sandiegotosantiago

Today I made it as far as Bayonne, France – about a one hour local train ride from St. Jean Pied de Port. The TGV high-speed train from Paris was amazing. In addition to being fast, the train was remarkably smooth and quiet. It was a pleasure to ride for the 6 or 7 hours it took to get to Bayonne from Paris.

I enjoyed looking at the French countryside as it sped by. Most of the scenery was very rural and I was struck by the absence of people. There didn’t seem to be any people out and about. I don’t have any idea where they might have been. I also enjoyed the opportunity to practice my French. I really didn’t need it. Wwhenever I tried speaking in French, people quickly took pity on me and began conversing back in English. But, it was fun to try and I was pleased at how much I could still understand.

I bought my final rail ticket to St. Jean this afternoon and now all I have to do is get to the train station (only two blocks away from my hotel) on time (7:45 departure time) and my journey to the starting point of the Camino should be complete.

I had a little time to wander around Bayonne this evening. I was able to attend mass at the cathedral here and then had a lovely dinner at an outdoor bistro along the banks of one of the rivers flowing through the town. While eating, I made a new friend – a little dog who hoped, to no avail, that I might share some of my dinner with him.

I was also encouraged to see some other fairly obvious pilgrims in the Bayonne train station. So, we won’t be the only ones starting this trip over the next few days. I had to chuckle as I enjoyed a glass of Guinness in a local Irish pub this evening. I mentioned to one of the other patrons that I was going to hike the Camino de Santiago and his only response was to ask the one-word question, “Why?” I have a feeling I will be asked that exact question many more times before this is all over.

I have arrived safely in France and am spending the night in a hotel at the Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris. Tomorrow I plan on taking the high-speed TGV train south to Bayonne where I will spend the night and then take a local train on into St. Jean Pied de Port on Sunday morning. I received word that Clint has also begun his travels and we will meet up in St. Jean on Sunday if all goes according to plan. Our first official steps on the Camino will be on Monday morning.

Unfortunately, my itinerary did not leave enough time for any sightseeing here in Paris, but I did enjoy a lovely tuna salad for dinner and have had fun practicing my French (which isn’t much but is much stronger than my very limited Spanish). I can understand quite a bit when listening to conversations or watching television, but my conversation skills are pretty weak. It will be a bit of a shock going from modern transportation modes and luxury hotels to walking on the Camino and sleeping in dormitory-style albergues. But, that is the real purpose of this pilgrimage and I am anxious and excited to have it all begin.

A big challenge right now is getting over the jet lag and acclimating to the local time zone. Hopefully that will be accomplished within the next two or three days. I had an interesting traveling companion sitting next to me on the flight over from New York. This woman flew pretty much the entire way with a small airline-provided blanket draped over her head. Very strange. I think she was trying to block out any stray light so she could sleep, but I don’t really know. All I can say is that it was kinda weird! But then again, if that’s the worst thing that happens during a trans-Atlantic flight I think you should call it good.

My backpack made it over in excellent condition and I wore my hiking boots. So, equipment-wise I think I’m in good shape. I still need to repack the bag when I get to St. Jean to see if I can squeeze things in a bit more efficiently. But one way or the other we will be leaving with everything on our backs in a day or two. Not much else to report today. I’m tired after the flight and will try to get a good night’s sleep.

Bonne nuit et Buen Camino.

I am writing this from my hotel room near JFK airport in New York City. I am finally on my way toward the Camino and the start of this new chapter in my life. This is where we move from the school of theory to the school of practice and where we will see how well we have learned our preparatory lessons. All I can say at this point is that we have prepared as well as we can for whatever lies before us.

Clint was very kind in that he got up quite early Wednesday morning and drove me to the airport in San Diego. It was a nice send off. Now, our next challenge will be to locate each other on Sunday in St. Jean Pied de Port. Wish us luck!

I was surprised to see how small the town of St. Jean Pied de Port actually is. In my mind, I had envisioned a pretty good-sized town. But, it turns out that the population is only about 1800 and the town itself covers only a few blocks. I took a virtual tour of the town on GoogleMaps found it to be quaint and charming. I can’t wait to see it for myself.

I was pleased that I came pretty close to the weight goal I had set for my backpack. We had been coached to aim for a pack weight about 10% of our body weight. I rounded that up to a goal of 20 pounds. Well, after cramming everything into the pack (and it was a very tight fit) the pack weighed in at about 22 pounds. I decided to go with this and not try to eliminate anything else. I had already tried to go as bare-boned as possible. After a few days on the Camino I may reconsider and cast off some superfluous items, but for now I don’t know what they might be.

I also checked the 10-day weather forecast for St. Jean Pied de Port and Pamplona on weather.com and it looks like we will very likely be getting wet early on in our pilgrimage. So, our ponchos will get used much sooner than I had hoped. But, I think that will be part of the Camino and we will just have to take what comes as it comes and adapt as necessary on the fly. Sounds like fun!

¡Buen Camino!

As I approach my departure date for the Camino (only a little more than 24 hours from now) I have been giving a lot of thought to the meaning of pilgrimage. What is this experience I am about to encounter all about? Pilgrimage is not an idea that is discussed much in modern conversation. But, as I have thought about it, a few concepts have emerged that help me to better understand what a pilgrimage is all about.

First of all, a pilgrimage is a very personal experience. My Camino will be unique to me and different from any of the Caminos that millions of pilgrims have experienced before me. Pilgrimage involves a stepping away – a stepping back, if you will – from usual pursuits. It is an event of passing through. The pilgrimage is not a destination. It involves time for contemplation, meditation, and listening.

In a way, the concept of pilgrimage is a metaphor for life. We are all here on a Earth only for a brief time – passing through. We won’t be here for very long before we pass on to something new. Pilgrimage includes time to step back and appreciate the beauty of God, nature, and humanity. It provides time for casting away those things that weigh us down – like guilt, a need to forgive those who have hurt us, a need to express compassion to those who desperately need it, and so much more. A pilgrimage is an act of faith and trust. It is a time to slow down – way down – to a walking pace.

While driving back to San Diego from Washington last week, I listened to a collection of poems entitled “Pilgrim” by David Whyte. On the CD, the author read his poems and then provided commentary, explaining some of the motivations he had for each of his poems and the messages he was trying to convey in his words. One group of the poems, entitled “Camino”, focused on themes evoked by his time on the Camino de Santiago. His reflections are beautiful and powerful.

A few of his comments really resonated with me. He spoke of how he sees life as a pilgrimage that is never really over. Each life is just a “passing through,” and time on the path is privileged time. The destination always changes as we near it. Our idea of the destination is always imaginative. As we approach one supposed ending, another path opens before us. As we appear to be reaching each destination, a new direction for us unfolds.

He also spoke of how each pilgrimage is unique to the individual pilgrim. Even the most ordinary life is really quite astonishing. It is astonishing that there is “something” and not “nothing” and that we are privileged to be part of the “something” at least for a time. Every privilege has it’s time and then it disappears and changes into something else, as do we. We’re always a hair’s breadth from our arrival. No matter how many people have walked the Camino before us, we’re actually experiencing a frontier that hasn’t occurred before us since the beginning of time and never will again until the end of time.

It is interesting that while on the Camino you assume an anonymous name – peregrino (pilgrim) – that you accept and that captures your new, if temporary, identity. The name becomes enough of an identity for the time being. It is also noteworthy that you experience hospitality continually while on the Camino – often when you least expect it or are most in need of it. The hospitality of strangers is a truly beautiful thing.

As you approach the official end of the Camino – Santiago – you encounter the most difficult time of all. You are suddenly about to exit from the comfortable routine you have created during the past several weeks on the Camino. As you reach the goal you realize there is something else. In fact, there is always another step that you have to take. The great question is how and where will you go on from here.

Even as Clint and I prepare for the Camino – planning, reading, and meditating – and even though we will be walking in the footsteps of the millions of pilgrims who have gone before us, each moment of our personal pilgrimage will be a new unfolding experience that no one has ever had before and no one will ever have after us.

¡Buen Camino!
Bob

I had a beautiful experience during a time of prayer last night that I wanted to share. During this period of meditation I asked the Lord for protection and safety during our quickly approaching pilgrimage. As I prayed and tried to clear my mind of competing thoughts and intrusions and just allow it to listen unencumbered, I had the distinct sensation of hands being placed on my shoulders in a protective, comforting, and encouraging manner, giving me the assurance that He will be with us along the way and that nothing will or can happen to us except that He allows it. What a blessed assurance!

I had an epiphany of sorts today as I was driving south from our summer home up in Washington State back to San Diego for a final flurry of activity as I wrap up the remaining loose ends prior to Camino liftoff on September 3. During the course of the day, I drove through Oregon and part way into California. Altogether, I drove for about seven hours and covered about 450 miles averaging between 65 and 70 mph most of the way. Late into the afternoon it occurred to me that this is close to the distance we will be covering on the Camino!

The magnitude of the little walk we are about to embark on took on a much more concrete reality than it has up until now. I know we will be taking around seven weeks to accomplish this adventure. But, it still leaves me shaking my head as I reflect on the distance I covered today. Again, I realize that my naive, preconceived notions of this pilgrimage likely only have a scant connection to the reality we will be experiencing. It won’t become real until we are actually living the day to day experience of our pilgrimage. And while I am feeling both anticipation and anxiety, I say… “Bring it on!”

¡Buen Camino!

I have been watching with interest the number of pilgrims arriving in Santiago as reported daily by the Pilgrim’s Welcome Office of the Cathedral in Santiago. Their website (http://peregrinossantiago.es/eng/), for instance, reported that 1422 pilgrims arrived from all of the various Camino routes on Wednesday, Aug. 20! The size of this number amazes me, I have to admit. But, then I remember that this is August, when most Europeans take their vacations. And, August is always the month with the highest number of pilgrims on the Camino. Earlier in the week the Pilgrim’s Welcome Office reported that about 590 pilgrims had arrived on Tuesday. And, reports on previous days were as high as 1600-1700 pilgrims arriving on one day! Whew! One of the reasons Clint and I decided to start in September was to hopefully avoid the huge numbers of pilgrims that are currently on the Camino.

This led me to write a little about some of the statistics related to pilgrims on the Camino. The Pilgrim’s Welcome Office website and the American Pilgrims on the Camino website (http://www.americanpilgrims.com/) contain copious amounts of statistical data on the Camino. The following is a listing of a few statistics that I found interesting – most of the numbers coming from data collected during 2013 and 2014.

• In 2013 about 220,000 pilgrims arrived in Santiago from all of the various routes and qualified for issuance of a Compostela (official certificate of completion).
• The largest number of pilgrims arrived during the month of August – about 47,000 in total.
• About 154,000 (70%) of the pilgrims arrived by way of the Camino Frances (which is the route Clint and I will be following), although only about 20% of them walked the entire route (790km), starting at St. Jean Pied de Port. (Remember, to qualify for a Compostela, a pilgrim is only required to walk the final 100km of the route.)
• About 53% of the pilgrims were male.  The other 47% were female (did I really need to say that?).
• 89,000 (40.5%) of the pilgrims were 30 years old or younger.  110,000 (50%) were between the ages of 30 and 60.  The remaining 21,000 (9.5%) were 60 years old or older.  (That last group will include Clint and me.)
• 90% of the pilgrims arrived on foot.  9% arrived on bicycle.  The remainder arrived by other means.
• 47% of the pilgrims stated that they made their pilgrimage for religious reasons.  45% said their motivation was a combination of religious and cultural considerations.  8% said they hiked the Camino solely for cultural reasons.
• Most of the pilgrims (60%) were from Spain.  17% were from Italy.  11.9% were from the United States.  9% were from Germany.

All of this is interesting. But, it just makes me more anxious to get started and add my experience to the statistics that will be reported next year. Only two more week to go!!!

¡Buen Camino!