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I snagged a pretty reasonable deal on my flight out of Seattle -- round trip to Madrid -- for September 16.
I had originally planned to fly into Charles de Gaulle like last year, but Madrid is where my son and I would be going after we end this Camino; Caleb to catch his flight home, and me to see Madrid again, after which I would hop a regional flight to Paris. So it just made sense to see if Madrid would be a good choice in terms of cost and flight times --- which it does, this time.
What is funny, is that, even though I am leaving for Spain 19 days earlier than my son, I will be on the same return flight as Caleb will be. Caleb lives in Denver, but my wife is meeting him at the Seattle airport to pick up and then return his little dog, which she will care for while Caleb is with me on Camino.
Since my flight to Madrid lands at 7:45 pm local time, I'll spend the night in Madrid at a nearby hotel. The next morning, I am on an 8:00 am flight out of MADs T-4 terminal to Biarritz, where I will then catch Express Bouricott around 10:30 am into SJPdP. I am looking forward to spending a good portion of the day in St Jean; last September, Caleb and I didn't get in to St Jean until around 6:30pm. Although we were able to walk around a bit and see the town, it will be a bit more relaxed this year.
I'll start out to Roncesvalles the morning of the 18th; I'm looking forward to taking a break and doing some refueling at Orisson before continuing on to Col de Lepoeder. Like last year, I'll take the narrow road way down into Roncesvalles, rather than the trail. I've got a reservation already made at the alburgue; and I'll also have a hard copy of that confirmation. Last year, my son and I had some wonderful fellowship with other pilgrims at the pre-purchased pilgrim dinner. We also had some nice rapport with the couple who shared out cubicle space. It'll be both a bit of nostalgia and of missing having Caleb there at this stay.
Caleb and I ended Camino at Burgos last year; he, because of work schedules and me because of unwanted medical stuff. Caleb will meet me in Leon on October 5, and from there we will finish our Camino to Santiago together. Because I want to complete the entire Camino from St Jean, I will repeat some favorite sections that we did last year, and then I will walk the Camino from where we left off in Burgo all the way to Leon in time to meet Caleb.
I did make a few reservations ahead: in St Jean, at Roncesvalles, in Pamplona, and in Leon; mainly because I know where I want to stay in these locations. The other 14 days before Leon, I'm just playing it by ear. From Leon, my son and I will do like we did last year with regard to accommodations, and just go with the flow. With a commitment to staying flexible about things, finding a place to stay for the night just isn't a source of anxiety to either of us.
Well, that takes care of the logistics. It is much simpler this time around. My backpack is ready, and the stuff that I'll take is sitting all nice and cozy in a small storage tub. Estimated packing time: 10 minutes. Even though the total pack weight last year was just fine at about 4.5 kg, this year I am taking a 6 ounce GoPro and another 5 ounces of batteries, so I will be looking to cull some weight to make up for this add on.
Now I can relax about the 'how to get there' stuff, and just enjoy the pre-Camino anticipation. All the while I am keeping in mind that, “If you want to make God laugh, tell him about your plans.”
I had originally planned to fly into Charles de Gaulle like last year, but Madrid is where my son and I would be going after we end this Camino; Caleb to catch his flight home, and me to see Madrid again, after which I would hop a regional flight to Paris. So it just made sense to see if Madrid would be a good choice in terms of cost and flight times --- which it does, this time.
What is funny, is that, even though I am leaving for Spain 19 days earlier than my son, I will be on the same return flight as Caleb will be. Caleb lives in Denver, but my wife is meeting him at the Seattle airport to pick up and then return his little dog, which she will care for while Caleb is with me on Camino.
Since my flight to Madrid lands at 7:45 pm local time, I'll spend the night in Madrid at a nearby hotel. The next morning, I am on an 8:00 am flight out of MADs T-4 terminal to Biarritz, where I will then catch Express Bouricott around 10:30 am into SJPdP. I am looking forward to spending a good portion of the day in St Jean; last September, Caleb and I didn't get in to St Jean until around 6:30pm. Although we were able to walk around a bit and see the town, it will be a bit more relaxed this year.
I'll start out to Roncesvalles the morning of the 18th; I'm looking forward to taking a break and doing some refueling at Orisson before continuing on to Col de Lepoeder. Like last year, I'll take the narrow road way down into Roncesvalles, rather than the trail. I've got a reservation already made at the alburgue; and I'll also have a hard copy of that confirmation. Last year, my son and I had some wonderful fellowship with other pilgrims at the pre-purchased pilgrim dinner. We also had some nice rapport with the couple who shared out cubicle space. It'll be both a bit of nostalgia and of missing having Caleb there at this stay.
Caleb and I ended Camino at Burgos last year; he, because of work schedules and me because of unwanted medical stuff. Caleb will meet me in Leon on October 5, and from there we will finish our Camino to Santiago together. Because I want to complete the entire Camino from St Jean, I will repeat some favorite sections that we did last year, and then I will walk the Camino from where we left off in Burgo all the way to Leon in time to meet Caleb.
I did make a few reservations ahead: in St Jean, at Roncesvalles, in Pamplona, and in Leon; mainly because I know where I want to stay in these locations. The other 14 days before Leon, I'm just playing it by ear. From Leon, my son and I will do like we did last year with regard to accommodations, and just go with the flow. With a commitment to staying flexible about things, finding a place to stay for the night just isn't a source of anxiety to either of us.
Well, that takes care of the logistics. It is much simpler this time around. My backpack is ready, and the stuff that I'll take is sitting all nice and cozy in a small storage tub. Estimated packing time: 10 minutes. Even though the total pack weight last year was just fine at about 4.5 kg, this year I am taking a 6 ounce GoPro and another 5 ounces of batteries, so I will be looking to cull some weight to make up for this add on.
Now I can relax about the 'how to get there' stuff, and just enjoy the pre-Camino anticipation. All the while I am keeping in mind that, “If you want to make God laugh, tell him about your plans.”
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