Kool and the Gang say... celebrate good times, come on!

A funny 48 hours, I can't believe I reached Sarria a day early, with 224km down, and only 113km to go .. who would have thought eh!

Over the last two days I have walked O Cebreiro - Tricastela - Sarria, whilst I was only going to do 3 hours two days ago, I decided to push on so I could get a full 24 hour rest, before starting the last 100km.  Yesterdays walk was only 18km, which for me, should have been roughly 35k steps ... the 'fitbitch' tells me I completed 64k steps .. which goes to show how the terrain can really impact. Jumped online and booked an additional early night at the place, I am now at, arranged change in luggage destination. Having arrived at the only 4* accommodation for days ... (trust me, the thought of this has kept me going), it is also the only place enroute with a pool, and I have been having visions (maybe hallucinations) of me in that pool from 7am-7pm, the weather has been amazing, but my legs and feet have not seen sun for days, cool water and a dose of sun provided vitamin d, much needed.

In the space of about two hours, the weather changes from 27c down to about 17c, and the heavens open, (and not in .. I have seen the light kind of way).

Arrive at the hotel, to be told that yes they received the booking but they are over booked, and have no room for me tonight.  This appears to happen alot in these parts ... I had one american couple tell me last night, that three of the places they booked into over a year ago, are now restaurants and they had to find emergency albergues to spend the nights in.

Last minute albergues are a precious thing, people are fussy about who is spending time in their dorm, and it is first come first served basis. It is still relatively quiet on the camino at this time, so they were lucky, if it happened in August, I would not have liked their chances. From what I can tell, some people pretend to albergues, that they are more than one party, they secure a few beds and then spend a few hours 'recruiting like type 'normal' folk' to join them.  I get approached all the time, by people walking, trying to get me to join them in a group to spend the night in a dorm.  If only they knew, how bad a dorm mate I would be.

Anyhow, with no accommodation secured and no help from the receptionist, I jumped back online to see if I could find somewhere to stay (this hotel is not on the path of the way, otherwise a stop in at a bar | cafe and a quick chat with a fellow wanderer would have found me somewhere).

Finally found a place, booked and started the walk (now pulling about 25kg because I have my full bags), not what you want at this point.

Made it to my destination, oh my, it is an albergue, not near very much, which means I will be in a dorm with somewhere between 10 - 30 people. Now that's okay, but I need to alter my head....

and then out comes Marcela ...  'Hola, welcome, let my husband take your bag, you are in our other property, come to the car, I will drive you, it is in the historic part of town'. I want to weep.

She drives me to the property, and it is to die for, a little two storey house, that they have renovated by hand, in the middle of the main street of the old town, she calls it my home, and it fels like it is, click here to check out the cuteness... (little home - Sarria)

Marcela then drives me around town showing me things, taking me to the bank, showing me how to get the hotel tomorrow, then offering to pick me up and drive me to the hotel tomorrow & more importantly she shares her story. She shares so generously her background, and Antonios, how they met, what brought them to Sarria, why they now run a business on 'the way'.  I am so moved, by her genoristy of spirit, by her kindness and what she does for others, for nothing in return.  It is people like Marcela and Antonio that make 'the way', that are 'the way'.

I think, I am starting to get it ... maybe ...

Marcela picks me up in the morning, and takes me back to my 4* hotel, which has lost all the gloss it had in mind over the last few days, and I wish I could go back to my little home, and spend a few days with Marcela and Antonio, and the wonderful people I had dinner with last night, because of them.

I check in, the rain is still throwing down, and it is only 17c ...  I dont't even care about the pool ...  (which is lucky because they tell me it is closed), I just really feel like .... going for a walk.

Someone who I love very very much, texted me earlier and asked, 'has this changed how I think?', I don't think it has, but I think it has reaffirmed I need to do more with the good bits of me and we all can, and should, do more with the good bits, ohhh and be kind, and pass kindness on. It has also reaffirmed, who really matters.

113km and 5 days to go ...  my thinking may still change ...

Muchas lovas - CBT - xx

Hola .. Bonjour .. Salve ... Yassou

Almost half the way through ...  I can't believe it .. 

After the crazy moutain walk, I woke in leg pain. I have learnt you have to push through it. I had also forgotten to stretch out before and after, bad move, stopping makes it worse.

Put off, the rest day ... and did 5 hours today, walking with JP from Paris, who I met at breakfast, where I found myself translating what he wanted, to our Colombian waiter (who speaks spanish but with completely different inflections ... that JP did not understand).

I also can't believe how much my previous travel has helped this experience, especially the 8 weeks spent years ago in Colombia, which made me a great friend of our waiter, and the amount of time I have previously spent in Spain, South America and France.

His English is far better than my French, and he speaks 4 languages, which gave me a great chance to practice. 

Funny day as we both kept introducing eachother to people we bumped into, that we had previously met on this walk, I was actually slightly embarrased when we came across Aussie Michael, who seems to think that all Australian men, are the most alluring in the world, and that every women should be throwing themselves at them.

JP made this section, far easier than planned, as we spent time practising language, singing (amazing how songs can teach language, why did I not learn more about that in TEFL)?

God bless his cotton socks, he also spent over an hour changing my insoles and rubbing my hips and shins.

As he walks faster than me, I either have to dump him as a walking partner, or he has to slow down.

taking a day off tomorrow ..

CBT - x

It's a new dawn, it's a new day ... and I'm feeling good ... (thanks Nina)

I am now in Ponferrada, over 103km in ... and I'm feeling good ..

As per previous post I had decided the day before to stop walking early, and break till 1pm the next day, feeling like everything was getting the better of me and that my body needed a rest. After a really great afternoon and evening, catching up with fellow walkers sharing stories, having a soak and an early night, I was glad when I woke at 6am that I had agreed (with myself) that I was taking the morning off, as I lay on my back, I spent an hour breathing deeply and concentrating on every bit of me that felt sore, tiny blister sole right foot just under toes, shins, left calf, right ankle. As I started to focus on these, I started to think, that the pain was far less than it had been the previous few days. For the next hour, I had many conversations with myself, one part of me was saying 'of course it is hard, get out of bed and push through it', the other part of me saying 'well done have a little break'.  I got up at 8am and hobbled down to breakfast, where a few other pilgrims, were also saying they were going to take a rest day.  I headed back to my room for a long shower, and thoughts of another nap, planning to get up at midday.

Then something happened, and I decided I had to get myself together, and just go walk.

I did not get to the pharmacy the day before, so decided to head in before I took off, for gel insoles (my adidas trainers need reinforcement) and blister pack. The wonderful Pharamcist Catalina, patiently checked what I needed, and then what felt very gentle and asked at a deeper level, asked how was my Camino. I started to well up, and tried to explain my feelings over the last few days. She could not have been more kind, motivational, inspiring, she shared her own Camino journey (Sarria to Santiago), and shared what she had seen other pilgrims experience in her role. It was everything I had experienced and more, and validated that what I held felt (despite me feeling like a big sooky la la) was actually quite normal. 

She said the first 3 days are actually the hardest, especially if you have travelled a long distance, because you need to get used to climate, change of hours, body adjusting to flight, 9 hours of exercise a day and all of this is compounded by no previous exercise.  She shared the puffiness comes from the greater intake of fluids, but despite the exercise, the body is not sweating yet, as it is adjusting, this is just one of the thing that impacts, it means your feet can become two sizes bigger, your body breaks out because fluids are not escaping, feet tend to go first, then knees and shins, then hips (I am in reverse), she said if my hips went first, this would have been really painful, and was surprised I walked through it, and had done the kms I had.  If you put your hands on my hips, you can feel the heat generating from them.  She is my Camino angel and made me feel normal and proud, off I stepped, with a spring in my step.

I covered 29kms, through mountains, the worst terrain yet, and most remote I have been (pics below) given I planned for only 9kms, and given the terrain, what should have taken about 8 hours, took me 15 hours, but I am feeling elated. I had my little wifivox and supercharger, which meant I spent the non pilgrim catchup walk times being able to listen to music, which massively helped with the mental. I also found myself still thinking about a lot, but also having a sing along, and as a result almost skipped along (bit weird, for those passing me, probably more than me, when pilgrims approach from behind I no idea they are there, because I am belting out musical and disney show tunes).

The bulk of my walk today was shared with Otto from Finland, Maria and Gabriel from Argentina, and Michael from Australia (who we ditched). Besides Michael, the camaraderie that can happen in such a short period cannot be underestimated.

I know most would think this is ridiculous really, it has only been 4 days and 100km ...

Otto the power walker from Finland turns 70 next month, I would have put him at 55.  His wife cannot walk due to knee surgeries, so he travels alone, he passed me with a Buen Camino, and then ultimately stopped me, because he could not tell where my accent was from. We spent the next couple of hours sharing countries we have worked, visited and lived in, before Otto ploughed ahead.

Myself, Maria and Gabriel, struggled on this leg of the walk, and spent many hours, taking time out, overtaking eacother, building eachother up, sharing poles, water, swapping shoes, airing socks, and having a sing a long, despite walking with her partner, there are just some things that others get and understand more.

211kms to go .... (I don't know yet, if the camaraderie is because of this camino, or if what any long walk could bring, where there are quite a few people enroute, I assume the latter).

This girl is on fire - literally !

Alicia Keys once sang ....

She's living in a world, and it's on fire
Feeling the catastrophe, but she knows she can fly away
Oh, she got both feet on the ground
And she's burning it down
Oh, she got her head in the clouds
And she's not backing down

This girl is on fire
This girl is on fire
She's walking on fire
This girl is on fire

I am literally on fire, yesterday my hips were searing, and after a night soaking and rubbing deep heat into my hips and balm into my feet, and a long soak in a bath full of salt water, I felt slightly better.

Stopped walking today after 4 hours, today it is my shins, that are burning, and I have become all puffy, (my fellow pilgrims tell me that this happens to quite a few people, as a result of your body adjusting to the amount of exercise and water being consumed not previously used to) this apparantley will change over the next few days as ones body gets used to the changes.

Came back to the hotel I stayed at lastnight, as it is in a village with a pharmacy, and supermarket and I needed to buy some extra sunscreen, blister packs, pain killers, headed out for a pilgrim lunch and bumped into Helen, she has ditched the bike as the terrain is too hilly and rocky to get over, and is going to do the next two stages on foot, she has also come back to this village as her bum is too sore and blistered and she also needs medical supplies. We had lunch with two guys from the UK, who told us this is their third Camino, and we were all sharing our stories, I shared that I had a few wobbles and tears yesterday, one over an orange, one of the guys shared that 6 days ago at the halfway point as he crossed the Meseta, he woke up and could not face it, and broke down over breakfast, he did not know why, but he had to arrange transport to take him to Leon, where he spent two days in bed crying and then as part of what happened they both decided to change, for no reason they know of, their Camino route.

We also spent a good hour discussing how the Spanish are so slim given their diet, and how despite us walking many many kms .. the Spanish carb loaded diet would surely pack it on ...  one of the guys shared he has added 7 kilos despite being on the Camino and covering over 500k.  Paella, pasta, soups full of potatoes and fish, everything fried, bread rolls, cheese, chorizo ...  if you think the Camino is about yummy food and weight loss ..  think again .. move your holiday to Greece.

As the bulk of my luggage has now been forwarded to next destination, I will spend the rest of the night, washing out my clothes to wear tomorrow, soaking my legs and cuddling my feet.

Today, maybe because of the physical, (where the pain was so bad I stopped and sat to pee and give my feet a rest, and found I could not stand from a squat position, without actually lifting my legs with my arms), and the short duration, the mental was easier.

My thoughts today ended up being about how lucky and free I am, and how lucky in life I have been.  I currently have no debts, no bills, no house, no house keys, no children, no accountabilities, no partner (woops, to close maybe, #sorry) and even no official address.

What I do have, despite some ups and downs is, friends, family & total freedom which leaves just one decision really ...  what next?

Camino tips

• Remember Spain sleeps alot, especially in northern towns and villages, where most places are only open from about 10am - 2pm and then again from about 6pm - 10pm, so you need to plan your day around this, walking early to beat the afternoon sun is great, but it means you land in towns when nothing is open, so you can't get a meal etc  plan to nap when Spain does
• Despite being a main tourist route, most folk in these parts do not speak any english, so learn more than the basics (funny how easily my basic spanish has come back, even funnier is how I seem to think I am somewhere else and randomly also start speaking in French and Greek)
• For me it is about the 10km mark before I actually get into a walking groove that feels okay, this is also the point where I want to quit, and have to yell at myself to push on, (this seems quite common amongst pilgrims at the 5km and 10km point).
• Take a notepad and pen, use your pictionary skills and be prepared to draw, funny how all languages come together with the use of a picture (watch out all, I am honing my skills to perfection)

all my love
CBT - x

* this little post has been possible because of the amazing product, service & team @ www.wifivox.com

it's been a long day (without you my friends)

it's been a long day ... more detailed update to follow tomorrow ... lots of texts and emails about what I am carrying ... so little summary here ...

the bulk of my luggage is being transported between accommodation, thanks to the wonderful team @ www.macsadventure.com which means I only have to carry a day pack ..

todays included .. (advised the basics)

First aid kit (someone really needs to review what goes into these things) | 2 x blister packs |energy bars x 4 | 3 litres of water | extra meds kit (kidney, ventolin, neuros, panadol, antihistamine, imodium, hydrocortisone cream) | sunscreen |foldable raincoat & poncho |walking poles |sweater |scissors |she pee |flip flops |headlamp| spare breathable undies | phones x 2 (needed for camera battery life) | NGS porta charger (needed for battery life) |wifivox portable wifi |merino socks x 2 | lip balm x 2  | passport  | purse (credit cards, license, change) | camino needs ( maps, hotel vouchers, espana to english guide) | wet wipes | all-purpose chamois towel | note pad | pen

= 20L pack incl 3L water hydration bladder = carrying 11 kilos

going to have to dump some stuff ... 

xx - exhausted - CBT

Planes, trains and automobiles

Hola Amigos greetings from Spain,

Given the whirlwind of the last few days mainly due to my poor admin, I am actually quite surprised I have finally made it to Oviedo.

The last 4 days have included an unexpected extra night in Melbourne with a brand new yet very connected friend, an overnight in Singapore followed by a late night of dinner and cocktails and straight on a plane to Barcelona.

Barcelona, arrived at 8am and we dropped our luggage at the hotel and then spent the day wandering Barcelona, I just love this city, the architecture old blended with new, full of art, colour and earthiness. A city who knows who it is, you can see and feel the pride, a great example is the number of flags that hang from balconies.  Back to the hotel where we discovered, I had actually taken us to the wrong hotel, so after heading to the right one, we also discovered that I had also booked us in for the night before, and as we had not arrived, the hotel decided to use the little private laundry in our apartment to wash towels?? Huh ?? and so we are now in our apartment with the laundry lady changing cycles on the machine?  Tapas and Sangria and a noisy night in the pool, saw us actually fined .. Huh?? We checked out …  not my finest booking …

Jump forward …  where we discover that I have screwed up dates again, as I thought I could wedge in F1 before heading off on the walk, not possible, my friend and I have now agreed to part ways, in more than one sense of the word.  He is now heading to F1, and I will make my way to Oviedo, over breakfast & giggles we realise that I have booked my internal flight on the wrong day (well as you know, I am not the best at detail), after a scan of every possible flight option, Barcelona to Oviedo, Barcelona to Leon drive to Oviedo, Barcelona to Madrid and then connecting, Girona to Oviedo etc .. we accept there is no flights that day that will get me to where I need to be.

Plan B ...  train, we head to the station, surely not that many folk travel by train, there are 4 trains that day, all FULL.   Grrrr … lucky all buses depart from the station, so we try the coach option …  1 coach … leaving in 4 minutes … we can’t find the departure area in time …

Plan C ... drive ... hire a car ... not a great option as the drive is nearly 9 hours ... we try every car hire place at the station, thrifty, enterprise, sixt, avis, budget, gold, hertz (we ignore europcar as the queue is huge), there are 0 cars for hire without reservation in Barcelona, (due to F1 and a long weekend).  Head to europcar, queue 1 hour … they have a car ... yahoo! Booked …

Oh my …. a mini … and lots I had forgotten about driving in mainland Europe ... 99% of cars are manual (mmmmm that last happened about 15 years ago) … left hand drive ... opposite side of road … overtake on the left, slow on the right, roundabouts switch completely … no GPS (was in Spanish, I don’t understand it enough) my roaming is not working so can’t google maps … everything that comes naturally is challenged, I have change of gear (they now have 7, was only 4 back in my manual day), but with gear stick now on right hand, clutch on the far left … ahhhhh

Max refuses to take the wheel, cheers MM, (I guess, he has never driven in mainland Europe and never driven a manual, growing up in London, cars not needed) we jump in the car so I can drop Max off at pre lap warm up breakfast before I head off …  disasters everywhere …  wrong way down a three lane freeway, wrong way around a 4 lane roundabout, bunny hops driving the wrong way down Pau Claris …

Farewell to Max who is one in a million, and I start the drive to Oviedo …. which gives me 9 hours to drive across Spain, see the countryside and to really think about the ‘why’ I am doing this …

Why am I bloody doing this?

Hola Twitterlike ...

48 hours to go ... and will be finally off, on that long walk ...