Message for those reading the blog ....

Kevin has said that he and Catherine have left comments, but I haven't been able to see them, so if you have comments, I think you'll have to email them.  Would love to hear from people!

Xxoo nancy

Saint Jean Pied-de-Port - the beginning

We've just arrived and had our Pilgrim passports stamped in the Pilgrim office where we found out that there are no beds available in Orisson about halfway across the Pyrenees to Roncesvalles.  We were hoping not to have to go the whole way over the mountains in one day, but now we will have to.  The spirit is willing -- we will see if the flesh will allow.  We had met a young women in the bus station who told us about the refugio where she had reservations here in St. Jean.  Luckily, Eric in Rufugio L'Etoille had plenty of beds.

St. Jean is a totally picturesque little French town where the Camino is called La Chemin de St. Jacques.  It's an adjustment to hear French instead of Spanish.

Eric, who is a real character ( he is from Paris, but when he walked the Camino, it changed his life and so he bought this 1500 era house and opened this hostel), tells us if we walk slowly and steadily, we will make it very well.  Nos vemos!

Big day, very tired

I'm writing very little because it's late and we have to get up at 6:00 am tomorrow the take a dab to the Sants bus station to go to Pamplona and them on to St. Jean Pied-de-Port.  Yes, we're taking a bus.  This morning we took the metro to the Sants train station to buy train tickets for tomorrow, but by the time we figured out how to do it on a machine, and my card didn't work so we tried Marty's, the train was sold out.  Momentary panic fearing we would never get started on the Camino when we realized that the bus station was across the street.  Takes 2 hours longer, but cost 75% less.  Got back to the hotel and bought bus tickets to St.Jean online.  We experienced great relief to have everything in place for tomorrow's start on the Camino!

  To celebrate we went to the Bocaria market for a decadent seafood meal, took a nap, explored the old city at dusk, and had another fabulous meal - Italian this time.  Tomorrow the spartan life begins.

Barcelona, la Cuitat de Gaudi

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I spent the day immersed in Gaudi.  I bought a ticket on a city tour bus which allowed me to ride around part of the city ( la Ruta azul) and get on and off at various stops.  My first stop was La Sagrada Familia.nthe cathedral conceived and begun by Antonin Gaudi in the late 19th century.  He knew he would not see it finished in his lifetime, but, he said his client was not in a hurry -  his time was unlimited.  Actually, Gaudi did not begin the cathedral.  It was begun by another architect in a classic Gothic style.  But that guy was fired and Gaudi took over.  He made several models before his design and his vision coalesced.  It became his life's work.

I was totally unprepared for what I experienced when I walked into that building.  Calling it a "building" doesn't seem fitting.  I don't believe words or even photos will do it justice.  It literally took my breath away and almost brought tears to my eyes.  I could compare it to being in a red wood forest, but the whole feeling is of weightlessness, light and color infusing everything, and organic like it grew rather than being built.

I remember vividly when I was 17 and was with a university art class touring Europe and we visited Chartres Cathedral in France.  It was a similar experience but I was only 17 and had never seen anything like it.  But that cathedral, though breathtakingly beautiful had an ethereal coldness to it.  La Sagrada Familia at the same time that it lifts the spirit it is grounded in the earth and humanity.

So much for my effort to capture the experience in words and pictures:

I've arrived!!

Arrived on time.  Both departures from Burlington and from Newark  were delayed by almost an hour, but both miraculously arrived on time.  Collected my bag, repacked it, got euros at an ATM, and took the A1 shuttle bus to Plaza Catalunya.  Then I walked down Las Ramblas for some blocks to my hotel, San Agusti just off the main drag.  Small room, but adequate and central.  Here's the view from our room.

Go!!!

My chauffeur (aka. John Edwards) brought me to the Burlington airport 2 hours before my 3:07 flight.  This is how I take care of my pre-trip anxiety:  get to the airport very early and sit at the bar and have a beer while I read or, in this case, type.  Some people have issues with this routine - like Marty when I made her go with me 2 hours before our flight in Quito and the airport was closed.

Anyway, my bag is checked to Barcelona and I've put several Barcelona guides on my mini iPad including one on avoiding scams in Barcelona because EVERYONE has told me this city is the pickpocket capital of Europe, and my children have told me I'm a walking target.

So thank you,John,  you gave me a lovely send off.  And they've just called my flight.

Countdown #2. Ready, set ........

After weeks of obsessing about what to bring, here is the result - the bare essentials:  rain jacket and pants, down vest, one change of hiking clothes, one outfit (skirt, top and scarf) to wear in cities, 2 extra underwear, 1 extra sports bra, 2 extra socks, sleeping bag, towel, shorts and shirt for sleeping, toiletries, first aid kit, head lamp, plug converter.  All that weighs 16.4 pounds.  The other little pack carries my iPad, Olympus camera, chargers, SD cards and pilgrim passport. That one weighs 5 pounds.   This is all about 6 pounds more than I wanted to be carrying, but, hey, if it doesn't kill me, it'll make me stronger -- right?

The back pack and walking sticks go into a light weight duffel to check.  The small pack I carry on the plane--which will also have inside my M&Ms to guarantee safe travel. (This is a family tradition) 

Count down to departure

On Wednesday I fly to Barcelona where I will meet my best friend, really my chosen sister, Marty Lawlor who will be flying in from California.  Two days later we will start our pilgrimage on El Camino de Santiago de Compostella which has been several years in planning for us.  Though El Camino has become quite popular recently ( see The Way starring Martin Sheen),  it is a very ancient Christian pilgrimage road that traverses France, Italy, Portugal, and Spain.  We will be walking the Camino Frances that starts in St. Jean Pied-de-Port in the French Pyrenees and ends in Santiago.   The distance is 790 kilometers which I believe is somewhere around 474 miles.  We won't be able to walk the whole distance because we only have 25 days to walk, and it usually takes 31 days for a reasonably fit person.  We're both pretty fit, but we're old.  We will start at the beginning- the hardest part - and we will walk the last 100 miles or so - the most important part to get our Pilgrim certificate.  We are, of course, starting very optimistically -- hopefully we can maintain that optimism day after day. And, hopefully, I will be posting a photo and some words everyday.

As I said,  this is an ancient Christian ( Catholic ) pilgrimage.  Marty is a practicing Catholic, but I am not at all religious -- gave it up years ago...... too much death and destruction in the name of religion.  But I do believe in a powerful universal spirit -  maybe it's what some people call god.  I am dedicating my pilgrimage in the name of this spirit to my grandson, Caellen who was recently diagnosed with Crohn's disease.  I will be asking (praying) that he be returned to excellent health and that he learns how to maintain his good health for many years.