We Made It! Wednesday

So, since I'm typing this 9 months after the trip, clearly we did survive the Camino.  Sorry to spoil the suspense for you all!

I don't think I have words to accurately describe the feeling of elation, accomplishment, sadness and paralysis that we felt when we arrived by the cathedral in Santiago.  After walking for 34 days straight, you're not entirely sure what you should be doing when you reach your destination.  Santiago is filled with lost-looking pilgrims whose faces light up when they see someone from the journey, but who, you can tell, are still looking for the little yellow flechas to tell them where to go next.  The Camino really is all about the journey, and arriving at the destination seemed almost unimportant.  It took us a couple of days to actually come to terms with being there, and not being pilgrims anymore--I'll do a separate post about visiting the Cathedral and really feeling like the journey was over (complete with video of the giant incense burner swinging through the rafters) on Sunday.

In the meantime, here are some pictures from the end of our journey-our arrival in Santiago and our trip to Finisterre, the point in mainland Europe that's the closest to home. 

Arriving in Santiago!  We had to cross a very busy highway and climb two fences to get this photo.  If you look closely, you'll notice I'm holding a little doll--that's Angelita.  Since our friend Angie (Hi Angie!) thought up the idea of the Camino trip, and then couldn't come with us at the last minute, we carried Angelita along so that a little bit of Angie would travel with us.  You'll notice her lurking in a lot of our shots.

So...the closer we got to the Cathedral, the slower we walked and the more pictures we took.  We weren't alone, either--we noticed a lot of pilgrims having coffee in the sidewalk cafes just inside the city limits.  This sculpture reminded me of my cuz (Miss you Cuz!) so we had to take a picture.  It's sort of too bad we didn't take a video...I finished posing, and then immediately turned around and walked head-first into the arm of the starfish.

When you finish the Camino, you get a certificate!  Here's Jana in the courtyard of the pilgrim reception place, holding her certificate on the right, and her pilgrim passport with stamps on the left.  We carried our passport with us from France, and it was our proof that we'd walked the whole way!

This is it!  Our destination!  The Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela

Looking out towards home in Finisterre (well, the photo is looking towards home...we're looking towards our friend Sinead, who took the picture)

Journey's End...the train station at Santiago de Compostela.  We boarded a night train from here to Madrid, and bid farewell to our pilgrim ways.  And some of our pilgrim clothes (after 34 days, some things should just be thrown away)

Although this seems like a bit of a farewell to the Camino post, I will be back tomorrow with more from Spain--right now I'm thinking we'll have Trail Marker Thursday (you wouldn't believe some of the signs), Friendly Friday (this will be a long one, with a selection of many of the wonderful people we met along the Way), Statue and Scenery Saturday (pretty self explanatory) and Sacred Sunday (with the promised inside-the-Cathedral bits and the giant swinging incense burner).  Stay tuned!

For today, I'll leave you with the quintessential 'we made it' shot from the Camino.  Adios, amigos!

-K-

Gathering Momentum

And I'm back for the second day in a row!  I've been thinking a lot about Spain and the Camino lately, partly because the weather here in Gros Morne is so snowy and cold.  So, tonight, as we sipped Spanish wine, my mind drifted back to warmer climes and interesting sights.  Since it's Valentine's Day today, I thought I'd stay away from posting pictures of people, and instead show some of the strange statues and sights along the Camino de Santiago.  Enjoy!

Tonight, as the snow falls on Norris Point, I'm sipping wine from THIS vineyard!  Bodegas Campina, in case you're wondering.  It's a lovely wine, and reminds me of this day of walking- it was the day before my birthday and we were headed for a little town where I drank hot chocolate (provided with a kiss on the forehead by the lovely grandmotherly owner) and discovered how to say 'elastic bandage' in Spanish

Jana thought they were running from a hail of bullets...I just think school crossing signs in Spain are a realistic portrait of Spanish driving.  Run, little children, run!

Even the fenceposts were walking the Camino!

Mandatory cheesy pose-with-statue shot, taken by Jean-Marc, who guided on the Camino pushing a wheelbarrow thingy, and advised us on the dangers of dehydration and gave us pain au chocolat for our breakfast that morning.  Merci!

And one final surreal shot.  This is a stained glass window in a church in Spain.  It is also the spitting image of Matthew Grant.  It freaked Jana and I out a little bit.  We were REALLY freaked out when Matt sent us a picture of him wearing a very similar hat.  The resemblance is creepy-cool.  Unless you know Matt, of course, you'll just have to trust me :)

And finally, the promised photo of the restaurant hen, cleaning up and keeping us company.  Awesome.

Until tomorrow, lovelies!  Happy Valentine`s Day!

-K-

The Best Laid Plans....

So, somehow it's been months and months since I've updated this blog, I never did manage to post Camino pictures, and I'm back at home and readjusting to life at work and in snow (after last winter in Europe, that's not easy to do).  In honour of the Year of the Dragon however, I'm going to pull my act together and start blogging each week again, posting 5 pictures from life in these parts, or whichever parts I happen to visit.  This means I'm promising to post here at least once a week (probably on Sundays again).

Just to build a little momentum, I'm going to post a few pictures each day this week from those lost months in Europe.  Many were taken by my travel buddy Jana (hi Jana!) who is a much better photographer than I.  Please prepare yourself for a drop in picture quality later!  And Jana--if you feel like posting some pictures from your adventures around New Zealand (hint hint), feel free!

We'll start with the Camino!



Breakfast Break by the Hospital San Anton (photo courtesy of our 80-year old friend Ricardo, who stopped to chat before leaving us in his dust)




Early Morning, Pilgrim v. Local, Logrono




We climbed up one side of this hill, and then had to climb down the other...this is me taking a well-earned break!




Crossing into Galicia, for the last part of our journey on the Camino.  This day started beautifully, but by mid-morning was so foggy we could barely see the signpost!  A group of Spanish men took this photo for us--they then power-walked off and were out of sight in no time.  It's no wonder we dubbed ourselves the Herd of Turtles!




The highest point of the Camino!  I'm checking our guidebook--we were trying to make sure there was
a water fountain and food nearby--we crossed down out of the fog, and found a lovely restaurant on top of another mountain, complete with a hen walking around the tables picking up crumbs (I'll post that one next time)

Next up- people we met on the Camino...and maybe that hen!

-K-

 

MIA

Hola Amigos!  Long time, no blog, right?  Sorry about that.  Jana arrived from Newfoundland, and life became a little crazy as we prepared to hike for weeks across Northern Spain.  The good news is...we survived!  Yep, we've returned safe and sound to the Emerald Isle after an amazing time on the Camino de Santiago, where we've spent the last two weeks touring around Ireland (and camping in) our lovely rental car.  Special thanks to Marie Stamp and Johanne Devlin Trew, who have provided us and our belongings with stellar accommodations.  Now Jana is heading off on new adventures in New Zealand...and I'm finally going to update my blog! 

Now, don't get your hopes up--no Camino pictures today (unless you look at Facebook- both Jana and some of our Camino friends have posted pics there, which you're welcome to scroll through).  I need some time to create a few weeks worth of Camino posts (which means cross-referencing my journal and pilgrim passport to figure out where I was when)...but I will leave you with some shots of Hebden Bridge, which I promised in my last post, but didn't deliver.

Hebden Bridge is a gorgeous, hippy-filled little town in Yorkshire, where my friend Andrew lives.  It's got a lovely canal running through town, which I walked every day in preparation for the Camino.  Enjoy!

-K-

Andrew's cat, helping me unpack

I climbed this hill each day...hoping it would prepare me for the Pyrannees (it didn't)

The view down the canal

Proof that there is more to life than sheep

Canal locks in operation

In Dublin's Fair City

When I was little I used to love 'Molly Malone' and get Mom to sing it over and over.  I took a certain glee in the part where she dies and her ghost continues to push the wheelbarrow.  Strangely, 'Puff the Magic Dragon' used to reduce me to tears, and nobody dies at all.  I was a strange child.

After a lovely time in Barcelona, Irene and I hopped on a plane bound for Dublin and caught an airport bus to our hotel. 

I'm drinking coffee and Irene is drinking tea--an alcohol-free photo!

View from our room!

We had a lovely time in Dublin doing the tourist thing (visiting the statues of Oscar Wilde and Molly Malone, drinking a pint in Temple Bar, wandering through St. Stephen's Green and the Grafton Street shops).  We even did a tour of the old Jameson's distillery, where Irene participated in a whiskey tasting (she was torn between liking the Jameson's or the Johnny Walker best, but the Jack Daniels did not go down well).

Chatting with Oscar

Grafton Street--yep, he brings his piano to busk!

The Tart with the Cart!

Whiskey tasting at the Jameson's Distillery--note she has a glass in each hand :-)

Cheers!

After Irene's April Fools departure for Florida (bye travel buddy!  Have fun in the sun in the States!), I settled in to fish-sit for a family friend in Sandymount, where I've been relaxing, blogging relentlessly in an effort to catch up before Jana and I start the Camino, and walking along Sandymount Strand. It's been lovely.  Thanks a million Marie! 

Finally cooking for myself again!  And...vegetables make an appearance! Oh how I've missed you!

They look hopeful because it's supper time!

Today we headed for Power's Court for a little brunch (yum!  Fishcake with actual fish in it, and three vegetable salads which included fresh carrot, beat, broccoli and some feta!) and a stroll through the gardens.  What an amazing sunny day!

Power's Court gate

Fountain!

My hostess in the gardens

Tulips!

Would you, could you, in a tree?

I wish I had a picture with people for reference...this tree is ENORMOUS!

In the Japanese part of the gardens

And that's it!  I'm actually caught up!  Right now I'm relaxing in Sandymount, drinking a gin and tonic and watching The Wedding Planner (I know...I'm a lost cause).  In a few days I'm off to visit my friend Andrew in England, so I should have time for one more post before Jana and I begin our next big adventure.  Talk to you soon!

-K-

This place is going to the dogs (and cats, and birds, and...)

Earlier last week, I promised a post with some of my animal shots from our travels, and in a rare bit of consistency for me, here I am, delivering it!  I wanted to post these pictures partly to share with you some of the cute little fellows we met (and fed) as we travelled, and partly to dispell the rumours going around Gros Morne that I've fallen for a sheep farmer, and that's why my pictures from Omagh feature so many little walking balls of wool--now you can see that I'm just a lost cause who likes to take pictures of animals and force them on all of you!  I've spared you all pictures of pigeons (believe me...I have many, usually with them perched atop the head of a noble looking statue).  No thanks necessary (although greatfully accepted).  Sadly I didn't manage to get a photo of the delightful little boardwalk newts in Funchal.  Maybe next time?  I also don't have any photos of the Istanbul dogs...which is hilarious, as there were about 5000 of them present at all times (even Mark Twain mentions how many of them there are, and how their only purpose in life seems to be to nap...and it's true!).

So here, in random order, are some of the critters that crossed our paths (and lounged on our beds) over three weeks in the Mediterranean!  Oh, and with the exception of the cat in Agadir (she was nursing), I'm making random and completely unfounded statements of gender.

-K-

There were about 50 of these guys, lounging on and around the Acropolis, looking cute and waiting for people to feed them

This guy was picking up crumbs around the cafe in Athens, right in front of the black cat we were feeding.  He didn't get eaten.

She ate an entire hamburger patty belonging to Irene

We came home one evening to find this guy lounging on Irene's bed

Mama cat, who ate our pizza (tomatoes, crust and all) but wouldn't eat the anchovies on top

Guarding the Colosseum--I swear, these are different black cats in different cities!  And I didn't even get pics of all the black cats!

Visiting elephant friend

She was totally posing for everyone at Ephesus

This is a mosaic floor uncovered at Ephesus...clearly for the purpose of naps

Swan in Funchal!  And he didn't hiss or bite or anything!

This is a green parakeet from Park Güell, but these guys live wild all over Barcelona

We found him like this--on my bed, wearing Irene's sunglasses

Fat El Pimpi birdie in Malaga

Seal? Walrus?  Cute, anyway

Still haven't found what he was typing....

These were a taxi option in Malta!  We walked, sadly, but I'd prefer this to a car!

Our turtle friend.  He joined us for Sangria later that week

A note from the creators of these fluffy little fellas

Isn't he awesome? There's a great pic of him and Irene, but I don't seem to have it, so this will have to do!