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.
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.
1 comment:
Dude! and Vince!
I returned from Croatia yesterday and was eager to catch up on your blog. I have been tearing up as I sit and read about your amazing adventure together! Looking forward to many more stories and photos when you return. Safe travels.
mandy and steve
xo
Post a Comment