I come home Sunday night exhausted. My feet are bandaged and hurting.
I grab dinner then read my friend Susan's update (https://susanonthecamino.blog). She's walking the Camino de Santiago Trail, about 500 miles in six weeks. Two of my friends are joining her in late June for one week. They will do the last 100 miles with her, and want me to come.
I'm tempted.
I love the idea of bonding with three friends in the great outdoors. Safe from world horrors. Far from daily Trump twitters. Immersing myself in the beauty of old European villages and breathtaking vistas would be amazing.
My 45,200 steps between Friday and Saturday pales to the 44 miles, 88,010 steps Susan walked in the same three days.
The scenery I walk through changes little. Maybe a new dress or two arrives, but otherwise it's all the same, clothes and more clothes.
Susan's dramatic scenery evolves and changes step by step.
Susan climbs and descends mountainous trails, walks through small, non-English speaking towns, and passes gorgeous countrysides.
I walk in a temperature-controlled environment, about 75 degrees if I had to guess.
Susan's climate changes from over 90 degrees to 55, from sunny skies to thunderous ones.
My clothing choices vary depending on my mood and my feet: sometimes I wear a dress with little leather booties; other times I wear jeans and sneakers.
Susan has two outfits for the entire trip. Her fashion decisions are easy. Every night she showers with her clothes on from the day, scrubs them clean, strips and rinses them, then hangs them all to dry.
When Susan wants a break, she might stop in a tiny cafe where English is not spoken, and orders, according to her, the world's best coffee con leche. .
I go to a crowded cafeteria and listen to other people's phone conversations.
Still, reading about Susan's adventures is as close as I can imagine myself being to the Camino Trail.
I am truly in awe of my good friend.
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