Days 21, 22 and 23

May 09, 2018

Days 21, 22 and 23

After walking 36 km, day 21 was hard. My feet were incredibly sore, and it was a tough push to our lunch stop spot. But I am energized by mountains, and the climb to Foncebadon, a strange shell of a town which seems to be there only because of pilgrims, felt much less painful.

People say that after three weeks, walking every day for extended distances gets easier on the body, but my body as a whole feels more sore than it has been this whole trip, although my feet do bounce back much faster at the end of the day--I can now shower right away instead of sitting for 10 or 20 min, and walking around towns afterwards is much easier. However, I started to have intense pain in my hip on day 23, and I'm unsure how it will affect my ability to continue at this point.

At this pace, doing between 28 and 33 km per day, we have only 6 more days until we arrive in Santiago de Compostela, but I have decided to walk on--provided my body allows me--to Finisterre and the Atlantic, another 80 km, and perhaps to Muxia also, a shrine sacred to pilgrims about 30 more km north of Finisterre.

I have mixed feelings about the last 100 km before Santiago. To get the official pilgrim certificate, you have to walk at least the last 100 km, so many people travel only that portion--which means we'll be seeing far more people on the trail. Some folks I've met told me that I better get any personal contemplation out of the way before the last 100 because after that, I will have less opportunity.

I feel a bit concerned about it, but I am also at a place now where my contemplation are generally less focused. I do think about home and myself and what I have learned so far, but I spend a lot of time consentrating on walking and my mind feels relatively empty.

After leaving Foncebadon, we passed the Iron Cross or la Cruz de Ferro, a well-known Camino monument of unknown origin. It's a tall pole with a small iron cross on top, surrounded by a huge pile of rocks. Loads of pilgrims carry a rock while walking and then leave it at the cross, although I did not join in the tradition. There were so many pilgrims at the monument, some crying and leaving tokens or photos--so much emotion--that I felt nothing. In that charged space, there was no room for the emotions and feelings I've experienced on this journey.

Since my last post, I've had no major revelations, but walking does change one's perception of the world. With current technology and social media, we are always plugged it--we can travel the world in such a short time--and all of this makes the world feel small. But traveling through beautiful and vast landscapes with just the power of my body, and seeing the distance I have come--so little compared to motorized vehicles--makes me realize just how huge the world really is.