Wednesday, August 29, 2012

France Bound! August 29, 2012

    Well, a quick lunch near the Knoxville, TN airport, I boarded a plane that left at 2:30 pm to Paris, France, via Washington D.C. and Montreal Canada. Then on a high speed train to south France. 23 and a half hours after I boarded the plane, I arrived in the small town of St Jean Pied de Port. A very beautiful tourist town. I stayed at the Gite Ultreia. It is a private albergue. I chose to spend two nights in St Jean to adjust from the jet lag. When I awoke on Friday, August 31, I was glad I waited another day. At 4 am, it was raining so hard outside. I felt for the other 5 people in the room I was sleeping, for they were gearing up to start the Camino. I stayed out of their way so I went downstairs.
    Downstairs I got there before the rest and figured out where everything was. I was finished eating when the group started to come downstairs. I felt kind of useful helping them locate the coffee cups, jelly and toast.
    I had to be out of the albergue by 8 am for cleaning, so I took my stuff to my next albergue, L'Esprit du Chemin. They were cleaning there but allowed me to store my stuff there. So now it was explore St Jean time!!!

    I roamed around and saw a very beautiful, quant town. The folks were friendly even though I spoke very little French. I didn't get arrested, lost or starve! I went back to the albergue around lunch to see if any of the "Last Supper Crew" had arrived yet. We nicknamed the last meal we were having at L'Esprit du Chemin as our "last supper" as the people we used to be, before the Camino.
    I spent the afternoon, roaming around with some of the gang and we got to know each other a bit. The only way we knew each other was from the Camino forum. The forum is a great place to gather information from folks who have walked the Camino before. There you can seek advice and plan what is right for you.

    Well, the dinner was outstanding and we all shared why we were walking. The next day would be an early start with promise of good weather!
    I tried to keep the blog updated, but due to the lack of internet and sometimes phones, communication was difficult for me. So, I decided to write the blog when I returned.
The rest of The "Last Supper Crew" on Sept 1, 2012 early start

Here is a link to some of my photos:


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