ROF= Ring of Fire Odyssey
MEF-H = Marine Expeditionary Force- Hargus
CdS = Camino de Santiago journey
Thursday September 05, 2019
The Camino de Santiago... the journey begins.
After a lifetime of dreaming about hiking The Camino, it begins today. Day 1; transit day... BHM to MAD- Birmingham, ALa to Madrid~ then onto Ponferrada.
Conditioning for The Camino we backpacked - with weight, 28 pound pack- around the neighborhood in May, June, and July. Yes we can do this. We are physically able to do this.
We made the decision... 500 miles across the whole Camino? At this age the chance of injury, tendinitis, sprained ankle ect... we opted to do the last 1/4... 130 miles from Ponferrada to Santiago. We felt we could do this and complete the Camino. If we hiked without incident, we could always go back and hike the whole 500 miles. This was a good decision.
Up early and left BHM at 1300 to ATL for direct flight to MAD- Madrid, Spain arv at 0800 MAD.
BHM... let's put the hammer down and get moving.
Not much time in ATL. Boeing 777. I love these big Boeing planes.
Long flight ... into the night.
Across the Atlantic. Airplane food... double check prep notes. Some flight entertainment movies... killing time. Doze off for night flight.
And then one of the most phenomenal sights I've seen in life.
Around midnight to 0100 woke up and looked out the port side window. Some 1,000 miles south of Greenland... jet black sky... stars so vivid you could reach out and touch them; just like when out west.
Another couple of hours in airplane travel... not comfortable for rest, approaching continental Europe, the Iberian peninsula began seeing the sun coming up on the eastern horizon.
Vivid red and orange of the eastern sun rising on the Iberian peninsula.
Over Atlantic ocean see the coast line.
Over northeastern Spain began to see the interior mountains which we would be hiking across.
Another hour over Spain the rising sun painted every thing below in and orange daylight hue.
Coming into Madrid could see morning sun on the urban landscape of MAD-Madrid Spain.
Descent down to a couple thousand feet can now see urban metro Madrid.
On a long left base, pilot turns us onto a long final for MAD airport.
touchdown. We have arrived.
What a world class airport!
Now through MAD airport to find the bus stop for an ALESA - Spanish bus transport system- for a bus to Ponferadda.
Waiting for an hour at the bus stop... you can connect to any city in Spain. I love European mass transit; it works!!!
Board and head out of MAD airport... to the central AMD bus station.
Change bus. Spanish mass transit is GREAT!!! and it works!!!
Some urban metro.
Now on the route to Ponferadda... leaving MAD you see the modern architecture of MAD. Cosmopolitan Europe... wow. I think... no wonder Dali painted here.
Riding trough the Spanish countryside many unique sights.
Then onto the mestas... the interior Spanish desert. fascinating.
Stopped at Astorga. Bus station was similar to the bus stop of Anniston, Alabama... plain,... not much frills. Pit stop. A grill for a bite to eat. Rack snacks of potato chips, candy bars, ect.
Astorga.... so much iberian history... we just rolled through and I snapped a few pix... I need to go back here and study how important this place was. I'm embarrased to have just taken a few pix from a bus window.
On to Ponferadda.
ARV Ponferadda bus station about 4pm.
wait for taxi with some other pilgrims. Take a taxi to your hotel. We've been up 24 hours now. Hiking to the hotel is mindless; we don't even know which way to hike.
Taxi was a wise decision. This would have taken us an hour+, up hill,... did I mention we've been up over 24 hours now.
Hotel check in. refresh for a few minutes.
It's 4pm ... walk around and see what is near.
What a surprise!
It's festival weekend in Ponferadda.
We're right on the city square where the festival is going on. The "band" is rehearsing. We'll come back to this later.
Walk on down through Ponferadda main street.
Street lined with vendors selling everything from Spanish bread, cheese, and olives. Wow! I could get used to eathing this food.
At the end of the street is The Castle... The Knights Templar Castle... The knights Templar guarded the pilgrims on their Camino journey in the Middle Ages. The castle is absolutely wonderful... a spectacle! for sure!
We stop at all Cathedrals/ iglesias/ cappelas.
Along the street of craft vendors comes some street art actors. A queen/ maiden... on stilts, with a live string puppet actress parading along the street. Wonderfully done, interacting with the crowds along the street. Complete with a couple of jesters. Spain is wonderful!
Back up to the hotel street side open air cafe for an afternoon knash of a glass of Spanish red wine with olives. ?Did I say I could get used to this?
The band across the town square is still practicing. This is a Spanish/ European band and their music is unique. Imagine if "Borat" had a band.
Evening coming, walked up some more streets and bought a bottle of Spanish red wine; 4 euros. ?Is this a great country or what?
Back to the hotel to crash.
The band played for the festival until 1;30 AM. I will not ever forget the doo, doo, doo, song they played. A looooooong 1st day.
0600 wake up. Tired but ready to get started on The Camino.
The journey/ odyssey begins; Day 2.
Hiking out of urban Ponferrada day 2/ 1st full day hiking on The Camino.
When it comes to studying Western Civ You can keep your Austrian Hapsburgs, The Ottoman empire- Constantinople/ Istanbul, The Fertile Crescent, The Roman Empire - Augustus, Christianity, Democracy, Law, The Crusades, Alaxander The Great, Florence - The Medici's coming out of the Dark ages into the Middle ages and The Renaissance, Michelangelo, Music and Literature, Copernicus, Magellan, Columbus, Genoa- Columbus, Magellan, Dutch traders, Greece... Athens, The Greek city states, the Hellenistic world and the Byzantine empire, The Norse/ The Vikings, The Goths, Napoleon, The Huns, Italy- The Franks, The Lombards, The political alliances of Lucca Italy,... Corinth, Carthage, The Phonecians, Acaba, Sumaria, Babalyon, Mecca,Armenian Christians, Russian orthodox, Ashkenazi Jewish, Druids in Brittan and Gaul, Hadrians Wall, Irish Celtic Christianity, Scottish Picts tribe, Polish Slavic and Baltic tribes,...
... All that... then you go to the iberian peninsula... Aragon, The Moors in the South- Grenada- Alhambra, Barcelona, Valencia, Madrid, Gibraltar, Leon, Castile, Santiago, Finisterre- To The End of THE WORLD,
... You want to study Western Civ; you go to Spain!
Homer fought in a war and it took 10 years of Odyssey to get back home. You get started on a journey,... on a path that takes you through the wonder of the world... That's what you live for. Take the path and see it, live it, breathe it; one day you'll get back home. You find your peace in time... You can rest then.
You never drink twice from the same stream.
Just because you wander doesn't mean you're lost.
Uncle Hargus: Last of the Independents
Have Bear,
Will Travel
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