I came to the Camino looking for profound experience, and I found it. It met and surpassed all the expectations I had. I have always been an introverted person, a highly self-conscious person, bordering on obsessive. An isolator, a loner. Many people realize and acknowledge I am a personable and easy-going person. By all outward… Read More The Camino de Santiago, A turning point
Arriving Santiago in Santiago de Compostela was an anti-climax. All the pilgrims crowded into the pilgrim office to get their certificate of completion. I paid 3 euros to get some diploma looking thing written in Latin with my name on it that I have probably lost by now. We settled into a hostel that was… Read More Day 22- Arrival in Santiago de Compostela- The cathedral is covered in scaffolding
Today began in cold pre-dawn darkness with a beautiful golden moon gradually sinking below the horizon. We passed the halfway point in distance yesterday and it seems to be getting monotonous. I offered a 12 pill strip of ibuprofen to Peter because he was all out and I had extra. He gave me a chunk of his… Read More Camino Day 12- Italian Hospitality in a log cabin- Calzuela de la Cuenca-??? 20 miles
Slowest and most painful day thus far on the trip. Blisters all over my feet. Met a solemn and earnest young guy, about 22, named Sebastian, with a somber temperament, who didn’t take the work of life as a joking matter. I almost didn’t start talking to him because of the grim look on his… Read More Camino de Santiago- Day 10-The strong, silent type. Itero de La Vega- Fromista 9 miles
Today I walked with a five foot tall girl from Michigan that had a shapely, curvy figure. She ran ultra-marathons, the longest being 50 miles. She said her larger figure was a result of an endocrine system imbalance in her insulin levels. We gradually became acquainted through the first few hurdles of small talk. “I thought you… Read More Camino Day 9-“You look ethnic. What are you?” Burgos- Itero de la Vega 38 miles
Today was a sluggish day. The cumulative impact was felt in my muscles as I dragged my feet for each step. Burgos is the second major city on the Camino route. The majority of the walk was on city streets and I would see the yellow arrows on the side walks and the poles of… Read More Camino Day 8- Inertia – Ages-Burgos 13 miles
I awoke at 6:30 am today, which is sleeping in for pilgrims. The day began on a forest trail and gave way to highway walking and then a small pueblo where apparently Hemingway used to recover after his week long drunks in Pamplona at the Running of the Bulls. You will learn when you come… Read More Camino de Santiago-Day Two-Settling in. Roncesvalles- Larrasona- 18 miles
I woke at 6:30 am from the rustling of bags of other pilgrims. The first day of the hike brought with it a constant slide of new people, many French, German and Korean. I passed a lot of people and it was a fun to guess group’s nationalities as I approached and say one of the… Read More Camino Day One- The Pyrenees. St. Jean Pied de Porte-Roncesvalles – 18 miles
I had been in Scotland for a week with my family where I put no planning or foresight into any activities. It was all laid out by my dad and my soon to be brother in law, a Scotsman. Terrible food and weather, lovely people. After I parted with my family in the airport, I… Read More Day Zero- Glasgow, Scotland- St. Jean Pied de Porte, France
The Camino de Santiago is ancient pilgrimage that has been traveled for roughly 1,000 years. It began when a bunch of loyal followers transported the remains of St. James around 1000 A.D. Traditionally, the pilgrimage began when you stepped out of your house, and traveled however far, to Santiago de Compostela. Pilgrims came from all over… Read More My 500 mile Pilgrimage- An Overview and what to expect from this blog
The Sober Hombre 