6-24-10 Toulouse day 81 (day of rest, sort of)

6-24-10 Toulouse day 81
woke up early but did not feel I wanted to leave Toulouse without even seeing just a tiny little piece... my german friend from Ulm has decided that she does not like to be called Ms Ulm and that henceforth she should be referred to as Clark's girlfriend ... she seemed to have same plans as me so we decided to grab a bus into city center together ...our bus driver was a joker and had all the women laughing in the front of the bus...he was quite entertaining to watch...he also seemed to have young women get on the bus kiss him cheek to cheek and seemed quite charmed by him...one beautiful lady got off the bus, two stops later a new pretty lady got on...we decided that if being a bus driver was like this, then it was not a bad life at all...we wanted to find the capitol building and town center but first we found a cafe...for requisite coffee and croissants...we had our packs with us, since we were not sure if we would stay in the city or find lodging outside. We then found the capitol building...and tourist office... there was heavy construction noise going on and of course fast moving cars...readjusting back to more urban settings is a bit of a challenge. At the tourist office we got our maps and the locations of the two churches we wanted to see as well as were the sport shop was... they tried to call the youth hostel for me but no one answered so evenings lodging was not sorted... we now had heat......my friend assured me that this heat was nothing compared to what we would deal with later especially in spain..but after having had so much grey and rain..having full heat back was quite draining... I was a little worried how real hiking would be again if even this heat was having such a strong effect...the first church we went to was covenant of jacobins, it was a huge beautiful gothic church..with our credentials we got into the back quart yard and abbeys for free. We met some french pilgrims who were trying to tell us of sights to see.. I saw the tell tale sign of limping on newly sore feet, I knew it well... also a teacher with a huge school group used us as an example of pilgrims, to his school group.. they were asking us our origin..when some of the young kids asked were I was from, one asked if I had walked across from america..the teacher laughed and explained they were still learning their geography...we had asked here if the st thomas Aquinas relics were here but were told it was in another church...then going back into the main hall of the church, there they were..at least that is what it said...but we were not 100percent sure anymore because we'd been redirected twice already...here too, my friend asked if we could leave our big packs and we could, which meant we could walk through town unencumbered..then st sermin church, which is apparently longest Romanesque church in europe...also a very large church with many areas to explore it had an ancient feel with really old looking frescoes in the front cross of the church..it had reliquary as well some out in the main area, some closed until the afternoon..we got our credentials stamped by a man in a back room, we asked about thomas Aquinas again just to be certain, sure enough he had been in the other church.....a lebanese syrian christian man, who worked there, decided to give us his tour... he spoke only french and clark's girlfriend translated.. he tried to explain to us the syrian christian history and it was one of the older christian branches reaching all the way into north iran... he was in charge of polishing all the wood chairs in the front altar area...he was quite proud of his church...he showed us near the end a set of marble feet sticking out of a column with a box on which was written, bellow 'saint christopher', he told us to touch the feet and pray for something we really wanted...of course we had to do it...

after the church, we grabbed lunch on a street closes by...I finally had a savory crepe in france, it was called a Popeye with cheese and spinach...hopefully I will become strong like him... then we went to try this camping and sport shop, I wanted to check out new shoes... I agonized over the decision but the quality of the shoes there were dubious so I made the hard decision to stick with what I had..my friend came to the same conclusion since she too has issues with her shoes..... the heat was making us stupid.... we went back to the last church and got to see relics in the basement of famous saints.. then back to tourist office.. now we were told in order to stay at youth hostel had to stay two nights...which seemed like a weird rule..then they told us of a gite within the town we had not heard of ..at first we were worried it was the one we'd been warned about with an outbreak of bed bugs..luckily this one was completely different. .... we went and it was actually more like a youth hostel...the rooms seemed new and clean...so we got a room...our kitchen sink drain spilled into the cupboard bellow when I tried to use it..and it seemed to take several attempts for someone to take it seriously...but in the end the owner got us a beer and a slight discount for the room ... we got some take away afghany dinner couscous and almost vegetarian dish to go on-top (I tried to ignore the bits of meat i saw).. and more .beers.. we sat in the courtyard on a picnic bench journaling and talking and staying up too late... we had a sunlight basement room and slept with windows open it took me a while to fall to sleep because we were in the college side of town and there seemed to be cheerful hedonistic sounding street parties till late...but at least today I felt I had seen at least some of toulouse...i found the people were really nice here... although it is the fourth largest city in france according to someone we asked.. it had a relaxed small town feel..

6-23-10 Baziege to Toulouse day 80

6-23-10 Baziege to Toulouse day 80
as usual the Gite woke around six so I got up too...but then the morning quickly unfolded and me and Ms.Ulm were the last ones out of the Gite...the host was very chatty and social with her since she spoke french which slowed our progress out the door... we never really discussed it but Ms.Ulm and I ended up walking all day together... the walk was again along the channel, so the scenery has not changed much in three days...the channel route was not again the official route that was listed in the pilgrims book but it was suppose to be a lot shorter and the other trail apparently was over grown with hard to find markers at times. Our chosen trail, was in shade most of the time so that is good...lots of exercise bikes on this route and not always very gracious about sharing the space with walkers..we talked about things like the hospice work she's done and some of the cool healers she's worked with. She too had read the book by Sogyal Rimpoche 'Tibetan book of living and dying' she had found it also very helpful for her work..today was a day where I found it harder to walk.. I needed frequent breaks because I just ran out of steam... around midday to both our surprise there was actually an open cafe-restaurant right on the trail...we stopped there for coffee and ice cream, the woman there seemed very concerned about having to deal with people who did not speak french... as if I could not order a coffee...she was quite relieved that my friend did know the language... we enjoyed the coolness and solitude of the indoor seating... all the other guests were outside... I find I get too much sun, so I actually look forward to sitting the cooler indoors...also smoking is allowed at the tables so the air is usually better quality indoors..the 25kms today felt very very long...the channel area got a little more urban as we progressed along it...the trail we followed seemed to suddenly get narrower and narrower until we had to cross over a barrier onto a busy road to continue... finally we found a safe place to cross..we walked along the channel some more, my friend tried to ask people about how far city center still was to Toulouse and where to catch bus 22 since that is what our instructions told us to do... ironically the first few people she approached where also not from here...eventually we muddled our way to the right bus stand...and onto the right buses...the bus driver for our destination seemed to know our stop...it was a catholic christian center with rooms.. we arrived tired around five... the man from the gite the night before had called to reserve for us, but we had been warned to call again around two...we did not, we had no phone and also felt double confirmations a little excessive..instead we had at two pm, the time to call taken a moment to ESP them with our mental powers, to let them know we were coming.... apparently this did not work... there were two ancient ladies in the office... who nervously shoveled around but did not even seem to have a record of last nights call... they also had no power to make decisions so we had to wait for a man who would arrive at six..there was a study near the office...so we made ourselves comfortable... taking our shoes off and I sorted through my food back to see what I had..eventually the right man did show up...he walked in on us and glared at us, as he saw us lounging on the floor perhaps a little too relaxed for such a place... he let us know repeatedly that we should have reserved, we said we had..just not twice... he was not exactly telling us to go...and it was also unclear whether we would help us..so we hovered around the office where he repeatedly seemed to shuffle angrily through papers...while the two old ladies looked on helplessly...finally he threw keys down by the counter... he told us to go to the store first for our dinner supplies since it was closing soon...and then he would give us keys to the room..so we found the local supermarket and got our evening supplies..stuff we could eat without cooking..they had salads ready made... I should mention we had not seen anything yet of the center of toulouse...we had skimmed the outskirts.. and had no sense of the city...when we came back a new man was behind the counter the old ladies had gone home... our main man came back and explained to the new man that we were the ones who had 'not reserved'...again... we then got a painstakingly slow tour of our rooms...to our surprise, despite all the fuss we each got our own rooms...then we had to be told how to use the door keys...finally we were allowed to think for ourselves again...we took our food bags outside and had picnic on the lawn...this place looked more like a school with dorms than anything very sacred.. eventually we saw the swiss couple come in...they had already arrived to town earlier and had first gone sight seeing before coming here... they too went and got picnic food and joined us... apparently they had reserved, in fact she had been asked to call back two more times because the right person was not there, and the two old ladies were not allowed to make decisions...but even this got botched and they had only reserved a space for one... we did not feel so bad for not reconfirming after that story...we caught up on our different journeys over the last few days..instead of taking the channel route that we had taken they had taken the overgrown route.. the man had a blurry photo he insisted was a kangaroo... i kept giving him a hard time...but finally i had to admit it kind of did look like a french kangaroo...they had had some difficulties finding the trail markings though as we had been warned... eventually an older dutch man and a quebec canadian man would join us.. the dutch man could speak german so mostly the conversation was in geman...when the quebec man started speaking his french neither the swiss or my german friend could understand him very well. In fact my friend from ulm asked me later, what language that was and why he could not speak english... I had always thought that french and quebec people spoke a similar enough language that they could understand each other..but apparently if you have had french as a second language it's a bit harder to understand quebec french...after we went to our separate rooms... the usual pilgrims chores..shower laundry...bed.. it was a bit hot and not the best night's sleep..

6-22-10 Moulin (Montferrand) to Baziege day 79

6-22-10 Moulin (Montferrand) to Baziege day 79
I woke up early enough (not sure what that means now..but it's what i wrote) and packed... I expected to leave before others got up...but my two friends came down for breakfast to send me off...which was really nice...they had decided to walk to another town to catch the train back towards their car and do some post pilgrim shopping in France since their vacation was almost up...so we said our good byes and we talked about some of the ideas that they were taking away with them from the trip...since now, was their time to reflect on this pilgrimage... it is interesting how quickly we had built a friendship over the last few weeks and how much we had learned about each other and also how open we had become with each other... one seldom travels in a way were one repeatedly meets the same people again and again and frequently shares a room and some of ones daily life with them... so I think pilgrims relationship with each other is unique...i got going a little before 8 and again it was a day along the channel, this was slightly different from the route in my book but it saved maybe ten kms... and it was a nice cool route under trees... around eleven I notice a familiar figure approach on one of my breaks, it was my friend from Ulm..she too was surprised to see me since she had thought she'd gotten ahead of us some how... we caught up on the last few days apart... she had found an interesting camping place the night before run by someone who was from the Cavalier lineage... at one point he put on his robes and armour for her and knighted her as a joke with his sword...we would continue walking together for the rest of the day... I think she slowed her pace to match mine... we took several long breaks..including a small detour into town for coffee.. basically stretching out our walking day... it was unclear were we had to turn off in order to enter the town of destination because we were not taking the official pilgrims route... there were lots of bicyclists along the way.. and she asked them for us...we found out, we had to find a place with silos...so we looked across into the hills and eventually saw something fitting the description...we turned too early and had to negotiate some farm fields and also ditches and eventually tennis courts...she told me of some interesting strong adventures women she had met in her life and body work training she'd done and experiences with working with different clients..including old patients in hospital...and how important the human touch is but also how it can evoke old neglected wounds in some...we aimed for the church a good land mark for town center.. along the way we asked a young mother, if she knew were the gite was..she did and gave us directions..soon enough I found the tell tale shell sign and we entered the building... everything was unlocked so we just headed in and up..we met a very friendly host who was wearing a loud Hawaiian shirt... he gave us the tour in french and my friend translated... the older french couple was already there and so was the deaf man and a young french man from two nights ago...so mostly same faces... later too the swiss couple would arrive a little later... I did the usual shower, laundry with minimal hanging space in the hall and bought food at a supermarket..i got ready made soup and tin of lentils... hungry and uninspired to cook... the evening turned out to be pretty funny in the kitchen... most everyone spoke french of course.. but a few did try to connect with me... eventually I asked the young french man if he had learned english in school, turns out he had...8 years... so I chatted him up..he got really nervous since he wanted to speak perfect english and could not.. but he was quite good and actually quite sweet... he did say that most of the older generation in france did not learn any other language in school... my friend ended up getting into a long conversation with the gite man... all the social stuff kept me up later than intended ..i had to hurry to catch up on my little homework...finding time for myself in such social settings requires a little bit of restructuring...i dont have that down yet..

6-21-10 Revel day to Moulin (Montferrand) day 78

6-21-10 Revel day to Moulin (Montferrand) day 78
I got up with the wave of room noise.. as is the new normal... dont need a pilgrims alarm clock, while when i have fellow pilgrims. Today I really wanted to get going early.. I had not walked 30kms plus in a long time.. and I was worried it would take way too long and it would do me in...i had been assured the walk would be flat and along the channel all day so that it was not an intensive 30. I got out of the Gite a little before seven, knowing I would have everyone pretty much pass me during the day... the signage out of town was also a bit spotty but I found the channel. There were two signs going in opposite directions..neither listed the towns in my guide book, an old man walking his dog, waved his hands direction right... I assumed he knew I was pilgrim and was right so I went (these people showing up at the right time to wave me in the right direction has happened enough now on the trail that it seems beyond coincidence, i feel lucky)... I noticed the older french couple had tailed me out of town since they not seen the markings well either and then bolted past me when the path was sure.... I walked along a channel on a nice smooth dirt path with trees lining the path providing shade... although the sun did come out it was not as warm as it had been. About two hours in I heard the familiar click-click-click of the sticks of my german friends..they walked with two sticks each and at quite a good speed...again this day too we would be running into each other.. they walk really fast but take nice long breaks for picnic and such..a few times they even helped me find the path when the channels crossed and it was not immediately clear were the trail was and at another point sparing me a long walk around the lake by waving me to take the shorter route from their picnic spot... part of the pilgrims motto is to share with others... and so we did...at one stop they had chocolate for me.. at another, I had some extra bread...i ran into the hosts from this morning's Gite along the lake, they were spanish and belong to a pilgrims organization of people who have walked the compestello and then volunteer to spend a week at this Gite or that as hosts taken care of new and old pilgrims as they arrive... he joked that he was controlling the compestello to make sure we pilgrims were walking...in fact they had just come out to enjoy a walk along the lake.. my feet did eventually get their familiar soreness but I was able to plod on..since the ground was pretty forgiving.

I felt like I should be arriving soon, but it was not all together clear where this town was.. Moulin?...Turns out it was just an old mill, I am not sure even if it was a town, but it had a Gite that would take pilgrims... I did finally spot it... I went across to the house, a woman was hanging laundry... she was the proprietor... I got an immediate lecture in good english about not having made reservations, and how I really should have....given that she actually had a bed for me... I a) did not get why I needed the lecture, and b) did not care because hey, I had a bed... but she said almost as if it were punishment, that it was in the 'men's room because the woman's room was full. I told her I was fine with being a man for a day...she did not get my humor...again my two german friends were there before me... and they were a little more able to manage and negotiate with the proprietor....for dinner, they had a main course here listed on a chalk board.. that was meat based, so E one of the german women, arranged for some vegetarian ingredients since she did not want to eat lamb stew either, she got eggs, pasta and some veggies and got us a good price... we started preparing our own meals... we cut in a whole garlic and three onions, just in case.. I think this is the first meal I helped cook from scratch since I left home... to our surprise the people who had ordered the menu of the day, had to in fact cook their own rice with it and heat up the meat themselves, M the other german girl took this project on.. the other pilgrims started coming down waiting for their food... the woman helped set the table..one of the men started pacing impatiently around clearly hungry … the vegetarian meal was done a little earlier than the meat, he made a b-line for our food... wow, I got angry quick...luckily E stepped in... yet he still walked away with a plate of our pasta...the other people tried to apologize on his behalf he was they let us know he was hearing impaired... so perhaps he thought it normal that pilgrim women cook for him?... I was thinking things about sexism and women expected to cook and blah blah... after dinner... we loaded dishes in the dishwasher..but again pots were left for us... I did some...and then retreated to bed... I was surprised at my own strong reaction to being somehow lumped into traditional role of being a woman, and how I did not just laugh it off that quickly... I did however sleep like a baby in the 'men's' room...

6-20-10 En Calcat to Revel day 77

6-20-10 En Calcat to Revel day 77
woke up the usual little before six, since that's when the noises of others waking started around me.. I went down stairs to make coffee...someone had set breakfast and started the coffee.. I was very happy...so instead I got my gear ready.. I joined the Freiburg ladies for breakfast... mostly bread and butter... eventually Ms Ulm would join..she had gone to the morning service and seemed taken by this morning. I had missed evening conversation but was quite engaged again this morning.. I had seen cows that had tear tracks down their faces the day before and asked if they were crying or if this was normal.. I somehow thought that they were sad, perhaps somehow aware for their future fate... I was told that these were lucky cows for one they had their babies with them which is unusual...they went on to explain that when animals get ready be butchered it has to be done humanely because there are laws and also because the meat tastes really bad if the animal is stressed out, I had not heard that before, but it helped to hear there was actually a human incentive for not being too cruel when it came time to butcher the animal. ... i continued to be chatty so I got a later start.. around 8.45 but today was 20kms or so, so it seemed quite manageable. The emotionality of the day before seemed to be gone... so was the rain...although at times the clouds were dramatic, there would be no rain, just strong winds and some sun breaks..and at times it was quite chilly... I walked my usual pace and took hourly ten minute breaks... through-out the day I would meet up with the freiburg woman... I had mentioned to them, how I would reward myself with chocolate at the end of the day if there was a shop...they pulled out a giant kitkat bar and shared it with me....In Soreze we met again and found the rare occurance of an open cafe...

they had gotten some baked goods and we sat around eating that and a nice coffee while I roamed a little with the free wifi I found...no other pilgrim is traveling with a lap top, they think it is a funny accessory.. I arrived in Revel along a channel, the markings seemed to come and go... there seemed to be some sort of fishing festival going on... I walked through it,and into town, graffiti on walls... my pilgrims markings almost absent...but the center of town seemed easy enough to find because this was not a big place... just as I thought I saw some shops, I saw the a blue house with a shell on the wall, I suspected that this was my destination, it was definitely a Gite, so I rang the bell, a man from upstairs poked his head out and told me to come up. The doors were open.. I came upstairs after depositing my shoes (most gites don't like dirty hiking boots in the sleeping area so we all have sandals or flip flops to switch into) then, i found my two german friends already there. This Gite was not very large, six beds in one room...eventually the french couple showed up, two french men and even the young swiss couple we had not seen in a while... I did not expend much energy to explore the town, I regret not going to the church, it was open and had interesting steeples, almost onion domed...there were two shops open in town, a general store with from what I heard little fresh food, and a bakery...the bakery had outdoor seating and wifi...so I sat out there fore a few hours...I was quite cold and to add to this silliness i was drinking cold beer and eating quiche while trying to catch up on really over due blogs..and of course emails.. my friends came by a few times running errands shaking their heads at me sitting there and shivering.... eventually I came back home... sat in the kitchen, still on my lap top eating some more food and chatting with people who spoke a mutual language and watched as people came and went and prepared food for themselves... the older man from the french couple had relegated himself to the down stairs hall so that he would not disturb us with his snoring... which was really sweet but ironically we still had a pretty loud snorer in the room..so it's just something to get used to... I slept spotty not because of noise but because the usual unsettled-ness...

6-19-10 Castres to En Calcat day 76

6-19-10 Castres to En Calcat day 76
the noise of others woke me up again around six. But at least there was strong coffee ready for us. We walked over to the little bakery and got some croissants. We were ready to go but our host said he would walk with us for a while and show us the way out of town...ten minutes soon took over half hour...finally we called for him...and he came down..first we went back into center of town, I needed a bank machine...and as we arrived, the market was in full swing... I got some fruit and we found an interesting snack made of potatoes and cheese that was beaten a lot so that it was like string mozzarella and potato combined..quite delicious if you like your starches ...but also this meant and even later start... we had lost our host, he had another change of plans..and instead of guiding us, he just told the way...i found out the back story a little later, I had thought him a cheerful man...but apparently he is quite stressed and nervous, he is retiring soon and the money is not as much as he thought... he cant afford the renovations and the Gite is not going well... it's so interesting what a difference an impression can make when you know the language or in my case you dont..it's like night and day...Ms Ulm and I helped each other find the way out of town..the landscape went from urban to farm country quickly....but then I wanted to walk a bit slower so she went on ahead... soon enough it started raining... really raining... soon I would find Ms Ulm under shelter, she is not fond of rain... I decided to keep drudging on... because I am slow and because I knew I would get wet feet regardless..eventually she would pass me again and I would not see her again till the end of the walking day.. I really was 'not in the mood' with walking and the weather etc... I felt emotional and a good dose of self pity..... I wanted to take a nap … walking just did not seem like fun...but sleeping in puddles also not an option, so I continued on...

I met some cows and started feeling sorry for them..these were probably the luckier cows on the planet..they were outside eating grass, they even had a baby with them which is rare...but I just imagined how their life would come to an end and how little choice they really had about their fate... yup, it was one of those days...i found the trail-markings tricky twice this day but found my way without getting lost... really the worst of it was the continuing rain which always seemed to start from new again and again.... but eventually I came to the turn off, luckily there was a sign for the Abbey because I would have kept going on the St Jacques way... I arrived at a Monastery, this was a men's Benedictine monastery, it took a while to find the right building and person... I said in real bad french to a monk that I was a pilgrim...he immediately said 'you are american' I thought god lords, is it really that obvious? Then he said 'and german!... realizing that he was not guessing but must have talked to one of my pilgrim friends I waited for him to continue... he spoke eloquent and yet simply...'your friends are at the Nunnery,' I thought oh, they walked another 5kms to the next place... what should I do? Then he said 'they are waiting for you,' and I thought oh that is sweet but how much longer do I have to walk? He said “ it is just ten minutes down the road' I almost did not believe him and asked him again...the info I had gotten earlier had been different...so uncertain but happy I walked down the road to the Nunnery, I started laughing at myself and my horrible french and how I had thought the monk could read my mind at first...also I think emotions today are strong in all directions... then finally as promised ten minute or less walk... I walked into the book store cuz it was open... a nun running the cash register called for me to the gite attached to the place, and in french and english she told me where I had to go to sleep, where the dining place was and where the Vesper's were being held...i walked back down across the street..and tried several doors in a building till I found an open one... I went upstairs and found the germans..the freiburg ladies in one room and ms ulm in another... I got a third room with four beds... heat was on... I reconnected with everyone and showered and laundered.. I rested a bit and then we all went to the church again across the street to listen to the evening Vespers sung by the nuns...when I saw the nuns come in I got all teary..cuz I just thought it wonderful that in this day and age, western people would still commit them selves to such a strict path of spirituality...of course I was over romanticizing...but it was lovely...and then they began to sing the evening prayers... and I closed my eyes and let their sweet beautiful women's voices singing in harmony take me away... it was only marred by the fact that in sections we were expected to stand.. my feet were kinda done with that.... after they left for the evening we looked at the church a bit...then as is their custom, the german woman started harmonizing their hallelujah song.. and it was so beautiful I got all teary again...it was just that sort of day.... then we were lead to a small reading room while we waited for dinner... we waited for a little while and then we were bought to another room to eat... sadly not with the nuns...there were five french lay women who were here for a retreat away from the world... . The dinner to my surprise was vegetarian..very simple... vegetable soup, cheese pasta, salad, bread and yogurt for desert and wine that only the us foreigners drank... many of them wanted to go the the 8pm prayers so we did the dishes.. I went into my room and spend the evening..just writing and doing my little homework before going to bed at ten.. I heard the others chatting for a while... I think I needed some unsocial time..since the day was a bit of a drain although it ended very sweetly..

6-18-10 Boissezon to Castres day 75

6-18-10 Boissezon to Castres day 75
yet another grey day... it had that threatening rain look but actually except for drizzle it was not too bad..i woke early because of my room mates. I had expected this. My plan now is from what ever time I wake up to try and get going with in an hour...for each hour awake brings me closer to being tired..so better get the walking out of the way...i got going by 8 am after coffee and breakfast with the german group..i hit the road while they lounged around...they were hoping for the day to clear a little and the drizzle to stop ...there was this french man who had joined the Gite the night before... he had left before me but seemed to be walking very slowly...he tried to talk to me in french but I told him I did not understand... then I passed him...i arrived at this town which had a sign for a food store so I veered off the path to go check it out..since these occurrences seemed so rare... I got a pastry and juice there and set on a wall and ate... I saw the french man again he seemed to have the same idea... he seemed to keep walking...but when I started up again he seemed to be there again... I got the distinct impression he was kind of waiting around...because I have yet to meet a man who walks slower than me... I thought it a bit sketchy but thought also he seemed pretty harmless...today was not a lot of kms only 16... although it did not really rain my feet got wet a bit from all the wet grass I was wading through... I am not the only pilgrim with frequent wet feet, it seems to be happening to everyone... the moisture usually gets in through the top of the shoes or through the socks on down...my feet seem to get sore early..usually I have a few hour grace period before this happens..i think the frequent under-sleeping is one of the reasons I seem to feel it sooner.. eventually Ms Ulm caught up with me and we walked together into Castres..at one point the other two german woman caught up too, and the french man was with them... perhaps he had been waiting to walk with those two? . Me and Ms Ulm,we talked about gender and what it does or does not mean, and now it impacts our lives..always a very intreging subject..she had some medical nurses perspective... nd both being female bodied it does impact who we get treated as we travel around the world... also of course about this pilgrimage business we seemed to be involved with. The last few kms were at a much quicker pace and on the road..which apparently is worse for the feet...but I kept up... we came into Castres around 1.30 and made a b-line for the nearest cafe and hung out a long time talking more... I found the contrast of returning to a more urban town after mountains and small villages striking...for one thing so many stores, and most of them actually open...also the people in the cafes appeared so much more polished and wealthy as if they never stomped around in dirt... Ms Ulm and I talked more about pilgrimage. She had actually started from her home town and had gotten a lot of enthusiastic reaction from the germans...so much so that when she crossed over to Switzerland and France the reception seemed cooler...she was still waiting to feel the 'specialness' of the pilgrimage...she said most people reported that they actually start thinking new thoughts they never had before...as if old thinking patterns drop away... I also dont think I have experienced this on a noticeable level...we then wound our way to the tourist office and tried to have her call the Gites for a place to stay, the one place did not answer and for some reason the other place she was not allowed to call for some reason, it was not in her book...in fact it all seemed kind of dodgy there... since we did not get answers we decided to let her show us on a map where the Gites were and we walked to the closest... we rang the door bell and just then, a man in a car came up and handed us the key...we had auspicious good timing..we entered and the man soon came in to give us a tour of the place and codes for the door.. he was renovating the top floor and showed us proudly the plans.. there was a little yard with a cherry trees... he had art pieces from former pilgrims like a stained glass window and welded gate... he seemed cheerful and scatter brained, he was a math teacher about to retire... he told us of a free internet place, we headed that way, we dinked around there till closing...then we found a chinese restaurant and had very simple meals..from a friendly owner ..there was commotion outside because international soccer matches are in full swing. The older french couple showed up at the Gite as well, but they had their own room. So there were only two of us in the big room... slept fairly well...
oh, after thought,  I did not say much about the town..i think sometimes i am too tired or maybe caught up with the mission of finding a place to stay to pay much attention.. Ms Ulm has a guide book she actually can read and Castres used to be famous for it's fabric dying and the narrow house along the river used to be where they did the dying...this is more info than i have about most towns!

6-17-10 Angles to Boissezon day 74

6-17-10 Angles to Boissezon day 74
the morning came with someone making very loud noises as they climbed out of their bunk bed...so six am I was awake.(catching the theme here?).. I got my stuff together and made coffee and ate breakfast... eventually the german girls showed up to return the mattresses... I left them with coffee and because I walk slow and been up for an hour I wanted to get going... I knew I would see everyone soon enough as they would pass me and we were all going to the same pilgrim's gite in the eve... today there was no rain, it was still a grey day... in mostly woods... the first to pass was after an hour, the french couple... then two hour later the germans and mrs G.... but ironically throughout the day I would keep running into everyone as they took long breaks...so it really felt like the tortoise and the hare race...

I got to talk a bit to the german nurse from Freiburg, she is a mother of two adult daughters... Mrs E, and she is a nurse and naturopath who is trying to go from nurse in the OR to being a referral resource person for post hospital care clients...she is also trying to figure out how to create more space in her life so she can take longer trips...she has a daughter in austraila and would like to explore the country for several months... at first i thought she was very serious but as i got to know her a little I saw her big soft spot...For me hanging out with german woman helps me identify what i have gotten from that culture,.what part of my personality is the way it is because it is german..often in america some of the traits that make me different have been pointed to as faults..is i find it empowering to know that there is actually a cultural component to it.. i was too young at the time to know this and america can be so monolethically monocultural that i need to remind people there that the things that make me different arent because i am crazy but because i was just brought up in very different places...i also walked along side Ms Ulm for a while...at this point we are like we known each other for a long time...conversation flowing more and more freely...mostly we share travel stories...and examine our personal reasons for slogging through the french landscape... the big unanswered question is.. 'why are we doing this anyway?' ...its a good question to ask..especially on days where it is less than thrilling to get lost, foot sore or wet.. but today would be a better walking day for me...Mrs G the french woman had gone down the wrong trail early and had to double back...but she too soon would pass me... this loosing the trail markings and going off in the wrong direction, seems to happen pretty frequently to all pilgrims... and ironically one person will get totally lost and four others, not at all...but it seems to happen to all of us eventually... it's definitely a common theme of pilgrimage... I eventually I did get foot sore and it was a bit of a gruel at the end....with a steep down hill and loose sharp rocks... I came in with the two germans from Freiburg...we were about to pass one of the first houses of the village when I thought I recognized the drying boots outside ...sure enough it was our gite...it was large enough so that the french couple could get a room on the upstairs and the germans and me had the down stairs room...we took turns showering and laundry..there was a great huge wash line outside and later when it started raining again... heaters to hang our things near...we had come in so early that we had time to slowly explore the town...Mrs G came with us...she had also gotten a room upstairs... she would be heading out the following day and return back to her life and work so this was our last night together..she was fairly quiet person and seemed on the surface cool...but she had a wicked dry sense of humor...and was flexible when conversation switched temporarily to german...since the others spoke to her in french and I could speak english with her... so as a team we went and climbed towards the church...we had to walk through a small artist community and met a character who gave us the church key and told us which art studios to visit later...

so first the small dimly lite church... the german girls harmonized a nice melody with the only lyric being hallalulia...and it filled the church's space wonderfully...they also knew a couple of the french verses to the St Jacques pilgrims song...which they sang for us... afterwards we meandered back down..checking out some of the small open galleries and studios and to return the giant church key...i did not discover any hidden Picasso's but I did marvel at the charming atmosphere of ancient villages buildings in which these artists got to work...definitely an inspirational setting...we also stopped at the local restaurant and had a coffee...and ordered our evening meals...as pilgrims we could get a special price for take away dinner...so at 7.15 we would return to pick it up...i returned to the room...since I had been foot sore and rested my feet a bit... then an hour later I got small provisions for the next days walk. Finally we get to pick up dinner... we were amused to see it look almost like airplane tray food...but it did taste good...and we got an almost two liter bottle of wine to split between the five of us as part of the dinner price... we all enjoyed the food immensely... and the wine of course as well... this was also our farewell dinner with Mrs G..funny how quickly one can get attached to people...we were sad to see her go... unfortunately for her, this ten day holiday she'd walked through had been mostly grey and rainy...it seems like most everyone is upset with the weather...dark cool rainy days in june in the south of france. It is unheard of, apparently... I on the other hand had already gotten too much sun this year... and although I dont like wet feet at all, after so many years in seattle I dont question rain anymore I just deal with it...but yes, I too could use a day of sun..for getting up at six..we all stayed up kind of late.. and went to bed after eleven...



notes 6-18-10
rainy looking but not bad day..woke too early thank you manu and eva...period temper.. get going by 8ish...french man lurker...only 16kms today wet feet from grass ..early sore feet ….period pee break help from viola ...we walked together talked about men..gender..t..arrived castres around noon but hour walk in..coffee break long blabbed more... then tourist info..acted subterfuge viola let me be the tourist......but eventually gave us map and showed us where what was..no answer so we walked over... auspicous cercumstance man drove by handed us key..he was the gite owner...friendly man gave us tour... cherries...shower ..crappy laundry...then walk to internet... cathedral...chinese dinner more blah...back to room...french couple here..but no room mates...mantras.map orientation... bed...

6-16-10 La Salvetat-sur-Agout to Angles day 73

6-16-10 La Salvetat-sur-Agout to Angles day 73
I am now very much living communally with slowly shifting changing pilgrim groups..and staying in old village buildings...this one had incredibly echoing wood floors... and I woke to the noise of my clomping neighbors who got up at six... I tried to lie in for an hour..but no more sleep... outside another grey day with threat of rain... I got packed and ready by 8am.. now with a little bit more space in my pack I realize I am buying more food..so basically replacing the weight I had just shipped home...the other thing I realize, I really am one of the slowest walkers, and it part it is due to my heavier pack...but also I think it is just my style... so even though I was one of the first ones who left... I get passed by all the others soon. The rain started out slow enough, but it really started pouring about an hour into walking... the toes of my socks got soaked pretty quick.. so most of the walk was with wet feet... I took shelter under my cape at one point and just sat there in the woods eating chocolate while it poured heavily all around me..chocolate is sometimes the only thing that can cut into the gloom of a bad weather day.....

eventually it did lighten, I was actually surprised I had not seen the germans yet because they were really fast walkers.... later I would find out that they had waited for a long time for the rain to stop..then went back to town and had coffee and waited more... At a small village these two rather aggressive seeming dogs cornered me..barking snarling, gnashing teeth.. .and they had bigger bodies... up till now I had found that if I did not give a lot of eye contact and just keep moving..once I pass their boundary lines they leave me alone...but as I said these two guys cornered me...and as I tried to move forward they were snapping at me as if to bite... true I am not totally comfortable with dogs but their aggressiveness seemed beyond the usual 'I just want to scare you'... I found that if I did not move at all they seemed to calm down a bit... In desperation, since i could not move, I tried to dig through my bag for some cheese, found a croissant instead.. I suspected that unlike asian dogs, these guys were not starving...just then the smallest little old lady came out with a giant stick and chased the dogs away...she came over to me to make sure I had not been bit... at that moment I burst into tears... I had no idea that I had been so scared..the little lady was worried that I had been bit after all... I assured her I had not...again she speaking french, me not.. she figured out that I did not speak french... she tried to calm me down..giant me and little her...it was sweet and funny... she tried to invite me in for a coffee..but I begged off, I was embarrassed I had cried and also I just wanted to get away from here...in the mean time she had yelled at the neighbors and the dogs had been temporarily brought into a house....she kissed my cheek and I thanked her and was on my way...still upset but relieved to be done with the dogs... ironically the sun broke out after this...again later I would hear three different tales from the others about these dogs... twice the dogs did not act out and I was told they probably only did that to me because I was scared..which actually was not true when I first saw them..only when they started snapping at me...but my friend from Ulm had also been cornered by them and this time an old man was there and called the dogs...i did notice that after wards.. I was much more vigilant about passing houses with barking dogs...but thankfully all were chained up...i had about an hour left of walking..the town seemed to unfold slowly... I ran into the french pilgrim Mrs G, she had just gone to the Mairie (municiple building) and had paid for the Gite and gotten keys...she directed me... I went into the Marie as well, got my credentials stamped, paid my 8 euro and was told the others had the only two keys available and I should just go the the Gite... I got there and the old french couple from this morning was there and Mrs G...it was a very small place...six bunk beds in a small room and a small kitchen... it felt a bit like the old couple had staked their claim and were a bit territorial so I felt like I was constantly trying to get passed them as I unpacked showered and laundered... the space on the laundry hanger was also premium...the local stores were not open yet so I just sat outside in the sun for a while... the two women from Freiburg showed up... and took the remaining two beds... they were concerned about the night since apparently the older french man snored horribly... I had not noticed... then a while later still Ms Ulm showed up, she too had whiled away at the other town till the rain stopped and then power-walked here., she had spend her night at a place that raised pack mules that could be hired out to pilgrims and would even be picked up by the owner from Santiago when finished.......she had gotten a make shift room by the Marie for the night..she had to sleep on the floor and there was only a sink and a toilet... the other german girls wanted to see the place...when they came back they decided to grab the mattresses off the beds and move in with Ms Ulm for the night so they did not have to deal with the snorer... I decided my i-pod with static would drown out most things so I stuck around...but since we had the kitchen and shower in this place we all hung out together for most of the remaining day... when the stores opened we grabbed various dinner ingredients and beer... apparently in these small towns the restaurants are only open Thursdays through Sundays...which seemed to even frustrate our french pilgrim friend since she came originally from Paris...where you can eat any time of day...after such a rainy day, sitting on the sunny steps of our Gite chatting was wonderful... conversation went from french to german to english depending on who needed to understand what.....the older french couple kept to themselves... but Mrs G was in our group...unfortunately cliques happen on the road as well... eventually the germans left for their quarters and I stayed here...around ten everyone went to bed...me with my ipod...and in the night when the ear phone occasionally did fall out ..the place vibrated with the snorer... it was pretty incredible...but since my sleep is crappy anyway I dont think it really was any worse than usual...

6-15-10 Murat-sur-Vebre to La Salvetat-sur-Agout day 72

6-15-10 Murat-sur-Vebre to La Salvetat-sur-Agout day 72
I woke up around 7.30 cuz I wake up when others start making noise... I started going through my pack to make piles. I tried to be quiet but it was hard. Unfortunately I found a place with post office that was opening that morning on the same day the two foot sore travelers from switzerland needed a day in... I got a pile of ship-ables together and hoped it was good enough to make my pack lighter than it has been.. then I rigged a rain cover for my back pack since i'd been using a 'not' water proof rain coat till now which added weight and little protection. Then I went to post office, it was starting to drizzle again outside. By 9.30 I had done the deed and had mailed of a package home..sadly including my little painting kit... I hit the road, I had twenty kms this day..and a bit of a late start by pilgrims standards. To abuse the phrase 'Nature abhors a vacuum', I have to admit that I had filled some of the empty space in my pack with food instead.. I noticed I bought more than the usual cuz some how I knew I had room... also with the cooler weather my appetite had returned. The trail today was suppose to go along the lake region.. there was a sign posted on the path in french. Of course, I could not read it..so I kept going.. soon enough I noticed part of the trail was flooded but it seemed manageable...then after a few more patches were I could avoid the water... finally the trail went straight into the lake...i had to face facts.. I had to go back and find the main road where i'd started...i was not one hundred percent sure about the car road necessarily leading me to were I needed to go..but since I could keep seeing views of the lake on the right side...and i could eventually also see signs of towns that were listed on my crappy little book map..

so I knew I was doing something right... I tried again looking near the lake to see if the trail was better..but again it was a wasted excursion.. now my concern was to find were the road connected with the trail again... finally near the end of the second town I found it... I was not making good time today..to many little side trips and uncertainties.. the trail went up into the hills more and was drier...the landscape is still pretty much the same...with exception of glimpses of the lake..but farms, forests and then occasional open fields..there is an increase of old crosses as trail markers with the shell in the middle..the crosses look very old... I arrived in La Salvetat-sur-Agout around 4.30 the municipal building (Mairie) was almost closing..this is usually were you find out about the pilgrims places to stay called Gites.. in this town they directed me up to the church on the hill where I could get what I needed at the tourist office..the town had an ancient feel and although it had some tourism it felt authentic... I got up to the tourist info and the woman did not speak english but she knew I was a pilgrim and looking for the Gite.. I noticed now it's automatic, they see my pack and they already know.. I paid my small fee and got a key and weird paper bed sheets and pillow case. I asked if any of the germans where here and she said only french... she brought me to the gite and showed me kitchen bathrooms and bed room.. turns out I would share a two bed room with the french woman I had met in Mercle, the one who spoke english... also the two german women from frieburg were there... the french woman Ms G showed me how to use the heater to dry my clothes but warned I had to turn things frequently because I could burn my clothes.. I was glad for the heat..the building was cold and damp..also the rain started outside... I would eventually go to the shops when they opened and got some canned ravioli and salad for dinner and bread stuff for next days walk and breakfast.. the germans tried to go to restaurants but came back disappointed... even though this town was not that small...restaurants here are only open thursdays through sunday...so we all cooked in.. in a small kitchen... Ms G had found some wild mushrooms and she cooked them up in some oil and shared... we all seemed to share all our food a bit.. it was nice and cozy..and the mushrooms tasted great... later an older french couple came in and cooked very simple instant soups and ate while standing... figuring out the art of sharing limited spaces with strangers seems to be par for the coarse in pilgrim land...we all retired around ten... although the bed was fairly comfortable and the room warm and dry I did not sleep the best..but that seems to be normal now...the building was as old as the town...and even gentle walking made the floors vibrate through-out.

6-14-10 Castanet-le-Haut to Murat-sur-Vebre day 71

6-14-10 Castanet-le-Haut to Murat-sur-Vebre day 71
I got up about 7ish, I was disappointed to find nothing had dried much over night so I had laundry from three different days now not completely dry.. amongst other things adding weight to my pack.. breakfast was already waiting inside for me. My room was separated by an outside porch area from their main living space and since it was chilly out I ate inside their dinning room... although we did not speak a common language I found out the day would be grey with a just a little rain, and at least while I was walking this proved to be true...the woman still seemed a bit nervous about me, maybe she was uncertain about my paying..it was not the cheapest pilgrims stay .... I had ate and slept well so all was good..i had 20 kms again today. The landscape seemed to be about the same as the last few days... farmed forests, open fields and then more natural woods in various combinations...

. the walk slowly climbed at times but nothing too steep... it was very much the same weather I would expect in the NW US where I lived, cool, very little drizzle and lots of grey, it was actually ideal hiking weather... but I walked slowly as usual... there was a bit of uncertainty with the trail at one point since two different GR trails crossed again and they share the same color markings... and I tried to guess what my french guide book said.... mid morning I came to giant wind turbines in the woods... and at that point I ran into the german woman from Ulm again...she was not certain whether we had made the right decision as far as trails went...i was okay with my decision...but we walked together for a while and finally came upon better signs and proof that we were okay... I let her go ahead since she has less weight and is a much faster walker... I tried to listen to my 'learn french while you drive' while walking, but I have to admit, learning language this way is a bit boring, and I am not sure how much I benefited.... again as the afternoon approached my feet got the now very familiar aches... I arrived at Murat, but followed the trail signs thinking, based on the book that they would go through the center of town..but no, the trail overshot the town so I had to walk back in.. I ran into a german woman I had met two days or so ago and she was telling me about an over night stay at a Gite with really good food... on the way in to town I saw the Gite, and I saw the prices listed, I felt I needed to stay and a cheaper one(later i heard that i misinterpreted the sign the dorm room was cheaper)... so I went into town center... everything was closed even the bar... a bad sign.... I found the tourist office and waited till it opened. I had only a few minutes... the women inside spoke no english but I communicated I was a pilgrim looking for a cheap Gite, I was guided to a place behind a school and given a door code in exchange for six euro...the german woman from Ulm opened the door she had already settled in... it was a place with huge dorm room and many beds..so far it was only us.. in the kitchen she had made some tea and had turned on all the heat...so it was actually quite nice in there.... I hurried to shower and laundry so I could get some food... our cloths were next to the heater so my three days worth of damp clothes would dry quite nicely.....eventually two more pilgrims would arrive...a couple i'd seen in Montpellier youth hostel... they seemed quite wrecked and a little unsocial in the beginning... me and Mrs Ulm went to the supermarket together and both picked lentils as our main meal I also got avocado and bread... then I went back and started cooking my lentil soup... later Ms Ulm would return having done other errands and would take her turn to cook her soup...there was only one pot... then the other couple who was swiss, returned and ironically they had also chosen the lentils..but they made a fancy curry with theirs and added fresh veggies... I ate my soup with avocado sandwiches...delicious... we had also all seemingly bought beer... so we sat around and talked,...ms Ulm saw some of my photos from my trip... and decided she preferred all the ones with stuffed bunny Clark in it...so i found another lover of Clark now...oh and therefore she must be an okay person!! turns out all of us pretty much started walking beginning of April...the man kept to himself in the dorm room mostly but the swiss woman sat and talked with us...she had started in Switzerland, and walked pretty much the same walk as Ms Ulm..apparently there is only one trail leading from Switzerland down... also on the table for discussion...seemed to be what I would finally send home...since as i've mentioned repeatedly my pack is too big...me and Ms Ulm now have an easier banter going between us because we keep running into each other...it's almost like the buddhist circuit between nepal and india... it's best to get along with everyone since you keep sharing rooms with each other along the way, so it's nice when you do get along well...i would not deal with that decision making about what belongings I could part with till the next morning...the couple had decided to stay two nights here because they needed a break...the woman was now experiencing the extreme foot soreness that we all seem to get... somewhat late I went off to do my homework and we all went to bed around 10ish.....i should mention by the time I arrived here, it started pouring rain..so I missed the worst of it again...

6-13-10 Mecle to Castanet-le-Haut day 70

6-13-10 Mecle to Castanet-le-Haut day 70
I got up with everyone which was a little before seven... the french lady was all packed and ready to go..her pack looked like it weighed a third of mine, (must be nice!)..but she was also just traveling ten days.. we had breakfast together with plenty of coffee... the man had brought last nights cheese back for breakfast upon request although he thought it was odd.. breakfast should be sweet not savory.. the french woman was off almost immediately, she planned to hike 20kms today... I had already decided to only do 11kms in hopes the place would have a post office I could use the following day, monday... my german friend was going to climb some old church ruin, apparently you could camp up there... it would be not far from where I planned to be, so perhaps I would see both of them again in two nights.. I got going last... and took my time... the trail was narrower and trees grew closer.. there was not too much extreme up or down... I enjoyed walking along the moss-covered rock walls, so common here... the weather again did not seem to make up its mind, cloudy more or less, but no rain...and a fine breeze... after a slow four kms, I arrived in a town large enough to have open cafe and bakery on sunday, Saint-Gervais-sur-Mare. Even the tourist office was open here... I seemed to need to top at every open store...wallowing in the luxury of ample food... I got apple torte, croissant, a cheese filled something, candy, chocolate, apple, orange... and a coffee at the cafe..a fairly unhealthy diet. ..but I seem to burn through what ever I eat on this trip anyway.. on the way out I decided to stop at the tourist office to get my credentials stamped... there was a couple in there talking to the man running the office... the old man was worried that I did not speak french because it made it harder for him to help me...the couple spoke english, in fact the man was a professional translator... even though I really did not need the help since I just needed the credintial stamp ..but they chatted with me... I asked if the town that I was goaling for had a post office, no...okay another day of walking with my pack as is..they agreed heartily that my pack was too heavy... it is a consensus across France now...the tourist office man wanted to know if he could call ahead for my accommodations, but he meant the town 30kms away... which I definitely was not in the mood to try...in the end he gave me a little brochure with my lodging options for the eve which did proof helpful since my french guide book did not have anything listed for Castanet.... I continued on the way ….these small towns you say good morning to everyone you meet...its nice... but occasionally some of the older people want to chat with me so I apologize in french and explain I dont understand the language... they nod with comprehension and continue to try and engage me anyway... it's kind of sweet... so this happened here as well....

I went back onto the trail...very picturesque again...narrow... lots of changing green-scapes mostly inside the woods... I ran into a man with a basket, I asked in a composite of french italian if he had mushrooms, he answered in english yes, can I take photo? Yes, he said he did not find much today... he had a few chanterells, a mushroom I only know in german, Stein pilz, and one more variety... my mother had been asking me to take photos of any editable mushrooms I came across ...since I have not seen anything on my own...here was the opportuninity... and on I went... I only had six kms to do, to the village... and I broke that up with sugary snack breaks.. today also water was not a concern since it was a short day... I would run into the couple from the tourist office twice more going in either direction, they were mountain biking through this area.... they told me I was courageous, which seems to be common phrase here... I lumbered on... I would walk along a small river which made pretty sounds... I hit Castanet-le-Haut midday... it was clear that this was such a small town it did not have a cafe or shop.... I did see the municipal building and library... it was small and of course charming...i was almost at the end of this town and I did not see any sign of lodging.. there were two man chatting outside the house.. I asked where the hotel was, and they looked at me puzzled, there was no hotel here... I started leafing through my book hoping to find the address, I panicked realizing it was not printed in my book..then I remembered the tourist office brochure, they waited patiently till I got myself sorted.. I showed them the name and the address... the man called his wife, two women came out... the one tried to explain to me the directions... all I heard was something like the “red house” and the pointing finger.. I must have looked hesitant, but I mustered myself up, hoping to find the place and I was ready to go..then the other lady indicated she would lead me... so I followed her, she walked fast I tried to keep up the steep climbs through mideavel-ville, she was friendly and since she knew I did not understand squat (nothing) she just pointed at the landscape around and said it was beautiful in french, since at least I could understand that and I agreed with her... she dropped me off right in front of the place which was outside of town.. I don't think I would have thought of that...but I was happy to be here.. there were three people outside, the older woman was the proprietress, it was more of a bed and breakfast gite, which I am figuring to mean a persons home with some rooms to rent, some are especially for pilgrims and therefore cheaper some are for everyone like this one and are a little closer to hotel prices if you get a single room... but it was actually not a bad price with dinner and breakfast..there was a young woman with her.. who spoke some english... the older woman seemed a bit nervous having to deal with a none french speaker... but we got the details sorted while the young woman was still there.. the room still had to be made up and I asked for vegetarian food saying cheese and eggs okay..also what time I wanted breakfast... then I showered... I hung out two days worth of varying degrees of damp clothes and still having to wash that days... hoping at least half of it would finally dry out... the grey weather means things dont dry out over night at all right now...i dinked around on my lap top but found I was actually quite tired..yesterdays walk I think did me in a bit...so I took the opportunity to take a long afternoon nap... in the eve I updated photos and journal ...and got my dinner which included salad, wine, omelet, cheese plate, and a really good apple tarte... I was stuffed... I was also glad I had not eaten everything I had bought in the shops that day...since the following day would be a twenty km walk without any place to get anything so I needed something for the day.... I still felt tired... and made it an early night...

6-12-10 Lunas to Mecle day 69

6-12-10 Lunas to Mecle day 69
I woke around seven, and got my gear together went down stairs and had my included breakfast which really was just bread butter and most importantly coffee... the hotel was full of naïve art of local landscapes and some more exotic scenes of african people paddling boats... I already knew the artist was the young man who seemed to run the hotel... each painting seemed like it was a struggle and obviously a lot of time was spend with each... he had a very good color pallet but he wrestled with the brush work and anatomy...some were hits others misses... I really respected that clearly he was keeping at it since the place was just filled with work... I told him on the way out that I liked his art... hoping he would continue his solo battle with brush and paint... i've noticed in a number of places such as hotels and restaurants here in France, art that was made by amateur painters and proudly displayed ...leading me to think it is a common hobby here and this makes me happy. everyone should paint...there i said it.... I hit the road a bit before 8. the first three kms went fairly fast since the terrain was mild... it was still a bit overcast but it looked less likely to rain...the first town was Le Bousquet-d'Orb I walked to the very top of what I thought was it, dutifully following the red and white stripe marker...then I realized once again the austier french pilgrims chemin did not go through the market area of town but circumvented it... I had to climb the steep steps down again.. today I had over 22kms to go up and down hills... I had less then a liter of water and no real food... so I walked off the trail direction town, I had to stop and ask to be sure, and got directions from a nice old man..again I mostly follow the pointing fingers and try to catch some words.... the town seemed a long detour but worth it. I needed more cash so atm... most of the towns I think I will be going through often dont even have a cafe or bar never mind a cash machine. Then I found the baker and got some more cheese type pastry... and I got candy, water and another coffee at the Tabac-Bar-Cafe it was a little past nine, and older men were already in there drinking their morning beer and buying there Rapid lotto tickets... then finally back on the road..for the long march...

the first part was actually the most difficult.. it was a narrow road and climbed steeply into the hills... after Italy's Cinque Terre, I could say it was not that extreme but It was still work.. and even with cool temperatures I over heated quick... I took frequent breaks eating a little bit at a time and sipping a bit of water... then up and onwards again... the day would go in and out of cloudy and sunny but as the day progressed it got clearer and breezier...the larger road did appear which meant less shade but that was okay, it also decreased the grade of the climbs I would face going up... I had my french guide book but I could pick out key words as land marks as I went along... about two three hours in, on a longer break, I saw a woman walking towards me it was the woman from Ulm again... we chatted and joked... I told her to tell the place in Melce to keep the door open for me in case I arrived really late... she was not sure yet whether she would over night there or camp along the way... I had kinda drawn the same conclusion...if the walk got too hard for me or it got too late I would find a place to camp along the way... the only problem being of course I would have no water for the night or the first part of the walk the next day..but I slogged on... sometimes out on the open hills sometimes amongst trees... over all, the markers are getting more and more reliable and I am getting more savey about keeping my eyes out for them... you can definitely not get sucked up too much in your own head space...because you will miss them... a great forced wakefulness practice... again I used my ipod and listened to more talks on dharma...and repeating some... this, to help my keep going... I was a little crest fallen when I realized I had only covered 16 of the 25kms mid-afternoon... I was moving forward very slowly...mostly cuz I needed frequent stops still..because about half way through the day the feet start getting sore... there was a part of the path that crossed a road twice, at one of these points I had trouble finding the markers again...and I could tell frustration was rising quick, I was getting tired... but again I found it and started the descend into a valley... it got steeper and steeper.. and the final km was over large loose rocks on a narrow trail... because I was in the trees I could not see a village at all... I had also seen a sign for one of the pilgrims places. You had to call by five to get a bed..it was passed five and I had no cell phone, so I started to fret... finally I saw some roofs... and the path broke into a clearing right infont of a small house with stairs..two people were sitting on the stairs, one of them the woman of Ulm...she had been concerned about me and was glad that I had managed... she had already told the host that I was coming and there was definitely room here.. the man showed up, he spoke no english but was very nice... I got a mint lemonade and sucked down a lot more water...I introduced myself to the other woman who was french and spoke great english.. she was doing the ten day hike that seems to be common..she was doing the compostelle one vacation allotment at a time..she said at this rate she should complete the entired trip by the time she was 80... we laughed.. I showered and did laundry..the place seemed really clean with all new amenities.. there were four bunk-beds with comfy mattresses... we caught up again on our days. Both women had over-nighted atthe same Gite, near the town i'd stayed at Joncels, apparently it was with a very nice couple. The woman from Ulm, had listened to their stories of what kind of pilgrims would show up.. apparently there are all types of pilgrims..one story was that this couple showed up huffing and puffing with very big packs, telling stories of having started in rome etc...the next day after they were packed and ready to go, the husband asked the wife for the car keys so he could bring the packs to the car...when the hosts raised in eyebrow, the couple explained, that they were just looking for cheap ways to do vacation...so these were fake pilgrims...other stories such as people taking and packing everything away from the buffet breakfast.. so if your a host of pilgrims, it sounds like you have to be a good sport... our host here, showed up all in white serving us a fancy wine with good glasses. I just dont expect this in a tiny village and as a pilgrim...the food was a pasta alfredo with chicken on top, I passed my chicken on to my friend and ate the pasta... there was also very good cheese and bread... and again a really great desert, berries covered in a white crème sauce..we had gotten keys to visit the little church in town, so we stopped by after dinner, it was small with white wash interior..very sweet energy... I did not stay as long as the others.. the day had taken it out of me and my legs needed to stretch out on bed..... after wards we all retreated to very spots to get ready for bed.. pack...journal etc... everyone was tugged in by 9.30... I slept fairly well.

6-11-10 Lodeve to Lunas day 68

6-11-10 Lodeve to Lunas day 68

it was not raining but definitely still gray... even though I got up fairly early again with all the chatting and breakfast time flowed quickly... I tried to get directions to the next place and the host tried to start telling them to me in french, because he was continuing to jank my chain about not speaking the language, even though he spoke both of mine and could totally help me... I got serious with him and told him he had to explain in english or german or else if I got lost it would be on his head...so he did...this section of the Chemin St Jacques is a lot longer than the road...the first 12 or so kms are on the walking trail but then there is an option of walking 6kms on the road which they referred to as dangerous, or continue on the trail which was 12kms... 'real' pilgrims of course take the long way... I on the other hand still building up stamina again and having a late start decided to take the shorter version. I said my good byes and first went to the cathedral because I had been told it was worth it, and of course it was. It had a lot of stain glass which shown in contrast to the dimly lit interior... then on the way out of town I stopped at the bakers for lunch pastries with the usual cheese fillings... then finally I hit the trail..it is surprising how quickly these trails lead into nature. It is actually quite nice that I am finally on the real trail even though the distances between places to overnight are sometimes daunting and finding water is near impossible en-route...but to be out in the country away from car roads is great. The path climbed into hills some where used for grazing sheep.. at times it was various types of thin forest... it looked like it would threaten to rain all day but never did while I was walking. I met a couple walking the other way, but again I was alone on the trail for the rest of it. I am still taking frequent breaks and kms just take longer when going on trails then when on flat roads..so I fretted a bit at my slow progress but I felt good again about being a pilgrim on the path and that I was able to continue towards Santiago. I listened to more dharma talks that a friend had sent me a linked to ...and took photos of the landscapes as I passed..taking frequent short breaks to snack and rest. This time I planned the water well. Also it was overcast for most of the day so I wee bit cooler. I hit the car road portion eventually ...i had to orient though since the walking trail seemed to go in direct opposite from what the street signs were saying the town was... I did not want to make a mistake... and I did not... the car road was winding and as warned had no real bank for me to walk in.. but traffic was low enough that I was okay and I could switch sides periodically when the visibility was not in my favor... so the last six miles were not as stressful as I had been warned. Mostly because I had much worse roads under my belt... I arrived in Lunas around 3;30, there was no real pilgrimage here so only option was hotel or keep walking. I was quite content to stay... I went to the cheapest hotel in town and they had a deal were dinner and breakfast was included for pilgrims for the same price usually just the overnight, so I took the package after I was assured that being vegetarian was no problem. My room looked vaguely exotic with a St Martinique batik on the wall and a satiny pseudo mosquito net over my bed. I also had tv with french channels. I did the post walk grooming thing and rested my feet a bit..it started raining again... I had a bit of time till dinner so I decided to walk around town.. even in the rain it was quite charming, it had a river running through it and pretty bridges linking the two sides.. I had already gone to the tourist office to get my credentials stamped. I went into the little church as well, I ran into the same french couple from the night before. They tried to communicate with me and the man showed me some of his photos from the same walk I had done... since they leave at crack of dawn, he had some cool fog photos from that day. The shop and the post office were closed so I could not buy anything for tomorrows walk..nor could I finally send stuff home... something that has been nagging at me and weighing me down now for a while.. the walking is no longer mostly flat roads... and I finally finally after two months have to admit that if I really want to make it anywhere any time soon, I need less weight on my back... also I don't seem to be gaining speed due to fitness I seem to be slowing down and having more probs with the feet...also pretty much ever experienced pilgrim i've met has recommended I loose several kilos off my back...and as much as it pains me to send things like my paints home.. it is time..but now it is a question of timing as well. Since the post office was closed here, I had to wait through the weekend and find a big enough town with a functioning post office that does not close at noon. So it would be several more days...i returned to my room and waited for dinner... which seemed to be for ever... 7.30... I was quite hungry by the time I could eat... I went to the dining room and the man there made sure I was the pilgrim from room 2, who was vegetarian. There was the french couple again, we would sit together at the same table. My meal included a small carafe of wine which was nice. There was a buffet style salad which was great since I could laden it with protein such as beans which I did not have in a while... and the main course was omlette.. mine had mushrooms..thier's had meat. Of course despite language barrier we tried to communicate. The woman had taken some spanish classes so would try to speak spanish to me at times...with not much greater success..since i dont remember much from my two semesters of spanish a cillion years ago. but some things did leak in... they had several pins from other times that they had walked the Camino they explained which they got where. They tried to explain the next days terrain to me.. .i would be climbing in altitude throughout the day the path would be mostly wide road through forest and there were five peaks and flat areas which I could use as markers of progress. They had a son in law who traveled a lot including Chicago. I guess he had brought back some Jack Daniels which the woman quite enjoyed. I had to laugh since they both were very sweet and even had an innocent air to them, so imagining her with a hard drink like that was funny... They were both very curious about Maine... she apparently read a lot of Steven King.. and I guess there is some residual french still in that region.. they are convinced that the energy of the people in Maine is like that of the french people based on his books.. I guess there is also some connection with the immigrant populations that settled there and in Quebec... I would not have thought that Maine would be a tourist destination for french people.. they had asked what it was like for me to be alone, was it hard on moral? I said actually I was fine, I had good days and sometimes bad but not demoralized... after I tried to transmit how kind and friendly everyone in France had been to me. They assured me, that in France people actually were a little cool about pilgrims, I would see that in Spain people were even nicer and even more supportive of pilgrims... it seems as I travel through each country..the momentum of local pilgrim support will grow... in a way I cant imagine people being even more giving...but it is encouraging to hear that things will get even easier... of course this type of communication where there is little common language is a bit exhausting and soon we were each off to bed... they were going to walk 30kms the next day and plan to leave by six am... It is probably a good idea now to start getting up that early especially since I am still slow but I am not ready yet... I went to my room and dinked around a bit and then to bed by ten... sleep okay including the weird random wake ups...