2nd training walk — 9. July 2015

I wake up to the shrill sound of the alarm, once again at 5am. Did I mention that I hate alarms? Maybe if I could will my body to wake up naturally at this ungodly hour we wouldn’t need an alarm, but alas… that’s just wishful thinking.

It’s still dark outside, and cold. I really don’t want to get up at all. I roll over to cuddle John and snuggle up to his warm body. Oh how I love early morning cuddles! They are pure bliss. Soon, I’m asleep again.

6am — beep, beep, beep… that damn alarm! I really want to stay in bed. Whoever came up with the idea of training for the Camino. ARGH! John doesn’t seem too keen to hop out of the warm bed either. He’s still snuggled up to me (yep we have swapped sides).

As much as I’d like to indulge my need for more sleep and early morning bedtime bliss we have to get up and get moving. I have a coaching call at 9.30 this morning and if we’re going to do this, we need to make sure that we’re back from our walk in time for my call. There’s nothing like a bit of pressure to get my ass into gear. Always works!

So we various levels of resistance we drag ourselves out of bed. Mind you, within two minutes John is fully dressed and looking VERY keen with his backpack strapped on (albeit empty). He looks ready to go.

Oh well, I am not going to stress about that just yet. Plenty of time to get used to the feel of a backpack. Soon enough I’m dressed and ready too.

We head downstairs and quickly feed the “pets,” then put the kitten back into the shed and sneak out the door (to stop the kitty from coming back out and following us).

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The air is cool and the sun is bathing the forest in front of us into a glorious red glow. WOW! The beauty and tranquility of this early morning bliss isn’t lost on us. We quietly walk down the vineyard. It’s quiet. There’s no traffic and the only thing we hear is birdsong.

Today we choose the reverse walk from two days ago. Since the weather is a lot cooler this morning I am wearing my long sleeve merino wool top. John is keen as ever in a t-shirt. I don’t know how he always manages to stay warm. I just have to look at him and feel cold.

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I don’t know if it’s because of the cool weather or because we left home on an empty stomach, but the walking feels a lot easier than on Tuesday. We make good headway and pause at our vineyard “toilet house” for a quick snack of banana and snickers. Seems to become the standard walking fare for us.

On the way back I feel an urge to do a number two. This private business thing could become somewhat of an issue for me on the Camino. I always struggle with my toilet habits when I’m travelling. So I’m definitely not looking forward to the stress and struggles of trying to do my “number twos” in comfort and peace while being surrounded by strangers in auberges and walking unfamiliar routes.

I’m also not particularly keen on squatting to do a number two. Not my thing at all. I just don’t have the strength in my thighs to do that. I mean who can do this without struggling? Seriously! Hmm… maybe I should get myself one of these portable potties? I’ll keep that in mind for now.

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It’s 8.30am. We rock up at the door exactly two hours after leaving. It took only 2 hours to walk 9km. Today’s walk was a little shorter than Tuesday’s because we didn’t head into the village.

I’m feeling good actually. To be honest, I was expecting to be a lot more sore. My lower back is aching a little, and my shoulders ache too, but that’s almost a standard thing for me, because I slouch a lot (says John).

With that said, let’s see how I feel after the next training walk. I’ll keep you posted.