Well, it's less than one week before Paul and I head off to Madrid with bikes in tow to start our 400-mile bike ride across Spain.
I have created this blog page so I can share our experiences with our family and friends. We are both so incredibly excited about this amazing journey. I am still dumbfounded that I even agreed to do this, considering my exercise routine has consisted of only a morning two mile walk.
For those of you we haven't talked to in awhile, our trip follows the Pilgrim Path called the Camino de Santiago or The Way of Saint James in the northern part of Spain. As we love visiting the country, we felt this would be a unique way to experience some old and new places.
The following description of the Camino de Santiago is taken from this website:
http://www.jrnet.com/travel/articles/santiago.html
"Santiago (St. James), the patron saint of Spain and the first Christian martyr, is buried in Santiago de Compostella at the northwest tip of the Iberian peninsula. The Apostle James was beheaded in Jerusalem in 42 AD, and legend has it that the remains were transported by his disciples to be buried here. Stories of the discovery of the Apostle's tomb in the 9th Century brought pilgrims from around Europe, and the "Camino de Santiago" - Road/Path/Way to Santiago - soon became the most important Christian pilgrimage of the Middle Ages.
While there are many paths to Santiago, four major routes developed starting from Tours, Vèlezay, Le Puy, and Arles in France, to cross the Pyrenees at the Somport or Roncesvalles passes, joining together at Puente la Reina in Navarra (near Pamplona) to form a single path across northern Spain to the saint's shrine at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostella. The Spanish part of El Camino de Santiago
(which is the route we are taking)runs some 800 km (500 miles) from the Roncesvalles pass through Puente la Reina, La Rioja, Burgos, Leon and finally crossing Galicia to Santiago. The Road to Santiago is a fantastic tourist venue for hikers, bikers and walkers. The Road crosses some of the country's most spectacular landscapes, and is dotted with beautiful Romanesque and Plateresque churches, chapels, and monasteries.
A proper pilgrimage must be made on foot, bicycle or horseback - the pilgrim has the use of free hostels along the route (We of course are staying in hotels,since we are on vacation after all!), and gets his pilgrim's passport stamped along the way and certified at the Cathedral in Santiago. Whether you plan to do a proper pilgrimage or not, the Road (or just about any a part of it) is a great way to see Spain, and enjoy the Camino's period architecture, shrines, villages, countryside, and hospitality."
Paul and I have been doing some training rides around the Twin Cities...literally around the Twin Cities to get ready for this trip. We've been doing a 48-mile loop, around both downtown Minneapolis and downtown St. Paul, which is longer than any one leg of our trip. Of course our success will depend heavily on being able to do this for 12 consecutive days!!!
We have planned this on our own and will be carrying all our supplies and clothing on our bikes. For those of you who know me or have travelled with me, you would be mighty impressed to know that my entire wardrobe fits in two gallon-sized zip-loc bags with room to spare. With a few assorted odds and ends, that's all this clotheshorse is taking to Spain. (I am thinking of treating myself to a little shopping spree in Madrid when we finish, as of course, I hope to be fit and toned after this workout.)
I also figured out doing this blog and writing my entries in a cyber-cafe while drinking a glass of Rioja or Sangria would lighten my load since I wouldn't have to carry a journal! Every ounce is gonna count as I peddle my a** across Spain. Check in often, if you'd like. I hope to post daily and add pictures of our journey so you can follow along vicariously!
Adelante and Ultreya!!!
Cristina and Paul
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