This is a Test

I am try to see if I can post to this blog with my iPad mini.
Here is a picture of the scallop shell I made for my pack with the Galician Cross of St. James painted on it.

Welcome to my Camino Blog!

Here is my first blog post. I've created this blog to chronicle my upcoming 500+ mile trek on the Camino de Santiago de Compostella.

I will be departing from Tampa on Aer Lingus on Tuesday August 20th connecting through Boston arriving in Dublin, Ireland early the next morning. I then will make a connection on RyanAir to Biarittz France arriving as 12:55 at which point I have arranged for a van to take me (and hopefully a few others to share the cost) to Saint Jean Pier du Port in the French Pyrennes. I'll be at the Iztalpea Hotel for 2 nights and then take my first steps on this Pilgrimage on Friday August 23rd

This first day I will cross the Pyrennes into Spain to the town of Roncevalles. It is going to be a physicall challenge for sure 25.1km (15.4 miles) with a total climb of 1,390 meters. Day 1 is the hardest of all, I am training as best I can walking with a full pack, but the lack of hills in Florida is making preparing for the climb a bit difficult.

Day 2 and beyond is not planned with any specificity. I will be walking 20-30 km per day across Northern Spain for a total distance of 500+ miles. I will be walking to the Cathedral in Santiago de Compostella where tradition has it the remains of St. James the greater are interred, and if time permits onto the Galacian coast to Finsterre and Muxia. This journey has been followed by Pilgrims for over 1,000 years and has recently regained it's popularity. I have a number of reasons for doing this, but most importantly for me, it is a time to reflect without the interruption of my normal daily routines, on where I am in my life, what I would like to do with the years that I have left and come to terms with what I really believe about the spiritual dimension of my life. In the past few years both my parents have died and my two sons have begun their lives independent of me; these events have left me feeling a bit empty. My ardent hope is that this pilgrimage will help bring into focus what is really important and give me a focus and purpose going forward.

Somehow the pieces of the journey from day one in St. Jean Pier du Port to the completion of the pilgrimage will fall into place so that I will be flying from Santiago de Compostella to Dublin on Aer Lingus on October 8th and from Dublin back to Tampa on October 9th.

These are the rudimentary plans for my 50 day adventure. I plan to use this blog as the means to keep family, friends and others who may be interested in my planning and progress on the Camino. Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers.