Thunder rolled across the forest covered hills, the gray sky smelled like rain and the Spanish coo coo clock birds called to us as we walked the last three miles to Los Arcos.
Rain!
We keep our rain gear immediately ready but I didn’t bother to put on my rain pants thinking, wash and wear. If they get good and wet, I don’t have to wash them. When you only have one pair of pants, doing laundry takes on a whole new meaning.
Before the Rain
Before the rain, it was a beautiful day for walking. The sun smiled down on us and a stiff breeze kept us cool and moved us right along. If only this lovely cool weather would stay with us for as long as possible. I love it! Who wants to walk and walk – and walk – in the hot sun?! Not me!
Walking the Camino de Santiago
We Embrace the Green
Left, right, left, right, one foot in front of the other. We walk. We embrace the green that surrounds us while we can, I suspect it won’t last too much longer. The wind blows across the green blades like a wave in the ocean. I stop to take it in. It’s nearly perfect.
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And, the yellow fields. There are no words to describe the depth of the color in contrast to the pillows of clouds. It takes our breath away.
Yellow!
Day 7
April 18, 2015
Today we walked 12 miles
Highest elevation: 2,460′
The Initial Onset
Sunday, our 8th day of walking. We survived the first week – kind of. We are still here, we are still walking. It’s been eight of the most physically challenging days of my life. I will say though that this morning was the first day I stepped out of bed and didn’t cringe with pain. Don’t get me wrong, I still ache, but I think we’re walking our way out of the initial onslaught of pain. Now, if my feet would just catch up with the rest of me.
My backpack and I are once again on speaking terms, although neither of us is happy with the weight of the shoes we now carry, but mutually agree the added weight is a necessary evil. I look forward to the day (will it come?) when my pack and I become one. Hard to imagine.
Walking from Los Arcos to Viana.
Bathtub in Viana
We arrived in Viana by 2:00 today and it felt good to be done walking so early in the afternoon. It felt even better when we discovered our hotel room had a bathtub! I drained and refilled the tub with HOT water 3 times, to the point I almost couldn’t stand to be in the water, but what simple joy – a bath.
The landscape that surrounds us each day is beginning to change, soft flowing fields of green are replaced by olive orchards, vineyards and shrubs.
The wildflowers are blooming and the bursts of colors are wonderful to see.
The Inevitable Question
Today, we asked ourselves the inevitable question – yet again – why are we doing this? Neither one of us had an answer. It could well be that we may never have an answer. What we do know is that this is where we are supposed to be at this moment in time. We also know that if we decide to stop, we’ll stop, but it would have to be mutually agreeable, without hesitation and without regret. For now though… tomorrow we walk.
Day 8
April 19, 2015
Today we walked 12 miles
Highest elevation: 1,900′
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I love the vivid colours in your photos. I’m glad you are getting used to walking everyday and it’s getting less physically painful. What an amazing experience 🙂
Amy recently posted…How Much Money Can you Earn from Teaching in Vietnam?
I was getting stronger until this stupid blister tripped me up! I think we could take photos constantly, but every time we stop we break stride, but sometimes it’s a good reason to stop for a few seconds to catch my breath! 😉
Glad to hear your pack and you are speaking again. Tell her to lighten up. Ha!
Linda
Ha! Ha! That’s funny! 🙂
I have that same picture of the two ends of the buildings, with no roof or sides. 🙂 The Camino becomes something of a compulsion at some point, I think. You just keep walking because you have been and can continue to do so. Yesterday, I commented twice on the ‘continuing to walk’ part – I missed my kids and my grandkids SO much at the start and couldn’t figure out why I was there and had decided to leave them behind. Once I gave myself permission to quit and go home I was able to continue walking. Not that I didn’t still miss them, but giving myself permission was my turning point. Now I’m ready to go back again…!!
Completely understand, Cindy. This is not only a physical journey, it’s an emotional journey as well. We see so many solo walkers and my hat is off to all of them. I need the emotional support of my hubby! Do you walk with someone, when did you walk?
From my understanding, everyone comes to the Camino for a different reason, yet the Camino reveals the true lesson that has been patiently awaiting your discovery. And perhaps they are one and the same. ¡Buen Camino!
Betsy Wuebker | PassingThru recently posted…Johor Bahru: Bridging Old and New in Malaysia
I think you’re right, Betsy. I don’t have any answers because I don’t even know the questions! 😉
A hot bath!!!! Oh my that is heaven!!!! I was not aware that Hotels are along the way. But then again, I have not researched this part of the world as much. Love the changing fields! Looking forward to left right left right on the next blog post. Are you carrying your iPad or laptop?
There are multiple options for accommodations. Hotels, B&B’s, Hostals, Pensions, etc. You walk through many villages and a few towns and cities. We are carrying a chromebook and our 2 phones. The chromebook is much lighter than my laptop. It works really well, no hard drive, everything is stored in the cloud.
Oh how I remember the joy of a bathtub after four days hiking across Grand Canyon. I too refilled many times. Do you really need a reason?
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I don’t think so, no reason really necessary. I can’t imagine hiking the Grand Canyon. We’ve visited the canyon twice, took the mule trip both times and OH boy do you need a bath after that!
There is something to be said for just letting yourself be in the moment—even if the moment contains sore feet and an aching back. Maybe you’re just doing it because it’s there and you can—together. Two excellent reasons, IMHO.
Suzanne Fluhr recently posted…Zentangle Diva’s Challenge #212 – Magical Thinking Edition (and Some More Tangle Inspirations from Turkey and Israel)
I think that’s pretty much the conclusion we’ve come to. We are walking because we can and we are doing it together, the way we’ve gone through life. I could do with the sore feet and aching back… 😉