The Virtual Vacation

Monday, September 21st Tomorrow morning, I fly home to California. I’ve had a delightful time writing this Virtual Vacation blog for you: sharing my adventures and misadventures, my week exploring Berlin, traveling independently, and my group sojourn on the Camino de Santiago with a wonderful crew of fellow travelers. I hope you have enjoyed the

Sunday, September 20th On my first Creative Camino trip in 2023, Covid cut my walk to Santiago short. In Ribadiso, three days before the end of our pilgrimage, two members of our group tested positive for Covid, and the next day, I joined them. How I hated seeing those two parallel lines come up on

Early this morning we got ready to walk the final eight kilometers into Santiago. When I pulled my luggage out to the street for our bus to pick it up, it was still dark outside. As I stood out in the cool early morning air, some pilgrims walking by in the first light of morning.

Friday, September 18th I just woke from an afternoon nap and took a very hot delicious shower in my lodgings. Today was a short day for us—an eight mile hike in which I often felt I could have kept walking forever. I walked with various members of our group, in deep conversation and in silence;

Thursday, September 17th Today we left a relaxing two-night stop in Ribadiso, where we took advantage of laundry facilities and a luscious swimming pool. Today we were back at it—about to walk our longest day on the Camino—about 15 miles. Before we hike each morning, we limber up and stretch for the day’s walking. People

Wednesday, September 16th Today was our last full creativity and rest day. From here on out, we’ll be walking every day until we reach Santiago de Compostela. So I thought today I’d take the opportunity to give you an inside peek at our group at work and play. We’ve reached the point where people are

Tuesday, September 15th I just came back from an evening walk after dinner with Brenda, scouting out a location for tomorrow’s writing and art classes. We’re staying in our current lodging in Ribadiso for next two nights. Tomorrow will be another creativity day for us. As we walked through farmlands in the golden hour, the

Monday, September 14th Yesterday was a rest and creativity day for us. When I considered what to teach in writing class, I sensed that we were at the point in the retreat where people were ready to go deeper. So I chose a prompt that would help to catalyze the inner work of letting go

Sunday, September 13th When I led my first international tour in Bali fifteen years ago, Surya Made and Judy Slattum, our on-the-ground organizers and guides, schooled me on the basics of leading a tour. They let me know that the first and most important thing you have to pay attention to is feeding people before

Saturday, September 12th Before we leave Portomarin for a report on the mileage we walked on the Camino today, I want to share a few last photos of this wonderful town. This was typical of the sidewalks we saw: And I loved this mural of a pilgrim. He looks like an old-fashioned fellow, but the

Friday, September 11th Today we had a day for writing, art, laundry, shopping for needed items, and dinner on our own. For our morning writing session, I led a class based on Tim O’Brien’s classic Vietnam novel, “The Things They Carried.” The object of the class was threefold: to learn how powerful objects can be

Thursday, September 10th Today was our first full day walking the Camino—ten or so miles (depending on whose digital device was counting). From here on out, we’ll be walking all the way to Santiago. After much anticipation, transcontinental journeys, and three days of preparation as a group, this was the morning we actually joined the

Wednesday, September 9th Our departure from Hola Camp Camino was at 7:00 am this morning. We’d learned that there was a big festival going on in O Cebreiro, our next stop. We were getting an early morning start to try to get past the blockades that would be set up to block traffic through the

Tuesday, September 8th This morning after breakfast, Brenda has us all meet outside with our backpacks fully packed. She asked us to wear the shoes that we’ll be hiking in, and to bring our hiking poles and everything else we expect to take with us each day. After we assembled in a large circle, Brenda

Monday, September 7th I’m loving the slow start to this Camino, our choice to have a three-day retreat before we start walking our 100-km pilgrimage. Yesterday, in our orientation session, I welcomed the group and we talked about what it means to be on a pilgrimage. Andre went over group ground rules rooted in respect,