Day 39: Arzúa to Amenal

Updated: May 14

23 km. Gentle hills and easy walking. The first hour or so was cloudy and cool - perfect walking weather. Then a half hour of light rain - still not so bad. Then the skies opened and bucketed rain for several hours. It finally stopped and my last two hours were dry, cloudy, and cool.

It was a great day, despite the rain. I walked easily and my body held back its complaints. I felt mainly gratitude and contentment. Sure, the rain was a concern. At one point, I sat in a cafe for two hours waiting for it to at least ease up. And my wet clothes made the walking cold. But when is life without rain? The Camino provides so many opportunities to be resilient and persevere through challenges. It is a great metaphor. Today’s reminder was that drier skies will always come back around.

The experience of joining the French Camino was not at all what I expected. Breakfast was definitely different. The hotel offerings have leveled up. There was a fabulous buffet, but also a throng of people trying to get through each other to get food. My breakfasts have always been quiet affairs up to now. There were also many more cafes and amenities catering to pilgrims along the Camino.

The Camino itself did not feel as busy as I expected, and I walked solo all day. In the morning, there were definitely more pilgrims than I am accustomed to seeing. But it was still quiet and not overcrowded. After my stop to wait out the rain, I saw no other pilgrims at all. This may be because I didn’t leave this morning until 10:30. But the hotel manager also told me later that many Camino Francés walkers take an alternate route in, and the way I came always has fewer people. It should change tomorrow.

The pilgrims I did come across were either solo walkers or couples, no big groups, and everyone kept to themselves. That was definitely a change. On the Northern route everyone greeted each other. Perhaps this is a strategy to keep some space when the route is more crowded, or perhaps in these final days, everyone is simply feeling as contemplative as I am.

I have received photos from Camino friends as they arrive in Santiago. My heart is full seeing these photos of ‘old’ friends crossing the finish line. My turn tomorrow… it’s all happening!

I am feeling both excited and melancholy about completing this amazing journey. Tomorrow I want to savor the day and stay in the moment, so I’ll take the time now to document some of the many things I will miss when it’s over:

Camino friends. The bonds created through sharing this incredibly special experience.
Ample time to reflect. As I said, there are so many metaphors for life on this journey. I will not bore you by listing them.
Simplicity of routine. Day in day out, my only job is to walk.
Simple pleasures. A simple routine allows us to better notice the simple joys: slight variances in weather, beautiful scenery, etc.
Hospitality of the locals. It must get old having pilgrims walk through constantly. However, we are still gifted with smiles, kindness, and even small visual touches added to homes for pilgrims to enjoy.
Having a gigantic appetite and then satisfying it.
The feeling of overcoming a challenge of some sort everyday.
Having moments or stretches of a deep sense of well-being everyday.
Sharing my experience through this blog each day. I have been grateful for the chance to reflect on my day and fortunate to have all of you out there willing to connect with me as I walk.
Hearing ‘Buen Camino!’