On top of the world

August 14, 2016August 14, 2016 / cultivatingjoy / 3 Comments

On my 3rd day of walking, between Irun and San Sebastian, I followed the sign at the bottom of a very steep hill that said: “Peregrinos alpinistas”. This alternative path had been recommended by the pilgrims who hosted me on my first night in Bayonne, who said it was a bit longer but really beautiful (I’m glad they insisted it was less difficult than it sounds because I’m not sure I would have spontaneously considered myself an “Alpinist pilgrim”…).

At the top, I was totally alone, since it is not the standard route. As I walked on the path that followed the crest of the hill, surrounded by mountain peaks on one side and the sparkling blue sea on the other I felt such incredible joy!

I walked through this field, just a few steps from the horses who ignored me completely and went on with their peaceful activities in this breathtakingly beautiful place on the top of the world. Totally worth making the detour!

¡Vivir es increible!

August 8, 2016August 12, 2016 / cultivatingjoy / 1 Comment

I’ve been back from the Camino for nearly 2 months and still working through my thoughts about the experience. I can’t believe how fast the trip flew by. Once again I am back home and sucked into the routine of work and daily life…

People keep asking me how it was to walk the Camino and I find it really hard to give an answer, as there are so many things to tell, so many aspects. Though the walking was sometimes tough, even when I was tired from walking and my body ached I felt extremely free, excited and grateful to be there.

The best way I can find to explain it is: ‘Vivir es increible‘ (Being alive is incredible!). These 3 words, hand-painted on the red step in the staircase full of wise words, jumped out at me. They express so simply what I felt intensely throughout my trip.

Sometimes I feel like that amazing sensation gets drowned out in the daily rush, the noise of emails, things to do and other busy-ness. I want to look out for it more. I’m doing my best these days to use ‘Vivir es increible’ as a mantra in day-to-day life in Amsterdam too, when I feel the routine weighing down on me or when I’m cycling to work in the rain for example.

In an attempt to process my experience, I want to share some snapshots and thoughts about walking the Camino, even if they are just a tiny piece of the whole experience. I’ll be posting them in the next days:)

I’m leaving!!

April 30, 2016August 12, 2016 / cultivatingjoy / 1 Comment

I’m off to walk along the Camino de Santiago!

When I was 17 or so, I read a Paolo Coelho book about the Camino and since then I’ve had the desire to walk the Saint James way (as it is called in English). Since then the idea kept popping up every time I would write my dream list. Over the years, I did a bit of research about it here and there and once in a while I would browse the book my parents bought me about the Camino del Norte. Every time I heard someone saying they had walked the Camino, I would feel a little tug in my heart and say “That’s on my dream list, I want to do it too!”, but never got around to actually organising it.

So why now, 16 years later?

I’ve been wanting to take a sabbatical for a long time and this year the timing was good. I’ve been working hard for 10 years, with no more than a few weeks between jobs, so I felt like giving myself this gift of some freedom in the form of unpaid leave, which I decided to use to explore the Camino. I also feel like time is always flying by so fast, so I’m glad to take time off from day-to-day routine to take a step back and reflect.

I’ll be gone for about 5 weeks, I’m starting in Bayonne and will walk along the Northern coast of Spain. I probably will not reach Santiago de Compostela and that’s fine. Firstly because I don’t want to rush, I want to make this trip about the journey not the destination (I know… such a cliché). This means if I feel like staying longer in a place I like or want to chill on the beach for some time, I can:) Secondly because if there is a bit of the Camino left to walk I will have the chance to come back another time to finish it:)

I am really looking forward to walking every day. I’ve noticed that walking helps me move through problems, get fresh ideas, find solutions to issues, get creative, feel more grounded…

I have no idea what to expect, but these are some things that come to mind as I am preparing my trip:
-I crave take time out from my routine,
-I want to spend time alone,
-to finally have time to process what goes on in my busy life,
-to take time to grieve the people in my life who passed away and
-to travel slowly to enjoy discovering a part of the world I’ve never been to.

I’m trying not to have too many expectations and let the Camino surprise me. I’m really excited to see how it goes!

A stroll through Monti

March 28, 2016August 6, 2017 / cultivatingjoy / 1 Comment

I was lucky to be in Rome for the first days of Spring and you could really feel the winter was over. Budding trees were blooming everywhere, it was warm enough not to wear a coat and I couldn’t get enough of the feeling of the southern sun on my skin after months of cold in Amsterdam.

My boyfriend took me for a stroll in one of his favorite neighbourhoods called Monti. It was fun to explore this quiet part of the city, hidden just behind the loud bustling avenues and tourist hotspots.

As we explored paved side streets and steep alley-ways, around every corner we would come across mini gardens in the street, succulents on window sills and plants hanging (sometimes quite dangerously) from the shutters. I love how people manage to carve themselves a corner of green no matter where they live.