It was however, topped off by a hardy and delicious dinner shared with a Chilean, a Brazilian, a Spaniard, a Dane and two more Californians. When the group was having drinks together prior to dinner there was an Italian, and a Libyan with us too and the number of languages being bandied about at the table was mind blowing. Oh! And I met someone from Scotland and a couple from Bulgaria today so make sure to add those to the list too!
Sarah, the Californian who has been teaching English in Madrid, and I parted paths today as I didn't quite make it the extra 7k that she did. But I did stumble upon German Sarah from last week! She has decided to go do the northern route and we'll plan to see each other in Santiago. Oh! (Again) I totally failed to mention that I found Sharon from Seattle (we spent the end of Day 1 and all of Day 2 together before the Camino pulled us apart). She's doing great and it was so wonderful to see her. I'm sure the same will be true of CA Sarah if I ever manage to catch up to her.
I'm exhausted (which I'm sure you're tired of hearing) but ill share with you my favorite moment of the day:
Sarah and I parted early so that we could each walk at our own pace and that's exactly what I did today. It also meant that by 1pm I had reached the exact middle of nowhere. And I mean that. There was nobody that I could see before or after me at least 1k in either direction. It was only after I realized that I didn't see any backpacks in the distance that I realized that must also mean I cannot hear anyone else. And no sooner did I realize that I was the only one making any sound, than I stopped cold in my tracks. The squeaking of my pack and rhythm of my poles suddenly silenced, I was shocked by what I heard. Nothing. No wind, no human sounds, nothing except a buzz so tiny I thought it was the wind until I realized it was the gnats. My eyes feasted upon a scene so glorious it made Michelangelo look like an amateur.
For just a moment I felt as if I had been transported to a faraway world where I was the only inhabitant. It was surreal and it quite literally took my breath away. There I stood in one of Gods most glorious natural cathedrals completely alone. I will never forget it as long as I live.
After taking the included panoramic and trying to soak up the sheer awe of it all, the bruising tingle of my feet pulled me back to the task at hand. But for a few minutes I swore I experienced Heaven.
No comments:
Post a Comment