Day #1 May 17, 2018

As I imagined my first day on the Camino it was filled with metaphors for life and deeply philosophical and spiritual insights. 😂😂😂. Maybe that will come with reflection but I’m not there just yet. A succinct review of this day: The Pyrenees kicked my ass! I walked from Saint Jean Pied-de-Port to Orisson. This is a mere 9km – a bit more than 5 miles. It took me 3 hours! I don’t know the degree of the climb but it was dramatic almost constantly. Somewhere near the halfway mark the nicely maintained trail turned into an even steeper incline of grass, dirt and rocks. It’s been raining quite a bit here so it was a muddy and slippery mess the rest of the way. I’m not sure if I have ever perspired as much as I did this morning! I’m not aware of the elevation but the last bit I walked in the middle of a cloud and, of course, it rained! By the time I arrived at my albuerge I was soaking from the sweat and the rain, nose running and muscles (mostly glutes) screaming. Immediately had water and coffee and more water and more coffee. This was followed by a mildly warm shower for the maximum 5 minutes. Clean clothes and a bit of a nap followed the shower and hot tea and baguette with cheese followed the nap. Tonight I’m looking forward to a community dinner. I might add that I’m looking forward to both parts of that – community and dinner! My roommates are from Brazil, Sweden, Germany and The Netherlands. So many interesting people! Yesterday I made a connection on the train with Christine from Taiwan. She is meeting her cousin her for the Camino. The haven’t seen each other in 30 years! I had a lovely meal last evening with a young woman from Oregon and a young woman from Australia. They both went on through to Ronscevaux this afternoon and I imagine I will probably not see them again. I was, however, absolutely thrilled when Christine and her cousin walked through the door while I was drinking my coffee this afternoon! Again today I am without internet access. I am told this will change once I’m out of the mountains. Hence, you’ll see the post time delayed. And sorry about the lack of insight! LOL. It’s just 4:30pm but I can’t wait to eat dinner, hear stories and go to bed. Until next time!