Sonia's Camino Adventure (2008)

I made it!

2008-05-21T03:51:00.004+10:00

After walking 800kms across Spain in 31 days we finally arrived into Santiago for the midday pilgrim mass which was held in the beautiful Santiago cathedral.

What a journey! This is without a doubt the most incredible experience I´ve ever had in my life. When I spotted Santiago city, tears of joy, gratitude, happiness, accomplishment overwhelmed me... I couldn´t believe I´d finally made it.. Seriously, words cannot explain how I felt at that moment... Thank god I made it!

Monique you were right, I don´t think I´ve lost any weight whatsoever, I´ve been eating it up BIG time...hehehe...Although I´ve never felt as fit as this. My biggest walking day was 47kms (which was on the 2nd last day) to arrive into the village and be told the hotel was full...what the? Luckily the Universe was on our side and a room at a Casa Rural was available.... We have been living it up for the past couple of nights staying in hotels and eating great food which makes a drastic change from the refugios/municipals we´ve been staying in for most of the Camino.. Although I believe the spirit of the Camino lies largely in these (refugios/albergues) this is where I met all these beautiful people, it also makes you appreciate the large amounts of comforst we have in our lives..

Last night David and I hit the town we ate Tapas and drank our way around Santiago, to end up sitting in front of Santiago cathedral chatting about our Camino experiences and then dancing with locals to Spanish music. This day will go down as one of the best days I´ve had on my Camino.

Today (Wednesday) I went to the midday pilgrim mass again to greet the other pilgrims I met along the road. It was sooo nice to see them walking towards the church we embraced and congratulated eachother for the massive accomplishment we´ve all been through. It´s definitely a unique experience... I think it´ll hit when I get back to Oz the amount of land we covered...Crazy stuff hey...

Rod just to let you know, I laid your scallop shell to rest in Santiago. I sent out a wish that one day soon you will complete your Camino and experience these magical feelings.. It brings tears to my eyes as I type this.. Thank you my friend fr your support and belief in me and my walk....

With this I´ve decided to walk to Finnisterre (as 800kms isn´t enough...hehehe) which should take no more than 3 to 4 days max.. It´s roughly 89kms. Back in the day they call Finnisterre the end of the world. Only a small percentage of pilgrims walk to Finnisterre it´s more common to jump on a bus from Santiago to Finisterre.

It´s symbolic to continue on to Finnisterre pilgrims burn an item which rids themselves of the old/past and makes way for the new. We met this crazy Brazilian guy who walkd a bit of the way with David and I the other day he gave me a great idea.... Make a list of all the negativity, doubts, fears etc etc and burn it.... So that´s what I´m going to do... Thanks Eddie... Another funny thing this guy said (which I believe to a big extent) The Spanish call the Camino the Mental hospital of Spain...hehehe... I can see why....hehehehe

Albergues

2008-05-09T05:18:00.003+10:00

Since Eduardo left the family we´ve stayed in some amazing albergues (both on detour routes)

On Monday night (5th May) we stayed in the peregrinos albergue located in Besciano del Real Camino on that night I experienced the essence of what I believe the Camino life is about.

The albergue runs off donations and the warm greeting was next to none. One of the hospitalerios (volunteer workers) was named none other than Jesus...Can you believe it? He definitely had a twinkle in his eyes that´s for sure. On that night I even dreamt he was God and the look he gave me in my dream was of love, support, faith and re-assurance it was a very strange but realistic kind of dream. I seem to be dreaming alot here, another night I dreamt a man and lady were doing Reiki on me and I could actually feel it in my dream...weird stuff...hehehehe...As many of you know this isn´t at all weird for me...hehehe

Anyways back to the albergue, it slept roughly 40 people, all the pilgrims helped with the dinner preparations and washing up. We then sang songs in our native languages, we watched the sun set followed by a candlelit meditation expressing the reason why each one of us are walking this road...It was an amazing evening with so many amazing people (approx 25 of us). This is what I feel the Camino life is about the spirit of sharing, friendship, reflection, giving thanks for the many many luxuries we have in our lives...This life is a very simple one it shows one you don´t need much... My Camino family have shown me this time and time again and for them I´m truly grateful..

Last night we stayed in Leon (Santa Maria convent) this is the 2nd time we´ve stayed in the convent (Eric wasn´t allowed to move his bed close to Gitta´s...hehehehe...Inside joke) we went to the 6pm Mass at Leon´s Cathedral which was lovely although Burgos Cathedral is sooo much nicer and alot more detailed than Leon (I was very disappointed with Leon) there wasn´t any substance to Leon´s Cathedral... All in all the outside of the Cathedral was lovely though... At the convent the nuns held a 9:30pm pilgrim Mass in their church which was very nice...

Tonight we´re staying in another awesome albergue (alternate route) called Jesus albergue (Jesus is everywhere...hehehe) and it´s donation based as well... You can write on the walls like naughty school kids...hehehe...I´ve written my saying and also one for Eduardo and taken photos...hehehehe... The albergue has a backyard and hammock (what luxury) you should have seen our faces when we scoped the joint we thought we were in heaven...hehehehe

Tomorrow we´re off to Astorga which is a 30km clicker...Wish us luck cause we´re sooo going to need it...hehehehe

Love, light and smiles to you all

Thank you for your support

2008-05-07T02:47:00.005+10:00

Thought I´d write up a quick entry (seeing I´m overwhelmed with so many upflifting, loving and encouraging comments and emails). I just wanted to say a BIG thank you to you all!

Monique and Nancy you ladies would understand what it feels to recieve soooo much encouragement especially on those hard days it it means sooo much to me. I had another hard day yesterday and today. The 3 of us have come down with a cold and walking isn´t making it any easier. I´ve also obtained 2 new blisters (total of 5) and very slight pain in my heel (man I hope it´s not tendinitous)

It´s raining, thunderstorm, lighting and hailing tonight (3rd time it´s rained on the Camino) they are predicting the same kind of weather for the next few days with a maximum temperature 9 degrees, talk about the Universe throwing curve balls...hehehe...So the moral of this entry is thank you all for your kind words, thoughts, prayers and love you have no idea how much they have helped me along the road...Thank you my beautiful friends... Thinking of you all and placing little stones along the way with good wishes for you all..

xxx

Halfway (according to my guidebook)

2008-05-05T16:58:00.002+10:00

Well we´ve made it to the halfway mark (according to John Brierley´s guidebook). The place is called Terradillos de los Templarios and last night we stayed in a new albergue which was absolute luxury.. Gitta, Eric and I stayed in a room just for the 3 of us and I was sooo stoked as it had an ensuite...hehehe... So far this is one of the best albergue´s we´ve stayed in.

Yesterday was a sad day as Eduardo finally left our group (and then there were 3)... Due to a knee injury and the little time he has to walk to Santiago Eduardo decided to catch a taxi from Ledigos to Sahagun and then train to Leon where he´ll continue his walk to Santiago.

Good luck my friend remember ´piano piano arriviamo´ thank you for everything you have been one of my Camino angels on this adventure, I´ll miss you heaps...Ciao and Buen Camino bello.

It´s funny cause Eduardo use to be our motivator, in the mornings he´d get us all up and out of bed and this morning was the first morning without him...Man we are sooo lazy this is the latest morning we´ve started our Camino (9:30am) usually we start around 6:30am... Eduardo where are you...hehehehe... I think I´ll have to be the time keeper in the mornings, I may just buy an alarm in Leon...hehehe

More later....

I´ll jump on later to write more, but now it´s time to walk walk walk...

Nearly half way

2008-05-03T05:24:00.003+10:00

My Camino family has shrunk. Today Eduardo and I left Gitta and Eric in Bodarilla (or something like that) and we continued on to Fromista after 34kms of walking today we were greeted to the last 2 beds in the village. We´re sleeping in the corridor it´s the funniest thing ever...hehehe...There are other people sleeping under the breakfast table, man this is what one calls an adventure. So far we´ve been rejected from 6 refugios due to overcrowding... Once we settled into the refugio we had a look around the village where Eduardo and I were fortunate enough not to pay to enter the church, talk about the Universe looking after us... Thank you God...

At the moment we´re making excellent ground, more that I thought... In 13 days we´ve walked approx 330kms and most of the people we met at the beginning of the walk are well behind us, which is a little sad as the quickier we walk we bump into new groups of people, which has a toally different feel...Although there´s 2 young fit German guys we keep bumping into and I think they´re trying to race us...hehehe...As I say to Eduardo ´slowly but surely wins the race´...hehehehe... Another guy we met along the road at the beginning couldn´t believe how much we walked he had to jump on a bus as he´s boots we´re hurting him.... When I told him we walked all this way he honestly throught I was kidding... That´s when I realised we´re firing ahead...

Tomorrow will be another massive walk roughly 36kms in 28 degree heat, we´re planning on getting up around 5:30am to avoid the heat as there´s not much shade throughout this part (Meseta)... w

Our plan is to get to Leon in 4 days..Eduardo needs to complete the walk in 29 days (total) I´ve decided to hang in Leon until Gitta and Eric arrive which should be a day or 2 after I arrive.

Burgos was a lovely city, the cathedral was absolutely stunning...I can´t believe we had to pay 2.50 euros to go in, but hey, it was worth though...

The weather has been out of control, from the blazing sun to freezing windy and rainy conditions (it honestly felt at times it was about to snow) we´ve walked in them all... It´s crazy but we´re having sooo much fun and soooo many laughs... It´s funny walking an average of 7-10 hours a day the different kinds of games you make up to entertain yourselves...

It´s been sad to have people from our group drop off one by one, at the same time I´m sooo happy I´ve met and exchanged so many memorable moments together. I can´t wait to insert my pics when I get home for you all to see the beauty of this place, it´s sooo different here in Spring compared to summer...

I´ve taken to drinking vino tinto every night (hehehe) and enjoying the different types of wines from the different provinces..

Anyways my friends I best be off as the bar closes shortly and I have to prepare our beds for the night in the corridor of the hostel (the owner is an angel and soooo lovely, another help from God). I´ll write more when I get to Leon .

Take care hope your all well thinking of you and placing little stones along the way with good wishes for you all.

Lots of loves and hugs
Sonia

Longest Day so far.....

2008-04-28T03:54:00.002+10:00

Today our Camino family became smaller. Clara (from Spain) had to leave the family and join her friends and Leopoldo and Luciana left us yesterday. Gitta and I are left with 2 Brazilians guys and 1 Italian guy, today has been the best day so far...Although we walked 35kms starting at 7:30am and arriving into Azofra around 7pm.... A blister finally formed under my foot, but that does not compare to the adventures we seem to be having time and time again... The past couple of days have been tough for me mentally, I question myself time and time again why the hell I decided to do this, let me tell you, this walk tests every aspect of the human spirit and body, it´s the weirdest feeling.. I wanted to give up yesterday but I¨m sooo glad I didn´t as today was worth the wait.... We had sooo much fun it really depends on the company and I´m blessed to have made some gorgeous friendships who make me laugh and who support eachother in sooo many beautiful ways...

Tonight we arrived at a refugio (hostel) and found out it was completely full so we´re sleeping in a classroom...hehehe... There´s about 10 of us in the room the rest are a group of guys from Italy it´s the funniest thing to see blackboards and chalk in the room.... Unfortunately you´ll have to wait till I get back to Oz to see my pics (as some of you know everything weighs)..

Anyways I best leave it here as my time is running out, thank you all for your kind wishes it only makes me stronger and continue my journey... I´ve been thinking of you all and sending out good wishes.

Ciao for now
xxx

Walk, walk, walk

2008-04-24T05:36:00.003+10:00

The dream has finally arrrived.... I´m sitting here in puenta della reina typing up this entry.. To date we´ve walked just a little over 90kms through rain, wind, mud, sun did I mention mud...Heaps of the stuff... This journey has been unbelievable from the word go... I´ve meet sooo many people from the plane ride to England from the plane ride to the starting point (SJPP) the guy I met on this particular plane ride is part of the group I´m walking with. There´s 5 of us walking together 3 from Italy and 1 from Hungary and so many others...The majority of people walking the Camino seem to be French, Germans and Italians... I´ve only met 2 other Aussies one of them used to live in North Narrabeen (small world hey)...

The Camino is a simple life and I´m loving it!!! We get up around 6:30am pack our bags, head out to a bar to have breakfast walk, then stop at another bar to eat lunch, walk some more, rock up to a refugio (hostel) wash our clothes and shower, check out the village/city, head to another bar to eat dinner (pilgrim menu) write in our journals and head to bed around 10pm...That´s it!!! I could do this for awhile and thank god I have awhile.

It´s an extremely cheap holiday (roughly around 25 Euros a day). Yesterday my knee went slightly I was sooo worried my Camino would have ended there and then so I went to church prayed for divine intervention and popped a 600mg anti-inflammatory and waaalllaaaa my knee was right as rain today... I can´t believe in Oz you need a prescription for 50mg, here in Spain they sell 600mg over the counter, thank the lord...hehehe

Apologises for any mistakes, the keyboard is slightly different here and my money is slowing running out but the truth be told I couldn´t be bothered to go over this post...hehehehe

All in all I´m going to leave it here and say ´life requires one step at a time and in good time one will arrive to their destination. Let´s pray in my case it´s Santiago de Compostella in great health... (As I´m definiteyl eating lots and lots)...hehehehe

Anyways my friends hope all is well with you all...

Adios for now
xxx

Useful sites to plan your own Camino

2008-04-11T20:47:00.004+10:00

If you're planning your own Camino the following sites/forums have been a godsend towards my own preparations. There is sooooo much useful and practical information, I've been researching as much as I can on the Camino for over a year now and I'm still learning something different everyday..

http://www.pilgrimage-to-santiago.com/board/

( I find this forum to be extremely informative the people on here have created a fantastic Camino community)

http://www.caminosantiago.com/

(Another forum which I found to be very useful)

http://groups.msn.com/ElCaminoSantiago/weathercaminofrances.msnw

(I like this forum it posts different kinds of questions the other 2 don't usually have)

http://www.csj.org.uk/

(A fantastic place to purchase Camino DVD's, books, postcards etc. Easy to navigate)

http://www.santiago-compostela.net/

(Another great site with lots of useful tools)

Happy preparations!

Thank You Everyone!

2008-04-10T19:41:00.007+10:00

I knew this time would come, emotions are starting to stir and beginning to surface...I've been feeling really emotional the past couple of days. It's a mixture of excitement, fear, anticipation, adventure, doubt and so much more. Although the strongest feeling is this overwhelming sense of gratitude.

I'm sooooo grateful to the many many people who have helped me get to this very point. From someone recommending a book, to someone giving me a newspaper clipping, to someone allowing me to use their credit card to pay for my ticket, to people sending me gifts, to people helping me with researching, to people offering encouraging words, to someone counting down the days with me, to people advising where the best foreign exchange rates are, to people helping me start up this blog, to someone giving me a lift, to people sitting patiently listening to my fears and desires, to the many people living this dream with me.

From the bottom of my heart, thank you everyone, I'm sure you all know who you are, I can honestly say without your help I wouldn't be heading off to live this 11 year dream. You are all in my prayers and I'll be sending out good wishes for you all!

Muchas gracias

What is the Camino?

2008-04-08T11:17:00.012+10:00

I believe the best way to understand the Camino is to watch the following clip:
(Mikey and Scotty this one's for you...hehehe)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDOTJHbwRj4
'Thoughts on the Camino'
(to gain the full effect, make sure you have sound)

Why?

2008-04-06T09:28:00.013+10:00

Why? Why do you feel propelled to walk 800kms and for what?

Because I feel a strong inner pull to do it! That's my biggest reason. (Thanks Paulo Coelho)

This is the question everyone wants answered. There are sooo many reasons why I want to do this, the most powerful reason is this inner calling to slip on my hiking boots and walk this ancient road to Santiago... Am I religious? I like to say I'm spiritual. I believe strongly in a higher spirit. Who knows what experiences, challenges, people or miracles I'll come across, but that's what I can't wait to experience.

A couple of weeks ago a close friend asked me this same question and I replied 'I know I won't find all the answers to life or the actual meaning of life, all I want, is to experience something new. I'm ready for newness in my life. A new chapter has opened itself up and is calmly awaiting a new story.

In a nutshell these are my reasons:

Learn to Risk more

Travel by myself. I've always travelled with someone, I'm inspired by females travelling solo.

Challenge myself physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually

Practise Spanish
Eat, eat, eat....I love Spanish food...Bring on the Tapas

Hopefully discover what my life's purpose is..Especially in the work arena

Open myself up to meeting and creating new friendships

Laugh as much as I possibly can

Take one day and one step at a time

Let go

Give thanks to God for all the blessings in my life

I'd like to come across healers who can teach me different healing techniques

I'd also like to give back to other pilgrims by doing reiki on them. It's been awhile

Send out prayers and good wishes to all the people in my life

I want to look back in life and say I've accomplished something extraordinary

The majority of people I've spoken to who've completed this walk seem to go back time and time again, I want to know what that feels like.

I want to experience miracles

I want the adventure of my lifetime

And ultimately have the time of my life!

No doubt I'll be adding more later down the track...hehehe

Let the journey begin............

A moment of Inspiration

2008-04-06T09:19:00.012+10:00

When I start doubting myself whether I'll make it to the end (Santiago), I watch the following clip.I've watched this clip sooooo many times (hence why I've posted it twice within my blog) and it still manages to give me goose bumps.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDOTJHbwRj4

I've been fortunate enough to chat with loads of people and the strongest piece of advice shared with me is 'It's the journey that counts, not the destination'.

Enjoy and who knows this may inspire you to plan your own Camino
;)

Under 2 weeks to go

2008-04-03T16:14:00.012+11:00

Wow time seems to be flying soooo quickly these days. The 2 week mark (before take-off) hit yesterday.... :)

Last night was my last Spanish class which was lots of fun. Students bought in bottles of wine, donuts, and nibblies. I gotta say halfway throughout the class I was struggling to stay focused, the Chilean wine really started to go to my head....hehehe....

When I signed up for the Spanish class I made a conscious effort to follow it through till the end without skipping a class. I gotta say, I'm proud of myself. I tend to start alot of things/projects and never get round to completing them, until now.. People refer to the Camino as a metaphor for life... I'm starting to understand this metaphor and that's why I made a conscious effort to finish my Spanish course.. I wonder what the next lesson will be? Maybe it's to complete the walk from start (SJPP) to finish (Santiago). Fingers crossed I can complete this as well..

The adventure of the Clear Quartz Crystal

2008-03-31T16:37:00.006+11:00

I was suppose to walk the Camino Frances in September last year, due to money restrictions and emotionally not being ready to tackle this challenge I decided to postpone my walk till this year (April).

One of my Camino buddies who walked part of the way last October, kindly offered to carry my clear quartz crystal (which was given to me by my dear friend Amy) with him. I've been told our crystals await me in a refugio at Logrono, just to think these 2 crystals have been on the road since October and have no doubt drawn in the energies of the Camino.

Rod my dear friend, thank you ever so much for adding more adventure to my trip, I can't wait to reunite with our crystals and bring them home... Ahhh let the adventure begin...

Packing List

2008-03-31T11:46:00.006+11:00

Ok, I've decided to stick to 9kgs. No doubt I'll be offloading stuff along the road, I've been keeping an eye on the weather and man is it cold over there! So I need warm clothes (which unfortunately weighs more) to keep me warm... Hence the 9kgs...

I'd be keen to hear any suggestions from people who have done the walk whether to add or leave items behind.

Camino List
9kgs Maximum (with food and water included)

2 x Long Pants
2 x T-Shirts
1 x Jacket
1 x Micro-Fleece Jumper
1 xThermal Top/Pants
1 x Face cloth
2 xUndies
2 x Socks
1 x Toe socks
2 x Socks Liners
1 x Flip flops
1 x Boxer shorts
2 x Sports Bra
1 x Sleeping Bag
1 x Sleeping Bag Linear
1 x Toiletry Bag
1 x Ipod
1 x Digital Camera
1 x Ipod/Camera charger
1 x Adapter
1 x Head torch
1 x Knee Brace
1 x strapping tape
1 x scissors
1 x Sunscreen
2 x Plastic bags
1 x Backpack (40L)
2 x Walking Sticks
1 x Hiking Boots
1 x Sunglasses and Cover
1 x Glasses cover
1 x Hat
1 x Journal
1 x Pen
1 x Guidebook
1 x SilkPillow Case
1 x Bum Bag
2 x Suction Hooks
1 x Bandana
4 x Elastic bands and bobby pins
1 x Poncho
1 x Needle/Thread
1 x Bottle Iodine
1 x small bottle of Shampoo
1 x Gel (I've decided to take it...hehehe)
1 x small bottle of Conditioner
1 x set of Ear Plugs
1 x quick dry towel Towel
1 x Toe Clippers
1 x Spork
4 to 6 metres of string
6 x Safety Pins
1 x Tweezers
1 x small bottle of liquid soap
1 x small tube of Toothpaste
1 x Toothbrush
1 x Blister Roll on
8 x Voltaren Tablets
6 x Panadol 15
76 x Glucosamine tablets
5 x Stamina satchels
2 x Garbage Bags (big)
1 x Deodarant
5 x Bandaids
1 x Universal Plug
1 x Lip Balm
1 x Tea tree oil
1 x Water Bottles
2 xCopies of Documents
2 x Passports

Camino Pics

2008-03-30T12:44:00.007+11:00

An 800km road to Santiago (Spain)

Sign Posts guiding pilgrims to Santiago

Different types of footwear

Modern day Pilgrims

Ahhhhh what a sight! I hope I'm lucky enough to have an experience like this.

The End

2008-03-29T14:18:00.007+11:00

The cathedral all pilgrims are heading for, 'Santiago de Compostela Cathedral'

Map

2008-03-29T14:10:00.002+11:00

I start in Saint Jean Pied de Port (France, located at the foothills of the Pyreness Mountains) to Santiago De Compostella. Its roughly 800km.

Still too heavy

2008-03-29T13:51:00.001+11:00

I've gone through my backpack and it's still too heavy! Today my pack weighs 9kgs. (which includes 1 litre of aqua and food) I seriously tried to cut out as much as I could and it's 1kg heavier than I intend to carry. How the heck am I going to cut another 1kg? hehehehe.... Well Monique, I think I'll take you up on your advice and ditch the gel... My hair will be wilder than ever...hehehe... That was one the very few luxuries I'm taking (or was), now I understand one cannot allow themselves too many luxuries otherwise you have to carry it and the body feels every gram.. Less weight equals happy knees/joints...:)

My knee is coming along nicely. I've seen 2 specialists and they both have given the go ahead. There advice is take hiking poles, orthotic inserts, good quality boots, knee brace, and carry as little weight as possible. Just yesterday my high tech knee brace arrived, I'm heading out this weekend to test it out. (After forking out $150 it better do the job) Fingers crossed.

Next entry I'll post my packing list.

Blogging can be difficult

2008-03-28T15:32:00.003+11:00

Finally! My blog is up and running thanks to Brad and Jonathon. Thanks guys!

Only 19 days to go before I jet off to Spain to tackle a 800km pilgrimmage walk which dates back 1000 years or so. Far out I can't believe how time flies, my dream is quickly awakening everyday. I've finally bought all the gear I need for the trip, at the moment my pack weighs 10.2kgs (water and food included) that's way too much!!! So this weekend I'm going through my gear and attempting to cut 2 - 3kgs...God I really don't know what to cut as most items I feel are necessary and no doubt Monique you'd say otherwise....hehehehe

Stay tuned for more