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| Under the Pilgrim Tree |
Soooooo... Lately I've really been missing the Camino.
Not the bustling crowds.
Not the rolling suitcases.
Not the drunks.
Not the entitled tourists who
complain about $60 lodgings not being comparable to $200 lodgings in the USA.
But the real Camino Santiago.
The PILGRIMS.
Those who are grateful for a roof and a bed and a bowl of soup.
I miss the
beauty of the Spanish landscape.
The peace and quiet.
The opportunity for
contemplation.
The long walking in nature.
I miss the stars.
I miss the stars.
Sharing food and drink and stories.
The Spirit of the Camino that lingers when the noise dies down.
Those are the
things I miss.
My grandson is graduating from Annapolis next May, and Joe and I
have made reservations in Washington DC for about a week before his graduation.
I want to visit the Smithsonian, which I haven't seen in 50 years (Holy HELL!
Half a century!)
Since I'll be on the East Coast, I thought, "Gosh, after
graduation, I may as well fly to Spain!"
My children just grinned.
They know me.
But which route to walk?
I thought I might walk the Camino Ignaciano or one of
the routes I hadn't finished, like the VDLP.
But the more and more I thought
about it, and the more I spoke with friends on the Camino Forum, the more I
realized what I REALLY wanted was to walk the Camino Frances again, and walk it
S.L.O.W. Maybe walk half stages to start, stopping whenever and wherever I
wanted, taking my time, not having to care for anyone except myself. Honestly, I
don't even think I want to walk with Joe and we've talked about flying to
Madrid, going our separate ways, and meeting up to fly home. That works for me!
And so right now, a year ahead of time, it's looking like I'll pop over to Spain
after graduation, and walk the Camino Frances again, either from SJPP or
Roncesvalles (I haven't yet decided that.)
I've made my reservations in
Pamplona. I needed to do that to make it real.
I'll probably look at airfare
after Thanksgiving. I won't buy a round trip ticket - because I'm not sure how
long it will take me to walk, though my son suggests I go ahead and buy the
ticket home and just be sure it's changeable or refundable. So I'm thinking
about that.
No more "Cheap-O-Air" though! Last trip they changed my flights
(literally) both going and returning, right up to an hour before we were to fly
and it was NUTS!
I want to pack VERY light, and since I'll be walking in June,
that's a real possibility. I bought a featherweight rain jacket today to carry
instead of the heavy ALTUS poncho. Hopefully, the weather won't surprise me!
At any rate, I feel I've healed from the disappointment of the Spring group trip and I'm
getting excited!
Maybe I'll see you on the trail!
Love, Annie