Day 97 - It's a question of faith...

16 Days into the new year. How did that happen? I blinked an eye and life just ran away at a speed that threatens to take my breath away. In three days time it will be exactly 100 days since I started writing this blog. One part of me wants to fast forward to July 2012 and another wants to press the pause button.

The past couple of weeks saw the ending of one year and the start of another. I've been fortunate to have my dearest friend in the world visit after the new year's festivities and now life is falling back into a familiar pattern again.

 Or so I thought.

For the last couple of weeks I've been thinking about priorities. Sometimes one has to be still and evaluate. Evaluate what you want from life. What is important and what can wait. What is negotiable and what is not. What makes you happy and what doesn't. What to keep and what to discard.

No matter in which direction my thoughts have taken me in the last few weeks, I keep coming back to one realisation. The one constant, the one reliable factor and the one saving grace in all of our lives, whether we acknowledge it or not, is our faith. Without my faith in God and everything it represents, nothing can ever really work.

We spend so much time and energy on other things/areas of our lives that growing our faith and understanding the impact thereof on our lives is often the one crucial thing that we neglect. A neglect that can cost us so much more than we realise.

So in 2011 my energy is going to be directed towards building on my faith. Understanding how I'm supposed to implement it in my life and how I can ultimately contribute best to this world and be the happiest I can possibly be as a person.

I once heard the Dalai Lama say that the ultimate goal of his religion is 'to be happy'. So simple, and isn't that what we all want? To be happy.

So with all of the above in mind, I started reading what other people had to say about how they experienced religion or 'spirituality' on the Camino.

This is what Tony Kevin had to say in his book 'Walking the Caminino': ' ...there was no magic,revelatory moment in Spain; rather, it was a series of little steps forward, towards a slowly opening door. My pilgrimage opened my heart wider to God; it washed away my emotional constrictions and defence mechanisms; it enabled me to pray more freely and unforcedly than ever before in my life. It gently but insistently urged me to confront my life, warts and all. Everyone I met on the pilgrimage played a part in this: the Mother Superior in Granada who put the first stamp in my passport, and all the priests on the way to whom I introduced myself in churches after Masses and who blessed my journey; Juan, the innkeeper in Alcaracejos who was the first person in Spain to hail the inner significance of what I was trying to do; the hospitable lay brothers at Alcuescar; Marit and Karin; Tim and Liz; Richard and Aldo and Nigel; the woman at the lavanderia in Rionegro; John and Marcelino in Laza; the man in Albergueria who hung up my scallop shell on his ceiling; and every fellow pilgrim or villager or innkeeper or hostalero I met who wished me 'Buen Viaje!' on the way.'

He goes on to describe how he often went to evening Masses in the little Spanish villages and how different it was to going to Mass as a young man when it was simply part of an obligatory daily routine. He even bought a little Spanish prayer book so that he could take part in the congregation's spoken prayers.

'In Spain on the camino, I was living my religion rather than thinking about it on an intellectual level. The pilgrimage wasn't a mental exercise in theology on the move. I was not working through ideas about religion and politics, or religion and society. I was giving that part of my brain a rest. What was happening to me was a felt thing.'

'Now, as Santiago was finally approaching, I felt that my heart was as cleansed and refreshed and open to God as it was ever likely to be in this life on earth, and I was happy'

I accept that not all people have the same experience on the camino. Some of the blogs I have read simply relate the experience that the writer had walking from point A to point B, never touching on anything spiritual. Others spend pages on that particular aspect. I hope that my experience is going to be similar to what Tony experienced. In fact I know that is what it's going to be like. I can't wait.

In fact, we might be going to Portugal in the next few weeks and I am seriously thinking about doing a walk from Porto to Santiago either before or after our trip. It's just a thought at this stage but in December of 2009 I had a very strong thought pop in my head as well and six months later I stood at the summit of Kilimanjaro...

So just when I thought things have fallen back into the familiar pattern I'm discovering that this is going to be a year packed full of surprises. And I plan to tackle 2011 with a renewed commitment to my faith and everything that it represents. This is going go be a good year, I just know it!

In keeping with today's theme I've decided to post some of the photos that I have taken in and of churches, both in Cape Town and in Portugal.

If you've walked the Camino I'd love to hear if your experience was similar to Tony's or was it totally different?

One of my newest pilgrim friends has just completed his walk to Santiago and I have asked him to write a guest post that I'll publish here as soon as I receive it. It's not the first time that he has walked 'The Way' as the Camino de Santiago is also known and I am very interested to hear all about his amazing journey - undertaken during one of the coldest Decembers that Europe has seen in many years!

Here's wishing you all a wonderful 2011 - may all your dreams come true this year!

Day 80 - Navigating the Camino...

Navigating has always been one of my stronger points. That is, if I'm equipped with a good map and speak the language of the country that I'm travelling in. Reading what Tony Kevin has to say on the topic of navigating the Camino in his book, 'Walking the Camino - a modern pilgrimage to Santiago' I've realised that my skills are going to be put to the test in this department!

I suspect that my two biggest challenges are going to be, firstly, yo no hablo español and secondly - the trusty yellow arrows and waymakers aren't exactly around every single corner on the route, especially out in the countryside...  

This is how Tony, in his delightful manner, puts it:

' This might be a good moment to pull together some thoughts about navigation. This is an important practical question for non-Spanish speaking pilgrims. If you do not have enough confidence in Spanish to ask directions and understand the answers, how do you avoid getting seriously lost? Asking directions can be a problem even for good Spanish speakers: quite often, a local will say 'a la izquierda' (to the left) while waving to the right with his right hand, or 'a la derecha' (to the right) while his left hand points to the left. It is hard to decide whether to believe the words or the hands!'

'The camino, like a Roman or medieval road,tries to avoid serious detours from the most direct, shortest line of walk. So it goes straight up and over the top of hills that are in the way, rather than curving around them as do motor roads. Sometimes, in rough terrain with sheep or goat tracks meandering aimlessly around, it can be hard to stay on the right path. You have to put all your trust in the directions indicated by the yellow waymarks. They are a metaphor for spiritual guidance in life,in that they are always correct (they never misdirect) and sometimes easily visible, but at other times quite hard to see. On the camino that I walked, they were painted in the oddest and most obscure places - mostly on wayside rocks or trees, but also on fence posts or lamp posts, at the corner of buildings, on street signs, even in treeless wheatfields on drain culverts at one's feet. Sometimes there are too few of them - in some places the local Friends seem to have decided to not make it too easy for pilgrims, to make them work at finding the next arrow, which may be several kilometres ahead. In other areas there are yellow arrows everywhere. But that is all part of the fun of navigation - and there is the delight and relief when you spy the next yellow arrow and realise you haven't lost the track. Sometimes there are yellow crosses, warning not to take a particular road. Sometimes there are puzzlingly bent arrows pointing upwards and then off to the right or left - what do they mean?'

I keep reminding myself that I'm not going to be the only one walking the route and if I do get lost, surely there will always be someone to steer me in the right direction again. Perhaps part of the fun is going to be exactly that - losing the way (or should I say 'plot'...) every now and again!

When I lived in Portugal for a few months a couple of years ago, losing my way, be it direction or language related, sometimes led me to the best of friends! The fact that one is prepared to try, even if it means making a complete fool of oneself, somehow seems to bring out the positive in  most people. Some of the mistakes I made still make me smile today. The Portuguese language is a complicated one and filled with words that sound so similar but yet have meanings that are totally unrelated.

A good example: mordamos = to bite; moramos = to live. So imagine the looks I got when I answered: 'I bite in Villamoura' when asked where I live. And trust me, I did this a couple of times!

As for navigating - the only time I've really been off the mark was when certain roads actually catered for one way traffic only and this was not indicated on my map. In heavy city traffic in places like Paris or London this can be a costly mistake! We once drove in Amsterdam with our hired camper van (great fun touring that way!) and I didn't realise that the roads become too narrow in certain parts of the city for such large vehicles. So needless to say, with my luck, we ended up (quite unintentionally, I assure you!) in the red light district, trapped in a narrow little side street with our huge bus! Traffic officers (who were kind enough not to issue us a ticket because they felt so sorry for us - what a sight for sore eyes we must have been - a bunch of red-faced foreigners out on a sightseeing trip in a camper van in the red light district!) diverted traffic so that we could back up and then led us out of the disaster zone in one piece.

I remember almost being able to touch the ladies sitting in the display windows alongside the road. I know you can place a take-away order from your car at the MacDonald's drive-thru, but I don't think that's quite the way it worked  in the red light district... :)

I started this post by proclaiming the fact that I regard myself as a good navigator. By sharing the above (and I'm not sure how or why that all poured out, but somehow one admission just led to the next!) you've probably lost all confidence in my ability to successfully navigate my way on a 780km walk with only a map, a guidebook, three Spanish words and a backpack.

Can't say I blame you!

All of the above said, I think I'll be OK. One of my other good attributes is that I always stay extremely calm when disaster strikes. But before I prove that statement to be yet another figment of my imagination, I'd better refrain from spilling too many of my beans...

Just to prove that I'm not alone - I thought I'd share this little gem I found on a fellow blogger's site. She has kindly allowed me to share the following with you. Thanks Anna-Marie!

My friend and I were really curious about this sign that we found along the river after Villafranca del Bierzo. All I could make out was something about freedom without death. I asked a Spanish friend about it later. It turned out to be about releasing fish after catching them! 

I found this just as charming:

'It’s possible to survive walking the Chemin de Saint-Jacques from Le Puy-en-Velay if you speak next to no French. I met two Austrian students who walked part of the route, and gleefully got by snorting like pigs to order pork in a restaurant, and miming their ailments in a pharmacy. I also walked for a day with a Korean woman who spoke no French apart from the tiny amount she’d picked up while walking. She made it all the way to Santiago.'

I think there might be hope for me!

(Anna-Marie walked the Camino de Santiago two years ago - her blog is filled with wonderful stories and facts on the Camino - http://www.pilgrimroads.com/. Thank you also to Tony Kevin, author of 'Walking the Camino', for allowing me to quote from his wonderful book. Lastly - a big thank you to my friend Rodney for sending me the photograph of the curved sign at the beginning of this post.)



Day 49 - Down to basics - what is the Camino de Santiago really all about?

One of the first questions I'm asked when people hear that I'm planning to walk the Camino de Santiago pilgrim's walk is: 'What is the origin?' or more often simply: 'What's it all about?'

The second question is the simpler one as I normally start chatting about the route, the albergues, the fact that you walk with just a backpack etc., etc. Easy stuff. The first question has caught me off guard a few times and I realized that if I'm serious about this business, I can't just start walking because it feels right and I know (or hope at least) that it's going to be a spiritual experience for me.

In other words - don't sound like a fool now Emilene. Educate yourself. Or at least feel like an educated fool by the time you start walking that long road with just your boots on your feet and a bag on your back...

I decided to start with a map of sorts. Hence the map above. I liked that one because it details the Camino Frances route, the route that I have chosen to walk.  I intend to start in the little town known as St Jean Pied de Port (St John-at-the-foot-of-the-mountain pass). It sounds like a delightful little town and this is also where I will be collecting my pilgrim's passport. (Not to be confused with a regular travelling passport, I read. ) ;-)

To learn more about the little town - visit this site: http://www.caminodesantiago.me.uk/st-jean-pied-de-port/

Anyway. Back to the history.

The word camino means 'the way' and 'Santiago' is the Spanish name for St James. (Santiago, as a matter of interest, is a compression of Santo Diego). St James of course being one of Jesus's apostles. The story goes that when the Apostles divided the world into missionary zones, St James was sent to the Iberian peninsula. He eventually returned to Jerusalem where he was beheaded by Herod, in the year 44AD.

His followers put his remains in a stone boat that was then guided by angels and carried by the wind beyond the Strait of Gibraltar. It went ashore near Finisterre, at Padrón, in northern Spain. There his remains were buried  in a marble tomb together with that of two of his followers. The tomb remained forgotten, until the 9th century.

During that time, a local hermit, named Pelayo, had a vision. He saw a field of stars, which led him to the ancient tomb. The tomb contained three bodies. The local bishop confirmed that this was indeed the tomb of St James and his two followers. St James was subsequently declared the patron saint of Spain.

A small village named Campus de Ia Stella (Field of Stars) and a monastery were established on the site. The news of the discovery spread like wildfire and a trickle of pilgrims began to arrive. Miracles came to be attributed to the site, and the miracles encouraged pilgrimage and pilgrimage elicited more miracles...

At the time the Spanish church struggled with the Moors on the Peninsula and it certainly was in their favour to promote the idea of this pilgrimage. In fact, it became one of the most significant pilgrim's routes in the world, the other two destinations of course being Rome and Jerusalem.

The pilgrimage reached it's peak during the Middle Ages with the infrastructure along the routes being developed to support pilgrims. Bridges were constructed across rivers, hospices were built by religious orders and businesses thrived because of the steady flow of feet on the route.

The sheer number of pilgrims on this route during that period might very well account for the fact that the Moors never successfully conquered the northern part of Spain.

By the end of the 16th century Spain engaged in war with both France and England and effectively was largely cut off from the rest of Europe. This, together with other major developments, such as the Reformation that was initiated by Martin Luther, were possibly contributing factors as to why the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage became less popular during that period of history.

The 1900's saw a revival of the pilgrimage for a number of reasons. Let's pick up Tony Kevin's dialogue from here on:

' I thought more about how the Santiago pilgrimage,which by the early 20th century had become defunct medieval history, had revived spectacularly after World War II  and the return of democracy to Spain following Franco's death in 1975. It's an interesting story and in itself says much about the changing mood and values of our times.'

'Spain itself was searching for new approaches to civil society and to church-state relations. Franco's coercive and now discredited clerical-fascist ascendancy had run its course, and with his death in 1975 a new democratic politics was in rapid gestation. Progressive Spanish Catholics were looking for new ways to re-legitimise their church, to restore its standing and connections with younger, democratically minded Spaniards. In this context, the pilgrimage to Santiago was something fresh, holy and untarnished by past church mistakes and misdeeds. Local voluntary 'Friends of the Camino'  societies sprung up across Spain and Portugal to survey, waymark and restore the old pilgrimage right-of-way -routes that had in many areas became no more than vague local memories. Soon there were local alternative waymarked routes to Santiago being re-established: not only through the Pyrenees, but also from Valencia, Alicante,Toledo, Granada, Seville, Cadiz, Lisbon. All the ancient caminos of Spain were being re-located and re-signed with the famous yellow arrows'

By 1987 the Camino de Santiago was declared a  World Heritage site. And in 2010 I decided to walk the route in 2012.

There you have it!

After reading a myriad sites and summarising it for myself, based on the information that I saw repeated on these various sites, I understand the origin of the pilgrimage somewhat better now. One is overcome by information and I'm sure mis-information at times as well, but generally, I'm satisfied that this is a pretty accurate story. I'm sure that certain details have given rise to many a question and probably inspired many a book, but as far as I'm concerned, this is how I'm going to accept the camino.

I'm not Catholic, nor am I Spanish, so I'm pretty much an outside observer but I do know why I'll be walking the route and I do know that when I'm in a church along the way, it's not going to matter what my denomination is. I'll be in the house of the Lord. And I can't wait to pack my bag!

As for the blog-hopping experiment of yesterday.

Quite honestly, I've decided to stick to my camino-hopping! I've gained one lovely new friend, discovered some great blogs and received a talking-to by the owner of the 'hop' for not sticking to the rules. I really thought I did everything I was supposed to, but clearly I am indeed as challenged as I confessed to be when I posted yesterday!

Anyway, nothing ventured - nothing gained, I say!

Day 45 - Get out of your comfort zzzzone...

That's a pretty comfortable place to be for most of the day, I'd say! I got this one on one of our hikes in the  Cape Point Nature Reserve. Most of the time I would prefer to be in exactly such a spot, sure looks comfortable, convenient and certainly safe!

Today however, I found myself catapulted right out of my safe place and for some reason found myself striking up a conversation with a complete stranger.

I noticed a little old lady, (I'm not defining old after yesterday's post!) but suffice to say that I think she was quite a few years older than me, in the mall today. We were both browsing around the clothing section of the shop and I was struck by how stylish and really pretty she looked. She was dressed rather informally but yet stylish, her colours and accessories really came together beautifully and to top it all off, she wore a cheeky little hat, perched at a slight angle.

Before I could stop myself, I found myself walking towards her and I complimented her on how pretty she looked. She looked at me for a while, burst into a huge smile and said: 'Thank you so much for saying that. I have cancer and I'm not feeling that well today and I don't always feel as if I look that good either.'

And before I could stop myself a second time, I found myself giving her a tight hug.

I've never done something like this in my entire life. Am I glad I did though. I'm still taken back by the incident as I don't think there was one bit of coincidence about the two of us being in that spot together at that exact time. Maybe we should really tune in to those little messages that are sent our way, and act upon it!

I certainly will be paying close attention from now on...

Walking the Camino certainly is also one activity that takes one way out of your comfort zone. Tony Kevin is one man who travelled halfway around the world to tackle the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage. Talk about moving out of a comfort zone! Tony retired from the Australian foreign service in 1998, after a 30 year government career during which he served in the Foreign Affairs and Prime Minister's departments, and was Australia's ambassador to Poland and Cambodia.

This is how he describes his departure from home and literally walking out of his own comfort zone in his book, 'Walking the Camino'...

'So there I was, proudly dressed in crisp new khaki pilgrim gear, walking boots, and floppy hat, a scallop shell around my neck, a packed rucksack and wooden staff at my side - no doubt looking rather ridiculous, but I wanted to do this thing properly - as Father John sprinkled me and these meagre belongings with blessed holy water, and offered his priestly blessings. I realised then with a shock that all this was truly happening, that I really was about to embark the next morning on the strangest adventure of my life. I would need all the help and prayers I could get, and was suddenly very glad that my family and friends were there to wish me well and pray for a safe journey and return home to the family.Looking around at the shining faces of family and friends, I felt more at peace with myself than I had been for a long time.

But the next morning's departure was considerably less happy. Suddenly I was lonely, and scared of what might be in store. I was going to the other end of the world, alone. I looked down at my pack and staff - they seemed both very heavy to carry, and very small. Everything I owned, my whole life-support system for the next two months, was in this little backpack. I was leaving behind - I realised now, for a long time - the warm comforts of home, the joy and love of a family, but for what real purpose? Waves of doubt and fear and a sense of my own foolish selfishness swept over me as I made my final packing checks.

The taxi tooted in the driveway, and I gave my wife and children hasty farewell hugs, fighting back brimming tears and incipient panic. It was crazy to be leaving for so long those whom I loved.Why on earth was I attempting this pilgrimage venture on the other side of the world. Had it all been a huge error of judgement?

I caught the bus for Sydney, and tried to drive away such bleak thoughts by closing my eyes and burying myself in Spanish-language tapes for the next few hours. The tapes were a good excuse for not thinking, a mental exercise in keeping fears and emotions at bay. I didn't know it, but the iron discipline of the pilgrimage was beginning.'

You can listen to a radio interview with Tony here: http://www.abc.net.au/overnights/stories/s2053793.htm. Fascinating listening!

Well I'm beginning to think that the sky is the limit for me now! Next year I'm going to learn how to play the guitar and I'm booking my long postponed Portuguese lessons. How's that for getting out of my comfort zone!

Day 38 - Of talks, pilgrims, hikes and pictures!

This is my friend Christi - photographed earlier this year on her camino in Spain. If Christi hadn't made a decision four years ago to walk the camino, I might still not have known that there was such a thing as the Camino de Santiago!

My sister mentioned a couple of weeks ago that her friend, Christi, has just walked the Camino de Santiago.

The whole 780km journey. On foot. 

She immediately had all my attention. I had never heard of the Camino de Santiago and had only met Christi very briefly on a previous occasion.

I knew I had to meet her again and a couple of days later we met for lunch and I was privileged to be introduced to the camino in the most perfect way. From the mouth (and heart) of a true pilgrim. Someone who has actually walked it herself and came back blessed in so many ways.

I bombarded her with questions and again, I am just so amazed at how people who have followed this journey are so generous with sharing their experiences. Christi clearly had a very spiritual journey and has started presenting talks on her experience.

So this Saturday, twenty odd women will be coming to my home to hear her talk. To say I am excited and filled with expectation is putting it mildly. I have secured a screen as she will be showing us some of her pictures and on Friday evening you'll find me in my kitchen, preparing those yummy Portuguese Pasteis de Nata tartlets that I'm famous for. (Thanks to the 'Cooking the Portuguese Way in South Africa' cookbook that my mom gave me 30 years ago!)

I'm hoping that everyone will be intrigued by this pilgrimage as much as I am and who knows, some of them might even end up walking with me in 2012!

On another note... I posed a question on the forum of the 'virtual algergue' that I belong to and it has been quite interesting to read the replies. The question was 'Has your camino experience changed who you are as a person?'

The answers made me realise again how different we all are. And thank goodness for that! Here is one of the replies that was posted:

'That's a really good question, and something I've been thinking a lot, especially since talking to a student who is writing her thesis on a related topic.

The Camino has changed my life in that I want to go back. Any extra money goes into my Camino fund. It's had enough of an effect on my life that I started a Camino blog, partly to process the experience--almost two years after my walk. And I've never been athletic, so it's amazing to know that my body is capable of astounding things like walking 1500km.

But I suspect I'm not particularly more spiritual, or necessarily nicer, or (much) better at dealing with life than I was pre-Camino. When I got home, I wasn't any closer to knowing what I really wanted to do with my life. But then again walking the Camino has made me look at these things more, and maybe to some extent in a different way.

So it continues to affect my life, I suspect often in ways I don't realize. Judging by myself and my Camino friends (although we could be abnormal), a lot of people don't have huge epiphanies on the Camino. But I think the experience can keep working away in our lives if we let it.

Walking the Camino for almost three months was an incredible experience for me. I went through some miserable times, physically and emotionally, but the whole time I had this feeling of rightness--that this was where I was meant to be. But it's hard to bring that back into regular life.'

Anna-Marie

There was also a very short and sweet 'No'. That one really made me smile.

Thank goodness we're not all the same!

I guess walking for kilometers on end with all your belongings on your back and not always knowing exactly where you're going to sleep, in a strange country, with a strange language and surrounded by strangers, is certainly going to take you to places you've never been to in more ways that one! 

It seems that one should have an open mind and certainly an open heart when embarking on this experience. I for one can't wait to answer my own question at the end of my own walk!

I promised earlier that I will quote pieces from Tony Kevin's wonderful book, 'Walking the Camino' and this is what he says about pilgrimage:

'The idea of pilgrimage, the dream of 'an arduous journey far from home undertaken for sacred reasons', is embedded deep in our culture and history. It is part of us, part of what inspires our urge to travel,to experience foreign places. We may not know it, but each time we leave our homeland to travel the world, we are looking for something more than just 'holidays', fun, and sex in the sun. I think we are seeking, whether we recognise it or not, spiritual enlightment, wisdom, and the revelation of God in the richness of the great world that lies out there beyond our home town.

Every traveller, especially every young traveller, is a pilgrim: whether they go consciously to seek spiritual rebirth, to escape from oppression or grief or boredom at home, to seek interesting or spiritually rewarding work experience abroad, or simply to enjoy the thrill of unfamiliar places and customs. The desire to go a-pilgriming, it seems, is part of our human condition.' 

I just love this book!

 And then on a final note...

Tomorrow is hiking day!! The weather looks good, so we are going to head out of Cape Town on about an hour's drive and we'll be spending the day hiking in the mountains just outside of our Winelands region. I am taking my camera along - so watch this space!

I thought I'd leave you with a picture of the beautiful Blue Disa we found on our last hike. As far as I'm concerned, there's only one way to describe this little flower - perfect!

Until the next post - cheers!

Day 32 - Say it with colour!

Our photography club meets tonight and I thought I'd post a preview of my attempts! This month we had to choose a theme colour and than photograph anything we felt drawn to. I chose to have fun with food and flowers...

The author of the wonderful book I'm reading at the moment, Tony Kevin, has given me the green light to chat about and quote from his book. 'Walking the Camino' is a fascinating read and I will be sharing it with you over the next couple of days. 

Here is a little piece that sets the tone:

'As I looked at the faces of the happily chatting men and women pilgrims around me - English, Germans, Spanish, Dutch, Canadians, Japanese - I began to feel the spirit of the Santiago pilgrimage starting to enter quietly into my soul. There was fellowship here,human solidarity, and generosity of spirit.It wasn't just about endurance walking and blisters on hot, dry roads: there was something more happening here.'



Day 30 - A lovely book about an inspiring journey

The past week has been one of reflection for me. I spent a lot of time thinking about why I find myself so attracted to the idea of doing the Camino de Santiagao - something that I knew nothing about a few weeks ago.

So I started searching on the Internet and spent time reading blogs written by people who have either walked the camino, or like me, are still contemplating doing it. I found some wonderful material and I'm even more fascinated than ever.

The fist of my great finds was a a book called 'Walking the Camino' by an Australian author, Tony Kevin. I've bought the book and find I can't put it down! Many pilgrims have written about their experiences but I think I'd have to look far to find one as eloquently written as this one.

The introduction to his book reads: 'Tony Kevin retired from the Australian foreign service in 1998, after a 30-year government career during which he served in the Foreign Affairs and Prime Minister's departments, and was Australia's ambassador to Poland and Cambodia.' So what would prompt someone like Tony to walk a pilgrim's route of 1200 kilometres over hills and stones, with just a wooden rod and a backpack on his back?

I felt as if I've arrived in good company and that discovering why he chose to do this might help me understand my own fascination with the camino experience.

After some searching I found a clip of an interview done by an Australian radio station. It's about 26 or so minutes long but really worth listening to, right until the end. Especially if, like me, you are planning to tackle the camino somewhere in the future. Have a look at this link - you'll find the prompt on the pages where you can listen to the interview.

http://www.abc.net.au/overnights/stories/s2053793.htm

In the interview the presenter asks him why he thinks people do the walk and this is what he answered: 'One of the reasons is that it is an affirmation of common humanity. It is a way of saying - we are all one people in a world that is so divided - where people shut each other out. The Camino is a place where people meet as equals, reaching out to each other. There is a wonderful feeling of comradeship and empathy that comes out of that. It is an opprtunity to live a life (a brief life) without all the complications of normal life, our insecurities, our anger and our aggression. The Camino is always friendly, always reaches out. It's an opportunity, for a short while, to live a perfect life.'

I would love to post quotes from the book and have sent the publishers a note to ask permission to do so. As soon as I have the ok, I'll go ahead and share some more if this wonderful book with you.

I said at the beginning of this blog that I have a feeling I am going to discover some great things and here we are, 30 days into the journey. It certainly has not disappointed yet!

Finally - here is the picture of what I suspect is a baby custard apple tree. Against all odds, it is still alive and well on my kitchen sill! I'm not known for my green fingers, so this is a miracle of sorts - I wrote all about it in a previous post. Miracles do indeed still happen!