Day 29 Arzua to O Pedrouzo

Firstly I must put the record straight, I have found my socks,they had dropped behind the boiler in the drying room.

We had a lovely evening at Agnes's  hotel and the dinner was a lovely home cooked meal.

I got the blog finished by 2215 last night so I managed a good nights sleep and I got up at 0630,I feel much better today especially mentally as I am not so tired.

I had a walk around the grounds of the hotel and took some photos,this has been the best hotel I have stayed at on the walk.

The frogs in the pond had far too much to say for themselves.

We met up at 0830 at the point we had left each other yesterday,I had another cup of tea and a croissant and it was business as usual.We were going to take it steady,no charging past people for me today.It was hard to believe that we would only have10 hours walking together and it would be over,we have become a very close knit family.Jason the Criminology student Agnes the retired Lawyer and Martin the IT consultant.

The streets of the town were already filling up with weekend walkers.

They get dropped off by coach walk 10 miles then get picked up,what luxury .

Today was going to be all lanes and country paths  again.

What a wag I look, well others might have a different opinion ,I know my brother Mark would have had an opinion that is for sure.After 5 miles we stopped for a break and took our boots off.

Lovely to see Cows and Horses using The Camino.

And Dogs!!!

On we strolled.

The walking was easy as it was rolling countryside,though it was getting hot,it had a feel of home about it.

I checked my emails and I was so sorry to read that Andy an old chum from my school days, mother had passed away yesterday and he asked me to place a stone in her memory, which I felt honoured to do,I waited  until I found a suitable spot ,put on The Lark Ascending and placed the stone in her memory.

As we moved on I thought of Andy and what he must going through and feeling at the moment , I then thought of the rolling South Downs and England ,I hoped Kathleen would have approved.

I yearned to see a church or an old ruin worthy of putting on the blog but none  came my way,just lanes and paths,we were getting hot so we stopped for a beer.

Much to our delight Liza and Karley turned up ,we have been seeing these two lovely American ladies 

on and off along the way as they started on the 22nd May. I know they are going to enjoy themselves when they get to Santiago.

We were now on the last leg before our hotel.

Time for dog on a blog.

Then the long awaited moment came I had been waiting for,a church, there is no doubt that The Camino has changed , no longer do we see massive churches towering over tiny villages,in fact we are lucky to see a church,I must say I do miss those early days of the walk with all that wonderful history.

We eventually dropped down into O Pedrouzo .

We are now in our hotel and just as well as the weather has turned,I have never seen rain like it and the  

roads are flooding I hope it will not  be like this tomorrow when we walk into Santiago.

Stats for today

Walked 12.02 miles

Av speed 3.00 mph

Walking time 4.01 hrs

12 miles to go

I am really beginning to think I am in with a chance of finishing this walk!!!!!

Tomorrow is my last day and I want to end my blog with a picture of the cathederal and the team crossing the line and leave it at that, so tonight I want to tell anyone who is still reading my story how I feel.

This has been an amazing journey for me,I have had my share of ups and downs,what was going to be  a team walk turned into a solitary journey due to Jeremy's unforeseen injury,I had never intended to do this on my own and I do not think I would have ever considered doing it on my own,once I got used it as much as I missed Jeremy I began to enjoy my own company and I never thought I would say that.I had to make the best of a bad do 

I have walked with some amazing people who I hold in great affection Ritchie Shaz Anne Fleur The  American A Team Patrick Mariet Mark Petra Rodney Andrew Joe Grace Marie Lindsay Jason Agnes Martin Malcolm and of course my amazing team member Jeremy how could I ever have felt alone in this wonderful company.I owe you all my sincerest thanks,we have all shared so much,we have been honest with each other and helped each other,I will never forget you all.

At home my  prized possessions are the TV remote my mobile phone iPad car keys and my car,here they are safety pins so I can hang my wet clothes up to dry on my makeshift line,I would never have believed it,I have survived on 3 pairs of pants 3 pairs of socks 2 pairs of trousers and three t shirts.I have kept myself clean at all times and taken a disciplined approach to hygiene.I have carried my world on my back and thrived.

I have overcome pain ,my big toe has really hurt from day 3,pain of some sort is your constant companion on this journey and I am only too aware have seen other walkers I have got off lightly.I thought all the training Jeremy and myself had done would really stand us in good stead for this walk,no training you can do can prepare you for 31 days walking,it is a lottery if you get away with it,sadly poor Jeremy paid the price and he knows better than anyone the hammering your body takes.Anyone can get blisters shin splints tendinitis twisted ankles and many more injuries.Long distance walking does not discriminate.

I have been asked many times do I think The Camino will change me,if I was a Politician I think it would ,this walk is how the world should be ,everyone from all nations pulling together helping each willing each other on and most importantly sharing resources,I have never experienced anything like it,people from all over the world in pure harmony.

If after reading my story you are tempted to undertake this wonderful walk I can assure you pain and joy will be equally shared,you will be will be uplifted and enriched in a way that I did not believe possible,you will have time to think reflect and maybe rediscover yourself.

I have had so many highs in fact too many to mention,but top of the list must be when I placed the stone in my brothers memory,followed by meeting Petra on that wonderful morning of the 6thJune the 70th Anniversary  of the D Day landings.

The lows many but you have to have lows to appreciate the highs,the only one that comes to mind is Jeremy going home.

I have loved it,I do not know how I will feel when I enter the square at Santiago but whatever I feel it will be shared by 250000 people a year who do this walk,though only 20 % start from SJPP in France.

I hope you have enjoyed my story I have been honest at all times about my experiences and how I have felt.

My apologies to my sister and daughter who are teachers they must be horrified by my spelling and punctuation,I have been so tired at night it has been the least of my worries,I just hope the story has compensated.

It is only right that I pick my favourite dog from dog on a blog,there can only be one and one shone above all others.

My two heroes from the walk are Agnes who continued to walk through pain when most would have given up and the wonderful Cindy who has had constant pain walked over a 1000 miles and is always so happy.She is truly inspirational.

If my story inspires anyone to follow in our footsteps I will be delighted.

I will end on two notes,firstly to thank Jeremy for his support,it was heart breaking for him to leave,but he has been a constant source of encouragement since he has been home,it must have so upsetting to see the blog and watch my progress when he must have felt this was his rightful place.

Secondly the subject of The Camino Ashes I pray Ritchie and Shaz make it and we can call it a draw.