Seattle

First time sleeping in an airport. Plane flight is at 950 am. Back to Madrid. Then a 9 hour flight to Charlotte (another first) with Ursula K. Le Guin and Salman Rushdie for company (firsts again). Then off to Seattle.

Touchdown in Laredo, a town along the Camino Norte, just outside of Bilbao. Today’s 8 hour bus ride to here from Santiago included sights of the lush green mountains I’ll be trekking through the next three weeks or so. It was very strange to be in a vehicle again, with scenery whizzing by several miles an hour. Getting off the bus was comical and embarrassing- it was like having sea legs. I was bumping my head on doors and tripping over everything.

I’ve spent the last few days getting very excited to be starting another Camino. I want to continue to meet people and do so independently…but I’m more nervous than I thought I would be. I’ve walked a thousand kilometers across Spain, but I always had someone I knew with me. Now, it’s just me. For the first time in two months, I am completely alone. It’s very exciting, and it’s what I wanted. But after walking through this quiet town at sunset and checking into a cheap one-bed room hostel to get a good nights sleep, I can’t help but feel terribly lonely.

This is one of the first times on this trip when I’ve felt really homesick. I know that home is just a phone call away, but nothing replaces a warm hug from a loved one. Today is my brother’s sixteenth birthday, and more than anything I wish I was with him. I miss him and my family and my home more than ever- it really hurts.

But I’m here.

I’m alive.

And I’m going to keep walking.

In Madrid.

I am stuck in London. I can think of worse places to be.

still in Madrid, the remnants of squad haVe dispersed physically, still together in my heart

A perfect day for a walk. Cool with bright sun at the start, shade on the woodland trails when it was needed, then clouds for the pavement pounding up to Trasmonte and down. Staying at Casa Riamonte in Castelo, 11 km from Santiago. Pam, Joe and I stayed here two years ago and enjoyed the hospitality and excellent dinner provided by Julian and Rosa. Julian promises that tonight’s dinner will be special … pork!

Stuttgart

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