El Camino de Santiago is an ancient pilgrimage. There are actually many routes, but the most famous route is La Ruta Francés. This route starts in St. Jean Pied du Port, France and goes to Santiago de Compostela, Spain. It is approximately 800km or 500 miles. It traverses mountains, deserts, vineyards, wheatfields, backyards, forests, and any other possible terrain. There are specific hostels set up along the route for the pilgrims to stay. It can be started or stopped any time you want, any day of the year. The year I did it happened to be a holy year, so there were thousands more doing it than normal. There is no set schedule, route, or anything really, just walking walking walking. So after years of hoping and saving, I got to do it two summers ago. It took me 33 days to complete, and they were the best 33 days of my life.
During the camino I met Yago, my boyfriend, which has obviously totally altered my life, since now I live in Barcelona, Spain instead of Wichita, Kansas.
We also met Arno Krieger, who is from Germany, and the three of us walked most of the camino together. After days and days of walking together, eating together, going to the bathroom together, and basically being inseparable, our friendship was cemented and we will forever be the three musketeers, no matter where we are in the world. Arno has demonstrated this by coming to visit us this weekend! He arrived yesterday, and it's as though we just saw each other yesterday instead of a whole year and a half ago! He is exactly the same and I love, love, love him.
I'm so thankful that I was able to complete my HUGE dream of doing the camino, and especially thankful that it was so fruitful in my spiritual life, and relational life as I now have two super amazing friends out of the deal. My life is so much richer for knowing Yago and Arno, and I just can't imagine where I would be now had I not been able to do the camino. What a huge accomplishement and blessing!
I'm so thankful that even though countries apart, we will always have the camino bond and be able to pick up where we last left off without it seeming as though any time has passed!
God bless the camino, God bless Arno, God bless Yago, God bless achieving your dreams!!
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