Buenos Dias Amigos.
On this cold morning I walked alone. Well not completely alone. I walked with you and I walked with God. Not the grey haired guy that lives in the clouds. God that is the trees, the birds, love, courage, strength and spirit.
As I walked, a local drove by and waved. I hope the locals know how much it means to us pilgrims when they smile or wave from their cars or better yet wish us a Buen Camino. I want them to know that I am here because I love Spain and all it gives. I always leave a piece of my heart in Spain and I feel happy and whole when I return.
Why do we have such powerful moments in the mountains?
As I approached my 900m climb today, it's as if my spirit knew to lighten my load. Today I forgave myself. I forgave all the people I love today and that I loved yesterday. I forgave even the ones who have never been sorry. I forgave the ones that hurt me and the ones that didn't know how to love me. I forgave the ones that made choices that changed my life and broke my heart.
I cried my eyes out for the first time in years.
My sweet Camino Family... you accepted me, you took care of me and you understood me. You let me be me. You let me sing my silly songs about nothing. You even let me talk smack to you and about you and we laughed at eachother and ourselves. You shared with me, you trusted me and you made me feel important and sometimes even a little 'special'. You spoke of me with pride and even shared me with your family and friends. I want you to know that you are a big part of my Camino and today I walked
and climbed this mountain not just for me but for all 3 of us. I am so grateful for you both.
Jorge, I know how much you wanted to climb this mountain today and Harold, I know how much you didn't. I'm at the top and I did it for us. For everything you both are to me, thank you.
This climb was not easy. I thanked God for giving me legs that could climb and for the opportunity to be here, doing what others can not do. I thanked God for protecting me, my family and my friends. I thanked God for the shade and the breeze and for the views. I thanked God for the strength. And when my legs grew tired and my spirit weary, there on the path, God provided a staff. A stick, just the right size for me. I picked it up and again thanked God. That stick helped me to the top. It gave me something to lean on. Now this was becoming a Charlton Heston moment haha but.... my hair was going grey before I got to the top of the mountain. I decided to name my stick... Moses. 🤣
I know it makes me sound crazy but I talked to MO a few times today haha.
After a long, steep descent on a deserted road, I ended up in a town called Péon. I know. I laughed too. I walked past cows and more cows but the sun was shining on the valley just right and it looked like the most peaceful place on earth.
I could see Casa Pepita from the distance and I was excited for a café con leche at the very least. As I got closer I realized that might not be an option. They were doing some maintenance. My Spanish is decent when I don't have Jorge and Harold to rely on. I managed to say "Abierto por café e comida?" It's probably a grammatical nightmare but the owner understood and said No... and a bunch of other words that I didn't understand. So I just smiled and said Gracias and went on my way. As I walked on in search of a place to sit, rest and eat, an animal came running at me with no fence between us. It was a baby donkey and I almost cried for sheer joy.
He was sweet and friendly and fuzzy and I wanted to keep him forever. A passing motorcycle scared him away which was better than having to tear myself away from him.
A few minutes of walking brought me to an old Roman bridge where I sat to eat my snack/lunch. I left too early to hit the store so I ate crackers with little strawberry jam packets that I pocketed from the last breakfast buffet, then gluten free cookies with peach marmalade, a bag of pistachios and an orange.
It fueled me enough to get me up the second grueling mountain. About halfway up I was greeted by a yellow lab with a wagging tail, in fact his whole body was wagging in lab fashion, he was genuinely happy to see me.
He went and picked up his tennis ball and did circles around my legs. He was the sweetest guy and I wanted to keep him too. He eventually went back to his resting spot... with his toy. The house he lived at had a book for pilgrims to sign and words of encouragement. The owner even came out and asked me if I needed water then wished me a Buen Camino. I happily signed the book with my name and my friends too. They unknowingly helped me get here.
I reached the top after scrambling up a very rough, wet and rocky trail and was relieved when I reached the road and started my descent towards Gijon.
The smooth road didn't last too long. Soon I was back to the meat grinder. A path covered in gravel tearing up my feet, feeling every stone under my soles. This path, at times steep, went on forever.
The breeze picked up and the dark sky was chasing me. The trail went through mostly forest but when I looked at Google maps and saw that the Camino was about to add kms to my day, I said, um no thank you... a direct road approach makes more sense when your feet are about to fall off. I took the advice of my last hotel concierge and stopped at the botanical gardens to grab a cab into the city and bypass the not so scenic city parts. It was a good plan...even with the 5km cab ride, I still walked 28kms today.
Gijon is a powerhouse of a city. I'm back at the sea. There is a lovely beach, loads of historical churches and amazing architecture.
There is a harbour with hundreds of sailboats and every available patio is packed with people celebrating life.
This place is alive. I am having my wine and reflecting on today and starting to ponder what I am going to eat. I miss my friends.
But first dinner... I found a great place near my hotel and I sat on a patio and had cod in vegetable sauce with salad, potatoes and wine.
It was awesome... but now the food coma is kicking in.
Buenos Noches Amigos.
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