Defeated Perrogringos

Oh my lanta.

Today started brilliantly, we hopped along the path towards our destination, our Commander was courteously accommodating of our (the packs) pace, and we as a group attempted to make good time.  At a fork in the road we had decided last night to spring for adventure and travel the off the charts route to a wonderful town all for the sake of scenery.  That's where things began to unravel.  The path was well worth it mind you.  A nice slow incline and breathtaking views.  Some of the soldiers wobbled along nicely regardless of their cringeworthy ailments.  We sang and laughed and only breaked periodically.

After a double lunch (all Des and I do is eat haha) we sprang up and began our trek to a crossing in hopes of doubling back to a city behind us.  Now.  This city will forever be known as the traveling city.  I swear it changed locations.  We doubled alright, we doubled back at least 4km.  It was defeating.  My spirit was curshed as we trudged along a path beaten so well by pilgrims walking opposite.  As the path extended and I thought about each step we were taking only to walk them again the next day I began to lose my stability.

To add insult to injury we finally arrived only to hear the town was full.  That's right not a single bed for us tired perrigringos.  I assure you, you could hear our hearts break.  We contemplated camping though there weren't enough tents and it's against regulations, we all kind of slumped and bit the bullet; we had to call a taxi.  There's a storm on it's way, wind that could suffocate you with dust and no where to go.  We had to cheat.

I cried.  We got out of the taxi in a town 10km away and I asked Des for a hug.  My camino was broken, incomplete and cheated.  My family all stood patiently as Des reassure me and then something remarkable happened.  I got three hugs and a group hug (at this point it's important to note I haven't showered nor washed my clothes in a couple days, and we were all dirty and sweaty but these virtual strangers embraced me like we have known each other our entire lives) these people are my life support.  It's hard for me to move passed missing kilometers as I lay in my bunk.  I guess I have to return now, but that's another story.

We somberly find our way well The Way and stumble into a town square where upon random conversation discover the municipal albergue is full.  Shit.  That's not promising at all.  We continue wondering empty hearted to another.  It's  full.  Now I tell you, we must have looked some kind of awful because this saintly man patiently walked us through the following moments, he gave us beds that had been reserved and brought some light to our terror.  We must have been a lot to see because he even specified a location for dinner that was sure to brighten our souls.

Now some are returning from mass, our bellies are full and we are all feeling back to normal.  It has been a physically challenging experience thus far and truth be told we all agree, this mental exhaust was a welcome day along the way.  We realized how lucky we've been and how lucky we are.  It's brought a beautiful appreciation to our camino family.

It just occured to me.  This day could have been a result of the morning brandy we sipped after breakfast.

Spain.  You may be the death of me.

Si señorita princess, sounds a little rapey! Especially when you're naked.

So we are in Pamplona. We would like to update more on the past towns but our current situation leaves this incomprehensible. We will start the story of this journey three quarters of the way between Zubiri and where we have currently arrived in Pamplona.

After our ordeal over the high road, crossing the Pyrenees mountains, we decided to reward ourselves with a nice hotel. We had booked a room in a town just east of Pamplona and were not entirely confident on our ability to find it.  

Cut to us standing with Graham, our Irish guidebook, at a map beside a highway where he assured us that if we split from the camino & stayed with the road we would find our way.  

For your own reference if you ever come to Spain keep in mind that it does not "sidewalk" unless of course you are Natasha's parents reading this and in that case there were Spanish policemen on horseback making sure that we were safe every point of the way.

Around 2.5 km further in I approached a Spanish policeman who spoke no English and eventually managed to confirm that we were headed in the direction of the hotel that was next to the golf course, this involving a very animated sort of charade for "golf" - pretty sure we made his day.

Long story short we found our hotel which is a castle, on top of a hill which we climbed from the wrong direction through a park...had to get directions from one of their maintenance men who we are pretty sure thought  that we were probably dirty homeless people that were going to try to rob the place. 

For anyone on our Facebook participating in the "guess how we smelled when we arrived" contest - the answer is rotten nachos and old towels.  

After we spent approximately 10 minutes figuring out how to a) open the door with the fancy card and then b) use the fancy card to get the lights to work we immediately fell to our knees in praise of the heavenly basin most of you would call a bathtub. 

We cannot begin to explain the luxury that is a private room with no noise and no smell and no snorring and no drunken people of a different language - although we have learned to love that, we are very appreciative of the treat we have given ourselves.  

Now we are drunk after too much food and are both appreciating being naked in our own beds with no one else around us, squeaky clean and "soft" as Natasha put it earlier, not realizing that soft was an adjective that was both desirable and something you could describe yourself with after being filthy for days upon days.

It is 9pm & it is our bed time.

We are used to breakfast being served at seven (on the road at eight, if not sooner). Tomorrow there is an all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet on until 10 AM. We are very excited at the perspective of challenging what they believe is all-you-can-eat buffet. It turns out that after wearing the same pants for four days at a time they stretchout so Natasha has given herself a personal challenge to make her pants fit again. Natasha's inner battle with her exterior form has been an entertaining one to witness. At around 10 o'clock this morning I found her lecturing her boobs so that they do not shrink on her (seasoned pilgrims have put this fear into her heart). She's here to gain an ass, not lose her boobs. We are hoping to reconvene with the rest of our Camino family tomorrow but until then here are some random pictures of the happiness we felt outside of the drunkenness and luxury of tonight.

We're like toddlers really.

Okay just a quick post for you all:

We have endured more than I think either of us had anticipated; I've suffered mad jet leg induced psychosis, Des has suffered my hangry bitchiness.

The mountains were hard.  There was a hut with a fireplace, my fingers were too cold to rip paper and work the lighter.  There was hail.  In fact hail is almost more welcome than rain.

Ronsay... Something was lovely, I accosted an Italian in the men's washroom.  Accidentally.  Then Des befriended him further along the way, so that's helpful.  At least she tolerated my whining.  Woo girls woo!

Zubiri is heavenly, we are exhausted.  I think Des was almost drunk.  Usually we just eat a lot and try to sleep while the older people party.  Our new version of a good time is soup and a hot shower.

It's vague and lacking detail (and photographic evidence) but I'm tired and still really whiney if I'm to be honest so, stay tuned for Des's post.  She's good at this.

Much love!

The hail wasn't big though was it? *gestures loonie size* Superb

We are in St. Jean Pied de Port & either the person who did the online forecast I saw a week ago was drunk or is a filthy trickster. 

Cue Monsoon. Just kidding! Look sunshine! Better get your sunglasses! Haha, gotcha again - Cue monsoon.

So we're hoping the local weather forecast doesn't know what it's talking about and that the weather tomorrow is decent. Thank-you mom 1000x over for the gloves.

At any rate though, St. Jean is beautiful.

Wow sunshine! Just kidding.

We arrived at 10am but our auberge didn't open until 2:30, so we wandered.

Found an amazing little shop with delicious dried sausage & baguettes that we decided would make sense as backpack food. 

We also found a little grocery store where we got some dried fruit & nuts.  For the record Natasha & I both weighed in around 17 lbs. for our packs and we're staying pretty close to that. 

At this point we are relaxing at the auberge awaiting dinner. We are staying at the Auberge de Pelerin and so far it's quite nice.

 

Last night Istvan, the owner of Corazona es Pures in ¿Biakaretta?, picked us up in Pamplona & we spent the night with him and his wife. They were amazing and our dinner there was exquisite. You must stay with them if you are planning a camino. I just realized I hadn't mentioned them & that that was unacceptable. Although I have kicked the flow of my post in the shins, I shall now continue with the current situation:

There's a sign that says no washing laundry in the sinks in the washroom, so I took a fake shower and washed some clothes.  They don't seem much cleaner but they are wet now. I have my shirt dripping into a croc so that I don't make a mess. My socks now smell like apple mango tango gain and hockey equipment. *half self five* 

Our next updates will be post Pyrenees, wish us luck!

Oh & also Madrid:

PS - seeing as you've gotten this far and appear to be an avid reader, I shall reward you with the best moment of today.

Natasha has wanted to yoga since we got here on the 20th, but has not had enough privacy. She realized she had enough space in our room so she commenced her stretching. As she initiated "bum-facing-door downward dog", there was a serendipitous door opening followed by a fit of French man-giggling. Enter Manu - our new cyclist room mate.

Welcome to Germany- We're a little drunk

So the last few days have been nothing short of incredible... Well I'll rephrase that, let's say nothing short of an incredible blur.  It's been exquisite the word I've come to over use, though I feel like my English is collapsing.  Adjectives are hard in Europe, nothing seems powerful enough to capture the moment.

Landing in Frankfurt was hilarious as we are 77.4% certain our pilot was wasted.  I know I was.  *huge shout out to the flamboyant steward who served me multiple plastic cups of wine.  All said and done we were lacking some sleep but light hearted and good natured about it all.  Finding The Way Hostal proved quite easy.

Madrid has stolen my heart, the people and atmosphere is hypnotic.  It's like Italy but cleaner (that's just a rumor I've heard but plan on running with). I've never been somewhere so effortlessly stunning.  I couldn't help but feel like a sore thumb in my yoga pants and bun passing men with cuffed jeans and women accessorized to Chanel standards.  The beautiful people run to Madrid, this is my theory.

Istavan and his wife were nothing short of a fairy tale, the meal was beyond my expectation and though the bed somewhat uncomfortable was warm and welcoming.  Hot showers rock.  Suffice to say I am cured of my dirty hippie desires.  As I lay journaling and reflecting last night it occurred to me just how privelleged I am

It's going to sound crazy but so far I've been quite relaxed, I am currently on the top bunk of our bed, lulled by the thunder and [persistent] downpour, day dreaming of tomorrow's adventure.  These past days have felt like a facade.  I can't quite grasp how we can (contently?) life the way we do in Canada.

How have I gone so long without this?

Just give me my cussing pretzels, we're not actually vegan we just like to eat first, and other such nonsense

So we're in London awaiting our connection to Frankfurt and so far are packs our heavy, we've both had pack malfunctions and I'm quite confident Natasha is about to commit unspeakable acts to procure a cup of coffee. This airport is hot, but we are happy with everything none the less. Hey you, cute Asian kid, shut up I'm embracing my creative juices and being all positive hippie over here. Have I mentioned I find it very hard to sleep on planes? Leaves me in a state of certifiable delirium. Woke up drooling once, but feel it is 6:00am (real time) and I've been up since 9am yesterday.  Oh & this happened 

Planes or more tolerable when you self-fort.

I have started hoarding my plane snacks. & am proud of my collection.

1 pack pretzels

1 squashed brownie

1 bun

1 packet of margarine

& a fruit cup.

Will check in again soon with a far more lucid summary :D

Natasha's Pack List

Okay so it's come down to the final days and I've assembled my pack.  At first I had a mini meltdown (because it's who I am) having to sqeeze the contents in and stress the zippers to the max.  Thank goodness for Des reassuring me that I can in fact strap my bedroll to the bottom.  Now there's so much room and I come in at 15.5 pounds without food or water.  I am impressed, excuse me while I pat myself on the back.

So I have:

2 dresses (I can forgo my makeup but I'm a princess dammit)

2 pairs moisture wicking underwear

3 moisture wicking tanks

1 moisture wicking longsleeve

2 pairs of yoga pants

1 pair of shorts

1 sports bra and 1 regular

2 pairs walking socks (who knew this was a thing?)

In addition I will be wearing a pair of jeans on the plane with my fabulous jacket.

I have include a scarf and a headband thing-a-ma-jig, a rain poncho and pack cover, and a neck warmer.

For safety I have a blister kit and Advil.

Toiletries include mascara, shampoo, wide tooth comb, tooth stuff, glasses and contact case, toilet paper and dog poo bags for well, yeah.  You get it.

Not pictured are my shoes; sketchers with memory foam to walk in and (Blythe cover your eyes) crocs to let my feet have a break.

I will be bringing three rocks.  The pink one for my Mother and the black for my Father.  I asked them for rocks because they have done so very much for me and it's my small way of paying them back.  The green is my serpentine which has a world of significance to me.

In addition I have the luxuries:

Noise eliminating headphones

Journal

Spanish dictionary (science forbid Des and I get separated and I have to communicate)

My phone though not connected will serve for music and pictures/videos.

If feels like I'm forgetting something, maybe lots of things but I'm going to attribute that to the fact that I'm leaving a life behind.  It's Spring, time for change.

Our send off & One week to go

So Natasha & I had originally thought we'd do a big shindig with Spanish themed entrees and a feature of the wine at the bar we work at as a big send off, but with the pressure & planning associated with our quickly approaching departure date, we decided on:

"Hey you, person whose nice to us, come say goodbye, and we'll make sure we're both here Saturday"

Sidebar: we forgot to specifically invite Brian, which I feel awful about because he's been very excited for our trip and actually gave us the movie which we have been lending out to explain the camino to the community, so we are sorry Brian, we will miss you.

Anywho, 2 hours into our shift on Saturday there are 3 people in the bar, and we are feeling sad.  & then this happened...

Now to big city folks this appears a small crowd, but to us it was pretty much all of our favourite regulars. 

As the night progressed, we were humbled by the generosity of each of our friends as they paid up their tabs. A particular individual who is very dear to both of us, went above and beyond. 

 I cried. I'm a cryer, I'll be that girl crying every time something sentimental happens and will likely succumb to fits if hysteria when we reach Santiago lol.

So we just wanted to dedicate an entry to those who appreciate and believe in us. 

We have a fair amount of confidence on our own, but goals are more achievable when people reinforce your self-confidence. Thank-you guys so much, hopefully we did a good job teaching you how to find our blog lol.

Less than two weeks to go and I'm on the verge of a neurotic implosion

"Don't plan." I say to myself constantly. Just relax. You don't need an itinerary, the whole point of this trip is to fly by the seat of your pants! Live homeless! Throw caution to the wind. Don't feel stressed because you have no cussing idea how to picture the next two months of your life, just sit back and let the tide ebb & flow with the whim of the universe.

Right.

Or!:

   

 Neurosis is like smoking. Few can just up and quit without a couple of hiccups along the way (pun intended). I only have reservations for our first 5 days, and I've limited my freakish over-prepared usual packing (the girl who brings the wet washcloth in a ziploc bag when she hears the word "children") to what I find to be a very practical pilgrim-type list:
 backpack - waterproof cover, raincoat and waterproof shoes
couple pairs of socks
yoga pants
2 tank tops and 2 thin sweaters
1 pair of shorts
1 dress
crocs - much to the chagrin of my stylish friends
ear plugs
clothes line
emergency tent
rock (which I haven't decided if I shall surrender or not. I'm taking Rose Quartz which has a symbolism within itself)
collapsible wine, I'm sorry, drink glasses.
a spork
a blister kit (& a few random first aid materials)
journal, maps, and ziploc bags to keep them in
Bellaclava (or something spelled something like that and indicates a toque/scarf combo)
compass
Navmii maps for Spain that work offline on my phone.. which I'm going to have to figure out how to keep relatively charged.
The Great Gatsby & The Sun Also Rises
& That's pretty much it I think.. I also added up a daily estimation budget of what I think we'll be spending so I can know along the way if we're on track or not....10 euros a day for accomodation, $30 a day on food...
like I said, I'm a recovering neurotic, not a cured one. Has anyone ever done the camino and left a significant other at home? My boyfriend is INCREDIBLY supportive and voices his pride in my trip frequently, but I'd like to hear from someone who dealt with that separation for two months. If it weren't for the fact that the other half of my very old soul were my partner on this journey I think I'd define my current state of mind as negatively anxious as opposed to excited jitters. How people live their lives without throwing themselves into the world will always perplex me.

Our Countdown