I have a pretty nice exam schedule this semester. Globalization, Cooperation, and Development does not require an exam. My history professor told me to read a few books in place of the exam for her class. I took my first exam, Spanish language, January 23rd. Since then, I've been translating notes for "Introduction to Social Work". I'll take that exam on Tuesday. The next semester does not officially start until February 14, but since I will not have classes on Fridays and few students attend classes in the first week anyway, there is no point in going until the 18th. What am I supposed to do with all that free time?
That question has been on my mind for some time. The answer was obvious- I'm going to ride the Camino de Santiago (Way of St. James), almost in its entirety. My grandmother first told me about it four years ago. It's a hiking trail of sorts that stretches more than 450 miles from St. Jean-Pied-de-Port in the southwest region of France to Santiago de Compostela in the northwest corner of Spain. Cyclists use freeways that run paralell when the actual trail is too rough to ride on. Legend has it that the body of James, brother of Jesus, was taken to Santiago from Jerusalem. A version of the legend that I read in Spanish said that the body came back to life, acending to the sky and startling a group travelers.
I have changed my itinerary for the trip mutliple times. At first, I wanted to start the Camino from France so I can say I actually have ridden the entire thing. That would require me to take a bus to San Sebastian and then at least two more trains to St. Jean Pied-de-Port. In the end, I decided it was too much of a hassle on top of the extra cost.
Besides, I already rode the second stage stretching from Roncesvalles to Pamplona, where I live. I wanted to test my readiness for the Camino. I figured out once I started that I had already ridden part of the route back in October. I felt fine until I got over the first major hill. Then I really had to push myself just to reach Roncessvalles, about 28 miles from Pamplona. I took a break for an hour once I got there, trying not to think of the trip back. I was hoping to buy the pilgrim's credential there, which is required to stay at the hostels that line the Camino. It's a little pamphlet that you need to have stamped at each town along the Camino. I couldn't find the guy in charge of the hostel and pilgrims' office. Actually, he found me. He pointed to my bike locked outside his office. At first, I thought he was telling me I was parked illegally. I was relieved that on the contrary, he wanted to ask me if I was sleeping there that night. He was obviously willing to help in any way he could.
The way back, going the direction in which the Camino is meant to be walked or ridden, was much easier. After that test ride and my next one to Puente La Reina it hit me why the Camino is only marked going one direction. The answer is that while many people think riding or walking the entire westbound route is crazy, going eastbound would be self-torture, pure and simple. I faced nasty headwinds coming back up to Pamplona from Puente La Reina. Also, the eastbound way on average seems to be far more uphill.
I decided after the first test ride that starting from Roncesvalles is good enough. That ride took quite a bit out of me. The average day will be much easier than the Pamplona-Roncessvalles ride, but I still wanted to give myself as much time as possible. I managed to pull the average day down to about 54 miles, with the exception of the last day being 25 miles. That should give me enough time to explore the cathedrals and other landmarks along the Camino and give me a cushion for any unforseen incidents. Here is the final schedule:
February 5
Pamplona-Logroño
55 miles
February 6
Logroño-San Juan de Ortega
55.8 miles
February 7
San Juan de Ortega-Frómista
53.32 miles
February 8
Frómista-Reliegos
53.94 miles
February 9
Reliegos-Rabanal del Camino
56.42 miles
February 10
Rabanal del Camino-O Cebreiro
51.46 miles
February 11
O Cebreiro-Ribadiso
57.04 miles
February 12
Ribadiso-Santiago de Compostela
25.42 miles
I was planning on riding some of Spain's northern coast in the following days, but I found a better idea. As I was scanning the website of budget airline Ryanair, I saw that they offer flights from Santiago de Compostela to Rome. A visit to Rome sounded a whole lot better than cycling even more after what can be a tough week if the weather isn't nice to me. I'm going to find a safe place for my bike in Santiago de Compostela and fly to Rome on the night of the 13th. I'll fly back to Santiago de Compostela on the 17th and take an overnight bus to Bilbao. Then I'm taking another bus from Bilbao to Pamplona. It'll arrive at noon, just in time for my 1:00 class.
I do have another, certainly more important, reason for riding the Camino. At Leadership Training in Colorado in 2006, a couple of the speakers and a book we read, Celebration of Discipline, encouraged use to spend extended time alone with God on a regular basis. For example, one of the speakers told us of his experience camping by himself. I have never done anything like this. I won't be completely alone on the Camino de Santiago, but I think I can call this my pseudo-solitude time. I will not have access to my computer that week. I'll have my cell phone for emergencies, and I'll use it to call my mother in the middle of the week to let her know everything is going well. Other than that, I will be cut off from my everyday life. I'll have my Bible, the prescense of Jesus Christ, his Creation, and possibly a person or two to talk to in the albergues. I'm really looking forward to it. If you can pray that I can get the most out of this time, I would really appreciate it.
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