I woke excited as we had our phones sorted and could phone home to wish my dad a happy 80th birthday and I could talk to Claire. Or so it seemed. I tried numerous ways to call and they all failed. In desperation I sent dad an email, a poor substitute for a phone call. I also tried a hail Mary and sent a FaceTime invitation.
As we walked through Pamplona on a beautiful morning, my phone buzzed. It was dad, mum and my sister Kristine. It was lovely to see their faces and have a chat. And wish him a happy birthday.
The first few kilometres passed quickly as we were happy.
I often wonder where I got my sense of adventure from. It was my parents. We were never wealthy enough to travel overseas, but that never stopped us having great times, either just the four of us, with extended family or with friends. Mum would tell Kristine and I stories when dad worked night shift. We would lie in the dark and hear about her adventures in childhood. Dad is a photographer. He tells stories through his photos. They gave my sister and I the gift of looking at the world in the way of the writer or the photographer, always with a sense of wonder and joy, always seeing that there is a story, something going on that most people don’t see as they rush through life.
I was also excited as I could talk to Claire. When we spoke, she had sad news about our dear friend Adrian. We both cried as we worry about him, his wife Kate and their lovely children. I don’t ever pray, but I do think about my family and friends as I walk and visit special places along The Way. Though we are on the other side of the world, they are with us always and we love them dearly.
It was a tough, though lovely day on the Camino. After leaving Pamplona, we had a relatively easy walk through Cizur Minor and then through farmland that was so well maintained, it looked like a painting. James and I talked about a lot of different things, family and friends. We stopped at Zariquiegui for a cafe con leche and some food. Many other pilgrims were passing through, grabbing something as we shivered and contemplated the climb to Alto del Perdón. Warmed and refueled, we headed up. The wind blew cold and clouds drifted by as we gained altitude.
It was a steep and rocky descent. Our tired legs struggled.
On the way into Uterga we met Peter, a pilgrim from Seattle who was out here alone trying to figure out what he does with his life from here. His children are either in college or finished and he was now considering the future. He was a lovely guy and we shared a beer in Uterga.
There we also met Regina and Paul from New Jersey and Manny from Sweden. After a beer, we still had 6km to Puenta La Reina. On the way out of town we met up with Siobhan and Alice from Ireland again. They finish up at Logroño and head back to work. They are such lovely people who would like to keep walking but have jobs and families to return to. We will miss their smiling faces and Irish lilt.
It was a hot (13 degrees) slog through the beautiful villages of Muruzabal and Obanos before the descent into Puenta La Reina. In all we did over 24km as our Albergue was on a hill on the other side of the town. When we arrived, it looked like the Albergue was empty, but when I opened our window, there was Karin, Natalie and Xavier. It was so lovely to meet up with our friends from day one. We shared stories and Natalie and Xavier produced a bottle of Rose they bought in Pamplona.
As we were sitting in the sun, we saw another pilgrim arrive and sit some way away. We called him over. Thierry had walked the Chemin d’Arles, starting in Montpelier, France over a month ago. The Chemin met the Camino here. He has a 20kg pack and has not met anyone for weeks. Over dinner, we six peregrinó had a lovely chat. We charged glasses and wished dad a happy 80th birthday. We also raised our glasses and thanked our loved ones back home.
We are tired, but content in what we have achieved so far. Each of us walk for different reasons which may not even be clear to us yet. It has been a day of joy and wonder, a day deserving of my dad now also reaching 80 after mum did so last October. On the other side of the world, people are thinking of you. Buen Camino!
The Long Camino 
Beautiful words and sentiments from my adventurous brother, who has proven to be a wonderful role model for his children, teaching them that the true richness in the world lies in people and places. Keep enjoying yourselves! xx
LikeLike