The Stone Site

Time is passing very quickly and soon we are reaching panic mode; are we enough prepared, have we walked enough? Last question is easily answered; Absolutely Not! I’m still having babyfeet and I can feel all my toes! Lack at least 300 km of training to harden my feet … panic….

The secret weapon for this year is my new hat! Took at least 30 pictures to get one were I don’t look like a complete idiot with it. Or did I fail in this one too?? However, it’s quite nice giving a lot of shadow, so I hope it could compensate for a bit of my laziness this year. I’m not sure in what way. Trusting that my new hat will help me stand the heat is perhaps as smart as hoping to improve the organisation buying a new IT-system after completely failing to use and implement the old one …. Let’s see in a couple of weeks I will know how clever I have been 😉

Summer is Comming … time to brush up the webpage, check the map and start to do some serious planning since we are heading for Season II … this time influenced by Portugal!

Not accessing the website for almost a year I had to refresh and reload all the WordPress Plugins – and suddenly my webpage was hijacked, rerouted and had started a new carrier in the Porn business!! Ooops, panic, panic … I may be able to perform a Camino for 40 days however performing in the adult business for 40 continuous days is far beyond my capacity. After a long support call, considering reformatting the database, rebuilding internet and restarting earth, my webpage has hopefully returned to the less glamorous but long-lasting Camino Business!

So, what to say about the preparations for this year’s adventure?? Well, to be honest; much talking and less walking, so I will pay for that later; in sweat and swollen feet, not mention the knees and my back. Oh dear! But at least we have prepared for the mosquitos or should I say my wife has brought in the heavy artillery; Mygga! She is sweet and delicious and a favorite amongst the little bastards, I’m just old and grumpy and therefore not their first choice – but I’m happy for that!

Yesterday we decided to do a pre celebration, having a bit more fancy dinner than usually and with ice cream

Well, after almost 40 days on a kind of strict diet a full blown dinner generates its issues! So this day started a bit later – but no problems about that! You could feel the energy already in the early morning and tons of pilgrims where there on their move. Even today it was important to get the stamps right and here at Emerita San Marcos we got our last. Normally an Emerita is such an abandoned place, but here a lot of things is happening.

Then getting closer to Santiago the pilgrim image got much mire intense. Here is “the hall of fame” regarding pilgrims. On top “Heliga Birgitta” of Sweden and almost in the bottom, the guy with the chickens!

And then after a crazy rush through the city we reached the church and the target for our thoughts the last six months…

The red line that we have been followed so carefully stopped! No more guidance, no more clear and specific instructions what to do!

It has been a marvellous experience. Things that we only guessed has been cleared out! For so many weeks it has only been here and now, knowing that the only way to go is the way forward – no idea to look back. Of course we long to get home, to see our kids that we love beyond everything else! And of course this travel needs to end – but it will absolutely bee there as part of our common memories. As this one, from our hotel window looking at “Camino school students” making dinner at nine a clock in the evening. So nice to see them preparing dinner for each other (of course fully unaware of the concept of hygiene, but that’s just good for your immune system). This and so much other things we have found during our walking and again, somewhere the memories will always be with us as it was today!

“The day before the last day” doesn’t it sounds a bit dramatic? And yes, we are now able to see an ending of the walking, of course with mixed emotions. A walk where we have seen much roads but also been give a lot of messages. So what has people tried to say us?

First we have the names or single words created by stones. Shows that there are plenty of stones and people having time… it’s not an bad idea, many pilgrims like us have been quite busy jus walking.

Then we have the ones that are a bit longer and more meaningful.

The we have the very long ones ….

And finally as of today’s walk, a long string with text; “the wall of wisdom” having some deeper message.

Then we have all the signs and statues – many of them we have seen early mornings. It’s perhaps the best time of the day to see a statue, interference from traffic or other people is minimal.

So, what did they all tried to say us? That’s a hard question to answer, a simple answer is that there is no simple answer. But what’s the next level of understanding? Perhaps it’s something that is hard to put into words. Well to cut it short, my favourite sign is this one, and it could be saying; “Life’s a bitch always ready to give you a wedgie – but don’t resist challenge it!”

Today’s walk of 29,5 km went quite fine – starting at five in the morning you do the first 10 km quite fast. Then you are so happy that you have done almost “half” of the walking, so the rest is manageable and you are moving forward with the yellow arrows.

As mentioned before I’m after all these days still quite puzzled about the house market. In every town regardless of the size there a so many objects, today’s catch of today …

Who is going to buy them all?

Otherwise life is refreshing calm and structured. We know that business is closed between 14/14.30 and the 18ish, we know to avoid the 10€ pilgrim menus offered by restaurants (since it’s often truly and unbelievable bad food). So if we just had to walk a mile every day, I could easily continue this life!