Comfort Zones

I started writing this blog while waiting/sitting/lying/lounging around at Dubai Airport. . my stayover time was 9 hours. . . All I could do was moan, groan and complain.  I was dressed in jeans, boots and leather jacket with long sleeved shirt under it. . arriving in Dubai at 6 in the morning their time the outside temperature was already 35° Celsius.  I was hot, bothered, smelly, tired and just not good company in general.

The last couple of days, being without a cell phone, no contact with people in South Africa except through Facebook and Skype - heheh, just realised that I have a lot of contact, as I am writing this. . . just shows how we get used to having mobile phones around. . . and then frustration with sim cards that will work in the UK, France and Spain got me thinking.

I am so used to getting my own way, doing my own thing, having everything just as I like it, want it, or expect it to turn out.  Maybe all of us (and definitely me) need to get out of our comfort zones, do things differently, not have our own way in everything we do or plan.  Maybe it is time to not be in control of everything. . very difficult for me.  I could probably write a whole blog about being in control.  The unease I feel about the whole trip has a lot more to do with the fact that I am not in control of all my travel plans.  It is not so much fear of the unkown as it is fear of not being in control.

Then there is the comfort factor, my own bed, my own this, my own that, the little things that makes my life pleasant, easier, just more comfortable.  Just the thought of sharing a room with other people, or the possibility of bedbugs!!! or not having a cup of coffee to start the morning. . . oh how comfortable we are with our own little things, our own little ways, our own little habits. . . and the realisation that nobody else has to put up with it. . . slowly, slowly, letting go of my own little comforts.

In the meanwhile I am definitely slowing down, letting go and have to admit, there is the slightest stirring of excitement happening.  It has been absolutely amazing to get to know my little grandson, reconnect with my kids and just allowing life to happen.  Have been hunting gorillas here in Bristol - you can read more about it here:
http://bristolculture.wordpress.com/2011/07/08/gorillas-roam-the-streets-of-bristol/

Am I fit and ready for the El Camino?  Fit - nope, not as much as I would like to have been.  Ready??  Oh Yes!!!  It is time to make it happen. 

Next blog will give you some idea of the journey, the elevation, the route and the distances I plan to do every day. . .

Until then. . . Ultreia!

Ultreia is a word deriving from the ancient Galician language (and originally from the Latin word ultra) which translates to 'Walk further!', 'Walk higher!', 'Onward!' or 'Walk on!'  Ultra means 'further', 'extreme', 'radical', 'beyond the norm'. The true end of the Spanish Camino is Fistera, Finisterre, Finis Terra, The End of the Earth, the Furthest Point West in Spain, indeed the Furthest Point West in Europe.  This is where my journey will end and hopefully my search for answers to the many questions in my life. 

As always - much love to all of you. . .