Santiago Festival

I just read on Santiago de Compostela's tourist site (santiagoturismo.com) that there's a pyrotechnic display of setting a model of the cathedral on fire, but this happens on the night of the 24th! I'll be 20km away! I like fire. . . :(
There are apparently also fireworks, so maybe I'll be able to see them from where I'll be. That would make up for missing the cathedral burning a little bit. ;)

Unexpected Supplies

I've been reading through the Camino Forums again, and someone had the brilliant idea to ask what the most unexpectedly valuable supply was that they took with them/wish they had taken. There were some ingenious ideas on there!
Some of the ones that I'll be looking to get for myself:

• a twisted clothesline - it's two thick strips of plastic that are twisted on one another, and you just stick your clothes into the little spaces. I think someone said AAA has them with suction cups so you can stick them to windows, and these require no clothespins.
• sink stopper - I have one of these. For washing clothes in the sink, for those albergues that don't have washers/have huge lines for the washers.
• reusable grocery bag - also have plenty of these. Apparently great for all sorts of things, but mostly grocery shopping - I guess most Spanish grocers expect you to bring your own sacks.
• sticky labels pre-printed with my name and email - easy and fast way to share information with wonderfully awesome people met along the way.
• knife set with corkscrew - I've been reading that a multi-purpose knife like Swiss Army or Leatherman is pretty much essential for all sorts of situations, but a couple people have said the corkscrew was their most-used utility. Super for opening a shared bottle of wine with new friends.
• spork - two, two, two utensils in one!
• needle and thread - I have a sewing kit here, so I'll just need to modify it for the trail. I've heard that polyester thread is the most useful. I'll have to look into that.
• dedicated face cloth - I'm sure we can imagine how grungy a face will get, and those that know me know I like that exfoliation feeling that just doesn't come with drying off with smooth cotton.
• diaper pins - apparently very useful for all sorts of things. Some mentioned instances - emergency clasping-together of something split, fastening wet items to the outside of my pack for last-minute, on-the-road drying.
• chamois - as swimmers know, these are fantastic little cloths for super-drying. I would think there'd be one or two at home. . .Lighter and smaller than a regular towel, and cheaper than a 'super-absorbent' travel towel.
  
• LED light - I'd originally thought about getting a headlamp, but EVERYONE gets annoyed at them, and it seems like a very newbie mistake to bring one - they are blinding to everyone else. A small handheld/lanyard LED light provides the visibility in the night to the bathrooms without the excessive brightness of the headlamp or the blinding positioning of eye level for everyone around me.
• cover-up - I have to check to see if I still have one of these. I used to for one of my old swimsuits, but I'm thinking I donated it in the last move. People use these as modesty-protectors when adding/subtracting clothes in the albergues, as a sheet on a warm night, as a ground cover, a pillowcase, flowy top or skirt in the evenings. . .

Also, I posed the question of what to do with my pack after I arrive at the albergue for the night, but want to see the town/city before bed. Everyone that responded said that they just leave their packs beside their beds and take the essentials with them - money, ID, camera! This makes me so happy. One, it means I don't have to take the huge thing around any more than necessary. Two, it shows that there's a wonderful level of trust and respect and a great sense of community. Obviously, it's not like a pack has never been stolen in the recent history of the Camino, but really, if I have what I'd need to not be trapped in a foreign country (ID and money), what can't be replaced?
I'm loving this already. I wish everyone had a chance to do something that made them as excited. I feel exceptionally lucky, and I haven't even left!

It's official!

I just booked my flights! AACK! I leave from DCA to Paris on 6/21 and arrive at IAD from Barcelona on 8/2. I managed to get these flights for less than 1100, which seems like a fairly good deal. Thank you, Kayak!
Now I just need to get flights from Columbus to Washington, but I have a free round-trip flight with United still. So that'll work.
I'm now extremely nervous.

??

What am I thinking??

Thinkings

I took my pack out for a trip yesterday. Bought myself new hiking shoes, and needed to wear them in, so I walked into the city, and did a little over 6 miles with 25 lbs on my back. Needless to say I woke up this morning sore all over! It frightens me a little - I will be going more than twice that amount on even my shortest day! It's also inspiring to get some practice in. I'll be walking in to work probably starting this week, if it's not bitterly cold out. I was hoping it would be warmer by now. . .

During all those miles, I had quite a bit of me time. Mostly I was signing the 2 lines "Damn, she's a sexy b*tch, a sexy b*tch, damn she's a sexy b*tch. Damn, girl!" over and over (and over). There were some moments, however, when I realized that during my four weeks of hiking I probably won't be singing parts of a song stuck in my head (I'd better not be, anyway - I think I'd have to be institutionalized if that were the case). That's a LOT of alone time. I know I'm stinkin' awesome, but THAT awesome? Is ANYONE that awesome?? Please, for the love of all that is good in this world, let there be amazing, friendly, appropriately chatty people on this hike.

Another big worry, as dumb as it is, is how I'm going to cope with non-ice water. Seriously, there is NOTHING better than a big glass of ice water giving you brain-freeze on a hot summer day. And this is Europe we're talking about here. Not only will the fountains along the route not be ice water (duh), but even the restaurants will not supply ice. And many of them are so small (read: population 200) that they may not even HAVE ice. I seriously don't know what I'm going to do. When I'm working out, freezing cold water is the only thing that keeps me going.

June is creeping up faster than I'd like to admit. With all the superficial preparations I'm making, I hope I'll be really, truly ready for this adventure.

Moulin Rouge?

The latest question: to buy a ticket to a Moulin Rouge show or not to buy a ticket? I'm planning on seeing the building - can I really go to Paris, walk by the place, and NOT see a show? It would mean packing nice clothes (meaning extra weight in my pack) and spending an extra $125, though. . .

Trials and tribulations of planning a major trek, emotional worries and doubts

I've been planning this summer trip to France and Spain for what feels like forever now - I started around Thanksgiving. Figuring out the European Rail system is difficult, to say the least, as raileurope.com doesn't have all possible routes available online. I've spent pretty much the entirety of this weekend (among many previous hours online as well) researching how to get to all the places I want to see in the time frame I have, and I've yet to feel reassured that I have the schedule solidly figured out. Part of the issue is the fact that I'm trying to do this a few months too early, as raileurope doesn't show most schedules previous to 60 days in advance (this makes the planner in me very nervous). The only problem with that is the fact that I'll be traveling during high season. This means that there is a high probability that if I don't reserve tickets as soon as possible, I may not have a seat. Oh, they'll still issue me a ticket on the train, I just won't be able to sit down! Highly concerning, considering the fact that most of the trips are over 5 hours! I am also trying to take advantage of as many night trains as possible, as they save me on hostel/hotel costs, plus get me to where I'm going early in the morning. No wasted hours! :)
Another perplexity is the difference between passes and point-to-point tickets. At first, it seemed a pass (the France-Spain pass in particular) seemed the way to go. Then I learned that even after buying the pass, I'd still have to pay for reservations on almost every train! After all is said and done, it seems like buying point-to-point tickets are the cheaper option, as the reservation price is included up front. Come the end of April, I'll be calling their help line and having a professional tell me the best (cheapest) option.
All this being said, I think I have a detailed-yet-tentative schedule figured out.

Some things I'm excited about:

• I'll be arriving in Santiago (provided I do it all in time. . .) on the day of their huge yearly party, Festival de Santiago. 2010 is a holy year (their saints' day (Santiago (St. James)) falls on a Sunday), so it should be super-charged with Galician parades, rituals, singing, fireworks. Downside: since it's a holy year, officials are estimating there will be twice the number of pilgrims on the Camino. Could prove problematic when finding hostels. Upside: twice the chance to meet new friends along the way!
  
• Getting to see Heaven Shall Burn in concert! They've been one of my favorite bands for the past 4-5 years, but since they're German they usually only tour Germany/Austria. They are actually going to be playing in a music fest in Viveiro, Spain (thus the reason for traveling back up to Ferrol) a few days after my walk! Can't wait for that. Very serendipitous.
  
• Visiting the town of Rocamadour. Look it up. I also really want to get to La Roque-Gageac, which is about 50 km away from Rocamadour, but there's a definite lack of public transportation in that area. At this point it doesn't look like I'm going to make it. :(

I'm sitting here now wondering if I'll actually be able to do it - get by alone in two foreign countries for 6 weeks without a solid understanding of either language with only a backpack, relying heavily on my own two feet. It's scary, exhilarating, nerve wracking, and mind consuming. There's a reason I need to do this, but I'm not exactly sure what that reason is. What if I don't find whatever answer(s) I'm looking for? What if I don't even figure out the question? Or perhaps even worse, what if I DO and don't like what the answer is, don't want to come back, or don't know how to get to the place in which the answer lies?