When walking the Camino I met a French couple who had walked from their home on the Swiss side of Le-Puy-en-Velay, and who walked all the way to Santiago then home again. (And I thought I was a heroine!) They have just put some photos up on Picasa and I have pinched this one of me, taken on a very wet day at the end of the May, just days away from the Pyrenees.....
Someone has already told me how happy I look in this photo, and that's the way it was.
Just under two years before I walked the Camino, I was in the youth hostel in Cahors doing the tourist thing exploring the area for a few days. In my room one evening I met a French woman who had been walking for three weeks from Le Puy. She just looked radiantly happy and she said she was- she was loving her walk. I guess that was when I first wondered if I might ever do such a thing myself....
Well, in April 2008, it was my turn. As I emerged into the countryside after the steepish climb out of the basin where Le-Puy-en-Velay was nestled, I knew a deep, peaceful happiness that I was walking and, all going well, I would be walking for weeks. These feet were made for walking.....
One of my camino friends said "on the camino you always wake up happy!" Kay (Hamilton)
ReplyDeleteHi Kay,
ReplyDeleteYep.... even if your ankles are hurting and it is pouring with rain.... somehow the happiness was always there...
By the way, you might be interested in this website- with a webcam above a nest with some baby storks that have just hatched. http://www.sportsmansparadiseonline.com/Live_Stork_Nest.html
ReplyDeleteMargaret,
ReplyDeleteI am not sure everyone understands the wonderful feeling of walking the camino. Every worry disappears. All that is important is the next meal and place to sleep. All that can be experienced is in nature and the people we meet. I miss it.
Michèle (Ottawa) Canada
Yes, a simple life, but a very happy one. I am planning my next exploit!
ReplyDeleteHey- got to ask you- you have a walking stick? I tried one because my ankle was giving me real trouble in england.
ReplyDeleteDo you find it helps? some say yes other say no.
Be very interested in your thoughts
I had one, and it was lightweight and collapsible. I only used it when I felt I needed it, ie if it was muddy or steep up/down or a combo of both. The day this photo was taken it was actually very wet, and I am sure I would have been through some muddy hilly sections, hence the stick in action.
ReplyDeleteOne friend I walked with had knee problems and she used two sticks regularly, as it took some of the pressure off her knees.
I never used a stick when younger, but I would be loathe to go out anywhere steep without one now.