Final Thoughts From Home, November 2, 2022

First of all, I apologize to people who wondered what happened to me, and I will start by going through what I’ve been doing for the last week and a half.

After arriving in Santiago, the weather did not really get much better. Instead of walking another 4 days in the rain to the ocean and the towns of Finisterra and Muxia, I decided to take a bus tour. It was really fun and beautiful. To make it even more fun, every time the tour bus stopped in a place that intersected with the Camino (3 times), I met friends who were walking. Back in Santiago again, I had reunions with more people I hadn’t seen in weeks, finally saw the Botafumeiro (huge incense pot) swinging at the cathedral, toured a couple museums, and made a decision on what to do for the next week.

Instead of going to Madrid as originally planned, where the weather forecast was bad and I didn’t know anyone, I decided to fly to London to visit San Francisco State friends Carmen & Rich, where the weather forecast was surprisingly good. After a cheap (and 5 hour delayed) Ryanair flight from Santiago to London Stansted Airport, and a train and tube ride, I was happily and comfortably visiting my hospitable and gracious hosts. I spent 6 nights in London and had a great time walking along the Thames, taking a historical walking tour, walking through Hampstead Heath, touring the Kenwood House, visiting the Churchill War Rooms & Museum, seeing the musical “Wicked,” walking through Kew Gardens, and having some really nice visiting time with Carmen & Rich. In addition, I had lots of time to contemplate my time on the Camino de Santiago.

To summarize my final thoughts, walking the Camino was a truly incredible experience on so many levels and with so many dimensions. I honestly don’t think there is anything comparable anywhere else in the world. For everyone interested enough to read this blog, I hope I get a chance to talk to all of you in person to share more details, but here are some common questions I’ve heard:

- Why did you go? -

The simple answer is because I thought it would be fun, and it was. The slightly longer answer is that I went in order to: have a physically changing experience walking for 500 miles; have a close, first hand connection to the culture and history of Spain; see the natural beauty of a wide swath of Northern Spain; meet interesting people from all over the world; be part of a more than 1,000 year Camino pilgrimage tradition; contemplate the good fortune I’ve had in my life as my mortality becomes increasingly clear; and experience some of the spiritual and religious aura that has drawn so many hundreds of thousands of people to the Camino throughout history. To varying degrees, I got all of that.

- Did you have a religious experience? -

Not really. I was wondering if the Camino would reconnect me with the Catholic Church of my youth. It did not. The Camino is certainly a spiritual place that can be many things to many people, however. For me, it did not make me any more or less religious than I was before I went. It did, however, reaffirm my faith in humanity and how wonderful people are. Every single person on the Camino (and in life) is supremely interesting, has a story to tell, has something valuable to share, and can benefit from knowledge I share with them. The Camino is a fantastic vehicle for connecting with people and for sharing a life lessons with a lot of people in a short period of time.

- Did you lose weight? -

Yes. I think I lost about 15 pounds in the 34 days I was walking. I don’t think I really needed to lose weight so I probably should have made an effort to eat more. Still, I can’t think of many things healthier than walking all day, so regardless of weight, I feel healthier now than when I started the Camino. Unfortunately, no amount of walking will make my body young again. Even though I am approximately the same weight I was when I was 25, the 172 pounds I am now is not distributed in anywhere close to the same way now as it was then.

- Would you do it again? -

I’m not sure. The world is a huge place and I generally don’t like to go to the same place twice. On the other hand, the Camino is more than a place. If I were to walk exactly the same route again, I would have a completely different experience simply because the people would be different. I will be digesting my Camino experience a little longer before I decide if I will do it again. The physical aspect of a long walk is not a deterrent (yet.) I think the physical difficulty is not as great as people might think. If you spend enough time walking, you can cover a lot of distance no matter what speed you walk. I think the oldest pilgrim I met doing the full 500 miles was 78. Of course, I’d like to think that that could be me some day, so doing the Camino again is definitely possibility. Also, there are other Camino routes that would provide a similar experience with new scenery. The one that stands out to me is the route from Portugal.

- If you were to do it again, what would you do differently? -

I think the main thing I would do differently is that I’d get more contact information for people I met along the way. I met so many wonderful people who I’d now like to stay in touch with. Unfortunately, I didn’t exchange contact information with many of them so it is unlikely I’ll ever see them again.

- Do you have any advice to people thinking of walking the Camino? -

It would be the same advice I heard when researching the trip: know that everyone’s Camino is different. Make your Camino your own... your own speed, your own focus, your own physical abilities. Things are not always going to work out perfectly, but with the right attitude you can still have a fantastic experience no matter what happens. Make as much social contact as you can.

- Was it life changing? -

Yes, but mainly in the sense that all travel is life changing. Five weeks of any intense travel experience will be life changing because it’s like living a lot of life in a short period of time. Walking the Camino would have no doubt been more life changing if I had done it in my 20’s or 30’s. At this point in my life, I’ve had many more significant life changing experiences (marriage, kids, etc.) so for me the Camino was more like some extra icing on life’s cake instead of a new layer.

Thanks to everyone who followed me on my Camino journey. I know it’s a pain to comment on this platform, but feel free to send me a note to billgrabert(at)yahoo.com.

At Finisterre on October 23 -