Life takes on a neat simplicity, too. Time ceases to have any meaning.
When it is dark, you go to bed, and when it is light again you get up.
And everything in between is just in between.
It’s quite wonderful, really.' Bill Bryson
I like to walk. And so does The French.
I met The French (Dominique) in April 2014, while walking the Camino Le Puy in France. We walked on together to the end of that Camino in St Jean Pied de Port near the Spanish border, and a few days more on the Camino Frances over the Pyrenees and in to Spain. I said 'a bientot' to Dominique in Pamplona. It was time for me to return to Australia - and for him to continue along The Way to Santiago de Compostela, a path I had walked twice before.
Since then The French and I have walked the Camino Primitivo in northern Spain, through Mossman Gorge in The Daintree Rainforest, along Seven Mile Beach at Port Douglas and Wineglass Bay in Freycinet National Park in Tasmania. In Sydney, we have walked to The Lighthouse in Palm Beach, along the Sydney harbour foreshore from The Rocks to Balmoral Beach, along the eastern beaches from Bondi to Coogee and back - and across the Sydney Harbour Bridge many times.
Now, another camino. This time the Camino Mozarabe in southern Spain. We will set out from Granada on 1st May and walk just under 400 kms to Merida. And afterwards, time in Seville and the 'white towns' (pueblos blancos) of Andalusia. But before our camino begins, I am looking forward to other adventures with The French, in France.
- First stop, Paris - and meeting two of Dominique's daughters, their partners, and his grand-children
- A side trip to Grindelwald, in the Bernese Alps in Switzerland, to visit my nephew Luke, his partner Ann, their baby boy Fred and their 'other' baby boy, Joey the dog, together with my sister Julie and brother-in-law Graham
- Exploring Normandy including Etretat, Deauville and the island commune of Mont St Michel
- Visiting Martine and Guy, the delightful French couple we met on the Camino Primitivo in October 2014, and bid 'a bientot' in Santiago
- Attending the Anzac Day 100th anniversary dawn service outside Villers-Bretonneux in the Somme, where 1200 Australian soldiers gave their lives to save that small town.
I fly to Paris on Tuesday 7 April, arriving the next day. I plan to post an update every few days in France and, if time and technology allow, every day while on the Camino Mozarabe. Mais, nous verrons. But, we will see. Those of you who have followed my caminos before will know that The Way is full of surprises, so it's best not to plan too far ahead!
I hope you enjoy checking in on my adventures with The French.
A bientot. Hasta luego.
Jenny x
