In the early morning spring light, well-worn paths are framed with rows upon rows of vibrant, fresh produce.
At every stall, small silver bowls are selected, then filled with delicious morsels that will later become the foundation for building mouth-watering meals.
Melodic chatter fills the air as locals barter for a bargain, tourists linger and friends gather to share stories and laughter.
Fresh, simple. Beautiful.
I take time to simply observe the simplicity of the moments. Moments that are unhurried, moments that are embraced.
And as a solo traveller who does not need to move within another’s time frame, I have the freedom to move to my own rhythm.
A rhythm that does not have me visit tourism offices, nor to source ‘to do’ sights. In doing so I discover interesting places, and more often than not, those wondrous, out of the way places where locals gather.
Whilst walking part of the Camino de Santiago, I wrote brief anecdotes via my iPhone and posted here and other social media sites. With only a small backpack, no DSLR and no computer, my plan was to document my experience in greater detail once home. However life has unwittingly taken the driver’s seat and it’s now over 2 months since I returned without a single word written.
Time to start writing. Or perhaps for the moment, just a few words accompanied with a collection of images. As the cliche goes: a picture speaks a thousand words…
Day 1: New friends, breathtaking scenery and 24 kms of endless hills that pushed me to my physical limits. There were moments where my body screamed for me to quit, and it was in those moments my mental strength needed to be stronger. It was and despite the extreme physical challenge, my mind conquered, it was intoxicating & exhilarating …
Day 2: 22 kms – Exhaustion has taken over. It’s so physically challenging and everyone we meet says the same. Apparently the first 10 days are known as the ‘Suffering’ I can absolutely attest to that. On the upside the scenery is breathtaking as were the positive and uplifting comments on social media…
Kim Lindquist Good on you girlfriend I feel like I’m walking it with you…wish I was…but sad to say I’d be one of your pesky snorers 🤣1
Mark Lindquist Hang in there Jen. Your mind will lead you not your body.😎😎😎
Jenny Joyce What fabulous scenery!! I’m enjoying reading your blog and in awe of the incredible trek you are doing.
Gavin Curtis You’re going well Jen . Your physical conditioning will improve as you go and it’s a fact your mind will try to give up 100 times before your body will . Keep thinking happy thoughts.
Day 3: 19kms – I walked alone for most of today, and I only came across 3 other pilgrims. I didn’t listen to music, just the sounds of Spanish countryside…
Day 5: Pamplona to Mendizabal, 22.5kms Both Chu and I said we felt as though we were walking through Tuscany. It was beautiful. Only one drawback was the crowds. This was the first day we’d encountered many people, but we took our time and waited for the masses to pass which allowed us alone time. We stopped 1.5kms short of the 5th stage, and we’re now staying at a lovely homestay with only 1 other pilgrim from NZ. The hospitaleria is right now, making us dinner whilst we sit in his lounge room sharing our experiences . Being only the 3 of us means an uninterrupted sleep is a definite. ❤️❤️💤
Day 6: I’d read how walking the Camino exposes you to so many emotional, physical and cultural experiences. Day 6 encompassed that for me.
I’m not religious yet felt drawn to walk into a 16th century church and send peace & love to certain people. I felt my body overheating so i took time to let it rest. And tonight, dinner was shared with 7 other people from Australia (me), Italy, France, Korea, China & USA. We could not understand each other, yet we all spent over two hours enjoying each other’s company. For me, best night on the Camino so far ❤️
Day 7: I brought my late Dad’s rain jacket with me on the Camino and today, we are taking a walk together in the rain and sipping steaming lattes in quaint cafes …❤️
Day 8: It was time to head to France to walk part of the Camino Le Puy, via San Sebastián. But my last morning on Frances was spent walking 14 kms through beautiful vineyards, olive groves and fields of wheat that framed the long stretches of dirt road.
In the distance, emerald green hills rolled over the landscape and the endless tweeting of small birds filtered through the air.
I did not listen to music, only the sounds of nature and the gentle crunching of my footsteps on the dirt track as I placed one foot in front of the other.
I felt totally alone in the world. It was peaceful, therapeutic and incredibly calming.
I cannot verbally express the feeling of peace. The feeling of knowing I was on the right road.
A number of years ago I was introduced to a young girl who volunteered to be my model whilst I was studying. In the years following that meeting, I’ve had the pleasure to not only photograph Isobella many times, but to also experience Isobella’s incredible ability to adapt her look. Not only does she photograph beautifully, she is also an incredibly beautiful person. Here’s a collection of my favourite images.
Isobella
Isobella…
And the Isobella who greeted me: Unexpected to say the least!
What better way to start [again] at the beginning than with a Weekly Photo Challenge.
My feet are again placed on the proverbial starting “Line“line as last week I unwittingly deleted all my followers that I had acquired over the many years I’ve been a WordPress user.
How did I make such an error?
I decided to change to WP.org and on following instructions, migrated data etc and followers over to the new site. After a few days of frustration I decided it wasn’t working for me, so returned to my WP.com. However on deleting my Jetpack subscription I did not realise that my followers would also be deleted.
Construction…
A collection of shoes in the carpark, yet there was not a soul on the beach?
Practising playing with zoom exposures…
Call me naive, or stupid if the cap fits, but as I still had my original site live, I simply presumed all would be well. No, it wasn’t
So all that’s left to do is to stand on the starting line once again and hit the ground running.
stanley & bear 