’s sins.  This veneration of the dead was a considerable change from previous religious practice and in a way, brought Christians together in places of worship in ways they had never been (permitted) to before.  It was not long before this that Christians were forced to live in ghettos in Rome, persecuted for practicing Christianity off and on for centuries, and the saints were often the martyrs for their beliefs. 

Much of this took place in the time known as Late Antiquity, around the 6th century, C.E. By the 11th century massive churches were being constructed as places of worship and with a relic to draw the faithful, pilgrims made their way to be healed.  The architecture of this period is known as Romanesque.  For a wonderful look at the architecture of the pilgrim routes across France, with descriptions of the routes, photographs and videos of the marvelous architecture please try this website:  http://artsymbol.wordpress.com/.  Some of the places along the route that I will be travelling include: Le Puy en Velay, Conques, Moissac and these have terrific videos you can view.

I'm taking you with me

Wherever I go you are welcome to come. With you I will share my adventures; the ups and the downs, the amazement and the pain. I will teach you what I have learned. Together we will see history close-up and personally.  We will walk through trees that are different from our own. And travel paths trodden by many others to places of reverence.  From the flowers to the clouds, the pilgrims to the animals, I will go on to carry you with me.   And when I find what I have been looking for I will call upon you again and invite you to join me once more.  Then we will drink wine, sing our songs, and go on happily ever after. 

Leaving on an airplane

Got my ticket! Woohoo! Flying into Paris and out of Lisbon.  It's becoming a reality!  I'll be spending my birthday in France this year.  Can't beat that.  I never would have imagined that I would spend a block of time overseas.  I'll be counting the days now that's for certain. As the tune goes "all my bags are packed, I'm ready to go. The dawn is breaking, it's early morn. The taxi's waiting, he's blowing his horn. Already I'm so lonesome I could cry...." I love that song.  I think I will have to make a trip to the old country (home state) one more time maybe before I leave but, maybe not.  And then we are off! Ahem, I am off!

Embrace your inner gypsy

I've been working on the technical aspects of spending several months in a foreign country.  Topics like how do I get money if I don't carry it all with me and so forth.  I think I mapped out the best possibilities.  Transportation to and from the start and finish and in-betweens was a concern.  I spent a few days working on how to get from Paris to Le Puy.  Then, as I was considering the numbers of days available I realized that I could actually take time to tour Paris in the springtime! Wow, what an idea! Can you say  "Take me to the Louvre"? Holy cow, can I ever!

Getting ready

I haven't been posting much so I haven't been documenting my progress.  I am looking forward to getting my flights arranged to France and out of Spain this month.  I am counting down the months now.  I will go sometime in May and start in the South of France at Le Puy en Velay.  This route is called the Via Podensis, an extension of the Camino de Santiago de Compostela into the South of France.  It is the most commonly travelled extension into France.  While this route goes through some tremendous countryside and visits many medieval towns it is actually not part of the medieval route.  The Via Podensis was developed in the 20th century as France was building hiking trails across country and promoting tourism through its smaller towns.  But there are some very interesting ancient castles and ruins as well as small towns where the majority of the structures date back to the medieval period.  I will be doing this route by myself and I plan to hop-skip across the 500 miles of this route by taking the train at some intervals.  I won't have time to complete this whole route before I meet up with my hiking partner in St. Jean Pied de Port sometime at the end of May, beginning of June. 

I've been getting my gear ready and setting aside clothing I plan to take on the trip.  Clothing is one of my biggest hangups and I'm certain I will overpack.  But since I plan to go in early to mid May and I will be crossing a couple mountain ranges I need to be prepared for cold weather as well as the heat of mid summer on the meseta in Spain where temperatures can get to 100 degrees.  I am fairly confident I have all my other gear either ready or set to order.  I am going to walk in Brooks running shoes - they are so comfortable - and I will buy two pair to travel with, so that I have a second pair if the first are wet.  They are lightweight and should be easy to pack. 

My biggest challenge yet is getting the historical detail I need to be able to complete the class requirements while I am on the Camino.  I will be earning 4 credit hours during the summer in France and Spain but I am not yet certain what that will entail.  I've been doing some reading on other peoples journals of their Camino and since my courses this spring are both relative to the medieval period in Europe I hope to have a better idea by mid-semester of what I will need to research for my summer special topics course.  In the meantime I will try to share some interesting bits of information about the medieval period and how it relates to this journey through this blog.  Happy new year!

Towns

I've had a couple recent experiences with people that have been more than a little discouraging.  I am not certain why there is such a pervasive attitude here that destroys community and makes people so self serving as to encourage the frequency of accusations and blame but it is more than common.  People can build a town to be a destination place for others to come but without sharing and goodwill there isn't community.  My uncle creates community in his own little social group but as a whole there is little community in this town.  Unless, of course, there is a big snowstorm.  But even then there seem to be more people willing to profit than to be neighborly and help each other out. 

I wonder if this is commonplace in our American society today or if it is somewhat unique to small towns.  As I read the newspaper from my hometown I get the feeling that the same attitudes are present there.  It is a much bigger town than this one but still there is a cutthroat mentality when it comes to profiting from others that, to me, destroys the ideal of working together for the benefit of all. 

If you don't know me well you may not realize that I am a big movie buff.  I love movies.  I devour the context of movies and the way they exemplify what we value in our society.  There have been a couple movies that have demonstrated the ideal of community, in so far as they show a group of people working together for the common good and safety of their community.  Can there be such places in real life?  I wonder.  I wonder if our economy promotes the disintegration of group effort and leans to the benefit of self at others' epense.  Shouldn't it be possible to work together in large groups as easily as it is in small groups?  I will look for these towns that show community and maybe I will find a new place to settle where people support each other rather than take from each other.  Perhaps this journey will take a long time, but wouldn't it be worth it to find a home where even the neighbor you do not know is willing to help rather than take from you?

Love

I believe I have loved a man more than once but it was the one time, the first time, that I have never been able to let go of.  It is important to have that one long love.  If you love, love well and love deeply.  I believe it.  I have done it and I have lost it, some time ago.  And I cannot ever get it back but I keep it close to my heart every day.  It is important to remember and to feel it.  It is important to go on living well and to the fullest possibility.  Maybe I will find a companion, eventually; someone who I can love and be loved by.  To share good times and bad times and to care for each other.  I live for that day.