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  • TravelerThe Beauty of Moving Slowly
    2
    Day 32–34

    Triacastela to Sarria

    May 18 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    Hola Everyone,

    Another beautiful day as I departed Triacastela for Sarria. There are two ways to get to the last main stop, one is along the river valley through Samos but it is alongside a highway for a lot of the way and is much longer. On the other hand, there is the chance of seeing the fabulous monastery there, depending on tour availability and your time of arrival. The alternative route is shorter but hillier and, in my opinion, much more scenic so that was my path for the day.

    The first six or seven kms of the route form a steady climb but the way is through a couple of small villages and along woodland pathways and back-country roads for most of the day. The countryside is certainly changing and as I looked out over small-holding dairy acreage I remembered back to the meseta that stretched off into the distance across endless fields of wheat. I also took advantage of my last day of relative peace and filled my head with the ear food presented by the birds that were obviously there but largely invisible in the thickets and trees that surrounded me.

    As I came down from San Xil, I reached Fontearcuda where there is a great donativo food stop Tierra Da Luz – Earth Gives Light. It was buzzing with pilgrims who were taking a break and there was a real energy about the place. Donativos, as the name suggests, are food stops and alburgues where you make a donation of your choosing for the service that is provided to you. I found out later that this donativo is owned and run by a guy from NSW so there is a real Aussie presence along The Way over the last few days.

    As I came down through Pintin I could see Sarria in the distance and, before long, I was into the city limits and back in suburbia. After I found my accomm, I found a laundromat to do my washing and had a look around. This morning is my rest day and after a late, leisurely breakfast I wandered through the old town where I will exit Sarria tomorrow.

    I’ll be interested to see how things change along The Way tomorrow with the influx of pilgrims who start at Sarria. This morning I saw a group of 30-40 school kids who were setting off and the noise and chatter made me think that will be the sound of my Camino for the next week. I can’t believe that I have only five more sections until I walk into Santiago so I need to make the most of my time.

    Buen Camino everyone.

    Click below for today’s video clip. You will notice that Guiroy is using a lot of celtic music in the Galicia videos and there is a real presence of celtic music, iconography and other cultural signs along The Way in this area. This video is also along the Samos route which is the alternative to my path for the day.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKjwAwmnF3Q&amp…

    Distance today: 17 kms
    Total distance travelled so far: 648 kms    Read more

  • TravelerCamino De Santiago (Francés)
    Day 29–30

    Sarria

    May 5 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 61 °F

    After two trains to Leon and then two buses, I finally arrived in Sarria. Sarria is the starting point for many pilgrims, especially those who want to obtain the Compostela and do not have the time to walk the whole way. 114 km away from Santiago, the city is the oficial mark to complete the required 100 km for the certificate. Because of this, it seems to have developed to meet the needs of pilgrims, with hostels, some bars, ATMs galore, pharmacies, and grocery stores.
    The old quarters are cute but small, just a couple of narrow streets going up the hill, with the church as the center point.
    I left Leon with the usual dark, ominous clouds lingering in the sky. But there is actually nothing ominous about the Camino. There is only what comes, and pilgrims make the best of it and keep walking… or take a bus, like I saw many do today when the hills were just too much and the legs were giving in.
    The hostel is one of the best I have seen so far, so I am happy and thankful for the beautiful kitchen and eating areas, the huge TV to watch some news while drinking tea, the hot shower, and the privacy of my bed (with curtains and all).
    Tonight, I just want to believe that my foot will be strong enough to endure the next six days on the road.

    Sarria: Stayed at Hostel Andaina    Read more

  • TravelerCamino De Santiago
    2
    Day 12

    Sarria-Portomarin 13 1/2 miles

    October 24, 2024 in Spain ⋅ 🌙 54 °F

    I have more complaining to do. My feet fricking hurt. They hurt so bad. This was my only fear before I left. I knew I could handle the Camino physically but I worried about my feet hurting. And they do. They are in agony.

    Okay. That’s it for the complaining.

    We passed a major milestone today. We have less than 100 km to go. When Laura started, she had 767 km to go, so this was a BFD. It was really an honor to be with her when she got to that 100 km marker.

    From here on out, we are required to have two stamps per day in our Credencial del Peregrino to prove we walked the final 100 km (spoiler alert: I’m not going to walk every last km and if the Pope doesn’t like it, well…). Pilgrims get stamps at hotels, albergues, cathedrals, restaurants, even taxi cabs. Laura’s credencial is practically full but I still have plenty of empty boxes, of course. When we get to Santiago, we’ll have to show it to…someone somewhere…in order to receive our compostela but the credencial itself ends up being a really cool souvenir.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino De Santiago
    2
    Day 11

    Fonfria-Pintin 13 miles

    October 23, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 70 °F

    Today was my first psychologically difficult day. I’ve reached the point where my feet are wholly unhappy plus I’m missing my babies and the comforts of home. So I’m feeling a little weepy.

    There were two routes we could take today. One was flatter but 7 km (4+ miles) longer. We opted for shorter. Laura went on ahead while I took a longer break because I really wanted to try to go the full 17 miles today. Then I accidentally took the longer route. Fortunately I figured it out before too long but I didn’t need that extra 1/2 mile on a day like today.

    On our shorter but not-flat route, the ups felt endless and the downs became agonizing. I slowed to practically a crawl out of concern about falling and because walking on the balls of my feet causes me a lot of pain. So I do this slow shuffle where I land on my heels and crouch a little so that my knees don’t take the brunt of it. So my quads were screaming at me too. Every body part would like a word with me, apparently.

    At one point, there were two paths ahead, one that went up and one that went steeply down. I knew that if the descent was the Camino path I’d burst into tears. Thankfully it wasn’t.

    I finally made it to Pintin, a town that had an open restaurant, and I went in, got myself an Orange Aquarius, and asked them to call me a cab to Sarría, where we are staying tonight.

    I texted with my friend Donna from Charlottesville, whom I haven’t seen since last Thursday, because I knew she was in Sarría tonight too. Turns out she’s staying across town. We laughed about the fact that it’s easier to drive three hours to Charlottesville than it is to walk 20 minutes after a day like today. We won’t see each other again most likely—at least not in Spain. But I’m grateful that she was one of the wonderful friends I made on the Camino.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino Frances & Europe
    11112
    Day 43–45

    Filoval to Sarria

    October 12, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    Hola, we have at last arrived in Sarria which feels like the beginning of the end. Just one week to go now. This is the place where many pilgrims start and do the 100km to Santiago & get the Compostella certificate. I have mixed feelings as we near the end. We are having a rest day today in our first private room with our own bathroom & actual towels. It feels incredible luxury. The sun is shining in the window, we will do washing & have clean dry clothes. The previous night was worst albergue of the trip. I came in drenched & cold and stayed that way. My trousers were still not quite dry in the morning. The night before that I thought I was in heaven perched on top of a mountain with friends & warm fire and incredible beauty. There were also cows and farming. I find that I’m soothed by the fertile lush land where the villages seem to be prosperous. The weather changes quickly. I couldn’t see out the window this morning so much cloud and now it’s beautiful sunny. Goes from rain to sun too. The days have been so full. Walking is slower in the rain and getting dry and clean takes time and energy. That is part of the beauty of it, walk, find a place to sleep, wash, eat. Repeat.Read more

  • TravelerCamino
    1222211122
    Day 4–5

    Sarria to Portomarin

    September 27, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 9 °C

    We started out this morning around 8:30am. Sunrise was at 8:22am. Left Sarria and we were able to get on the trail fairly quickly along with many other pilgrims. Weather was mostly sunny with some periods of rain. Some challenging areas but all in all - not bad. We got a total of 36,000 steps and walked 15+ miles. Lots of reflective time to quiet all the noise and be present. We stopped off a few times for quick bathroom breaks and to rest our feet. Finished the day with a pilgrims meal in town and a hot shower! Tomorrow is a new day and I am looking forward to seeing what it brings!Read more

  • TravelerCamino Frances
    1
    Day 3

    Exploring Sarria

    September 26, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 61 °F

    Today we explored the town of Sarria, enjoyed the views, sampled local food and saw many other pilgrims. Our greeting to each other is “Buen Camino.” (Good road or good path). The locals also greet the pilgrims that way.
    After acquiring a good amount of Spanish language through the years I felt ready to converse in some limited fashion to the locals. Unfortunately, Galician is the dialect spoken here and it has more similarities to Portuguese. I guess I will revert back to using Google translate!
    I tried a couple of Galician foods- pimento de Padron- and Spanish torta. Both were delicious. I feel we are rested and ready for the start of our walk tomorrow- to get warmed up we did 12,000 steps today! Excited for the morning! FYI the picture of the yellow arrow and the scallop on the road are directional signs leading us to Santiago.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino
    21
    Day 3

    Exploring Sarria

    September 26, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C

    What a great day!!! Feeling rested- had an additional prep nap today. Explored many little places in old town and had lunch at a lovely little cafe. The town, kind people and attitude in enjoying the simple things are so uplifting and a needed reminder to slow down and enjoy. We met a group who have been on the Camino for over 30 days-they started in France and are still in great shape-was inspiring. I am feeling grateful for this moment to embrace slowing down and breathing in the fresh air and feeling inspired. Praying for all my people and they are here with me as well. See you on the trail tomorrow- sweet dreams❤️Read more

  • TravelerCamino Frances
    1
    11
    Day 2

    Sarria

    September 25, 2024 in Spain ⋅ 🌬 68 °F

    After 24 hours of travel using planes, trains, automobiles, buses and by foot we are now comfortably settled in our pension in Sarria. This is our starting point for the Camino. It is raining so our raincoats and rainproof backpack covers are proving to be invaluable. There are lots of pilgrims here and we arrived en masse in Sarria. Backpacks, trekking poles and the Camino symbol of the scallop shell is a dead giveaway that you are a pilgrim. Ended the day with a good dinner of salad, squid and a cerveza. It’s good to be in a bed. So grateful for this experience and grateful for our safe arrival. We are exploring tomorrow and then Friday we officially begin our Camino.Read more

  • FRENCH CAMINO 2024
    11
    Day 26

    Jean-Pierre van Veghel: Camino Legend

    September 23, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    PW: l want to bring our followers up to speed on how walking Camino’s can get into the essence and heart of some Europeans. On our Camino, we have been fortunate to meet Jean-Pierre van Veghel, a 61 year old Dutchman from Eindhoven who was able to sell his business at 49, reinvest his earnings and is now able follow his Camino and travel dreams.

    Jean-Pierre’s first Camino was the French way and he walked this with his lovely and very capable wife, Jolander. That took six weeks in March-April 2014. Next was the Northern Camino in 2015 followed by Portuguese Camino in 2016. All these walks were also completed with Jolander.

    The couple then went to the southern island of Japan in 2017 to complete the temple walks, a distance of 1200km that took six weeks. So memorable was this experience that he has a tattoo representing Japan on his right sleeve.

    Still not finished, the couple walked in Nepal for a month in 2018. They were guided and reached an elevation of 5400m and recalled many intimate cultural experiences on that trip.

    In 2019, the couple began the Camino from Seville and got as far as Madeira, when Jean-Pierre had to return home due to the death of his mother. This year he re-started from where they left off in Madeira with Jolander and her sister, Agnes. They had been waking for a month when we meet them as they were walking into Foncebaden. Agnes was not in good shape and small Paul, helpful as ever, carried her bags to the village.

    Most impressive was that in 2022, Jean-Pierre after some personal pressures, left his front door in Eindhoven, and like the original pilgrims, and walked 2000km to Santiago de Compostela. This took him an incredible 8 weeks at an average distance of 35km per day. He said he came back better equipped to deal with what was going then on in his life. It needs to be noted here that Jean-Pierre does not walk the Camino, he G-L-I-D-E-S on the Camino. He maintains his strength, balance and speed throughout this motion. He says most days he will walk 10-20km because he just loves to walk.

    Just want to say what a privilege it has been to get to know Jean-Pierre, Jolander and Agnes on our Camino, hearing of their incredible journeys, and just have fun with them. It’s been great for me to try to speak Dutch (poorly) and to connect with my own Dutch heritage. They haven’t been to New Zealand yet, but I assured them if they do visit, our country will tick a lot of their walking and outdoor boxes.

    Kom ons bezoeken in Nieuw-Zeeland    Read more

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