Chris's Camino

On Wed June 11, I will depart from Vancouver, Canada on a flight to Madrid, Spain with a short layover in Munich. Then a 3h train ride to Oviedo to start my Camino the next day. I've time shifted my body's circadian rhythm by going to bed earlier and getting up earlier for the 4 days prior to leaving. So my last day in Vancouver I was in bed by 9pm and up at 3am on travel day, so that when I get on the plane in Vancouver at 7pm, I'll be ready for sleeping (Spain time). With luck, maybe I'll get 5h sleep (8am Spain time upon waking up) and be awake for the duration of the flight. I did the same last time we went to the Mediterranean, and it worked then. I'll let you know how I made out with the jet lag.

After losing my partner of 39+ years at the young age of 56, Charlene was my everything in life. My soul mate and mother of our 2 children and the one person I could and did share everything with.   The past three and a half years since her diagnosis of metastatic colorectal cancer, we had been on a journey together of reality....by that I mean, every day was a reality check. Is this really happening to us and why. And during that time, what could "I" (me Chris) do to prepare for the worst case outcome. It was the worst yet best time of our lives together.   The pain or hurt of loosing a soul mate, mother, sibling, aunt, cousin, daughter/sister in law is a lot to handle. Harder for some, but painful for everyone that knew Char. After Char's passing, I asked my boys Kory & Ryan about solo backpacking and their thoughts. "It's a lot of work, but worth doing if you’re thinking about it." It's not easy being home alone after 39+ years, so I'v...