Day 2… Roncevalles, Spain – Zubiri, Spain As I got ready to hoist my pack on to my back this morning, I heard something on the roof of the albergue. Rain. HARD rain. But there’s no staying put, so I pulled out my rain gear – my rain jacket and rain pants and the rain cover for my backpack – got everything covered up and started walking. There wasn’t anywhere to get breakfast food for a decent price, so we decided to walk to the next town. It was pretty miserable. Thunder and lightning and LOTS of rain. The Camino quickly turned in to El Rio (the river), which made things just that much more miserable. My jacket couldn’t keep me dry, so I was soaked and so, so cold. When I got to breakfast, I took off my jacket and pulled out my long sleeved shirt to try to warm up. I asked the people at the store where I could buy a different jacket or poncho, but they said the nearest place would be about 5km in the next town. So, after coffee and some food, I jumped on a bus to find a poncho. A couple of the Aggie girls jumped on a bus for the next town to try to go ahead and get rooms in the albergue, and to take one of the girls who was so cold her hands had turned blue to a warm, dry place. The bus driver asked me where I was going and I told him I needed a poncho. He told me that I should buy it at the ferreteria (hardware store). When we got to the next town, he took the bus to the hardware store and dropped me off at the door – so nice! I bought a poncho, put it on, and started walking again. I got to a place on the Camino where it was no longer a trickle or a stream… it was now at least a foot deep in water! I scrambled up to the top of a ridge and found many other pilgrims doing the same thing. I saw about 30 huddled in a barn. I decided to stop for a rest near a ball court in a town. I sat down and had a pear. That was the extent of resting for today. Kept pushing forward and walking to get through it. The Aggie girls got me a reserved bed in an albergue, which was great. Tonight I’m in a room of 8, instead of the packed bunkhouse of last night. I was so cold from being wet all day, so I had a hot shower to warm myself up. I’m trying to dry stuff out right now. My GoreTex boots are soaked. I’m not the only one. Everyone is in the same boat. Everyone is scrambling for warmth and dry clothes and to get things dry and ready for tomorrow. There wasn’t much talking with others on the trail today. Just focusing on the trail and the rain. I couldn’t even look around to see the surroundings because of the rain and my glasses and the need to stay focused on your steps. But it was a good day of solitude and prayer and reflection. My knee only bothered me a little bit. I have a bed and a warm dry place to stay and all is going well. Travel day to St. Jean Pied de Port… I traveled by train from Antequera, Spain (9am) to Pamplona, Spain, then took a bus to St. Jean Pied de Port in France, arriving at 8pm. Long travel day! I realized when I got to France that my cell phone locked itself and I didn’t have the code to unlock it, so the hostel let me use their computer and internet to contact Laurie and have her find the code. The hostel was good (and cheap!). There were four to a room. You don’t get to choose… you get what you get. I was placed in a room with two older women from France and a guy from Holland. The Holland guy started his trek on the Camino in his homeland (there are pilgrimage trails the converge from all over Europe). He had already covered 1600km before today! He is a 51 year old guys who “goes to mass occasionally, but wants something deeper”. He studies philosophy. He admits that he is searching for something more. He is reading a Shirley Mclain book about walking the Camino, but he isn’t impressed that she writes about seeing UFOs. We had a long talk about what he is looking for. He talked a lot about his belief that all religions have the same basic foundations. He was interesting and we had some good conversation. I did a lot of asking questions and listening, mostly. Day One…St. Jean Pied de Port, France – Roncevalles, Spain Before we hit the trail, The Hollander and I went to a bakery and shared a loaf of fresh bread (hmmm… breaking bread together). As we were standing there, the pilgrims began to slowly emerge from the various hostels and buildings and begin their walk for the day, heading down the street and out of town. The Hollander was quiet, then he said that his hair was standing on end as he watched. He started crying. We parted ways after we finished our bread and I went to meet up with the Aggie group. The Aggies – great group! I got to hear some of their stories. They all have different stories and struggles – don’t we all! They are all looking at their majors, at jobs, at their futures. Many of them have parents my age. I met a kid from Sweden on the trail today. He’s “looking for himself” on The Camino. Talked a lot about partying and traveling. He has lived in the USA and Australia for some time. He is my new best friend, since he thought that I was 32 years old! HA! Today was probably the toughest day of the trail, as this section is 25km long and an almost 1500m climb in altitude. I passed a woman along the way. She was standing still, head down, looking really discouraged. I stopped to see if she was okay and talk. Her husband died 2 years ago. She is hiking the Camino to try to figure out how to get on with her life. Now, not even halfway in to the first day, she was ready to quit. She was so down. She wanted to give up. We talked a while and we walked together. Talking and having someone to listen to her kept her going. She even said that she forgot the pains of the climb as we talked. She cried to me about her husband. She says that she talks to him from time to time, and that she is angry at God for it all. I told her that I thought that God was big enough to handle the fact that she was angry right now and He is probably okay with that emotion. She asked if I was a Buddhist. I told her, “No, I’m a follower of Jesus.” She smiled and said that He was a good one to follow. Near the end of our walk today, the trail turned to a downhill stretch which was difficult. She began to have a hard time with the descent. I gave her my walking stick to help take the weight off her knees and help her balance. She gladly accepted it. I then started to have severe pain in my knee – this happened about two months ago, too, just after I had done a pretty steep descent on a trail. It was like there was a knife under my knee cap. It was intense. I stopped and prayed, “Please God. I don’t know what to do. I gave her all that I had, the one thing that I had to help with the descent. Now I don’t think I can make it down. God, all I have is you now. Please take away this pain.” I walked for another minute or two before I had to stop. I sat to rest and think through my options. When I got up, there was no pain left at all! In fact, I was bouncing and running the rest of the way down the trail! At dinner (the albergues host dinner) I shared that story with her as we ate. She said that God sent me to her today, to help her make it and not quit. She had given up when I stopped to talk to her. Oh, one other little side story… I stopped to encourage another lady. She was from Minnesota. She was having a tough time with the climb. I said a few encouraging words and told her she could do it. She said that her plan was to just make it another 25 steps, then rest, then another 25 steps, then rest. She was going to follow that plan until she got there. I wished her well and kept going. Later, I ran in to her at the albergue and said, “Hey! I told you that you could do it!” She smiled and laughed and said, “Yeah, I did. Hey, are you guys from Texas?” I told her yes, and she asked, “Are you the Aggies from Texas A&M?” She had seen the Facebook page and had commented on it the other day! Small world! I have one of the 300 beds in this albergue tonight. Only two showers in the place. I’m going to go get one of them before everyone else crowds in. It’s like a meat market for pilgrims. But it is warm and clean and the hosts are really nice. Well, I have about 12 hours until I depart from Antequera. Spain to start on the Camino de Santiago. I feel like I am ready, although I also feel like my pack may be too heavy. How do you prepare for 33 days when you really don't know what to expect.
I have been going through a roller coaster of emotions. On one hand I am very excited. This pilgrimage has been a dream of mine since I saw it in the movie "The Way" about 4 years ago. That movie touched me profoundly in my relationship with God and with others that are seeking something in their own journey. Every time I have seen it (at least 6) I have been touched or seen something different. So in this respect, I am really excited. On the other hand I am very down. I am dreading leaving my family to fend for themselves in Antequera. I know they can handle it, but we have never been apart for this period of time. I have felt over the past week that I am going for longer. I have had friends here in Spain that have wished me well, prayed for me and told me good-bye. It has been like telling people that I have known my whole life good-bye. I am really blessed with such good friends here in Spain and I will miss them. I have worried that I have not taken care of everything that I need to. I have worried about packing the right things, not too much of this or that. I am concerned that maybe, just maybe, I am not physically prepared and can't handle it. You see the ups and downs of this journey. Today something changed. I have crossed a threshold. The excitement has overtaken the worry. The anticipation has overtaken the uncertainty. While the negative is still there, it is reduced and the positive is now the overwhelming feeling. We spent the day as a family, went to the movies, rested, played horses and just hung out. Tomorrow I leave on the journey. I leave Antequera by train. I will go by train to Madrid and then make a connection to Pamplona, Spain. I then catch a bus to St. Jean Pied de Port, France where I will meet up with a group of 14 Aggies from Texas A&M. They have been kind to let me join up with them and share in the pilgrimage together. We start on Monday morning from St. Jean Pied de Port. The first leg of the journey will be about 23 kilometers (approx. 14 miles) uphill. We will be going into the Pyrenees and will climb all day to an altitude of 1,400 meters (approx. 4,600 ft). This will probably be the hardest day of the trip, with the exception of the soreness the following day!!! If you would like to see the path we will be following is shown on this Google Map . Laurie and I will continue to update this site to keep you up to date on my progress and thoughts. ¡Buen Camino! A song for pilgrims Psalm 121
1 I look up to the mountains-- does my help come from there? 2 My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth! 3 He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you will not slumber. 4 Indeed, he who watches over Israel never slumbers or sleeps. 5 The Lord himself watches over you! The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade. 6 The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon at night. 7 The Lord keeps you from all harm and watches over your life. 8 The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever. |