There is much to say about the journey and abut the experience. I have discovered the greatest insights come to me in the early morning just as the sun comes up over the horizon and it is still quite dark. We walk in stillness and quiet reflection and there is only the sound of foot steps crunching in the gravel as the time passes and the dark grows into light. I have learned that courage comes from being able to face what happens along the way and that everything does not always go according to expectation. I have learned that each step is one more towards a feeling of great peace within and that there is much to be noticed along the way if you only take the time to look up and around at the beauty and the stillness.
There are many interesting companions along this way. there is a very old looking woman who walks the camino with a walker, hunched over and looking like she really should be in a rocking chair somewhere. There is another who is quite overweight and struggles to complete 16 kms each day. She is very brave and does what she can sleeping under bridges to rest as she needs to. There is a man who is 81 and just keeps on walking, arriving later than the rest of us, but still cheerful and a good compaion. There is a single woman from Japan, a young man and his mother from South Africa and many people from other parts of the world. All of us bent on one thing and that is to make our way along the camino to Santiago.
We are now 4 as one of my Canadian companions was told yesterday to stop walking and head for home as her knee is too bad to continue. We see different kinds of injuries now, A very healthy looking man we met yesterday has had to stop for awhile with tendonitis and this we learn is from not drinking enough. So now we drink plenty all along the way and hjave to stop in fields when there is not a bathroon conveniently located.
We have walked for the past 2 days on red dirt roads through the beautiful vine yards of the Rioja region and of course the wine in the afternoon and at the end of the day is wonderful and very cheap. Yesterday was a long and hot walk along mostly paved roads and so by the end of the walk, me feet were very sore and tired. After a nap and some rest, it is much better. Today we have walked another 22 kms and have arrived at a gold mine of an alberque. A small village with a place which has 60 beds, all of then in 2 bed room which is a wonderful change from the large dormitories that have been the experience up to now. Today is a festival day and so there is music in the square and the church bells ringing wildly adding to the general flavour of the area.
We have been offered a bottle of wine from the hostess here and are thankful that they are do warm and caring to the pilgrims each day. Yesterday the hospitalero of the alberque who is called Michelle from Germany. spent an hour making crepes for all of us. The cost each day is very low. yesterday was 3 E for the night and today 6 E for the 2 bed room for each of us.
I am conscious of my thoughts each day and pay special attenton to what I notice along the way as we walk through these wonderful little villages with all of their ancient history. building decorated by flowering plants in basket on the balconies and the people who seem to disappear and then come out in full force at 5 or 6 pm to the local square to socialize.
I am happy each day to just get up a walk and to contemplate what occurs to me in the moment. I enjoy the feeling of power and fitness that I experience in my legs and lungs as we climb hills and power along, particularly after we have found a cafe con leche and a chocolate filled croisant. The simple pleasure of these little things and patterns of living have slowed down my head and I enjoy the feeling of what the Sweedish sugges for pilgrims which is silence, no worries, charity to others, spirituality and 4 others which I cannot remember at the moment.
I think of my good fortune in being able to do this. I had thought it to be a challenge of courage for me and now I see that the challenge is to melt into it. I thought to be alone and I am not and I realize that that is also a creation as we are not alone except by choice.
No one who does this journey is every much alone as there is such a strong sense of community at every step of the way, as people take care of each other in simple and more profound ways and the experience is such that this is what our real life ought to be like.
"We have many people and events in our life and we draw these to us. The opportunity exists in what we choose to do with all of this"................Maggee
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Melting into the Moments
Two days have passed since I entered something into this jounery log. We are still travelling togather, the 4 Canadians and yesterday we picked up Kirsten again, the Danish woman I had met some days earlier, so now we are 4. the French Canadian is very witty and we call her our poet philosopher, Everything she has, has been wieghed carefully, and so she carries 20 gms of poetry amongst other items. She threatens to place her extra weight into our bags while we sleep at night as the maseus yesterday told her to take out 2 kgs. We laugh all the time about what we can get rid of and even the hair conditioner and dental floss counts for something. We only buy food that we will eat for the day and nothing extra so we are getting smarter about the bulk and the wieght as it really makes a difference as the day goes.
The past two days have been easier. less climbing although nothing is flat here in Spain only hilly by degrees, with some quite steep. We have arrived at the auberg by 12 = 1 pm these past 2 days and have enjoyed the afternoon siesta time and the rest on our aching feet and legs.
Today marks 156 kms for the journey and we are about 20% complete. I would never have imagined that I could walk this far with such consistency when I left Canada. I am feeling fine and have learned that it is vital to drink and to stop to rest and to keep eating (yes Mom I eat well). We notice the wieght loss now and although not significant, my clothes are loose (good eh!) but what a way to lose weight!!
I am melting into the moments as my friend Cathy has suggested and find that the walking = one step at a time = is very contemplative. I have experienced some interesting insights about how simple life really is and how we complicate it with our human issues of letting the mind over rule the real substance of what is really important. So much of what I have focused on is material and in the end will not be how my life makes a difference for the world or even for my onw happiness.
I am getting tired each day just from the constant effort to walk. this comes and goes however, and there are moments of extreme happiness as well and a feeling of being fulfilled in simple ways. There are beautiful surprises around each corner and everything is unexpected as even the map cannot tell us what really lies ahead.
We are walking through the vineyards of Rioja now and today passed olive groves and apple orchards as well. The smell, the color and the full beauty of the morning sky is something to behold. The camraderie along the way is precious as each of us takes time to greet and wish each other well as we pass and re pass each other. There are great times of conversation over the vino tinto and fabulous meals, once the manu has been tranalated with the very patient waiters in the bars and restaurants.
Wherever there is a maseus, we take advantage of the treatment as the only splurge in an otherwise very cheap adventure. Each night costs at most 6 E and last night it was 4E with the most cost being the pilgrims meal each day at 9 or 10 E which is worth while as it always includes a few bottles of wine.
So what am I getting from this so far. Well one thing is that there is a lot to be learned from simplicity and that I do not need as much in my life as far a material things than I have been accustomed to. This does not mean that I will give it all up when I return home, but will certainly think about this in future. The other thing is that there is such a big world to explore and that each person I meet along the way is ready and open to being in communication even in a simple way so that conversation with so many people, even those that cannot share the same language is wonderfully warm and friendly. There is an Italian couple who we have been seeing for the past 4 days, since Pamplona, and we can only greet them as they have now taught us how = so when we see them it is like old friends even though I have no idea what they are saying in words, the non verbal works wonderfully.
We are now a group the 5 of us and will travel together for awhile and until we need to change pace or something else. It is good to have companions and good to have time alone to contemplate as well and it all works out.
Spain is a wonderful place and I cherish the opportuniy to be able to see so much of this simple rural life in these ancient places. So much history is evidnet all around us all the time. People continue to be warm and friendly and we are well taken care of in these beautiful refugios.
Buen Camino........... Maggee
The past two days have been easier. less climbing although nothing is flat here in Spain only hilly by degrees, with some quite steep. We have arrived at the auberg by 12 = 1 pm these past 2 days and have enjoyed the afternoon siesta time and the rest on our aching feet and legs.
Today marks 156 kms for the journey and we are about 20% complete. I would never have imagined that I could walk this far with such consistency when I left Canada. I am feeling fine and have learned that it is vital to drink and to stop to rest and to keep eating (yes Mom I eat well). We notice the wieght loss now and although not significant, my clothes are loose (good eh!) but what a way to lose weight!!
I am melting into the moments as my friend Cathy has suggested and find that the walking = one step at a time = is very contemplative. I have experienced some interesting insights about how simple life really is and how we complicate it with our human issues of letting the mind over rule the real substance of what is really important. So much of what I have focused on is material and in the end will not be how my life makes a difference for the world or even for my onw happiness.
I am getting tired each day just from the constant effort to walk. this comes and goes however, and there are moments of extreme happiness as well and a feeling of being fulfilled in simple ways. There are beautiful surprises around each corner and everything is unexpected as even the map cannot tell us what really lies ahead.
We are walking through the vineyards of Rioja now and today passed olive groves and apple orchards as well. The smell, the color and the full beauty of the morning sky is something to behold. The camraderie along the way is precious as each of us takes time to greet and wish each other well as we pass and re pass each other. There are great times of conversation over the vino tinto and fabulous meals, once the manu has been tranalated with the very patient waiters in the bars and restaurants.
Wherever there is a maseus, we take advantage of the treatment as the only splurge in an otherwise very cheap adventure. Each night costs at most 6 E and last night it was 4E with the most cost being the pilgrims meal each day at 9 or 10 E which is worth while as it always includes a few bottles of wine.
So what am I getting from this so far. Well one thing is that there is a lot to be learned from simplicity and that I do not need as much in my life as far a material things than I have been accustomed to. This does not mean that I will give it all up when I return home, but will certainly think about this in future. The other thing is that there is such a big world to explore and that each person I meet along the way is ready and open to being in communication even in a simple way so that conversation with so many people, even those that cannot share the same language is wonderfully warm and friendly. There is an Italian couple who we have been seeing for the past 4 days, since Pamplona, and we can only greet them as they have now taught us how = so when we see them it is like old friends even though I have no idea what they are saying in words, the non verbal works wonderfully.
We are now a group the 5 of us and will travel together for awhile and until we need to change pace or something else. It is good to have companions and good to have time alone to contemplate as well and it all works out.
Spain is a wonderful place and I cherish the opportuniy to be able to see so much of this simple rural life in these ancient places. So much history is evidnet all around us all the time. People continue to be warm and friendly and we are well taken care of in these beautiful refugios.
Buen Camino........... Maggee
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Everyone Has a Story
We travel together and sometimes talk and sometimes not. There is an interesting mix of ages and stages of life and in the afternoons when we have found our refuggio for the night, most people are settled somewhere writing in journals. For most this is a reflective and very personal process. Some are recovering from life challenges, others just looking for an answer as to where to go next - like me.
There is a cancer survivor from BC, a woman trying to come to terms with the outcome of an accident several years ago that has made it impossible for her to continue with her life passion of teaching children. One young man lost his mother a year ago, two young women search for the next stage of life now that unuversity is completed. Some older men appear contemplative and prayerful as they walk along.
Some walk fast and with purpose, others look like they will not reach the next town, Cyclists are very energetic and you wonder how they find the way as they travel so fast. A pair past me jogging this morning - what is that all about I ask myself!! There are a few couples, but they have their challenges as their relationship and the experience of the Camino affects them differently. Most people are on their own believe it or not and a lot are in the category of older women from everywhere across the globe including Asia, S America and Europe. In spite of cultural differences we seem to have a common bond of searching for meaning.
I myself have found the days are flying by now that I am getting into a rythym of it all. Up early in the morning to walk before the sun gets too hot and it really does climb to over 32 C each afternoon. Stopping for rest and food every hour or so and then finding the refuggio for the night - shower first, wash clothes and then lie down for awhile to rest aching joints, muscles and feet.
It is a wonderful thing to just concentrate on putting one foot in front of the other and noticing all of the unusual and beautiful things that appear close up or on the horizon. I have never seen such ancient and beautiful villages, remnants of Roman architecture in the roads and bridges here and lots of Basque architecture. I am intrigued now by the process and wonder how this will really go for me.
Some say that you can hit a wall about now with the fatigue and the bone weary aches that you experience. I have felt some of this, but once I rest, I feel truly happy to just be focusing on the ordinary things that are required to just manage each day as simply as it is. I am also finding the accommodation just fine and am not bothered by the numbers of people that need to share close quarters with each other. They are polite and respectful and very friendly - nothing has bothered me yet as I had heard some stories in books I read.
Today we passed the place that marks the spot where a Canadian woman was killed in an accident in 2002. Her husband returned later to build a small monument to her memory and so we all stopped to pay respects. It makes you realize that anything could happen along this journey and more importantly, it is a reminder of how much each moment and each step matter in the course of life.
Well perhaps I am getting more reflective as the days go and will see what turns up out of that........Maggee
There is a cancer survivor from BC, a woman trying to come to terms with the outcome of an accident several years ago that has made it impossible for her to continue with her life passion of teaching children. One young man lost his mother a year ago, two young women search for the next stage of life now that unuversity is completed. Some older men appear contemplative and prayerful as they walk along.
Some walk fast and with purpose, others look like they will not reach the next town, Cyclists are very energetic and you wonder how they find the way as they travel so fast. A pair past me jogging this morning - what is that all about I ask myself!! There are a few couples, but they have their challenges as their relationship and the experience of the Camino affects them differently. Most people are on their own believe it or not and a lot are in the category of older women from everywhere across the globe including Asia, S America and Europe. In spite of cultural differences we seem to have a common bond of searching for meaning.
I myself have found the days are flying by now that I am getting into a rythym of it all. Up early in the morning to walk before the sun gets too hot and it really does climb to over 32 C each afternoon. Stopping for rest and food every hour or so and then finding the refuggio for the night - shower first, wash clothes and then lie down for awhile to rest aching joints, muscles and feet.
It is a wonderful thing to just concentrate on putting one foot in front of the other and noticing all of the unusual and beautiful things that appear close up or on the horizon. I have never seen such ancient and beautiful villages, remnants of Roman architecture in the roads and bridges here and lots of Basque architecture. I am intrigued now by the process and wonder how this will really go for me.
Some say that you can hit a wall about now with the fatigue and the bone weary aches that you experience. I have felt some of this, but once I rest, I feel truly happy to just be focusing on the ordinary things that are required to just manage each day as simply as it is. I am also finding the accommodation just fine and am not bothered by the numbers of people that need to share close quarters with each other. They are polite and respectful and very friendly - nothing has bothered me yet as I had heard some stories in books I read.
Today we passed the place that marks the spot where a Canadian woman was killed in an accident in 2002. Her husband returned later to build a small monument to her memory and so we all stopped to pay respects. It makes you realize that anything could happen along this journey and more importantly, it is a reminder of how much each moment and each step matter in the course of life.
Well perhaps I am getting more reflective as the days go and will see what turns up out of that........Maggee
Monday, September 1, 2008
And is it goes!
Pamplona was wonderful last night. We went down to the square at around 5 pm and drank some beer and wine and watched the families sitting around. The older women gather in small groups to drink coffee and eat ice cream or pastries and the men sit on the benches talking with each other. Later the younger families come out with the strollers and sleepy children and by 8 pm the narrow street are filled with people looking for dinner as the bars do not re open until 7 pm.
We took the time to go to the Cathedral de Santa Maria for another special blessing. The priest again read out the countries that we are all from and then led us through a prayer and a blessing service. This ended with being led into the locked off alter area to sing something in Spanish which was a wonderful end to the day. There are many of us, although not so many as there would be in summer.
Everywhere we go, people wish us well and are helpful even though they must be overwhelmed with the increasing numbers of pilgrims every year. The accommodation last night was good, a renovated seminary built in the mid 1700s. The place was clean and new and immaculate and the bunks very comfortable. I am finding if costs less than $35 per day for everything.
Today we left early and walked in the dark through the city to the outskirts to find cofe con leche and some pastries after the firtst 5 kms which was better than yesterday. It was so hot and so tiring with not much of a hill, only 400 m or so, but sill in the direct sun and wind to boot, it was an exhausting day. We crept along doing about 24 kms today and stopping often to rest feet and to drink and eat. We arrived at a wonderful auberge in Puenta de la Riena and collapsed into the shower and the comfy bunk beds. Dinner was great and again very cheap.
Today, we passed wind mills and wonderful fields where the crops have been harvested. The vistas are stunning in the hot sun and the path seems to wander through fields and ancient towns with all sort of wonderful architecture. The people continue to be friendly and so helpful. I was even able to get a wonderful massage and treatment here this evening which has readied me for another day.
94 kms so far........ whoc would have though this possible as I worried my way through the training over the past monhts. My feet are fine and while achy at times, easily cured with a stop and a cool down.
Some people are now in serious troulbe, walking in flip flops to avoid more traumo to bad blisters and others simply not able to continue for a few days. I do not hobble like some and while quite heat exhausted by the afternoon and 7 hours of walking, feel that I am doing fine. Tips along the way include duck tape for the feet, vaseline seems to be favoured and of course good boots. Eating and drinking through the day make a difference and watching your foot steps especially at the end of the day when I am more tired and likely to trip and fall over my own boots is important. I made the mistake of looking at just how far it is to Santiago and wondered wht in hell i was thinking in planning this trip. However, as they say often, it is one step at a time and each one counts and the time and space to withdraw from life provides for something more profund than could be gained in any other way.
So it continues - tomorrow we head for Estella and the 4 of us will comtinue to walk as a group until it no longer seems right. I have enough time to meditate on my own and also really enjoy the company of the others.
Maggee
We took the time to go to the Cathedral de Santa Maria for another special blessing. The priest again read out the countries that we are all from and then led us through a prayer and a blessing service. This ended with being led into the locked off alter area to sing something in Spanish which was a wonderful end to the day. There are many of us, although not so many as there would be in summer.
Everywhere we go, people wish us well and are helpful even though they must be overwhelmed with the increasing numbers of pilgrims every year. The accommodation last night was good, a renovated seminary built in the mid 1700s. The place was clean and new and immaculate and the bunks very comfortable. I am finding if costs less than $35 per day for everything.
Today we left early and walked in the dark through the city to the outskirts to find cofe con leche and some pastries after the firtst 5 kms which was better than yesterday. It was so hot and so tiring with not much of a hill, only 400 m or so, but sill in the direct sun and wind to boot, it was an exhausting day. We crept along doing about 24 kms today and stopping often to rest feet and to drink and eat. We arrived at a wonderful auberge in Puenta de la Riena and collapsed into the shower and the comfy bunk beds. Dinner was great and again very cheap.
Today, we passed wind mills and wonderful fields where the crops have been harvested. The vistas are stunning in the hot sun and the path seems to wander through fields and ancient towns with all sort of wonderful architecture. The people continue to be friendly and so helpful. I was even able to get a wonderful massage and treatment here this evening which has readied me for another day.
94 kms so far........ whoc would have though this possible as I worried my way through the training over the past monhts. My feet are fine and while achy at times, easily cured with a stop and a cool down.
Some people are now in serious troulbe, walking in flip flops to avoid more traumo to bad blisters and others simply not able to continue for a few days. I do not hobble like some and while quite heat exhausted by the afternoon and 7 hours of walking, feel that I am doing fine. Tips along the way include duck tape for the feet, vaseline seems to be favoured and of course good boots. Eating and drinking through the day make a difference and watching your foot steps especially at the end of the day when I am more tired and likely to trip and fall over my own boots is important. I made the mistake of looking at just how far it is to Santiago and wondered wht in hell i was thinking in planning this trip. However, as they say often, it is one step at a time and each one counts and the time and space to withdraw from life provides for something more profund than could be gained in any other way.
So it continues - tomorrow we head for Estella and the 4 of us will comtinue to walk as a group until it no longer seems right. I have enough time to meditate on my own and also really enjoy the company of the others.
Maggee
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