How the Camino Works

Bo Kaap with Table Mountain in the background

Here I am in Cape Town - literally on the other side of the world from home. Today I went on a wonderful tour of a very historical area of Cape Town which is called the Boer Kaap - a community which is basically Muslim and which began in the 1800s, but which today is a colorful and unique attraction of centure old houses in this beautiful city. Can you imagine a mountain side mix of small houses all painted a wonderful collage of pastel colors and with hill side streets that no die hard skate border would dare to traverse. But the children used to put wax onto boards and slide down these streets with a lookout at the bottom to warm for oncoming cars.

A walking tour in the 35C temperature was an experience in mid February for a die hard Canadian and an introduction to the history and the background of the muslin faith by a very committed guide was very interesting. Having created a new possibility for myself in this new world of adventure - that of being 'warm and engaging' - I soon found myself in conversation with two women who seemed, in the end, to have been placed there by the 'Camino Gods'. Turns out that my new friend Elmara has done the Camino at least 4 times and is planning to walk the Northern Route in April. Not only that, we sat nearly on top of each other in an educational last week. Life hold surprises, but makes me think at times that a greater plan is in place and we are just following the road that has already been designed for us. So now I have a fresh connection not only to the Camino's Northern Route, but the whole pilgrim group here in Cape Town who are meeting next week to introduce new 'pilgrim wannabees' to the adventure. At least 100 people are expected at this event.

I have a great story to tell to Desi, my Camino Sister from 2008, when I meet her for our walk from Muizenburg Beach to Kalk Bay in the morning. She has no idea that South Africa is full of pilgrims and 'pilgrim wannabees'.

It is hot here tonight and the wind is blowing off the south Atlantic. From here you could see straight down to Antarctica (well figuratively not literally) and so the energy of the environment is stunning. This evening, I walked along the the harbour beach here in Hout Bay and as always am mesmerized by the endless roll of the surf, the gusts of the wind and the warmth of the southern hemisphere sun. The mountains which overlook you from every vantage point here are magnificent and breathtaking against the brilliant blue of the African sky. I often look up to the place at the top of the mountains where I buried my husband;s ashes more than 3 years ago and wondr to myself what he would say to me now if he could comment on the life I have created for myself.It is one of the comforts of being able to come here - this enthereal feeling of being spiritually closer to him somehow, in this country that he loved so much.

While far from home, I keep bumping into messengers who have a similar intention as me - that is, to walk in the world to gain perspective and personal peace and then to make a diffeence where it matters.Could I be any luckier??.

So much to be thankful for eh!

Maggee - gazing at the harbour lights over Hout Bay on a warm summer eveningo

A Vagabond Life

Top of Table Mountain - Cape Town with my dear friend Vida from Toronto - Feb 4, 2010

So ......... I have retired at long last and now find myself with a year of adventure ahead, all of it thanks to the wonderful people that I have met along my Camino in 2008. I am here in South Africa for 2 months, spending time with family of my late husband and new friends, including Desi who I met along the Camino and who I have kept in touch with since then. We meet for a walk along the beach on weekends and then head for a wonderful place to sit and have coffee and a croissant, chatting about our lives and hopes and dreams and what the experience of walking the camino provided to us. These camino friends are unlike any others in my life and I know this to be a phenomenon from other groups of pilgrims that I have met with. There is not only a common bond because we have done something remarkable by walking the camino, there is in addition, a deeper way of relating to each other, somehow due to the spiritual nature of what a long walk provides to one. Friendships are deeper and more authentic and there is an appreciation of the simplicity that living as a pilgrim offers.

South Africa is a stunningly beautiful place and here in Cape Town where I settle myself in a rustic and lovely cottage overlooking the sea and the mountains, one could not find a happier place to be - particularly as it is mid summer here in South Africa and raging winter storms back home in Canada. I find peace in walking, which has become a passion since 2008 and am more complete within myself from the meditative practice of walking for an hour at the beginning of each day. Of course, being able to walk along the beach or along Chapman's Peak Drive which is the most stunning roadway alongside the mountains and overlooking the harbour and outlook to the sea. It was here two years ago as I walked along this beach that I committed to walking the camino, so it holds a very special place in my heart. Lots of angst and sorrow have been walked out along this shore, against the pounding surf, under the glorious sun and the mountain view. Peace of mind and heart, I have found, comes from the solitude and the repetitive energy that one puts into simply placing one foot in front of the other.

Here is where I am happiest, in this country with it's incredible beauty at every turn of the road and with each glance in any direction. Something to ponder amidst the contrasts of beauty, wealth and proverty all mixed together with a pride in what this country has stood for, particularly since Mandela's release in the early 1990s.

Well, the year holds a lot of promise. My Camino Sisters and I have set up a series of events together. From our reunion last September in the Gaspe Mountains of Quebec, we decided that our love for walking and for each othere ought to be continued with new adventures. So we are meeting in Ottawa in May to do a Canadian pilgrimage together, walking to Montreal in the way we did the Camino. Six of us, including Kirsten from Denmark will make this trip and I will write about the adventure along the way.

Before that, however, I will fly to Germany in April to visit with my friend Anita who was my inspiration for doing the Camino in the first place. Then of course, I need to go to Denmark to visit Kirsten. While I am in Europe, it seemed to make sense to hop over to Copenhagen, so I am going to do just that.

In September, we have a plan to walk the Camino again, this time doing the northern route along the north coast of Spain. We want to walk into Santiago once again and then walk to Finisterre to complete the trip. Since none of are working now, we will take our time and walk to enjoy, as well as have time to rest if we need this. On the first Camino, we were pressed to get to the end to meet air line departure reservations that we all had and so this time will be more relaxed and free for all of us.

So, here in South Africa, I enjoy the chance to train on the hills and the mountains, to reflect on what an important part of my life walking has become and to gain more confidence in this new phase of my life - free of the hassles of a hectic work life, but still passionate about finding a meaningful way to contribute to the world.

My intention for this year is to discover what that contribution might be. As a pilgrim, walking and contemplating this new direction in my life, I want to arrive at the end point with a vision of where my life path will head. It seems daunting and at the same time filled with possibility, so I waver between the two, with worry and concern intruding on the incredible freedom that I feel with this new phase of my life. Surely walking is the way to the solution.

Maggee
Cape Town, South Africa