Days 12, 13 and 14

April 28, 2018

Days 12, 13 and 14

I have been walking about 23 to 27 km a day, averaging 3 to 5 km per hour, although the pace is more brisk in the morning and slower in the afternoon. Getting started is the hardest part, although mornings are usually a bit easier. Walking numbs blister pain and warms up sore muscles, but after long breaks, everything hurts much more than it did when you stop. I try to break for under 15 min at a time, but I usually only break 2 to 3 times in a day. We usually arrive at our destination between 1 and 2, but longer days can run past 4 pm.

On day 12, Laura and I, plus a new friend, Hannah, walked extra, without packs, to see a castle on the top of a mountainish hill above Castojeriz. As soon as we rounded the corner on the trail, the castle mountain loomed ahead of us across plain, with the city wrapped around the base, and the first thing I thought of was St.Thomas More's Utopia. The castle itself started as a Roman tower in the 9th and 10th centuries and was added to over time but finally abandoned in the 1700s after an earthquake. We were met with hail at the top, but the views were worth the weather and sore feet. I felt positively giddy to see the vast landscape around us, and it wasn't just the alcohol we shared at the top.

Although the landscapes and skies here fill me with indescribable joy, the real gem of the Camino is the community. I meet new people every day, but there are always old faces at any albergue I stay at, and everyone is welcoming and kind. People on the Camino look out for each other. At various points in my journey, I have received bandages, anti-inflammatory gel, pain killers, food, water, etc, and I am so grateful to be part of this Camino family.

Being here reminds me a lot of Katimavik and Quaker gatherings. You are surrounded by people all the time, walking and sharing experiences together, and you can build intense and meaningful relationships in a matter of days, though it feels as if you have known a person for so much longer. Although all the connections I have made along the way are important, allowing me to share parts of myself I wasn't sure I ever would, the relationship I now have with Laura, and with her mother Beth, is life giving and incredibly special to me.

The downside to all this connection is burnout. On day 13 and 14, we walked through cold, hail, and rain. I felt drained and overwhelmed by all the noise and people in Carrion de los Condes and by the long weekend pilgrims. We also had to walk a much shorter distance on day 14 because of the weather, and it was a process for me to let go of the need to push myself. I was able to work through my returning feelings of sadness and placelessness by taking some time for upper body exercises and movement.

Later in the day, I was further rejuvenated after a singing session led by the nuns at the Albergue Parroquial de Santa Maria. They also gave a few words of wisdom. Here are my favourites: if you get to Santiago de Compostela and you haven't found what you were looking for on the Camino, you better head back to the trail. They also shared that no one Camino is the same--together, we each take our separate journeys.

On a side note, I was able to find new shoes in Carrion. I hate them, but they give my toes room.