Dramatis Personae

Before I go, I thought I might share some memories of just some of the people I encountered along the way.

I understand that a pilgrimage has connotations of a largely solitary endeavour, but in many ways, it's the people you meet and connect with that really makes the Camino. A shared, arduous experience is a great environment in which to really get to know someone and so it proved on my journey.

It’s probably not as apparent as it could be from the daily blog entries, but I was lucky enough to share the path with many, many incredible folk during my Camino. Sometimes for only a short time, many for hours and a few for many days. All were interesting, engaged, good people, many with extraordinary life stories, who were living in the moment and who seemed to be having the time of their lives. It was inspiring and humbling to share their space. I can only hope that I was able to enrich their individual experiences by a fraction of the amount that they enriched mine.

In keeping with the general anonymity of this blog, I’ve made up the names of the (very real) people I talk about below. But it makes no difference.

Miss Lithuania - who was probably the fastest walker I've ever seen. I first came across Tatiana early on in the journey but got to know her a little better when I saw her one morning ahead in the distance when she had fallen and injured herself on a bitumen road. When I caught up, she was bleeding from a large graze on her leg. After a while, and with some first aid, she had recovered sufficiently and was on her way. On the few occasions in subsequent days that I did manage to stay with her long enough to have a chat, or sit down with her for a drink, she seemed a fascinating person with a story I would love to have gotten to know more about. But it was not to be - she was a lady in a hurry!

Don from Sicily - It wasn't his actual name (I don't think), but he was a very charming, friendly, enthusiastic, older guy who I saw a few times along the way. We always greeted each other very warmly. I certainly made sure I did - he seemed more than capable of making you an offer you couldn't refuse…

Romeo and Juliet (an Italian/Venezuelan couple on their honeymoon) - Two beautiful people who I first met in Sarria and who got me out of a potentially difficult situation there when I arrived at the hotel I'd booked into but which wasn't actually where I was staying. They arrived soon after and his Spanish skills helped explain and resolve the mix-up. We also saw them later along the track a few times, by which time she had suffered a painful leg injury and was walking very slowly. Later, they suggested the name of that great pulpo restaurant in Melide, and I finally saw them as they were just about to enter pilgrims square, having taken several hours longer than us on that final day to make it there. But they still had those cute little smiles on their cute little faces.

Pedro from Spain, the Paris to Dakar man - We first met at the Sarria albergue where he was starting his walk. I learned through his broken but enthusiastic English that his main aim was to complete the "Paris-Dakar" in Santiago. He was not a motor sport fan, but a drinking fan, with Santiago evidently renown for the 22 bars between the first (the Paris bar) and the last (the Dakar bar). Completing the Paris-Dakar meant having a drink in all of them. When I arrived in Santiago, I couldn't see either of those bars, but I was assured by a few of the other less-abstemious pilgrims that such a challenge existed and they, too, were up for it. I came across Pedro a few times along the way, including at dinner one night and as we entered the pilgrim square in front of the Cathedral. He was always infectiously happy and friendly. I’ll bet his own Paris-Dakar must have been something to see.

Maribel and Ruth from Spain - I also met Maribel and her friend in the Sarria albergue and we arranged to have dinner when we met again in Portomarin. We also managed to catch up briefly in pilgrims square on the last day. Maribel was a lovely person who worked in a hospital in the south of Spain and had a giggle when I asked her if hospitals also shut down for siesta, as just about every other place in Spain did. Thankfully, the answer was no.

Giuseppe and Maria from Italy - Another beautiful mother and son couple who were my dorm-mates in Ruitelan and who expressed amazement that someone from as far away as Australia would come all this way to walk the Camino. Every time I saw Maria subsequently, she said 'Australia!' in amazement and gave a warm welcome. Guiseppe had walked it before and this time was taking his elderly Italian mother, who fit perfectly - in the nicest possible way - the stereotypes of elderly Italian mothers. He must have had the patience of Job to do what he did. It was great, too, to catch up with them in the Cathedral at Santiago having accomplished their mission.

Sondra and Kristina from Belgium - Two more beautiful people from Belgium who also started at St Jean. I didn't meet up with them until after Leon, and we lost each other again after Sarria. But it was great spending several days with them at various albergues and along the way. As luck would have it, while I was at Santiago airport just about to board the first of my flights home, I spotted Kristina who, with Sondra, was there preparing to take their direct flight back to Brussels. Happily, we were all able to take the time to wish each other the best and say our farewells properly.

Volunteers at Rabanal - This was probably the best albergue I stayed at along the way, due largely to the friendliness of the English volunteers who were running it for a two week shift before the next team came in. They organized a great afternoon tea where all the pilgrims gathered for a chat, and then a wonderful breakfast early the next morning. They also went above and beyond in helping Kristina and Sondra with a nasty bed-bug problem. A wonderful experience.

Hiroki, the Japanese barefoot walker - I first saw this guy walking barefoot on the paved road into Carrion de los Condes. It was early afternoon and the air temperature must have been mid-30s, so it's anyone's guess what it was on the ground. I thought he was absolutely crazy and so I walked up to him, shook his hand and told him so. Hiroki smiled a wistful smile in acknowledgement and continued on his way. His general appearance and the faraway look in his eye suggested he might have actually started his walk in Japan. I saw him several times after that, the last being just out of Sarria. Each time, I made sure I shook his hand and said he was crazy. But it was clear he understood my admiration for, and amazement at, his efforts. What a man!

Ned from Brazil - He was a dorm-mate in Hontanas when I first met him. I admired his beard, his gently disparaging nature toward his home country, his friendliness, and his general presence. He later connected with my Belgian and Czech Camino buddies and we spent a bit of time together toward the end. A great guy.

Sofia from Bulgaria - We were dorm-mates in Portomarin and decided to walk the next day to Palas de Rei, although she wanted to press on to Melide. That was one of the best morning walks of the whole journey with the mist hanging eerily over the forest and we both really enjoyed it. I didn't see Sofia again after our farewell lunch at Palas de Rei, but she was a great walking companion on a wonderful day.

And, finally, of course, my wonderful, incomparable, Belgian and Czech Camino buddies - Kim and Martina. It was uncanny, or perhaps fateful, how early on we just kept meeting up - especially in Leon on that wonderful evening. Spending the amount of time I did with them and engaging as closely as we did in the final week or so, was a highlight of my Camino. If any two people on this planet deserve happiness, it's those guys.


I want to round out this blog with some final thoughts and reflections, which - a few weeks after returning home - I am still trying to put into some sort of coherent form. I also wanted to try and answer a great question that Martina asked of us during dinner in Molinaseca, which I couldn’t really do then. It was - what did you learn from the Camino? (My main response now is that I learned I really, really, loved it. So much so, that I’ve booked to go back and do the Camino Frances all over again in November and December 2016 - followed by the Camino Portuguese from Porto, and finishing with Christmas Day in Santiago! And this time, the only place I plan on booking in advance is the very impressive-looking Parador Hotel adjacent to the Cathedral in Santiago for Christmas Day and Boxing Day.)

Anyway, I thought the priority should be to post the stuff I was writing along the way, which I hope has been of some interest to you as you think about, or plan, your own Camino or use this to reflect on your experience.

I’ll get back with those remaining comments later …