• MilesnSmileswiththeQuinns
  • MilesnSmileswiththeQuinns

Walka'bout thru Spain & Italy

Backpacking our way, step by step, to our best version Okumaya devam et
  • Part 3 of Day 14

    7 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    Today, William said he had his best day walking, which makes me happy because it means his leg is better. We came here together and we want to complete this experience together. If one has to move forward, we both understand while the other continues to walk but if we can support and take care of each other, together we'll cross the finish line. He still has his challenges, and so do I, but the good outweighs anything negative.Okumaya devam et

  • Day 15 to Corrion de los Condes

    8 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

    Today, we walked 19 miles. The mazeta is flat but still has its own unique beauty. I made the mistake of thinking that today would be easier because 95% was flat terrain... how wrong I was. It was harder on the body than the uphill. We had a breeze most of the day, and that was a huge help.Okumaya devam et

  • Part 2 of Day 15

    8 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    What a special night at the albergue. The nuns who work and volunteer their time to make pilgrims feel welcomed and taken care of are beyond words. We started the afternoon with all the pilgrims that wanted to gathered and we sang songs as the nuns sang and one played the guitar. After we went to a mass and at the end, we went up to the alter, and the 2 fathers gave everyone an individual blessing on the forehead and a verbal blessing. They had asked us to bring or cook an item to share at dinner with everyone. We brought watermelon, and the feast was lovely. All kinds of yummyness. We had the pleasure of sitting at the end with the nuns, so we got to share about Cali, and they shared about their homes in Ireland and Spain. Their main convent is in Madrid. This night has left a special marking on my heart. Many happy tears were shared🥰Okumaya devam et

  • Day 16 to San Nicolas del Real Camino

    9 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

    I love sharing all these beautiful places, towns, and people that we are meeting. But I also wanna keep it real and honest and share our challenges. As I mentioned in the video, the lack of sleep really got to me this morning. It got my spirits down because my intentions the nights before are to get up with a smile on my face and be ready to make the miles. But today was more like, how can I keep doing these miles when I'm not recovering? The truth is, sometimes we don't recover, but we have to move forward and make the choice that it will be "Fun and Easy" I chose my intentions for the day and I overcame my negative thoughts. Did I have a little pitty party? Yes, and that was ok, too. I just didn't let it take over my whole day. Keaton's call made me laugh, and he reminded me that I got this. We're all challenged with different scenarios in our lives, but it's our choice on how we react 💪
    We didn't see much today other than sunflower and wheat fields but nevertheless gorgeous 😍 before I knew it, I was at the albergue taking my 1st nap in Spain.
    Okumaya devam et

  • Part 2 od Day 16

    9 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    The albergue for tonight was a gem. Italian husband and wife Valerio and Daniella made us feel so comfortable and at home. Their dog Barney was the icing. They just bought this place in April and are fantastic hosts. Sometimes, it pays to go off the beaten path and try places that are not the hot spots. We skipped 3 small towns, so we only saw 1 church.
    Stats for the day:
    Up at 4:30am
    On the road by 5:30am
    20 miles completed
    Mental health is good
    Got our dog fix ❤️
    Delicious Spain 🍒
    Okumaya devam et

  • Day 17 to Reliegos

    10 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    WE MADE IT HALF WAY!!! 25O miles done, 250 to go. Either we're delirious from so much walking or our bodies are locked in to walking that we walked 25 miles of Camino today. We don't give our bodies enough credit. We are all guilty of saying we can't, but in reality, we CAN💪 If this chubby, 5'3", 51 yr old, brown girl from El Salvador can do this, so can u. Make it a goal to do whatever it is you have been putting off and get to it because you CAN💪
    The back roads we're lonely today. We only saw 2 other hikers because we took an alternate route, but it was nice and quiet.
    Okumaya devam et

  • Part 2 of Day 17

    10 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ 🌙 23 °C

    The picture below with me and a man. His name is Vicent, and he is an Albergue host. What a beautiful soul. He has done the Camino 9 times. Walked it 3xs, biked it 3xs, and ran it 3xs. He is a special education ooach at a high school and has 2 students this year competing in the Olympics in Paris. Just finished writing a book for charity. When I shared with him that I was a special needs school bus driver, instantly he said I was his people because we both understood the gifts we get from doing our profession in special Ed. He left a deep impression in my thoughts, and I hope to one day be a host myself.Okumaya devam et

  • Part 2 of Day 18

    11 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    The Cathedral of Leon... Built in the 1300's and it took 50 yrs to be built and 40 to restore it when a portion of the ceiling collapsed. It comes in 2nd in the world to have the most stained glass windows. I sat in front of the cathedral and had my 1st Gin & Tonic with Cas. I felt like I was an extra on Downton Abbey. I don't wanna wake up from this beautiful dream.Okumaya devam et

  • Part 3 of day 19

    12 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

    Then we saw the Basilica and its museum. After William had a nice nap, we ended the day by having a cocktail on a rooftop overseeing the city. A walk thru one of the most famous cathedrals in Spain
    A nice dinner with a fantastic view with some yummy dessert. Right after, we had to change mental gears and prep to get back on the Camino.Okumaya devam et

  • Part 3 of Day 18

    12 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    Our hotel was built above ruins. Most of Leon is and the floors have glass, so you can see below. The Albergues is a part of the pilgrimage experience, but a hotel room is so lovely. We found a location for dinner that made tacos and quesadillas. We had to try them and they were good. Not taqueria good, but we're in Spain, not mexico.Okumaya devam et

  • Day 19 Zero day in Leon

    12 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    We enjoyed this zero day much more than the last one since William was feeling good on his leg. His blisters on his feet are still a challenge, but he's treating them. We were tourists, which was a nice change. 1st, I slept in till 9am. Let me tell you how fantastic it was. Sleep is so precious 😴
    Our 1st stop was a Roman archeological tour, and we were blown away. Basically, Leon sits on top of one of Roman's military camps and their coliseum. I kept thinking of the movie Gladiator. The footprint is an actual Roman Gladiator footprint
    Okumaya devam et

  • Day 20 to Hospital de Orbigo

    13 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ 🌙 22 °C

    Back on trail with fresh legs and another milestone crossed. We have walked/hiked 300 MILES!!!! I know we have been walking and hiking because of all we've seen and done, but when I see the #, I can't rationalize it. William says it's 285 miles to vegas... we've just passed that since we're currently at mile maker 310. I'm so thankful 🙏 to our God for all our blessings that were sent our way so that we can be out here doing this pilgrimage. But also grateful for my body. For all that I ask it to do every day. For all that I put it thru. It rises to the occasion and far exceeds it.Okumaya devam et

  • Part 2 of Day 20

    13 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ⛅ 20 °C

    Here are the churches I saw through our 23 mile hike today. I know I have told you how amazing the Cathedrals have been, but please understand that the small simple small town churches are gorgeous too just on a different scale. The smallest one just outside the city of Leon was from 1736. The town where our Alburgue is at is famous for their jousting tournaments back in the day. Their bridge is beautiful, and walking on it as it leads you into town, you feel like you are on a movie set, but then you realize that it all really happened and Knights walked thru the same bridge and fought for their honor.Okumaya devam et

  • Day 22 to Molinseca

    15 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    Today was an emotional day. The Camino is known to surprise you with many things along this walkabout, and having the "feels"out of nowhere is one of them. Walking up to the pilgrimage cross in Fonsibodon was a rush of overwhelming emotions. To see so many loved ones being remembered and us leaving our last purple rock was special. We carry so many things in our hearts. Some weigh us down so heavy that we dont realize it until it's taking you over with tears. These moments are so crucial in our lives, especially if their holding you back. Today, we both set free what has been heavy, and we walk forward with a lighter step.Okumaya devam et

  • Part 2 of Day 22

    15 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C

    Today's hike took us up to 5000 feet in elevation. Hiking high with the smell of pine hands down is my favorite smell. We finished the day off completing 23 miles. We also took an alternate route trying to avoid a 700 foot decline on a rocky route, and it was a big mistake. Beautiful, but the hike out was so hard. We gambled, and it was a bust that made us walk into our albergue at 9pm.Okumaya devam et

  • Part 3 of Day 22

    15 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

    Here are more photos of the churches we walked by. Even though we got into town late, the trail always provides and William got some BBQ ribs for dinner. And not only that, the big benefit of getting to the albergue last and at 9pm is we got a room with 11 beds all to ourselves and only paid 13 euros each. What a lovely way to end such a tough physical day.Okumaya devam et

  • Day 23 to Villafranca

    16 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    After getting in at 9pm yesterday, there was no way we wanted to get up at 5am, so we slept in till 7. We were the last ones to leave the albergue. Pros and cons to this: Pros, we got needed rest after the hike we had to get out of the canyon we were in. Hardest hike we've done since Yosemite.
    Cons, hiking in the heat, getting in late again, and possibly no dinner, depending on how big or small the town is. Our goal for today was to catch up to our original trail family, and we did😁 we worked so hard to do this and it was worth it.
    Another milestone: 350 miles completed🦾
    Having breakfast in front of a castle built by the templer knights was pretty amazing. Pancakes we supposedly american but they had no syrup. We enjoyed them anyway.
    Okumaya devam et

  • Part 2 of Day 23

    16 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    19 Camino miles completed and we ended the day with a total of 22 miles walked/hiked. Beautiful wine country. Many churches along the way. Another challenging day physically but it looks like the hard pushing of the miles is done for now until we get closer to the end. I'm getting sad to know the end is in sight. I'm trying not to live in the future and stay in the present but my mind does stray ahead.
    The view from our room... just WOW
    Okumaya devam et

  • Day 24 to Las Herrerias

    17 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    Today was an ideal Camino day. We walked 12 miles of flat road walking along a beautiful river the entire way. We arrived at our albergue at 1:30 pm. Our earliest time before was 2 pm, and it was at the beginning. We had time to sit with our trail family, have lunch, have great conversations, and relax. William iced his leg and no rushing to do our daily chores like laundry, showers, plan our route the next day, reserve our albergue, and post our trip updates. We knew the sun was going to be out and had no worries our clothes would dry in time. We were so relaxed sitting outside that we missed the dinner cut off so no dinner for us but it didn't bother us at all. We only have 7 days left of this journey and our hard work has paid off because it appears that there should not be any more 20+ mile daysOkumaya devam et

  • Part 2 of Day 24

    17 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    These are the churches we stopped by along the way. I love all the different Pilgrim statues we see as we walk. They're all so different depending on the small Pueblo. Just like we're all different spiritual beings coming together and walking together. We only have 104 miles left.. We see the light flickering at the end of the tunnel. Tomorrow we have a 7 mile steep incline and it's our last climb. There are so many emotions, but I will be smiling the entire time with much gratitude in my heart❤️ saying "Fun & Easy".Okumaya devam et

  • Day 25 to Villobal

    18 Temmuz 2024, Ispanya ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    What a great last hoorah climb out of Castilla Leon providence and into the Galecia providence. The views were insane. We started the day off with a big change. I hiked alone most of the day. William stayed behind to get our hiking poles from behind locked doors, and his shin splint was bothering him, so we shipped his bag ahead and I went ahead. It was weird hiking without him. If I'm being honest, I didn't like it. That awful feeling that you get when you feel like you've left the oven on or you think you didn't lock the front door and you're nowhere close to fix it... I know with no doubt that I wanna do many things in this life, and I hope that God blesses me to have William next to me till He chooses otherwise. This adventure that we chose 30 yrs ago has had it ups and downs but I wouldn't change it for nothing. Love you Husband. 😍Okumaya devam et