IF LIFE GIVES YOU LEMONS, MAKE LEMONADE
THE PLAN: It's coming up on the 10th anniversary of my arrival in Santiago, Spain after walking the Camino de Santiago. On that journey I met people from around the world and two of them, Len and Alex became my Camino Brothers, AKA The Three Amigos. It was decided that the best way to celebrate the anniversary, was to return to the Camino and walk together the last 100 kilometers and arrive in Santiago ten years to the day. Alex from Brazil, Len from Canada and I from the US would each figure out how to get to Spain and meet up in the town of Sarria on May 4th and begin walking to Santiago.
As for me, say the word "Camino" and I'm ready to go, so I figured that since I was going all that way, why not get another Camino under my belt. Cathie, who walked a partial Camino back in 2017, was willing to try and finish what she started. We decided that before meeting up with Len and Alex, Cathie and I would walk the Camino Portuguese from Porto to Santiago, a distance of 160 miles. Then meet up with the rest of the crew in Sarria on the appointed date. Not one to waste any time, back in August I started checking flight fares and lo and behold I got a good price on my go to airline, British Air. We intended on taking our time walking the Portuguese route so as not to hurt ourselves and enjoy the walk.
We decided that we would start training after the 1st of the year which would give us ample time to prepare. But the best laid plans can sometime go awry. Shortly after the New Year, Cathie tripped and fell, breaking her humerus. Luckily surgery wasn't necessary, but the healing time was 6 to 8 weeks, which eliminated most of her time for training. After a month it became obvious, that Cathie would be unable to walk with a pack for 160 miles.
THE ALTERNATE PLAN:
With our air travel already reserved along with some of our reservations in Portugal we figured by the date of our flight, Cathie would at least be able to travel. And so, the new plan is that we're going, rent a car and explore the Galicia region of Spain. Then on May 4th we will meet up with Len and Alex and at least walk with them on a limited basis.
In a week, we board our flight to Lisbon and from there we will make our way by train and bus to Santiago where a rental car is waiting for us. Then we will spend 3 weeks getting to know Northwest Spain before meeting up with Len and Alex. So, stay tuned....
THE THREE AMIGOS (2015)
