For those of you who are following me on the blog, and do not have Facebook, I made it to Santiago Monday afternoon about 5 PM. I walked about 98 miles, in eight days. I will write more later, and plan to take the Facebook posts and put them over here as well. Stay tuned, there is so much more to come! Love you all, willow
… And the Camino.
I’ve never liked hills. Or perhaps I should say I love looking at hills and I love being in the hills, and I especially love the hills that turn into mountains. But, I don’t like going up them and I don’t like going down them. I don’t like walking them, and I don’t like driving them, and yet, here I am in the middle of hill country. So what am I to do?
Well, it just becomes another life lesson, and one of the reasons I’m here. Seems life is full of ups and downs and places that you don’t want to go, and directions that seem next to impossible. So the answer is… One step at a time.
Today’s hike was another short one. The second day of my getting ready to do the long days. I walked 6 miles. But there were so many parts that went up, and many more that went down. In total, about 2000 ft descent. People have been telling me that the downhill it was harder than the uphill. Just to be clear, I don’t like uphill. Sometimes it seems too hard. Hmmmm, maybe I should look at that a little bit deeper about my life. But not now.
Yet today, walking in a foggy mist, and feeling that crisp cool air on my face, I didn’t pay attention to the hills. I simply walked. And it was fun. And I enjoyed it. And I took my time, And it took as long as it took. And they were right. The downhill is much harder!
Buen Camino!
If you want to write a comment to this post or any other post, click on the word “comment” just below the title of the blog post. That should take you to the area where you can write. Looking forward to reading your comments! Willow…………..
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This was my first full day in Spain, and as you know by now, I decided to spend it as a “tourist”. Which meant I wasn’t walking. Although I still managed to walk almost 5 miles. It seems I have a lot of people following me on Facebook, so I’m not sure where to write what. For now, it’s easier to post pictures on Facebook. Seems the upload time on this blog takes forever and the size of the pictures are too large. So you can get your pictures on Facebook and you can get me here.
I am so in love with this country, the beautiful landscape, the serenity, and the idea of simply taking a simple walk. Now, I might change my mind after I’ve done a couple long days of walking. But who knows?
I had an interesting observation this evening, an observation about myself. I went into the same café where I’d had lunch earlier and there were several large groups of people, obviously Peregrinos, sitting and laughing and talking. I ended up at a table by myself and at first I felt uncomfortable. As if, they were looking at me and wondering why I was by myself. But the more that I sat there, the more that I just knew at this time I needed silence, I needed space, and I needed to be outside.
So I hurriedly ate my meal, including drinking my vino, and took myself outside to a quiet place where I could sit and be. It was lovely! It was just what I needed! I sat and talked to God and the stars and the trees and the mountains that surrounded us and felt blissfully at peace. This is what my soul has been longing for for quite some time.
I had originally planned to take this day and take a cab to a place called Cruz de Ferro, the iron cross, where people bring a stone representing their burdens and lay it down at the foot of the cross. It would’ve meant another day of juggling buses and cabs and Lord knows what all. When I decided not to go there but instead to go here and relax and unwind, my burdens were lifted. It’s amazing how things fall in place, when you let them. So early tomorrow morning, before I leave, I will place my stones underneath a tree and let go of my burdens.
So for all of you reading this, my wish for you is that you are able to let go of your burdens and be free. Buen Camino!
If you want to write a comment to this post or any other post, click on the word “comment” just below the title of the blog post. That should take you to the area where you can write. Looking forward to reading your comments! Willow
Now for the down side to walking the Camino – or the preparation for walking the Camino…
i’ve been in training for months, sometimes more actively than others. The summer months in Tucson are brutal and for me it’s been next to impossible to walk outside. The last two months I upped my game and was going to the gym three times a week and walking the same amount. One of my friends from the office where I work, Karen, and I were walking at the mall. It’s so easy to get the miles in when you hace somebody to walk and talk with.
About two weeks ago, maybe a little more, it was becoming difficult for me to put in the miles. Now many of you know I have some lower back issues, but who doesn’t at 65? One afternoon when Karen and I were walking at about a 16 minute mile, my right hip began to burn. It had been bothering me for a while, but I just pushed past it. I could only walk a mile before I had to stop and stretch, and then the next mile I’d have to stop and sit. After finishing up 5 miles, I could barely walk to the car. Next morning I was at my chiropractor’s office (Lorin Welch) walking him in from the parking lot and telling him, “you have to see me now”.
After telling him where the pain was and what was going on, he reminded me of our conversation a year or so ago about bursitis. Oh, yeah, that’s what wrong! And the cure for bursitis? To rest the joint and not do anything until it heals itself. How do you rest your hip when you have to begin walking in two weeks and you need the training? I went through an emotional downward spiral at that point, but my dear friends reminded me that this was a vacation and that I could actually enjoy it even if I wasn’t walking.
I started looking at this as a real vacation and not juse a push to see if I could actually do the walk. So, I haven’t been walking for over two weeks. I will get out today as a tourist, walk around the city, and see how it feels. If the hip hurts I’ll take a bus or a cab and go from one location to the next. As my sister Sandy said, I can sit outside, people watch, drink wine, practice my Spanish, and have fun! Sounds like a good deal to me… After all, it’s “my Camino.” Hope you do your Camino your way!