I entered Sarria of Lugo province in northwestern Spain, wildly wavering between majesty and agony. If you tapped the post, “And So It Begins”, you caught a glimpse of my load; if you read “Thoughts on Surrender…”, you know the day before I left, my back gave out … but I didn’t 
. Here is where I learned that one should not carry 25 lbs. on one’s shoulders for a day of train n’ bus travel and think they’ll be able to skip into town just because they’re higher than a kite to be in the launch-village of a dream pilgrimage.
But boy was I awed, and this was enough to keep one foot travelling in front of the other, however hunched over I may have appeared to the locals. Crazy really, but this is initially where I realized there’s no way I was traveling alone, ever, without some supernatural, albeit invisible, sherpa-in-assist.
Everything in Spain puts my heart to flutter – the striking design of buildings still standing hundreds of years later and the way moss and ivy have made home in all the perfect places, the lazy lull of waters making their way under quaint stone bridges, the stark white and muted pastels of buildings that would have been torn and replaced decades before in North America but whose balconies speak to current dwellers due to the laundry hanging like it’s any ordinary day.
No day in Spain has been ordinary to me. This is what gets me. I walk and stare and stare and walk, at the people, the everyday hummings of life, the towering trees, vivid green alive everywhere, sculptures to commemorate or make a statement, even unassuming grocery stores do it for me – where you can’t touch, but rather have to ask, one by one for the produce you want, in Spanish no less (held me back at first, but Google Translate was my grocery boy) – and everyone else, those who call these places home, just go about their day, acting as if they don’t actually live in one of the most stunning and extraordinary places on the planet. This makes me walk ever-with a smile on my face, giving hint to the secret I hold that others seem to have missed – this is a day, a place, a Way, a moment like none other and it’s a mind-blowingly divine gift.
Speaking of gifts, after one particular wrong turn that God whispered me back from, I trusted the map and finally saw it … the very first El Camino de Santiago sea shell sign that would guide me, to my first hostel stay at, (wait for it …) “Oasis – Shelter & Chill Out Albergue”. Of course it is. Hee hee. And a bunk bed with a view never felt better for a weary, almost wrecked, traveler, ever.
Cristina, our host, registered passport, gave Wifi (pronounced whiff-eee here if you can believe it 😉) ‘contresena’, a tour of this amazing little haven of place (little did I know it would become a haven of body, mind and heart as well), and Jenni poured herself into a shower to help the healing begin.
But no inability to stand fully erect or walk more than 15 feet without leaning against wall or bench-sitting-and-stretching would stop this girl from getting her Sarria bearings. And what a show this little town gave me.
After reviewing maps, grabbing a ‘café con leche’ from a coffee shop where all the staff were dressed as Scarecrows, and although I could broken-Spanish compliment them, frustratingly couldn’t ask them what the deal was, I took hot bevie in a mini to-go and hobbled out to the street, goofy smiling all the way.
Every creek, cobble stone street, shop window, passing stranger – particularly the little girl in the window petting the ceramic pig – had me swooning. Finally, after a bit more rest and settling into my quiet room (few pilgrims at this time of year) and wee upper bunk, I headed out for my first dinner. The waiter, initially surly but who came to warm to the ‘nice’ tourist, brought me a paper menu he deemed as “the best map in the world” (of his home of Galicia not surprisingly), a well-earned ‘vino tinto’ and a salad. And what a salad it was, heaping and topped with tuna. Forgot to take a pic of that, but you can use your imagination. I soon came to understand that these people haven’t heard of the healthy-food movement, or mercury in our oceans, as tuna (yes, canned) is the food d’jour in restaurant after restaurant across the country. I came to use the phrase ‘sin atun’, so I could survive past my time in Spain.
But truly, these quirky little ways of a place where time seems to have stood still, came to warm my heart and keep me giggling. All in all my first day of solo travel, no matter the minor twinges of body, will warm my heart for eternity.
Have a look …
In the middle of the night, my mind was flipping as often as I was to comfort my back. I was gripped suddenly by the realization that I simply would not be able to hit any trail the next morning, or perhaps at all.
How could I come all this way and then fate would have me heading home, unfulfilled, just how? In the spirit of the Surrender Adventure, I asked not “Why is this happening to me?” but,
as I’ve spoken of in so many workshops and coaching sessions through the years, I asked,
“What am I to learn? How can I surrender to this, adapt and learn?”
The answers flooded in mid-eve.
In the spirit of keeping these blog reads somewhat short, those tidbist will come in the next posting …
“Sarria – Oh My Haven, My Heart – Part 2”.
Love the little girl petting the ceramic pig.
I know, right love? So precious to catch a glimpse, and a snap, of this as I wandered by. Her mother and I exchanged a glance of “awwww” and she beamed that I noticed her sweet soul of a child. Glad to share the moment with you too Kim. 🙏🏼💜
Loving this, Jen. I’ve always wanted to do the Camino but know I wouldn’t make it. Nonetheless Spain is my favourite place in the world and Santiago de Compostela is breathtaking. Can’t wait to keep racing.
So wonderful to find you here Marlen … and perhaps one day, even a small portion of The Way will call you. But even to simply bask in the forests for a moment in Northern Spain, brings the energy and healing of the experience. And you take such extraordinary Ways in all you do, that no doubt your life transformations are equal to those inspired by El Camino de Santiago. xo