The New...

So now my year has entered a new phase ... I am back to 'work', well, new work for me . I was very excited to take up a position with Canada World Youth as their Development Officer for Global Learner Programs (many of you will recognize this as the organization I have run my school's Costa Rica projects with for the past several years). Its a short 4 month contract, but just enough I felt to get a sense of what it is like to work in the not-for-profit sector do some educational work outside the classroom and an opportunity to excercise my transferrable skills (turns out ... I have some!!). I am really enjoying things so far ... the quiet 'yogic' environment of our office space, time to have meaningful discussions, hour long lunch breaks, limited 'homework' and most of all working with people who are hard working and enthusiastically & wholly committed to the work that they do in this field, there is a good, positive, hopeful energy present working in this sector.

Just by way of transition ... I must mention that over the past few weeks while 'reintegrating' back into my life here I have noticed often little things that spring up in front of me asking questions like " is this still how you want to do this" ? or ... is this really how you feel? Reminds me of the Pirsig quote: 'The truth knocks on the door and you say, "Go away, I'm looking for the truth," and so it goes away. Puzzling.' However, I would like to / am trying to confront these little things ... Martin (oh yes!! we did meet him again in the end!!) says that in many ways the camino begins once you get back home and I try to keep this in mind when I confront the changes I see in myself. It has been nice to chat (thank you technology this time!) with camino friends about this re-integration phase ... in particular I am missing our 'team red flag' (see photo above) we liked to think of ourselves on 'the amazing race' (camino edition) from time to time & created thoroughly hilarious commentaries for ourselves and other 'teams' involving fellow unsuspecting pilgrims... if only they knew the names we had created from them "the ponytail singers" to give you an outrageous example...) From left is Audrey who I met in Rabbanal and had many adventures and laughs with including coffee breaks in unusual places, trying to pin the heart shaped sand message on Jacques from France and singing opera to budgees ... Vin & I are center and Martin the miracle cream man who rejoined us in Sarria!

It was Martin who gave me this poem in Santiago... something for the future...

The Road goes ever on and on

Down from the door where it began.

Now far ahead the Road has gone,

And I must follow, if I can,

Pursuing it with wary feet,

Until it joins some larger way,

Where may paths and errands meet.

And whither then? I cannot say.

~J.R.R Tolkein

Learning & Unlearning

Home now in Toronto and am lucky enough to have a few days to slowly get back to my life here giving me plenty of time to process and revisit the weeks, days and moments that have in some ways gone by so quickly, but in another way I also feel that time entered another realm on the camino... days felt full, I think this is because I was slow... it is such a contemporary cliche " life is racing by"... infact it seems quite the opposite to me now... life is still, it was me that was racing by.
Once I settled into a pace on the camino, I began to notice the metaphors that the walk brought into focus; it is often said that walking the camino de Santiago is like a walk through life... a small journey in the face of a much larger one. During the walk, I learned much... historically and culturally of course, but I also found many lessons in the ways of living. Here are a few thoughts on lessons learned:
Number 1:
Even when I thought I was alone, even when I intended to be, planned to be, I was never truly alone.
Number 2:
It was logistically impossible to plan ahead once the camino was begun for a multitude of reasons... this taught me something very important...to look to and live only in the moment, making decisions only one day at a time... it seemed that the long journey was possible when I didn't let the future destination and its great distance overwhelm me.
Number 3:
When I found myself in a set of circumstances that I did not intend, or even tried hard to avoid I began to realize it was best if I just learned to relax and see what happens next ... inevitably something or someone interesting would present itself / themself and generally, I was better off for the change of plan / intention.
Number 4:
I learned the importance of walking my own pace. If you try to keep up with others or try to have others keep up with you, someone will get hurt.
Number 5:
Always there were people who would walk alongside me for a time and then I would lose them for a time, or maybe forever. I learned to let them go, knowing they had a different path, a different pace to walk that was influenced by other variables beyond my control & I really enjoyed the time I had with them.
Number 6:
Arriving at Santiago / 'Ithaca'... many thoughts on what was learned about the destination versus the value of the journey ... best described in C.P. Cavafy's poem 'Ithaca' ... I will try to attach this somewhere...

Santiago

Although I believe it to be true that Madrid is an utterly beautiful, romantic city, we arrived this morning having taken a sleeper car on the night train from Santiago to what felt like the most chaotic place on earth... walls of concrete, commuters... heck, people that work! (this was eerily absent in some of the tiny northern villages... more on the decline of the rural communities of northern Spain later...)
Yes. We made it to Santiago yesterday after hauling ourselves through the last 20km mostly by starlight so that we could be present for the pilgrim mass at the cathedral at noon (one of many pilgrim rituals...) The feeling upon arrival into the Cathedral plaza was indescribable for so many reasons... The first thing I noticed of course was the imposing size of this cathedral... one of the largest ever built by human hands, most of the limestone was brought by pilgrims to the site for years on end. It dwarfed every other cathedral we had seen along the way. The second thing I noticed was the tourists... hundreds of tourists who had stepped off their buses mere meters away and walked into the square with multiple well suited translators. Of course with hoards of tourists followed the hoards of vendors and hawkers with walking staffs and scallop shells (camino paraphanalia)... I even saw a group ask a fellow walker if she would pose for photos with her credential (kind of like a passport that gets filled with stamps along the way to prove your camino) And then, to the back of the square we saw our fellow walkers. Everyone was embracing, laughing, crying, sitting, staring... and it was like this for the rest of the day... everyone just stayed in the square hoping to welcome others as they arrived that they had lost touch with along the way. Vince and I both had people we hoped to see again and before we caught our train we saw each one of them. It was magic.
Vince has flown back to Canada now and I´m in Madrid for a few days. I thought it would be nice to see the Prado, do some shopping... you know, ´civilized stuff´. Went to the Prado this afternoon, its huge and impressive, but I somehow got lost more times inside this museum than on the whole camino ... and I had maps! After this I went up to the ´high street´Calle Serrano in the hopes of replacing my camino shoes with something a little more lovely... nothing fit... or maybe I just didn´t want it to?
I know I have alot more to say about this camino, so although the journey may be finished, my thinking about it is not... stay tuned...

Side Projects...

Met a man named Hans several days ago and have been sort of ´hopscotching´ with him ever since... He is a big-wig at a Dutch company (or so I suspect from his very humble description of what he does...) funny, actually, in most cases people on the camino take several days to get to the question of - so, what is it that you do in your "real life"... sometimes it even takes a day or so to get to "what´s your name"?!
Hans is a very methodical, organized, planner sort and true to form has several little side projects going on as he walks the camino that involve ´lists´. The one I thought was interesting was the list for what constitutes camino stress. I haven´t asked him why he has chosen this topic, but some of the things on his list are rather funny ... things like: having to walk more than 10km in the morning before finding a cafe con leche, running into the same person day after day that you keep trying to politely get away from, a constant barrage of unsolicited advice from a stranger about how to care for your feet when you are 55 years old... and the list goes on...
I thought keeping this list was an interesting idea... I however, am not interested in the topic of stress... I have found the topic of peace has come up again and again on the camino... every now and then someone will say... "isn´t it peaceful / ahhh muy tranquillo" ... and so, for me, a ´what is peace list´has been taking shape in my thoughts the past couple of days ... particularly in the early hours. Some thoughts for the list so far: Peace is... being patient while you wait for the sun to rise, arriving in a new town and feeling like you live there because other caminitas / caminitos are waving and saying hello, the first smell of fresh air in the morning in Galecia, miles and miles of fields in front of you and not a single sound (except a few echoing cowbells), strangers sharing advice about good Albergues or sandwiches (bocadillos), someone you´ve never seen before coming up to you to tell you that ´so and so´has a knee bandage and they heard you needed one so if you go down the road and on your left you´ll find them in the plaza square; while alone on a stretch of highway a Brazilian man I´d never seen before came up to me and through broken ´portuguese, spanish, english´ politely asked if we could walk the next 7km together as this was was a particularly dangerous section and we should look out for one another... These are just a few instances when I´ve felt peace... there are others, but this list helps perhaps to give sense...
Less than 100km to go now...
Buen Camino,
A.

Solo for awhile...

Hello all,
We´re in Sarria... the last 100km to go!!!
I realize I am leaving huge gaps here ... but it seems that telecommunications are few and far between in rural Spain ... and I am okay with this!
So, for the past week, Vince and I decided to take some solo time just to enjoy the camino at our own pace and to meet others along the road individually. It was good timing since we ´re-entered´the camino at Leon and there were two routes branching off for a little section ... a perfect time to begin a slightly different camino.
We just rejoined each other yesterday at the top of the cordillera Cantabrica at O Cebrerio, a stunningly beautiful celtic village at a couple of thousand feet.
The most interesting thing about the past week for me was the realization that although I had set out alone, with the intention of enjoying some solitude for awhile... you are never really alone on the camino. I had some wonderful moments in the early hours when I set out in the dark with stars above each day... but that was about it really. Typically I would join others for coffee mid morning and perhaps carry on with them for a few km´s and of course you always meet up at the end of the day to recount events and reconnect with those you have seen over the past few days ... its always a nice surprise to see who ends up at the same Albergue.
It was along this stretch that the camino finally began to wear me down a little... had a bit of a cold, first blister and worst of all, shin splints... for those of you who are runners, that term strikes fear into my very core! These were bone breakingly painful shin splints... what would I do... take a bus? Wait it out a couple of days? No. I limped into an Albergue in Rabanal del Camino and within 5 minutes was sized up by an Irishman who just looked at me and said ... are you going to make it? YES! I firmly said (I believed it too!). Well then, he said, you´d better meet Martin... And so, during the most trying day of my camino so far, I was guided step by step by Martin from the UK who has done this before... he continuously reapplied topical ibuprofin to my aching leg and was chatter enough to keep my mind off my pain and keep me laughing through 30km of brutal downhills (but with stunning vistas) from Rabbanal to Molenaseca. (Thank you Martin! I will forever be grateful for you!) When we finally arrived late the next afternoon... I asked him .. why did you stick it out with me? He replied... I just knew you would need somebody today, and this is the camino way.... I haven´t seen him since, but I bought an extra tube of ´Voltaren´the miracle cream he shared with me... and I hope I get to give it to someone else along the way.
Buen Camino,
A.

Why are you doing the Camino?

Bit of a jump here now... we made it to Burgos (site of the most beautiful cathedral I have ever seen) two days ago and this is where we bid farewell to our ´troop´... there was a good group of about 10 of us who were carrying along at the same pace. The spanish ladies went home at this point and we hopped a bus to Leon, missing ´la meseta´... about 150km and the section that everyone says can drive pilgrims to the brink... vast, flat desert scrubland with nary a tree for shade. So, from Leon we press onwards to Santiago...
I wanted to tell a couple of stories here ... you hear so many on the camino, and I wanted to share two that I found most extraordinary.
Two days ago, hiking up a rather steep incline out of Villafranca a man ran by us... Vince and I looked at each other and at first thought he must be just a local jogger, but then recognized the scallop shell on his pack that inicates he is doing the camino... this guy is crazy with think, and wrote him off, continuing on. When we got to San Juan de Ortega, he was there, so we joined him for a drink. Of course we were curious about why he was running and not doing the traditional walking of the camino. It turns out... Walter Cruz , a professional cage fighter from Brazil, now living in London is running the camino because he made a promise. His wife was several months pregnant with twins when some serious complications arose... he promised that if the babies were born healthy that he would run to Santiago as a display of gratitude. Gabriela and Claire and his wife are all healthy and cheering him on via webcams along the way...
Adding to this... he intends to run the camino each year for ten years, this being the first and also started training about 5weeks ago, the first running training he had ever done...
An incredible man. He expects to finish in about 23 days.
I will leave the other story of 3 spanish women and their promise for another time, perhaps for back in Canada over a glass of vino tino!
Buen Camino,
A.

The Story of the Walnut...

Here in Belorado tonight ... a shorter 25km today was most welcome after my screaming IT bands kept me in bed resting most of yesterday afternoon at a beautiful monestery in Santo Domingo de la Cazalda ... feeling much better today after a great nights rest on a firm matress with only others (none of us snorers) in our simple room. The tranquillity of the place lost something however when the nun came in to the kitchen at 7:43am this morning and promptly kicked us out, breakfast in hand! I politely asked " Puedo comer mi desayuno?" (may I eat my breakfast?) and she flatly replied " No! Vamos! Rapido rapido!!!" Yikes! don´t mess with the nuns...At lease we weren´t still sleeping like the spanish couple in our room who literally had to go and shower in the other albergue down the street...
But, I digress...
So, the story of the walnut...
This for me, really encapsulated the idea (well, stereotypes I suppose) of international ingenuity...
A few nights ago in Estella, a bunch of us had prepared a beautiful meal and were sitting contented around the table telling stories about the day when Turloch, an irishman brought out some walnuts in the shell to share with dessert. We looked around for a nutcracker, but, to no avail... So Turloch said, no worries, we just use them to crack each other... so he put two in his hand, covered one with the other and then squeezed down tightly, face reddening under the strain... nothing. Across the table, Naomichi (Japanese) takes a nut, puts it on the floor and starts hammering it with a pot ... peels of laughter erupt... but no success...
All this time a German man at the end of the table has been watching us quietly, saying nothing. He quietly came over, took a nut from Turloch and under only a slight bit of strain was able to open the walnut with a simple knife technique, whereby the knife is inserted into the seam of the nut and it cracked open into several pieces. Now ( the japanese) lets out an "ahhhhhhhhhhh" and immediately flips open his swiss army knife and effortlessly begins popping open walnuts with a clean seam, splitting each one perfectly in two!
Turloch says ... " and this is why the Germans and the Japanese make the cars and the Irish don´t!!"
Author´s note: the Canadians and the Americans at the table during this display of genius sat by with encouraging words and in the end, ate the most walnuts...

Well, tomorrow is to be a tough day (so says Mata ... a 60 something man from Japan who most people call Fujimori because he looks like the former President of Peru!) so, I´ll go now to enbalm the legs for another beautiful day of walking.
(Oh - but first, this computer actually possesses the capability for downloading photos, so I´ll try to do some ... Vince?? :) Most computers don´t allow for this... likely afraid of viruses...)

Buen Camino,
A.

Community on the Move...

Hi everyone!
We are now in Najara (see map at the bottom of blog...) and have so far walked every step of the way! Covering 60km in the last two days has been an incredible challenge, but we´re feeling great and are kept constantly in high spirits by the people around us. I know I promised to delve into the history a little bit... and I will eventually, but I wanted to comment on this idea of being a part of a community on the move. This whole trek is a fascinating little self contained reality... the metaphors abound ... it is a journey through your lifetime (and as Jane Christmas describes in What the Psychic told the Pilgrim ... if that´s the case, crossing the Pyrenees was like coming out of the birth canal!!) I don´t remember what that was like, but perhaps crossing the Pyrenees was a birth of a different kind...
I have really enjoyed walking with different people for stretches of this walk... its incredible how we wake each day knowing that the tasks are the same (walk, cafe con leche, break for lunch, find an albergue, shop for food, make dinner, do laundry, sleep) ... yet, each day is a complete unknown (something I´m growing to love...) I have so enjoyed the company of complete strangers for stretches at a time... some longer than others and some for days at a time. At the end of the day it has become such a joy to see a familliar face at the same albergue, it feels a bit like coming home to family. Indeed, there is a familial feel here... we know of a few people who have had accidents (blown out knees, concussions, face plants, broken arm...) and always, there are people helping those who need it ... we met a bizarre doctor from France who has taken the year off to drive the camino (on highway stretches) looking for the injured ... well, we have another theory too... since he has a penchant for young french girls who are injured... but thats another story! We have enjoyed many communal meals with incredible food prepared by people from all over... and the stories of the very young (two guys out of high school who hitchhiked from Poland) and the very old ( there are so many more people in this category... it is unbelieveably inspiring)
Okay, well my time is up and they are shutting out the lights around me ... next up, a story about international ingenuity encaspulated involving a walnut...
Adios y buen camino!
A.

A journey of 1000 miles...

This journey of approximately 800km began on Sept. 4th with a single step in the direction of the Pyrenees that border France & Spain. Vince & I have until Sept. 29th to complete our journey to Santiago as we walk the Camino de Santiago de Compostela... Now, I have to admit, I have put off the beginning of my blog as I am intimidated to no end about putting my thoughts out there on the internet, because I know that I obsess over the tiny details that would make a blog magnificent (what if I make a spelling mistake? what if I can´t figure out how to get the formatting - font just right?) and because spending time on a computer tinkering with these fine details is not one of the priorities I have set for myself as I take leave of my job as a teacher for one year...

So... why am I on here? I am on here because one of my priorities is learning new things and I am grateful to my pal Hunter for sharing her insights into the blogging world with me (god knows I would never have figured this out with a manual!) I also think it serves as an interesting personal record of my thoughts and the thoughts of others (so please comment!!) So I am going to give it a shot... with some parameters... It seems in the Albergues we are staying in that 1 Euro will buy you about 20 minutes of time... so I will limit my observations to whatever will fit within this timeline!
To begin.. a couple of thoughts on why I´ve chosen to make this journey... Everyone seems to ask this question on the camino, its an instant conversation starter and the answers inevitably lead to fascinating stories. For me, I read about this pilgrimmage in the Globe and Mail about 5 years ago when I signed up for my 4 over 5 and I have been mulling it over ever since. Coming up on 10 years of teaching as the time got closer, the idea of beginning my year with a very long walk, one that would be challenging, spiritual and nomadic (Shawn from Ireland calls us the 'mobile community') and also provide a chance to quiet my mind and give me an opportunity to spend some wonderful time with my soon to be husband, Vince.
I´m coming up on my 25 minutes... so stay tuned... I´ll fill you in on what the camino actually IS next!
Buen Camino,
A.