More Tests

I think this Camino is testing me. These last 2 days have been definitely harder than usual. We entered the Meseta to 30 mph sustained headwinds, cloudy drizzly weather and 40-50° F temperatures. Add to this that I started to get sick yesterday and have been spending significant time sitting on the toilet. 

That's not all that bad since immodium puts a quick stop to all that. The worst part is being sore all over. Walking 12 miles doesn't seem like much to us anymore, but after yesterdays hike, my legs ached so bad from my hips down to the tips of my toes that I nearly laid down on the side of the trail and cried. Its just a good thing that Lauren was there to keep me moving forward. Needless to say, I've been loading up on ibuprofen since then and am doing much better. This sickness also seems to be going around and I've heard reports that it usually only lasts a couple of days. 

All this got us to thinking about the movie The Way and all of the things it egregiously omits from the Camino experience. Most of these things weren't our experiences, but all were at least first hand accounts:

Blisters that cover your entire heel,
Constant foot/knee/leg pain,
Everyone getting and staying sick,
Shitting yourself on the trail from diarrhea,
Knees swelling to twice their size from tendonitis,
Bedbugs,
Cold showers that you have to walk across the street to,
And probably more that I'm forgetting.

Oh well, its still awesome after all this when you get to a great albergue like we're in right now with super hot showers and soft beds. That and all your Camino friends are in the same albergue with you to share the pain/shame/elation of the Camino.