Day 1
I say day Day 1 because officially it is June 12 in France. After a 7 hour plane to London, a 2 hour plane to Bilbao, and then another 2 hour bus ride to St Jean Pied de Port, I am at the beginning of the pilgrimage. The walk starts down the main street of town so I have stepped foot many times on the Camino de Santiago as of this morning. I have slept 5 hours out of the last 36 or so. Lack of sleep partly due to how uncomfortable the plane was, but the majority of it being excited and avoiding napping during the day as instructed in order to get acquainted to the time zone.
Today has been mostly spent walking around the town and simply exploring. I have made quite a few friends who have walked and shopped with me. The town is beautiful. The mountains are steep and lush and although cloudy, fog covers the tips of them to make them seem even more majestic. The architecture of the buildings is extraordinary too. I have not seen so many houses in this style before today. Many of the houses have colorful shudders and beautiful balconies and flower boxes outside their windows. The other unique part of these buildings are the roofs which have the classic Spanish tile roofing.
The past 36 hours or so since boarding the plane, have been pretty calm. There hasn't been too many stressors yet. I am tired from staying up for so long and walking out in the heat. My group picked up our pilgrimage passports which are a booklet that each town stamps as you pass through them to collect all the places you have been. We also peeked into a church in town which had many candles lit in a corner. It is a fun little town bustling with people who like me, have yet to experience the Camino.
Tomorrow we aren't taking a shuttle to the top of the mountain and then hiking down back to St Jean Pied de Port without our packs since the first mountain is one of the hardest days of the pilgrimage, our leader, Kip, has decided this would be the best acclamation for us. Tomorrow is also my 20th birthday. Which will be spent hiking 13 miles down a mountain in 91 degree heat. Happy birthday to me right? I have no one to blame but myself really. I chose this pilgrimage and so far I don't regret it. I am nervous of the length of the hike and how strenuous it will be.
I think I'm nervous about disappointing myself. I'm a perfectionist and I don't accept failure from myself so I'm often very critical. And I'm nervous I will not be able to walk as quickly or easily as the others in my group. I hope the Camino teaches me to focus internally instead. I should only compare myself to myself and should allow myself forgiveness for the learning curve. This will not be an easy journey, but I must make it my own and take in the scenery as much as I can. I'm not sure if I will ever be privileged enough to do this hike again so I want to enjoy it as much as I can and not rush through it simply to keep up with others. Hopefully tomorrow I impress mysel. Not with how physically strong I am on the mountain but how much grace I give myself to adjust to my own pace. Buen Camino!
Today has been mostly spent walking around the town and simply exploring. I have made quite a few friends who have walked and shopped with me. The town is beautiful. The mountains are steep and lush and although cloudy, fog covers the tips of them to make them seem even more majestic. The architecture of the buildings is extraordinary too. I have not seen so many houses in this style before today. Many of the houses have colorful shudders and beautiful balconies and flower boxes outside their windows. The other unique part of these buildings are the roofs which have the classic Spanish tile roofing.
The past 36 hours or so since boarding the plane, have been pretty calm. There hasn't been too many stressors yet. I am tired from staying up for so long and walking out in the heat. My group picked up our pilgrimage passports which are a booklet that each town stamps as you pass through them to collect all the places you have been. We also peeked into a church in town which had many candles lit in a corner. It is a fun little town bustling with people who like me, have yet to experience the Camino.
Tomorrow we aren't taking a shuttle to the top of the mountain and then hiking down back to St Jean Pied de Port without our packs since the first mountain is one of the hardest days of the pilgrimage, our leader, Kip, has decided this would be the best acclamation for us. Tomorrow is also my 20th birthday. Which will be spent hiking 13 miles down a mountain in 91 degree heat. Happy birthday to me right? I have no one to blame but myself really. I chose this pilgrimage and so far I don't regret it. I am nervous of the length of the hike and how strenuous it will be.
I think I'm nervous about disappointing myself. I'm a perfectionist and I don't accept failure from myself so I'm often very critical. And I'm nervous I will not be able to walk as quickly or easily as the others in my group. I hope the Camino teaches me to focus internally instead. I should only compare myself to myself and should allow myself forgiveness for the learning curve. This will not be an easy journey, but I must make it my own and take in the scenery as much as I can. I'm not sure if I will ever be privileged enough to do this hike again so I want to enjoy it as much as I can and not rush through it simply to keep up with others. Hopefully tomorrow I impress mysel. Not with how physically strong I am on the mountain but how much grace I give myself to adjust to my own pace. Buen Camino!
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