Let me begin today with the people. Already we have been fortunate to make some good friends on the camino. It´s quite easy to do here. We have fallen in with one crowd in particular-Mark (Belgium), Gabriel and Carin (NY, NY), Remo) Germany, Michael (UK), and a few others. The cast is constantly changing, but you tend to see many familiar faces over time. After arriving in Pamplona yesterday, Barbie and I split off from the rest to attend mass.
Today no one knew what had happened to Mark and Remo. Turns out they bought tickets for the Pamplona soccer match on the spur of the moment, partied into the night with the rest of the city when they won, and then slept outside somewhere where they found grass and trees. They woke up in the morning only to discover that they were lying on the island of a traffic circle with morning commuters driving all around them. A TV crew promptly arrived to interview these two enthusiastic soccer fans.
Stories such as this have abounded already. In general, I am finding the pilgrims to be exceptionally generous and open people. And I do mean open. People have no problem hanging their unmentionables out to dry for all to see (tighty whiteys included) and even walking about in their underwear during the evening hours. While I would not include such moments among the many spectacular views I´ve had thus far, I can appreciate the lack of pretension this implies.
Needless to say, many surpises have occurred along the way. Two days ago we veered from out itinerary slightly at the urging of our new friends and walked 38 kilometers in order to give ourselves a short walk into Pamplona the next day. Just to give you an idea, most resources I had read previous to arriving recommended doing no more than 30k a day. It was a grueling day to be sure, but we made it alright and are no worse for the wear.
At any rate, the 20 minutes my one euro can by is just about up. Please continue to keep us in your prayers.
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