I am usually out of the albergues fast, walking in the dark and I am always surprised to find many pilgrims at my final destination. Many of them walk shorter distances and like to get to their next destination by 1:00 pm at the latest, while I usually go a bit over the marked stages to avoid high numbers of people.

Once you arrive and are assigned a bed, you move quickly to have your shower; hot or cold water it does not matter. It is always a wonderful thing to have a shower. You feel you are born again. Then you have to move quickly to wash your clothes and find a space in the clothe’s line. I never thought of bringing cloths pins and boy! you certainly need them. You need to secure your clothes from other people who want to use the lines and from flying with the strong winds of the Rioja Valley and even more stronger winds in the Meseta. Also, the Albergues never seem to have enough clothes lines, so you have to become ingenious to find a place for your cloths to dry.

Once that has been taken care of, you can get some time to rest, or go for a stroll in the usually charming towns which will be totally deserted from local people except for the attendants at the albergue or bar/cafeteria. Sometimes there’s a little store to buy some food for the following day.

There are private and municipal albergues. The municipal ones are usually larger and more restrictive. Sometimes they only ask for a donation but they could also charge up to 10 euros. private ones charge between 5-10 euros. They could be awesome or they could not be. You really never know.

I was told of one albergue that was like the Japanese beds, where you slide your bed and get tucked-in in your little space, but apparently it was roomy enough to be comfortable. I had been lucky enough to get into some that were really especial, like the one in Villafranca which was an old Monastery converted a four star hotel with an Albergue next to it. The owner had done the walk and he wanted to give back to El Camino. That was real luxurious living for a pilgrim. I have also stayed in some rough ones. People make do. refuges open at 12:00 and lights go off at 10:00pm a hand light is always handy.

Spanish people take between 1-5 to have lunch and their siesta. Businesses, all businesses, are closed from 2 to 4 pm but people usually are late to open again.

Not seeing people in the streets is a phenomenon that only happens in the small towns. Where are the people? Well they may be inside their homes because it is too hot to be outside, and at night, well they may also be inside because it is also hot or too cold. But it is difficult to see any people on the towns. Sometimes as you go through a village you can hear the laughter of kids playing at school, and the sound is incredibly reassuring.

Larger cities like Pamplona and Burgos also close totally between 2 and 4, but they become lively and social after that until perhaps 11:00 pm with family and friends gathering and strolling throughout. Very nice!

Most Albergues offer kitchen facilities and you could cook your own meals. This works well if you plan to cook for more than one person and I have done it twice when I am moving with a group, otherwise there are restaurants that offer the pilgrims menu which consists of a choice of three courses: soup or salad, main course, and dessert. The general complain is that there are not enough vegetables to eat along The Way, so I always try to choose a stew of some kind and imagine that the sauce was complemented with some veggies. The Bed and the pilgrims menu usually will be between 13-18 euros.

I usually go to sleep in the same cloths I will be traveling next day. Other people strip off totally. I am sure most people don’t care one way or another.

It is a good idea to look at your itinerary for the following day and make sure you dress appropriately and bring with you food and water accordingly. Tomorrow, for example, I will walk 20 kilometers but there’s nothing to stop or rest for the first 12 km!

In this country, where every single province wants to separate, the news of the referendum in Scotland was followed incredibly closed.

Until next time.

The Ways of the Way

Perhaps one thing you need to learn right away doing El Camino, is how things work along El Camino. Practical means, I mean, like getting a bed or a space to sleep, taking a shower, doing the laundry, etc.

Most of all, you have to be humble and adaptable.

My first night in Saint Jean Pied de Port was a good introduction. The pilgrims refuge was an old medieval building converted to a municipal refuge for hundreds of pilgrims.

By the time my sister and I arrived in that beautiful village, there were already people lined up waiting outside of the pilgrims Albergue. It was 11:40 am.

We needed to go to the registry office, where you give your name, your age, your gender, and the intention of your journey. They give you your “pilgrim’s passport” and it is officially then when you are considered a pilgrim.

I was one of the first of hundreds of people to be assigned a bed on that first Albergue and I was lucky to get a lower bunk bed, in a small room where 16 other people share bunk beds. To use the toilet facilities we had to go take some turns and go down a number of uneven steps. There were two toilets for about 40 people in my section.

Next morning, an older man, woke up with a lantern in his head an started maneuvering his packing. He was on his way. Breakfast was included in the 5 Euro deal, which was to start at 6:00 am, but at 5:00 the eating room was full with hungry and anxious people to start their walk.

It took me about 10 hours with rests here an there to cross the Pyrenees and by the time I got to Roncesvalles, I was lucky to get a bed in one of the most modern facilities as it had been renovated recently. But having said that, this was my first experience living in such close proximity to total strangers, This was like living in the barracks. Three lines of bunk beds. We were maybe 120 people in a large medieval room. After a hard day’s work, people wanted to take a shower but the line was two hours wait long. There were only 5 showers for women and 5 for all men. I decided to forego the shower for the moment, and forget doing laundry that day!

When I got back, my next learning experience was to be able to shower in a space of 3×3 feet and no space to hung your towel or dry clothes. Quite challenging. More so for a raised-Catholic prudish woman.

Next morning was the same thing, people getting up at 4:30 to leave at 5:00 and be the first ones on The Way. That day, as I laboured more difficult terrain, when I arrived in Zubiri I was told that the pilgrim’s refuge in Logrono was closed because of bed bugs! Everybody was stopping in Zubiri and there were no more beds. People started getting charge organizing themselves to take a cab to the next available village with beds for pilgrims.

Some people are reluctant, and almost react offended to the idea of taking a cab. They vehemently believe that the Walk means walking all the way to Santiago.

I am one of them, so I go myself to the pilgrim’s office to learn more about the situation first hand. Yes, Logrono’s municipal refuge is closed down for five days but not because of bug beds, but rather because of local festivities. No they do not have any more beds, but they could accommodate everyone in the local Gym and for 2 euros we could have a space. Dozens of people got tnis deal, while others I later learned, slept on the street, because they heard the rumors and had no way of checking them out.

We could use the washroom, shower and laundry facilities, and I was happy with that.

More about the ways of the Way, later. I just wanted to connect today with these thoughts.

People come to do El Camino from all over the world. As you walk, you hear all kind of languages, some of them I recognize quickly, others, it takes me some time to figure out.

I always try first English as it is clear that it is the universal language. If you don’t speak English your possibilities of meeting people and engaging in a meaningful conversation are limited.

If you speak Spanish, along the Camino you are good for all the practical arrangements that you need to take care of yourself, such as lodging, eating, finding your place around the places where you are and meeting all the wonderful Spanish people that wish you well along the way all the time.

Yesterday I stop to take a few of the grapes that were so ripe and inviting from the grape vines along the way and all of a sudden, a Spaniard farmer came along and instead of scolding me for taking the grapes, he helped me take more of them!

Also along the way, you find fig trees and peach trees and pommegranates and wild black berries, zarzamoras, which are absolutely delicious! Yesterday morning a man was walking his dog and his god was so cute that I had to pet him. I noticed that the man was carrying some figs and bread, that he told me were for the ducks. I told him I love figs, so he gave me a bag full of them. The most delicious ones I ever tasted, even better that the ones I tried at my sister’s in France.

Later, walking with a tall British young man, we discovered several fig trees along the way and we eat some more. What a feast!

Many people back home got concerned that I was going to travel by myself. I knew I was gong to be okay, but I never expected to see so many people, particularly women, traveling by themselves.

Women are married, widowed, divorced, single, young and mature and some very mature, and mostly traveling all by themselves. They also come from all corners of the earth, except maybe people from Africa, although I met a mature lady from South Africa the first day and she was not black.

I see an unsual numbe of Brazilians and Germans and also Canadians. For the size of our country, I find it very remarkable. Someone told me that the registrar’s office in Saint Jean is issuing in the order of 300 ilgrim passports a day, but I also heard thst we are at this moment more than 350 thousand pilgrims on our way to Santiago.

Why is this happening? This is a question that everybody wants to know the answer and there’s no easy enswer to say the truth.

When you register officially in Saint Jean or Roncesvalles or Pamplona or Leon or wherever you decide to start your way, they ask you what your motives are. You can choose from the following: religious, spiritual, physical, tourism, adventure.

A few of the people I have met have told me it is for religious reasons, while most have chosen ‘spiritual’. The majority is looking to find out whi they are, if we could summarize it as such.

Young people are at crossroads, such as finishing one relationship, ending a job, finishing university, Master’s or even their doctorates.

Mature people, mostly are retired. They lost their partners because of divorce or death and suddenly they didn’t know what to do with themselves. Or they are celebrating special birthdays, 50, 60, 70, or 75, trying to get a fuller meaning of this life.

Whatever the reasons, most people would walk the 800 kms walk, for their own purposes, but a huge number of them will be presented with important obstacles, maknly related to blisters or accidents. Somey of them will take care of their feet by taking lne or two day off and then resume their walk, other may take a bit longer, but all of them want to resume their journey as soon as possible.

Some other people I have met, they got addicted to El Camino. They want to do it every year or as many times as they could possibly want. I met a man who has done it 10 times and he was on his number 11.

Today I am in Azofra. I am walkng with no blisters or agonies. I am enjoying the landscape, the food and the company and mostly, the fact that I have a place to shower and rest. I suffer the big inclines of the hills, but i concentrate in taking one step at a time.

A sign I saw today read, the tourist demands, the pilgrim is grateful. I am indeed grateful that I can take this journey.

Blessings

First day

After spending a week at my sister’s, i am doubting to continue with my plans to do the Camino. We have had a great time together and the French country side is absolutely beautiful.

But I keep on. My sister drives me through some magnificent villages and forests on our way to St Jean Pied de Port, the place where I have decided to start my walk of the French way to Santiago de Compostela.

As we approach the village we see a blond girl in the middle of the road asking for a ride. We stop. She is a Norwegian girl on her way to Burgos. She had been walking for several days in France but today she took the wrong turn and ended up lost for several km. She is exhausted and thankful we gave her a ride. Last year she started in Paris her walk. This time she will complete her trail all the way to Burgos and next year she plans to get all the way to Santiago. We say good-bye as she has all of her hotels planned and reserved.

My sister is very concerned about my safety doing the Camino. I assure her everything will be fine, despite the fact that I don’t know exactly how it will be for me. When I go down to the bathroom, I see a young man screaming with excitement. He has down syndrome. I wonder if his parents are taking him along the way. It kind of makes me feel that maybe the way crossing the Pyrenees is not that bad.

My sister is staying with me that night, but definetely not coming with me. I am now concerned about her, I tell her, as she got lost several times driving me to SJPP. The Albergue opens at 2:00 and by the time we arrived, there are already a line of people waiting. The village is absolutely beautiful with it its medieval wall. No time to meet anyone as we go to Roncesvalles by car to buy a few things my sister wants. It is almost next door, I see, but by foot it takes more than 7 hours.

My sister and I are given two lower bunk beds. By the time we get into them, everybody is in bed. At 10 pm the lights are off and someone next to me comes at that time. He makes so much noise getting ready for bed that I decide to keep awake until he finishes.

Next morning, at 5:00 am everybody is up with their head lights, my sister comes to remind me it is time to get up. I tell her the dinning room opens at 6:30. She comes back and tells me the room is already full. Reluctantly i wake up is 5:30!

As I go in, the volunteer at the dinning room is not happy. He keeps telling us in Spanish that we are not following the rules and this is our first day. He insists that they are open at 6:39, but he keeps procuring for us the food: coffee, butter, jam, cheese, yogurt.

I say good-bye to my sister, I feel I am already missing her. By 7:00 am I am on my way. It is beautiful as we leave SJPP. The stars are still quite visible and the morning clouds, surround the city. We are 209m high but we need to go 1,400 and then the descend.

I wanted to stop in Orisson, about 8 km up fromSJPP but everything is taken , so I have not other choice but to continue to Roncesvalles.

At the Pilgrims Office SJPP they told me that more than 300 pilgrims are starting their walk every day, but I am thinking there are many more.

I am walking by myself greeting people from all over the world as i passed them. I walk for some time with a trio from Halifax, NS, they are not going all the way to Santiago. They will stop in Roncesvalles and then take a taxi back to SJPP and then take a holiday trip in Paris.

Along the way I meet an Argentinian, Cristina, who is traveling with an Irish girl. They will stop in orisson. I passed them quickly.

I see the boy who was screaming last night with excitement and realized that there are 3 boys and one girl with down syndrome in the expedition. A young Spanish couple and a younger boy are escorting them. The ascent begins to be very ardous. I passed them as well.

At km 8 we arrived in Orisson a remarkably beautiful stop with an albergue and a cafeteria. I stop to have a cafe con leche. I meet the girl from Alaska we had breakfast with. She is lovely but she is staying in Orisson camping out. How lucky I could not even find a spot for that. Then I hear someone calling me. It is the Norwegian girl. Stina. She walks with me throughout the most difficult ascent. She is afraid of heights and starts feeling sick. I gave her a gum and she gets immediate relief. We rest at another place in the highlands of the Pyrinees. It is very hard and I am amazed iI can keep pace with her. Then the brutal descend starts, it is a rocky descend and it is steep. I feel my knees shaky. I maneuver my sticks as if I were skying. It is crazy!

Several hours later we are still in descend. I am not sure I can make it. I take a break and then I see the Irish girl who was walking with the Argentinean. We start walking together. I have ran out of water and Stina gives me some. An angel in disguise she is for me. The weather is sunny and hot. I like it despite the fact that it is too hot, but I would be more afraid of rain and slippery rocks. And the views are amazing!

As we arrived in Roncesvalles we find accommodations in the old Monastery. The beds are so close to each other and I am assigned to a Korean man than later exchanges places with his wife. Thank God. I am also next to Peggy and American lady. She is doing the Camino for the second time and yet her bag is almost 30 lbs. she has a make-up bag that it is full and weights almost 5 pounds. She wants to give me everything she is discarding. No thank you, I said. I only brought a lipstick and a small jar of moisturizing cream.

We go out for dinner and i ask for duck in a fruity sauce. Delicious! The wine is fantastic as well. 6 Euros everything included.

The morning is the same as in SJPP. Everybody up at 5:00-5:30. The bathrooms are full. It is crazy. Me and Irish girl, Deidra leave together. Stina has booked private accommodations all the way to Burgos. We are not sure we are going to see her again.

The walk this time is idyllic. Lovely villages that offer cafe con leche and sandwiches. We meet another Irish couple. They are fun and interesting. Jason and Eva, with a complicated spelling in her name. Dei and I continue but at some point we hear that the albergue in Larrasoana is closed. Some people say because it is they discovered bed-bugs, but in reality it is a big party going on for 5 days.

We continue to Zubiri, exhausted. No more beds, we are told. Stina continues 6 km more to her private accommodations. I found out that they will open the gym in Zubiri and offer accommodation for the pilgrims there. No more mattresses but with our sleeping bags we would be fine.

I see the Spanish couple with the down syndrome kids there. I am so glad to see them! They made it!

I am also glad to inform people as they arrive that they could get a spot at the gym instead of walking 10 more kms. They are all very happy! I know the feeling.

Sleeping is not that bad. Somehow the early riser pilgrims don’t bother me so much with their lights. We have breakfast with the Irish couple but we leave them behind. The walk is easy but my kegs are feeling every step. All the pilgrims seem to know each other. I passed a group of Italian mature men and they all cheer me up because I am keeping pace.

We walk along a river, and the walk is shaded by trees. So many rocks along the way. They say that walking on the stones is like walking your life. It is not an easy walk, you have to look your steps and take one step at a time.

I feel a hot spot on both feet, but when I check I see nothing. That is good. Just as I think of this I read a sign that says”the problem is not with blisters but with your fears”

We meet again Stina somewhere. I am so glad to see her, and she is also happy to see us. This stage has many lovely stops where one can have a coffee and chat but I find it extremely hard. She asked us if we saw the previous day the couple who has walking downhill on the stony path without shoes. She took pictures of them! Yes we did see them for a long time going down. I felt sorry for them! What sins they needed to cleanse for. I don’t know!

The Camino invites thoughts and conversation.

We arrived in Pamplona exhausted again. We have reserved rooms in a private hostel and are extremely happy we did that as there is a frenzy among pilgrims to find accommodations.

Pamplona is absolutely beautiful. As we get to our hotel we walked the main street Calle Mayor, full of vending stalls with all kinds of crafts and food. Then at 2:00, everything is closed until 4pm when everything opens again.

Dei and I go for dinner in front of the lovely Ayuntamiento building. We have a fabulous dinner. For me alubias and oxtail stew. Delicious. Flan for dessert and tons of wine and bread. Total bill 9 euros.

I see the Spanish couple with the kids and they stop me to say good-bye. Pamplona is the last spot for them. They work with these kids to make them more assertive and confident about their independence. They assure me these kids did very well. I know they did. I am very proud to have met them.

I also saw a couple I met on this stage. He looked troubled by the walk and was leaning on his wife heavely. When I approached them, i asked if they were okay, yes she said and continue singing to him in a lovely low voice a song in German. I believe he had Parkinson’s.

I started to write my diary of the trip back at the albergue in Pamplona as i had private room and access to the wi-fi.

Today, Sat Sep 6, I wake up early. I feeling great. Perhaps I need to continue. I talked to Dei but she decides to stay. I go and visit the Museum where I discovered the Roman frescos and admired some Goya paintings.

I then leave at 11:30. The walk is hard for more than 12 kilometers with no stops or shade. Ups more than downs. Somehow I missed the first town where I intend to stop so I continue to Zariquiegui where I am now fully fed with a lovely soup, rabbit in a delicious soup, flan and tons of wine and bread. This is a lovely town and I have met now a lovely Brazilian lady and a group of German ladies who will be traveling together tomorrow. Life is good.

Mi hermana me llevará hoy hacia SJPP y mañana iniciaré mi caminata.

my sister will drive today for SJPP and tomorrow I will start walking.

Although we have seen each other in Mexico in the last couple of years, my sister and I had not been able to be together and visit with each other for a long, long time.  I am treasuring this time together, as we sit and remember to our family and friends. I am not surprised when her neighbor tells me that she is a fabulous artist and great cook.  She is indeed an extraordinary person who has have many different lives, such as secretary, editor, pilot, writer, painter, cook, baker… And many more.  She married Hugo, a French/American interpreter and the son of my French teacher in Washington, D.C. Hugo developed Parkinson’s and they moved to France where health care was not an issue.

Hugo died a number of years later while they were visiting Mexico.  She came back to France and two years later she was married to a British gentleman. They were happily renovating their old farm near Bordeaux, when he was diagnosed with lung cancer. The disease was very advanced and he died within months. He was an engineer who had worked with asbestos.

So it is the farm where she is now taking care of her chickens and garden and so I tell her. Carmen Cristina, you live in Paradise!  Yesterday I celebrated early her 70th birthday with her friends and neighbors.  The food was delicious. She was the Chef!

Español

A pesar de que nos hemos visto en México en los últimos años, mi hermana y yo no habíamos tenido la oportunidad de convivir en mucho tiempo.  Estoy saboreando estos días juntas, recordando a nuestros familiares y amigos.  No me sorprendo cuando una de sus vecinas me dice que mi hermana es una talentosa artista y cocinera.  Ella es, en verdad, una extraordinaria persona que ha tenido muchas vidas, tales como secretaria, editora, esceitora, piloto, pintora, escultora, cocinera, panadera y repostera y muchas más.  Se casó con Hugo un Francés/Americano que era el hijo de mi maestra de francés en Washington, DC.  A Hugo le dio la enfermedad de Parkinson y se vinieron a Francia en donde la asistencia mëdica era mejor. Hugo murió años más tarde, mientras viajaban en México.  Ella regresó a Francia y dos años más tarde conoció a un británico y se casaron pronto.  Estaban renovando su granja cerca de Bordeaux cuando le detectan a su esposo cáncer pulmonar.  El cáncer estaba tan avanzado que murió en cuestión de meses.  Como ingeniero había trabajado con asbestos.

Así, es ahora como se encuentra ella cuidando a su gallinas y atendiendo a su jardín y por eso le digo: Carmen Cristina, tu vives en un paraíso!  Ayer celebré prematuramente su cumpleaños número 70 con sus amigos y vecinos.  La comida estuvo deliciosa.  Ella fue la chef!

How wonderful to have your older sister waiting for you at an airport in an unfamiliar place.  The weather was glorius as I arrived in Bordeaux yesterday and I could admire all the beauty of the Belle Province Francaise. We drove vicariously out of Bordeaux and then the highway turned a two line road flanked by tall trees whose branches form an arch along the road.  

My sister prepared a very French dinner and with Spanish, not French, wine and we talked and talked.  I finally went to bed after 1;00 am!  I realized this morning that I was in the French country side when I was awaken by the calling of the crock.

My sister got some tomatoes from her fields and got some fresh eggs from her barn and had the most delicious breakfast. Later we had out hairs trimmed by a lady who came to our house and then went to the town to get some food and repair my glasses that got broken yesterday.  My sister´s neighbor invited me to go for a hike, and now we are preparing dinner.  Life is good despite clouds and misty rain throughout the whole day.

Qué maravilla tener a tu hermana más grande esperándote en un aeropuerto en un lugar extraño.  El clima estaba bellísimo cuando llegué a Bordeaux y pude admirar toda la belleza de la Bella Provincia Francesa.  Con mi hermana al volante, salimos exitosamente de Bordeaux por una carretera que después cambio a un camino de dos vías flanqueado por grandes árboles que formaban como un arco.  

Mi hermana preparó una  cena muy francesa  con vino, no francés sino español y hablamos y hablamos toda la noche.  Finalmente me fui a la cama después de la una de la mañana.  Hoy me dí cuenta que estaba en una granja cuando oí el canto del gallo.

Mi hermana trajo unos tomates de su huerto y unos huevos frescos de su gallinero y desayunamos deliciosamente.  Vino una chica a cortarnos el pelo al aire libre y después nos fuimos de compras y a reparar mis lentes. La vecina de mi hermana me invitó a ir a caminar por el campo y ahora estamos preparando la cena.  La vida es fantástica a pesar de las nubes y lluvia ligera que hemos tenido todo el día.

I tried to pack 16 lb but I cannot bring it lower than 19.  I am thinking that packing has to do with fear and control. Fear that I may need something I don’t have and control because I want to have everything I may need.  I think this will lead to my first lesson along the way.  

Español

Traté de empacar a un límite de 16 libras pero no puedo bajar de 19. Pienso que esto tiene que ver con mis miedos y porque quiero controlar todo.  Miedo por no tener aquello que vaya a necesitar y control  por querer tener todo lo que vaya a necesitar.   Creo que esto me está conduciendo a mi primera lección de El Camino.

Charles and I invited family members to come for a farewell dinner last night but only the Graingers could come, which was very good because John and Shirley to had a special anniversary to celebrate and it was fun to be together.  I prepared Coquilles St. Jacques for dinner, which was a serendipity idea, since I realized later that this was the traditional dish of El Camino!  

I was moved by the number of people who wrote to me with encouraging words to take with me along my walk, but I also moved by the number of friends and relatives who are affected by poor health at this moment.  I believe in the power of prayer and I have started to pray for the health and peace of all good people I know.  Thank you!

Charles and I invitamos a la familia a una cena de despedida per solo Los Grainger pudieron venir, lo que estuvo bien porque John y Shirley celebraban un aniversario especial y fue muy agradable estar juntos.  Preparé Coquilles St. Jacques, lo cual fue una extraordinaria idea, ya que más tarde me dí cuenta que ese platillo fue creado en nombre de San Sebastián!

Me sentí muy conmovida por todos los mensajes que recibí con palabras de entusiasmo y apoyo mismas que llevaré conmigo en mi caminata, pero también me conmovió mucho saber que muchos amigos y parientes se encuentran mal de salud.  Siempre he creído en el poder de las oraciones y desde hoy he empezado a rezar por la salud y paz de toda la gente buena que conozco. Thank you!

I have never embarked in a pilgrimage before.  In Mexico, I often saw numerous people end their long journeys at the Shrine of the Virgin of Guadalupe every year in December.  They always looked exhausted and dirty but extremely faithful.  The pilgrims would walk for hundreds of kilometers some bare footed or on their knees.  Others would put thorns in their heads or in the soles of their feet, or striking a lash on their backs.  I admired them but at the same time I always wondered what motivated them to go on the pilgrimage.  Were their sins so big? Or perhaps they experienced so much suffering and poverty in their lives that they offered the pilgrimage as tribute to be granted a better life? Some of these pilgrims walked indeed because they were thankful for the lives they had.

Several decades later, I am still wondering about the motivations of those pilgrims.  More so, as I am about to go on a pilgrimage myself.   El Camino de Santiago, or as it is also referred The Way of St. James, starts at the border of France with Spain. I will try to walk 800 kilometers for as long as it may take me to reach Santiago de Compostela and finish in Finisterra, (The end of the World) going through  mountains, forests, valleys, deserts, and plains, sleeping in refugios or hostels in bunk beds.

For years I have known it would be something I liked to do.  The first time I heard about it was when I was a little girl and a dear relative of mine told me how beautiful the Cathedral was and how many pilgrims he saw in Santiago de Compostela when he first went to Europe.  Many years later, I read in Spanish El Camino, the first published book by Paolo Cohelo.   I felt moved by the transformation he found along the trail when he was in his 40’s, diagnosed with schizophrenia and desperate to find his calling.  He claims he heard the voice that inspired him to write, first about El Camino, then inspirational novels that have been translated and sold all over the world.  Along with the Spanish Government, UNESCO, and the European Union, Cohelo is one of the main sponsors of El Camino, among others.

The path, which has been followed since millennia, was drawn from east to west parallel to the Milky Way.  The beginning and the end.  For the Celtics, the path followed to the last western point of land, Finisterre, the end of the Earth, where the sun died.  For many it is this configuration of the path, charged with the cosmic energy that offers individuals a unique and transformational experience.

It was Shirley MacLean the first person who made me realized this significant attribute to El Camino, when in 2000 and well into her late 60’s she decided to walk El Camino and wrote a book about it.  I got even more excited when later readings made me realize that El Camino de Compostela, translates as the The Way of the Field of Stars, which piqued my interest even more.

Suddenly, I knew it was my turn when I began to hear more and more of friends and people who had decided to take on that journey.

The stars are calling me.  At 63 years old, I believe their energy will be transformational.  I am excited to have this opportunity in my life and I hope I will have the strength and endurance to be successful.  I leave for France in late August and plan to start my walk in early September 2014.

Some members of my local chapter of the Canadian Federation of University Womens Club, have decided to sponsor my walk to raise some funds for a scholarship to a mature female student, while I personally will try to raise funds for Mental Health in Mexico.  My blog will be bilingual Spanish/English and in my next posting I will have more details about how to go about sponsoring my walk.

I invite you to visit my blog regularly and witness step by step my transformation.

August 13, 2014