A Brief Update

I'm still planning to go to the Camino in September, but it might be pushed back to March 2010, during the Holy Year. If that happens, I'll deal with it. lol! Anyway, I'm back to walking almost every morning & today I completed a 5K walk. Doesn't seem like a whole lot, but considering I could barely walk a mile in October, it's quite an accomplishment.

I've got new boots & a new back pack (Osprey something or another). I might be having a friend join me for part of the trip. Who knows? I do know that at least 4 people have told me that they donated blood for this cause, so I need to figure out how to update my counter. Ah well.

And yes, I changed the template because the pink was getting to be too much for me.

Buen Camino!

Happy New Year!!

Well, 2008 has come & gone. It was a momentous year all around for me (could you tell?), but now it's time to get serious about my upcoming Camino. Starting Monday, I'm hitting the streets again, building up my stamina & (hopefully) losing some weight while I'm at it. I'll need to order the new CSJ guide & as well as look into getting a new pack. And socks. Oh, and boots too. I like the New Balance ones I used before, but they're a little worn down now & the last thing I want to have happen is for my boots to die while I'm in the middle of the Camino.

For the Camino newbies browsing my blog, I walked parts of the Camino in 2007, in May & in September. If you're looking for info on the albergues, start looking in September-December 2007. The info might be a bit out of date now, but I did try to include a photo of the sleeping arrangements & comments on the state of the bathrooms, which IMO are the most important considerations.

And a new era in US History begins

Us after President Obama's speech:


Dancin' in the Streets! Proud to be Americans again!

ELECTION DAY!!

Les Misbarack!

YES WE CAN!!

Things are getting crazy over here! Here are several videos of how folks are doing their part to get out the vote for OBAMA!!!

From Cajun Louisiana:

From Seattle, Washington:

From Texas:

Major news & new plan for my Camino

For the past few weeks, I have been in the hospital battling hemilitic anemia. The doctors tried to control it by medication, but in the end, it turned out that my spleen was the culprit & had to be removed. Damned French ancestry! (just kidding, mes amies!) At one point, my hemoglobin count was down around 4.8. It was a miracle I could even walk at that point. I was finally released from the hospital this past Monday & slowly but surely getting my life back together again. It's a slow process, my docs say, & one cautioned it may be a year before I'm ready to walk the Camino. That's okay, because it's going to take a year to accumulate the amount of leave that I'm going to need to do it!

Were it not for about 14, maybe 15, anonymous people who donated the blood used for all the transfusions I got, I would not be here. What got me through were all the prayers & kind thoughts my friends & family & many others made for me during this time. And of course, my doctors & nurses. I don't want to leave them out because they had a heck of a time with me. I tried to be a good patient, but there were a couple of days that just wasn't possible (like right after surgery).

During all of this, I prayed constantly, asking to be healed so I could finish my Camino. This prayer evolved into a desire to walk the Camino again, this time from Roncesvalles, and attempt to raise one donation of blood for every kilometer I walk. This would be 749 pints, based on KMs given in the CSJ Guide. While it would be nice for all these donations to come from where I live, I know that would be impossible, so I've set no limits on where the donations come from. If you choose to participate, simply go to your local blood donation organization & donate blood, then let me know by posting on the blog. This will be on the honor system, as I will have no way of knowing if you actually did donate blood, but God will know & that's enough for me.

So, hopefully by next September, I'll have enough leave time saved up. And since I always start out with a plan of where I'll walk to each day, here's what I've come up with so far (and as we have seen, this is also subject to change, since I can never seem to stick with a plan once I've got it down):

Roncesvalles (because I'd like to start off with the Pilgrim Mass again)
Zubiri 22K
Cizur Menor 25K
Puente La Reina 19K
Ayegui 24K
Los Arcos 19K
Viana 19K
Navarette 22K
Azofra 22K
Granon 21K (play Quasimodo in the bell tower)
Belorado 15K (might possibly move on to Tosantos because 15K is too short)
Ages 28K (but maybe Atapuerca if I stay in Tosantos)
Burgos 23K (maybe Tarjados so I can stay in Hontanas)
San Bol 24K (because Sil likes it)
San Nicolas 25K (but if not open, Itero, 1K further on)
Carrion 35K (!!! But last time, I walked 6k from Boadilla to Fromista
in about an hour; it's all flat so this is possible)
Terradillos 26K (maybe press on to Moratinos?)
Bercianos 23K
Pte Villarente 23K
Mazarife 25K
Astorga 33K !!!!, but should be up to it by this point
Rabanal 22K Minkey, will you be there? :)
Molinaseca 26K
Villafranca 30K
La Faba 25K Oh I might decide to go all in & get to O'Cebreiro in one day.
Triacastela 26K
Barbadelo 22K (kms are off here, because this will be via Samos, so maybe 25K)
Ventas de Naron 31K
Ponte Campana 16K
Ribadiso 23K
Sta Irene 21K
Santiago!!!! 24K

If I need a rest day, I can take the bus to Burgos from Belorado. While I liked walking that area the last time, I won't miss it if I have to take a rest. At least I will keep moving forward.

If I could only make up my mind

I've been planning my 3rd trip back to the Camino. Sounds easy, right? Just pick up where you left off the last time. Weeeelllll, not so much. So far, I've toyed with starting in Sarria, Pamplona, Leon (logical choice), and Burgos. Why? My best guess is that I have a Gemini moon (according to some New Age friend) & therefore have a hard time making a decision.

I'm seriously considering starting in Burgos so I can get some mileage under my belt before heading up into the mountains again. Besides, I want to see the meseta that I wasn't able to see because my sinuses decided to act up in Sahagun last year, making me take a train to Leon. Since I've already done the touristy stuff in those towns, I feel that I can breeze through & head for little towns a few kilometers away so I can stay at different albergues than I did before. San Bol, perhaps? Hontanas? I doubt, however, I'll be able to bypass the excellent private albergue in Boadilla, unless I'm there before noon. No sense in burning 6 hours of daylight just to dip my feet in the pool or sleep in the hayloft. If I get there anytime afterwards, however, I shall be sorely tempted to stop.

So, now I'm back to curling up with my guidebooks & spiral notebook, planning out my stages (like that's been successful for me!), and checking out airfares--looks like I'll be burning frequent flyer miles this go-round. As for the time, I'd love to go in the fall, but it's an election year in the US. I suppose I could try late April-early May again & pray that it doesn't rain. Hope springs eternal!

And seriously, folks, please check out Gareth's blog & donate to his chosen charity. He's almost to Santiago, but less than 1/2 of the way to his goal. :( Help the children & toss in a quid or two (or five thousand).