Reflections on Walking the El Camino

Physically:

• The feet felt okay in the a.m., but by the end of the p.m., it was tough to keep hiking.
• The blisters and calluses were manageable, especially as I learned to take better medical care of them.
• The infection was the show stopper, but I made appointments with my PCP and podiatrist upon return to the states. I could see how it could have become worse, waking some morning and having had it spread. That made prudence the wise course of action.

General Thoughts:

• Spain is such a beautiful country with such gracious people.
• Spanish people dress classy; they don't dress like trash.
• Would I live in Spain? It's possible, but ...
• The politics are wrong for my outlook.
• The economy is bad.
• Spain has a weak foreign policy, it's not a world player.
• I guess I'm a born and bred Yankee.

It all came down to completing 80 miles (120 km) in 6 days (plus 1 rest day) for an average of 12 miles/hiking day at 5 - 6 hrs/day.

There were several moments where the El Camino experience led me to consider what I had taken on.

• My first order of coffee con leche and toastada in Camas brought back a ton of memories about breakfast in Spain.
• Meditating with the "Our Father" on the way to Real De La Jara.
• Taking my day off and wandering along the calles (streets) of Monasterio
• Sharing jokes and experiences with Mick (Leeds, England) along the hike
• Lunch with Dennis (the Canadian) in Almaden
• All the breath-taking hills, mountains, pastures, farms and fields that I never enjoyed when I was driving instead of walking
• Making it up hill after hill, climb after climb, slope after slope in an almost never-ending ascent

I have so many things to think about over the next year

• Have I changed somehow? It's hard to see yet, but time will tell.
• Maybe it's not the 'change', but the 'alterations' that a peregrino feels
• I chased away a lot of ghosts, and opened new doors in the process
• What will I be when I return to my previous life?
• Will the El Camino create a new life or was it an interruption in my life?
• After 2 - 3 days, the Via De La Plata became more than a vacation; it became a vocation. And so I regret that it came to an end prematurely. But that would imply that one is only a pilgrim while walking the El Camino.