Walked 23.5 km today and I feel like it was a rite of passage! It was a long, very flat, bordering on hot, and very beautiful walk. I think that today and tomorrow will be the flattest stretches of this journey. But there are so many beautiful flowers in the fields and along the trail and the long open stretches have a deep beauty of their own.
The Plan. With the advent of June comes Reality. I fly out of Madrid early on June 25. Yikes! I want to be in Santiago by June 23 so I can attend the pilgrim mass the next day. When you arrive in Santiago you go to the Pilgrim Office where you show them your credential books full of stamps from each day of The Way. You get your Compostela. And the next day at the pilgrim mass they announce the starting points and the nationalities of all the pilgrims who arrived the day before.
So, Santiago by June 23 and afternoon of June 24 go to Madrid so I can fly Lufthansa early morning of June 25 to Frankfurt and then Condor over the pole to Anchorage arriving the morning of June 25 (about half an hour before I left Frankfurt).
I have one walking companion left: Heike and I lose her in Leon on June 9. She heads to the beach for a week before having to go back to work. I lost Anke on June 1 in Burgos. She decided to stay there for a couple of days to rest her ankle and is now making her way north to meet her husband and they will walk the northern route to Santiago.
So I´m looking for more walking companions! Anyone out there available between June 9 (Leon) and June 23/24? I can do it on my own but it is so much more fun to have one or more Partners in Crime along for The Way. No matter how you try to describe things some things just need to be experienced: the oasis bar in the middle of the 17.5 km stretch where you can sit and drink cafe con leche! Meeting a father and son from Italy who are walking together. Going to the pilgrim masses and benedictions even though you can´t understand most of what the priest is saying. Visiting stunningly Baroque churches.
And there are the daily adventures. For example every day you arrive at a new albergue/hostel. Every day the sleeping arrangments are different in quirky ways. You could be in a room with 50 bunk beds or six bunk beds but people from another room walk through your room to get in and out. You could be in a room with only single beds but the door squeaks loudly whenever you open it and you worry about waking everyone up when you have to get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. You could be in a crowded room with squeeky bunk beds and lots of snorers. The shower and bathroom arrangments are always interesting. It is fun to have someone else there who understands the humor of the newest situation and all you have to do is exchange a quick, knowing glance!
So let me know if you are interested in meeting me. It would be lots of fun! Just be ready to walk 22 - 25 km each day. And be ready for hot weather or chilly weather, blistering sun or rain. And be ready for the experience of your life!
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