Hello
all,
Thank
you so much for reading the blog and for cheering us along the way! It
meant a lot that you were with us in spirit.
People
who have walked the Camino say that it takes a long time to fully process the
experience and all that it can teach a person. However, I will now
attempt to write about a few of the lessons learned as I wrap up this blog.
Pam and I have spent a lot of time talking about our reflections and
while we agree on most everything, I won't put words in her mouth...so I
take full credit for the following words.
1.
We take so much for granted in our privileged lives. From running
water to a clean bathroom to a cold drink on a hot day, we are so spoiled
and I, for one, know I don't appreciate it as much as I should. The
Camino was tough but we still had it so much easier than pilgrims did centuries
and even years ago. The beauty of traveling is being taken out of that comfort
zone and seeing how well you fare. The hope is that we can remember how
beautiful our life and living conditions are when we're not on the
Camino.
2.
It's amazing to be a part of history. So many people have walked
the Camino over the centuries it's mind-boggling. In Spain alone there
have been wars, plagues and civil unrest during these years and yet people have
still have the need to walk this pilgrimage and honor St. James for the last 12
centuries. I am humbled and honored to have been a part of it and to
walk on such hallowed ground.
3.
There are so many places I need to re-visit....this time by car! We
walked through so many beautiful villages and fascinating bigger towns that
still need to be discovered. We simply didn't have the energy to do it
when we were there...sleeping sounded better. I wish I could have gone
to more church services and special occasions like monks chanting but here
simply wasn't enough time in the day. I know there a lot left for me to
experience.
4.
I'm wondering if there is anyone left in Ireland...they all seem to be on
the Camino! While all of Europe knows of the Camino, it shares a
particularly strong bond with Ireland and the Celts. This relationship
stems from the time when the Celts lived and ruled in this area. Some
Spanish traditions and every day things like music are still heavily influenced
by the Celts...all of which I didn't know about before. I think about
every other person we met in the Camino was Irish. There were also many
Germans!
5.
Never miss an opportunity to have dinner with fellow peregrinos.
Meeting the people along the way was the BEST part of the journey and having
dinner with them was always a fun and enjoyable experience. Walking with
them and learning of their life for a little while was awesome, too. The
greatest lesson here is that every time you meet someone you must be fully
present and in the moment with them, appreciating them to the fullest, because
they could walk a different pace than you tomorrow and you may never see them
again. Seeing friends again after a couple weeks is the most wonderful
experience...but you never know. Peregrinos share an instant and tight
bond...and it's a beautiful thing.
6.
Pulpo (octupus) is not my favorite.
7.
Hikers all over the world lie. My husband is a prime example.
He loves to hike and torture himself on mountains and so when you ask,
"How far do you think it is to our destination?" he'll always respond
with, "Oh, it's just around that corner" regardless of the fact
that's it's over 2 mountain ranges and you have to ford a river before you get
to said corner. It's no different with true hikers from all over the
world. They love the sport of hiking and so it's all beautiful and
lovely to them and so don't understand that you need a true answer to your "How
far is the next village?" or "Are there any hills coming up?"
We encountered numerous signs that completely displayed conflicting
mileage to the same location...and our guidebook provided a third number.
Our guidebook also stirred us wrong by saying there were places to get
water when there wasn't anything there or by (oooppps!) forgetting to mention a
couple fairly big hills. Hikers, in their euphoria, lie.
8.
You can pass huge amounts of time while walking by counting (Pam counted
"1, 2, 3 ,4" over and over, Karen counted to 1,000 over and over),
listening to the sound effects of the backpack, talking each other or
fellow peregrinos and singing every song known to Humankind.
9.
It's really amazing how little you need to survive. Life for 36
days fit in a backpack. Nobody says that walking the Camino is the same
as real life, but how much extra stuff do we have in our lives? (I must
admit I NEED lots of books and scrap booking stuff...)
10.
Being flexible is the name of the game. You never knew what to
expect, really, while walking the Camino. Where will I get my next
bottle of water? What will they have to eat at the next stop ? How
many hills will we climb today? What will be albergue be like tonight?
I was (pretty much) always sure it would work out bit your attitude
needs to be open for it to all work out. Travelling anywhere is always
different than home; that's why you do it.
11.
Take one step at a time. Break up the seemingly overwhelming parts
into smaller, manageable bits and it's easier to swallow.
12.
Enjoy every awesome moment...because tomorrow could be raining, you can
get blisters, or there could be bed bugs.
13.
The Camino is way more than a physical challenge. It tests mental
and emotional strength...to the limit sometimes.
14.
Pilgrim's Favorite Items (and this is just a start): duct tape,
ibuprofen (Spain sells 600mg!), earplugs, walking sticks, cafe con leche,
fresh OJ and water fountains.
15.
Don't check into the first albergue in town just because you're
exhausted; it could be scary and there could be a nicer one just down the
street. (We know this from experience.)
16. Watch
where you walk. Spain has a lot of cows and sheep and horses that walk
the same path. But also remember to look up and stop to look behind you
every once and awhile. The views can be amazing!
17.
History repeats itself...and we don't seem to learn from our mistakes.
There are multiple examples of this but here's one: in Santiago,
there is a church with beautiful bells in the steeple. At some point in
history, the Muslims from Northern Africa attacked the town and destroyed
quite a bit of the people and the town. They wanted the bells, however,
so they turned the Spaniards into slaves and had them carry the bells down
south. After a few years, the Spaniards gained some ground in the
fight and recaptured the bells. Forgetting how horrible life was when the
tables were turned, they destroyed the Muslim towns and turned the people into
slaves to bring the bells back north. You can call it "an eye for an
eye" or say that's how it's done in war, but I think it's stupid.
History is full of destruction and yet we repeat the same mistakes.
When will we learn?
18.
No bano...no buy! Or, if you don't have a bathroom we can use,
we will buy our snack or drink at a place that does. Bathrooms on
the Camino are at a premium...we have to take advantage when we find one and we
can't afford to use our money at a place with no bathroom.
19.
Spain makes great pinchos! The peregrino menu is ok but if you can
get pinchos (small bites of food, full of interesting and flavorful
combinations of the most amazing food), go for it!
21.
Life is a journey, not a destination. Just keep walking!
22.
Pain, blisters, and bad days will fade away, but the experience (and the
photos) never will.
Wow!
That's my list for now. Thank you so much for your support.
Enjoy your summer!
Karen
Here are some final stats from our adventure and blog:
Total distance walked: 484 miles (779 km), not including extra walking around towns or diversions along the trail to see other sites
Total steps taken: 1,470,315
Averages: 14.2 miles (22.9 km) and 42,732 steps over the 34 days spent hiking
People have read the blog from some interesting countries. Many we know someone from that country that had the blog link, or someone who was traveling there, but others are mysteries, like the 9 views from Saudi Arabia. Here is a partial list of where people have read the blog from:
We will close this out with a couple of quotes:
Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Cayman Islands, China, France, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Mexico, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine, United States, Venezuela
Not sure why you would care, but I guess a professional developer might care that 46% of the views used Chrome as the browser, 29% Safari, 6% Firebox, and a bunch of <5% browsers. Likewise, 26% of people were using some flavor of Windows, 20% Android, 18% used an IPhone, ... and about 1% used Linux.
We will close this out with a couple of quotes:
"To journey without being changed is to be a nomad.To change without journeying is to be a chameleon.To journey and to be transformed by the journey is to be a pilgrim."
