On the less positive side is the intimidation factor. What in the world am I, a total novice at backpacking, thinking in taking on a 480 mile trek (not counting any missed signs and wrong turns, the up hills and the down hills, and the exploring of villages and cities once we get there!) through a variety of terrain in a foreign country and inviting other people to join me? The closer it gets, the more intimidated I am. Then there is the anticipatory sadness (grief is a little strong) of missing people. This is the longest time I've been away from friends and family since back when I was in the Navy and making deployments, so I know that I will miss my mother whom I get to see most days, my cats who greet me each morning,
my good friends and others. But I will also be getting to know the four others I am with much better (like really well!) and also getting to meet people from all over the world who are also making this pilgrimage. On the other side of the coin are all the things to which I am looking forward (just had to reword that for all the English/ Literature/ Communications people I know who might be reading this!). I am so looking forward just to time away. I haven't ever had this much time off in my whole adult life! Even in graduate school, I went straight through, and in seminary I had CPE (clinical pastoral education) one summer and did work study through the other. So yea for just being away.
And I'm looking forward to some quietness. I look forward to meeting people from all over and talking with them, but I also will love listening to the sound of wind in the trees and blowing through a field of tall grasses. I love hearing different birds call to each other, even though I don't recognize very many of them. I look forward to seeing new colors of greens and reds and purples and yellows and pinks on the leaves of trees and the vineyards and the wildflowers.
The different browns of the soils as we traverse from the rocky Pyrenees to the sandiness of the coastal plains. >
Last week, as I was breaking in my hiking boots on the mountains of Kanuga, NC, I was looking around at the flora and fauna and appreciating it, thinking how it will compare to what I will see in the woods and mountains of Spain. One person there, inhaling deeply, said, "No place else smells like Kanuga." He's right, it's a wonderful mixture of wood smoke, old forests, whatever's blooming and mountian air. But I wonder what northern Spain will smell like? Vineyards. Cow pastures. Industrial areas. Forests. Nothing will smell like that either, and I hope to bring back memories of those fragrances (or at least the good ones.)I have a deep and abiding passion for architecture and design and can't wait to see the villages and cathedrals and ruins and cafes. I want to see art and mosaics and buildings and city squares. Hopefully, we'll get to sit in some little bars, or in some of those squares and hear some wonderful Spanish music!
I'll be paying special attention to the foods and drinks along the way, too.
Every year, to benefit Relay for Life, Laura and I auction ourselves off to do a dinner for 6. Each year is different. Because of my trip this year, we think it will probably have a Spanish theme. It just so happened that a kitchen store in Savannah was having a class called The Art of Paella,
so Laura and I went. Paella is the national dish of Spain. The chef for the class was Juan Rodriguez. He cooked enough for more than 30 people in one pan! This paella had pork, chicken, oysters, shrimp, clams and fish in it, as well as all the usual vegetables. The end result was gorgeous! We're inspired and anticipating a great meal. After we get to Santiago, and celebrate the completion of our journey in the mass at the Cathedral, we want to go to Finisterre (Land's End), which is a couple of hours away on a bus. A little beach town on the Atlantic Coast, where we can relax, NOT walk, and just rest our feetsies in the salt water for a day or two or three. Then, we will head to Madrid (and maybe a side trip or two, like to the Alhambra) for a couple of days before finally flying back. At least I guess we're coming back.
