Village party

Well last night was a little late. It was interesting watching a village pah..teh.

The feature act was a drag pair imitating a famous spanish sister duet who argue a lot. The crowd loved it..they really joined in.

The day started well..cool and overcast. It ended up as 27km through the most delightful countryside you could imagine however about 5km of climbing was hard...but not for an intrepid kiwi!

The low cloud hid the height of the climb...but that was o.k.

I am at Gontan...27km walk today and maybe 155 km to go.

I am outside this cafe and about 20 teenagers have appeared from nowhere. .this village is tiny..football park maybe nearby? They have gone now...crazy.

I do enjoy the time after the walk each day. Time to catch up with friends and time to wind down. There is an all present stress until you make your night's alburgue. ..will I make it? Once you have arrived it is great..a real sense of relief.

There are 4 french people in the group I am currently walking with. ..a couple and a mother and daughter.  They are very nice and include me in their conversations. They have just checked that I am joining them for dinner. Very nice.

In one of the conversations I had today, I was reminded that I only have one role while on tbe camino.

Me.

Not principal, not father, not parishioner, not colleague, not friend. ..... just walker. 

How will I cope back at work?

I am a little worried about returning to normal life after so long of being selfish.  I am not sure that I will cope...people on the camino know..those who have done a camino know... but it does worry me. I  will have to build in some very quiet time...just me and Matt...to try and keep tbe balance.

It is 1830 in the evening...the sun is still high and hot so I have moved inside to finish this post.

Tomorrow brings another day...but with a difference.   This is now an unexlicible pull that is dragging me through.  I arrived today and thought..I can do another 15km (I couldn't) but there is an almost magnetic pull towards Santiago. It is in all the conversations and in all tbe greetings from the locals.

One more week will see me in Santiago. .that's unbelievable...totally.

Scary thought...life after camino. ...very scary

Adios amigos. ..manyana

A great day for walking

Snore
Snore
Snore
Snore
That was the accompanying sound to my sleep in tbe albergue last night and at 630 this morning I escaped! I had packed last night and so I just took my gear out the side door to the deck and resorted it for today's weather.
By the time I left at 7 everyone was still asleep.  I found my way out of the town by not following the provided map, but eventually hit the marked path.

There were 3 marked differences. 
1st the markers were very clear and in logical places.
2nd saw the shell symbol reversed so I was following the ribs of the shell, not the base.
3rd was the distance to Santiago is printed in kilometers. ..to 3 decimal places.

I was just thrilled to see them and so regularly.

I am getting closer! 170.263km to go according the last sign I saw.

It was quite cool when I started but ended up summiting the hill behind Lourenza at about 26 degrees.

32km to the Alburgue today.......6.5 hours of travel...I am pleased with that. It takes me to 606km in total..phew!

The country side is spectacular. .lovely cropped and stocked farmland with bigs tracts of eucalyptus forest.

Lots of friendly people though...and a couple of donkeys.  Ah the Shrek memories!

Peregrinos are getting easier to spot after walking by the day. We wear an odd assortment of clothing very casually....bright orange shirt with denim jacket, red shorts, jandals and wooly sox. No, not me...one of us across the street looking at the beer fest. It is a case of what is
A) dry
B) clean and
C) not to smelly.
If it is warm and dry and you can't smell it yourself..it must be ok! Of course...maybe we have got it right.

Oh yes, did I mention there is a beer festival going on. A sound system designed for Western Springs Stadium playing for 25 people.

L O U D   A S.

Great music but the sound is bouncing off a C13th church wall. I am hiding in this pub to muffle the noise. Some good kiwi and aussie music payed earlier.

Time to post this and head into the fray.

All the best for the memorial service ay St Matt's this morning....

Adios amigos. ..manyana

In Galica...Ribadeo

What a ripper day. 25.6km with a very leisurely breakfast , nice conversations and some on line banking saw me leaving La Caridad at 0930.

Following on from yesterday's blog I was told to put my guide book away and to be ready for the unexpected.  So I put the guide book and  walked, following arrows and scallop signs.

The proper route should have taken me within 1km of the coast...so I did get a surprise when I followed the river Porcia on a medieval road to it's mouth. It was a really pretty walk and the track took me to a headland above the rivermouth. That quiet (mischievous) voice said 'ready?' As I stepped around some scrub to the most beautiful patch of coastline the voice said ' I'm ready' and laughed. 

It is tres weird having someone else laughing at you IN your own head. What is weirder is that I have accepted it as normal.

Yes I know how is all sounds but I just so privileged to be able to have this ongoing experience.

As I type this I am at the Alburgue in Ribadeo, sitting in the sun. The slate ground is too hot to sit on so I am using some clothes to sit on. The water in my mug last about 10 mins before it is to warm to drink. Tuff day right now. The Alburgue is on the edge of town..overlooking the river harbour. People are swimming way below me and the 600m bridge I had to cross is  just in front of me. .the view is unbeatable. It is a small one..12 beds I think and people are having to find accommodation already.

A lot more pilgrims are appearing with strapping tape professionally applied.  I talked to one lady who started 6 days after I did last night and had caught me up..but she is heading home tomorrow. .it's too tough. So I have taken that as a sign and I will take a rest day tomorrow and explore Ribadeo. .the far river cliffs look amazing.

I have no complaints with my health..everything is managable but having a day off walking suits me and stops my feet yelling at me.

Hope no one freaks out but a lizard has just walked over one of my feet..they tickle!

I am going to head into town now for a cold drink and then dinner. There I will upliad this blog post.

Please be assured that I miss home, work, family friends etc...and that you are in my prayers.  Can I ask that pray for me as well.

Adios amigos. ..manyana.

It was a big day...

What a great day..32.5km and as Nina Simone/Michael Buble would sing .'I'm feeling good'. I started late..after 9am from Luarca and it took ages to do the first 11km to the first town.

However, the benefit here was spending time with Enrique from Italy. Across about 7km it  was interesting to share camino experiences. Many similar ones...with many shared perspectives. It was very encouraging indeed. This had also helped me to carry on with the rest of this post.

I have mentioned in previous posts about enjoying my time alone. Except that I am very much not alone.

It feels very strange to say that the time alone is filled with laughter, conversation and learning.

I have often heard of people having real conversations with god...and it has been an interesting process working out what is going on.

Not enough water..not enough food...walking too fast...many possible reasons for hearing a voice in your head...until you are told to be quiet..to be still. Then this very quiet presence saying 'finally'.

The presence is very real and as long as I am listening... very challenging.  When I shy away from the subject matter. .we return to it..until I get it. How do I know it is god...the voice is so loud and so quiet at the same time. A birdsong will drown it out yet a milktanker can run me off the road and I don't miss a word. How do I know. I know...I can't believe I have said it.

I remember my Dad telling me about an experience he had at Glastonbury Abbey and it changed him. I now under stand that a little more.

I often joke to people that god had a great sense of humour. This has been meant in good faith..many things in this world are very funny. 

But today I read in my guidebook that I had another stretch on the road. I don't enjoy the road work. I won't complain about it(seeing what Vincent and Akio have done) but you certainly feel every footfall. I said to myself...'no worries, I can cope with anything today'... At the moment in a gap in the trees in front of me a large hawk spirals down to almost tree top level and then lazily circles..lower than I have ever seen a hawk. The voice in my head says 'really..you sure about that?'  The other day i wad asking about where there jokes came from..god wasn't meant to be funny...and was promptly asked if I 'had looked in a mirror lately'

This probably isn't funny reading it at all...but you really had to be there.

Another example from earlier today...I had just walked thru a motor way construction zone and looked at the new viaduct. I wondered how they manage to tie all the ends together.  (Cue photo 3). About 5 mins later I am told 'it's time for a break'. Literally .. in my head. I stop and start to take off my pack and the voice says 'not yet..you'll know when'. Great...back on with the pack and I continue up the hill. 2 mins later I round a corner and there is the most beautiful picnic area. It is in the garden of a house whose property spans the camino. It has a shrine to St James..so I dump my pack..turn around to sit down and there it is. I am looking straight at the section of the new bridge fron this seat. The voice just said 'told you'.

I have been told on numerous occasions to be ready...for what I ask...'you'll know' is the standard answer...and within minutes there is someone apearing on the track. Someone was stoping because of the knee-bandage from pack...a couple were lost and fed up-showed them where we were on my map and then theirs.

At one level it is deeply disturbing. .at another it is wonderful.

To take this all one step further...I have been arguing about writing  this post for days, but I am told I have to. Yes...I have been told to write about it as best I could but I don't want to... it is too personal. .what will people think? I feel that i am risking alot by writing it.  but I have been told very clearly that I have to do it because someone needs to read it..and I had a deadline of today...which ends in 11 minutes. So I write this knowing I have listened and am doing it. But it is SO weird.

And believe me..I know how this will read..but there it is.

Before coming on the camino I had talked about being able to listen for God and to be able to follow the directions set for me. I was NOT prepared for the extent of this at all.

Some of you may be thinking oh my ...in the middle of spain he has finally lost it.

I would prefer the other line of thought ...oh my...in the middle of spain I have finally found it.

Adios amigos.
I can't wait for tomorrow's journey.
(See..I got it posted in time!)
(Be quiet Tim).

Yikes..big day

The guide book shows today as 31km but it is well under. The target is a town called Lla Caridad. It would by nice to be back in an alburgue again...(seriously). 3 nights out of that loop in a row has been lovely but....
Just watching the weather forecast I have got 3 great days ahead of me...it is so much nicer in the fine weather.
It's my 2nd to last day in Asturias today. .I will be in Galicia soon...my last province.Then it will turn me inland straight for Santiago.
Adios amigos.

500 today

0700
It's a lovely day for walking.  Fine and dry with some cloud cover. Heading to breakfast and then I'm off.
490km so far so within 2 hours I will have hit 500km. My poor little totties!
My sister used to call me (well still does on occasion) Timphy Toddle Toes...well those toddle toes are doing alright!

0930
I feel tingly all over...maybe all the stinging nettle so far this morning. ..legs and arms covered in sting spots...in orienteering terms you could say 'full body cover compulsary'.  My right arm has the most...still quite numb.

2000
What an amazing day! My arms have recovered from the stinging nettle but have got blackberry scratches all over them. My left leg is still numb and doesn't respond to thumping or pinching. ..I think I got a little  too much stinging nettle..the last patch was 4 hrs ago.

I made the 500km all right..it was quite 'spooky possums'. I had passed a village called Villademoros and thought that I would look for a nice spot for my 500km party. With 200m until it clicked over was a big display board about a C15th church just to my right. The church (locked as usual) was party central at 500.33km. It was great...a can of coke..a small Toblerone and a church ...what better way to celebrate the 500km.
You might think (or indeed know) that I am strange but this was a big deal for me. I didn't think I could this..I didn't think I would be strong or fit enough.  It wasn't until last week that Santiago became a real target.

Locals played a big part in my day. On a number of occasions as I stood at a track junction with no arrows to guide me. .someone would just appear and call out the direction. One guy helped me as I stood on one side of a huge roundabout at the junction onto tbe freeway. The arrows lead me to the intersection but none could be seen to lead me out. This call interrupted my guide book inspection. .which didn't help at all ... The intersection didn't exist in the description. Anyway he kept yelling and waving me over and he stopped walking while I jogged over to him. He signaled to follow him, turned and walked. Past an underpass he pointed. .there were the arrows.  He then pointed out a church in the distance and a huge bridge..I had go by the church turn left and go under the bridge..3km to the next town. That was timely I thought...but as I emerged from the houses to cross the road by the church someone called out 'Tim..I'm lost'. Cool as a cucumber  i said no you're not...just down this road to the bridge. It was bobbie from Arizona who had walked the first 6km with earlier today.
This is camino...these things happen all the time.

Another local worth mentioning was a donkey. .pulling a seed drilling machine with a farmer and his wife...amazing..see the photo.

I walked with Bobbie for another 6km until I turned off for Luarca..she was heading to the Alburgue. 

It was a long 5k into Luarca through paddocks, tiny streets and finally past a high school. As I turned past a large building this most beautiful site greeted me...I was high above a seaport. Luarca would be one of the beautiful seatowns I have ever seen. I was going to walk on another 12km to the next place but no more. I got fantastic accommodation quickly and then went exploring. I then decided that I will be back here in Luarca sometime soon.

I ended up only doing 26km today...516km in total and Santiago de Compostela is 240km away according to the guidebook...so 66% of the way there.

My day ended with dinner at a local restaurant. .pilgrim menu again. I also had some excellent conversation as well.  Some of my camino friends speak english SO well...even able to joke and give sarcasm so easily!

Live back in NZ  is creeping into my mind. It is so nice to be the one who doesn't understand what's going on..I have relaxed into the fact that I am anonymous for example in this pub..I don't understand the conversations.  It is quite luxurious not attending to the talking. I am not sure how I will cope back at school with so many people talking and being able to understand it all. ...hmm..we shall see. Back at work in a month. I do miss the kids and the staff..enormously. ..but it is so quiet in this noisy country.

Adios amigos. ..as the Proclaimers sang...I will walk 500 kilometers

Thank you Queen

'It's a beautiful day
The sun is shining
No one is going to stop me now'

Today was amazing.  Sun all day. Pretty rare over the last 3 weeks. As well as that it was a 'Mind Cinema' day. Mind cinema is term coined by Alex who has returned to Austria to work ...poor thing...it is a term used to describe those flash backs and memories that we want to remember (or those that disturb us..very close to the phrase too much information). My mind cinema were all very good and went very well with Queen's song .It's a beautiful day.

Today was a 27km day and 490 km so far. In NZ tbat would put me between Seddon and the Clarence River...tomorrow I'll be past Clarence. I will buy something in the next town..6km away ...to then eat or drink to celebrate 500km tomorrow morning.

500km...that is really bizarre and sort of scary. I may have mentioned before that I didn't really know that I could actually do this. I hoped that I could, but tomorrow is 500km. Tu meke!

Today had some huge contrasts...walking under massive bridges as well as fighting through overgrown tracks with NO markings. Very expensive houses and some hovels (these are increasingly being seen....almost as if the country is getting poorer tbe further west I travel).

And the best part....no rain. I hadn't realized how much it was getting me down. I was lucky to be walking with some very nice people before Ribadesella when it was really raining....otherwise it would have been very hard making good progress in the rain. A couple of days walking without rain does wonders for tbe soul.

My guidebook was very good today...it needed to be. ..the route marking was shocking. At one point after 3km through blackberry and gorse lined track...I emerged on a stretch of road and the only arrows to be seen pointed back the way I had come. Rather than sit down and scream (very tempting. ..but tell no one) I rechecked my guidebook map, headed right (counter intuitive) and 1k later there was the village I was expecting.  Phew. There is an allegory in there somewhere!

I am staying at Ballota..about 1km from the coast at a little pub. Nice room etc but if I had walked on the only accommodation was 13 beds at an alburgue  at 34km...no guarantee there will be a bed.  So knowing this I looked carefully as I passed through Ballota and liked what I saw.

There are fewer pelegrinos on this section of tbe Camino Del Norte.  Most have turned off to do the Primativa a day or so back. This means less pressure on accommodation from walkers...but 10 cyclists past me today. Bobbie from Arizona is one town back and a nice french couple are one town forward.

My feet are bearing up..the Keen sandals did well today again, but I feel a bit like a hobbit slapping along.

Apart from saying hi to pelegrinos as I have walked past them, I have had the day to myself. I really relish this and I have to tell you tbe learning and teaching that goes on is quite humbling.  Not that I don't like walking with others...not at all....but a very real rythmn develops when I am by myself and the conversation is NEVER dull !

I half traveled half way around the world to reconnect with someone who only lives a heartbeat away. However, this is only part of it. Every day here I am learning more, mainly because I am shutting up and listening.

The people I have met and what I have observed so far...I am beginning to understand a little more exactly why I am on this route...and to be honest it is very humbling.

Enough for now...I am having trouble expressing my thoughts and I don't want you to think I have lost it completely!

Plesse pray for me and the other pelegrinos...it is tougher than I had imagined  but so worth it.

Adios amigos...it's a beautiful day...and it is definitely not a tear rolling down my cheek. (Tui billboard I'm afraid)