Hours Of My Life

Day: 12, Miles Today: 9.42, Miles To Date: 119.84 Videos from last night Now that I have a better WiFi connection, I have to share 2 videos from dinner last night. After dessert, Magali from France played a guitar from the Gite and just happened to pick a favorite song of mine. She led us all in a lovely version of Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here”. Afterwards, Mr Pak sang a Korean song all about dreams. He performed with such power and emotion. I wish I could share the whole song, but here is a glimpse of his performance.  Walking to Conques today Church of Saint-Peter in Espeyrac. Originally built in the 15th century and reconstructed in the 19th century.  Lunch with my friends Lorena from Peru and Dorian from Italy.  The Abbey church in Conques.   Buen Camino. 

  Day: 11, Miles Today: 9.02, Miles To Date: 110.42 Hard day walking Not much to share today. Mostly a hard day walking. Lots of quiet time to think. I’ll share the fruits of that thinking time tomorrow.  I did pass a small stone barn on a very steep trail. Next to it was a small stone house. I marvel at the perseverance needed to haul all these stones up and down the hill to build these structures centuries ago. And there is a beauty in the stone’s fortitude to continue standing over the centuries.  I would share 2 lovely videos of the pilgrims singing around the dinner table, but the WiFi here is too slow to upload videos. I’ll try to share tomorrow.  Buen Camino.

Day: 10, Miles Today: 11.3, Miles To Date: 101.4 Wow, what a beautiful day It’s late and I’m tired, so more pictures and less commentary today.  Thus is Gaetan, who along with Sophie ran the lovely Gite from last night. Nena.  The first 3 miles were so easy and went so fast. That was all due to Nena. We walked together and she told me her fascinating life story. Born in the Philippines and now living in California. She has worked as a nurse and traveled to more than 55 countries.  Here are her traveling companions. Irene from Hong Kong and Elizabeth, born in the Philippines and now living in Brownsville, TX. She is the only other current Texan I’ve met so far. We run into each other almost every single day.  Espalion The city of Espalion was stunning. The park on the way into town had frame art installations that gave interesting views of the city.  The church in Espalion.  Church of Saint-Pierre of Bessuéjouls The bell tower of this ancient church dates fr...

Day: 9, Miles Today: 10.4, Miles To Date: 90.1 Best Day So Far Today was the best day so far. I had a good night’s sleep, and the biggest breakfast offered yet, with cereal and yogurt in addition to the bread. I think the protein helped the rest of the day.  Here is a look back at Saint-Chely as I started out this morning.  Then my first 6 miles were smooth and felt great. I met Pascal, a photographer and writer from Montreal, and we walked together for a mile or so. I stopped at a green meadow for rest and a picnic, with the sun shining and looking at hills and valleys in front of me. It was a magical, perfect moment. It made me think of a song I love by Katell Keineg, called “One Hell of a Life”. I suggest you find it on YouTube. The chorus is: When I'm dead Please don't philosophize or feel regret Just remember me when I said I had one hell of a life One hell of a life The rest of the walk had 1 hard mile and finished with 2 good ones. The legs are getting into shape, ...

  Day: 8, Miles Today: 10.2, Miles To Date: 79.64 Where are the deep thoughts? That’s the same question I have? Actually, I think the first week on the Camino taught me to let go of control. Just get up and walk and see what the day brings. That was a hard lesson.  I believe the next 2 weeks to 2 months might be more about emptying myself and wearing away my tough exterior to make way for wisdom to take root.  I heard Fr Mike say to be patient, but don’t procrastinate. I think those are good walking orders.  It’s all downhill from here Today I crested the highest elevation on the French part of the Camino until I reach the Pyrenees. That’s the good news. The bad news is that there is a lot of downhill from here. And down hill is the toughest part.  Here I am at the back of the line lumbering up the hill. This is the easy part! Then at the peak. Still smiling. (Ignorance is bliss!) Finally, here is a look at the down hill that went on forever. You can see how the...

Day: 7, Miles Today: 7.63, Miles To Date: 69.44 1 week completed. Many more to go. Today completes my first week on the Camino. I feel like my legs & body are 50% of the way to Camino ready. I’m happy with that after 1 week. I’ll continue with medium length days for another week. Then I’ll think of ramping up to 12-15 mile days. (20-25 KM for those of us on those side of the planet. ) Walking in an ancient land It is so interesting to walk in a place where almost everything is so ancient. Many buildings, churches, and even stone walls are 800+ years old. Here is a very old arched bridge. I’ve stopped looking up exact ages. Just call it very old.  And here is a detail of the cross at the center of the bridge.  Friends on the Way As I mentioned before, the friends you make on the Camino are one of the best parts of the Way. Here I am on the trail with. Jerry, Agnes, and Jeremy. We all stayed at the Gite Chez Annie last night.  Food, Glorious Food   I haven’t talked...