- 其他相關文章
- About my Camino
- Camino is a small world
- Don’t be selfish
- Yes, it’s very difficult
- It’s your own Camino
- Camino will be with you for the rest of your life
- It starts even before you make the first step
- It does not end after you reach the Santiago
- A better version of yourself
- (English version)
- 西班牙朝聖之路 Camino de Santiago 系列文章
其他相關文章
(English version is below)
About my Camino
- 西班牙朝聖之路 (Camino de Santiago) 是通往西班牙西北部天主教聖地 Santiago de Compostela 主教座堂 的多條朝聖路線的統稱，相傳使徒 Jacob 聖雅各的遺骸安葬於此。朝聖之路起源於中世紀，超過900年歷史，至今仍吸引大量朝聖者和遊客。
- 我在 2024年春夏之際 徒步走朝聖之路 (Camino de Santiago) 中的 法國之路 (Camino Frances)，這是最多人選擇走的路線
- 也許是準備得宜、或是平時的慢跑訓練有幫上忙，全程之中我的腳沒有長水泡，雖然肌肉和關節偶有痠痛，但都沒有大礙，一切身體上的大小不適都不阻礙我隔天繼續徒步，我完全沒有在中途安排休息日
- 我出發時背包大約重 11公斤，開始走路後深刻明白真的太重了，我仔細檢視行李中的每件裝備，丟掉或是送走了所有對我不必要的東西，最後我的背包總重約 9公斤
- 我用時 32天，779公里，從法國西南部 Saint-Jean Pied du Port 走到 西班牙西北部 Santiago de Compostela，全程徒步，沒有依靠公車或其他交通工具
- 32天之中，其中8天我有請物流公司 (donkey service) 把我的的背包提前寄送到當天晚上要住宿的庇護所 (albergue)
Camino is a small world
- 你可能會在每天停留於不同的城市或是小鎮，遇到不同的朝聖者 (pilgrim) 、庇護所管理員。他們來自世界各國，有不同的文化、語言、思想
- 你今天在路上或是在庇護所 (albergue) 遇到的人，很有可能在明後幾天甚至是在終點之前都可能再次遇到，有機會與你用雷同的進度一起走個好幾天、一起同時住在同一間庇護所
- 有些人，在今天過後你再也不會見到
- 雖然說，會來走朝聖之路的人，大概大多都是在心靈方面有所追求，也大概不是心胸狹窄的人。然而但凡有人的地方，都有好的和壞的人與事。雖然在朝聖之路上大部分的人是樂於互助、分享的，但也有少數的怪人、自私的人
- 一路上你可能聽到朝聖者之間交換資訊，提醒彼此提防留意某些人，例如大清早或深夜在庇護所房間內產生噪音、默默近距離走在女性身後…等。己所不欲，勿施於人
Don’t be selfish
- 無論你做了多麼完善的事前準備，包括行李裝備和查詢資訊，在實際徒步的日子裡仍然很有可能因為突發狀況、發現少帶了什麼裝備、身上現金不夠…等各種雜七雜八的小事情，因而需要陌生人的協助
- 有些少數人習慣於得到幫忙、要求別人、斤斤計較，但卻不一定也慷慨給予別人幫助
- 如前所述， Camino 的就像是你原本生活的世界的縮影。樂於助人的人不一定總遇到好事情，但自私自利的人通常難以左右逢源
Yes, it’s very difficult
- 無論你一天是走15公里、25公里、或是超過 30公里，接連多天的長距離徒步總歸是件不簡單的事情
- 你可能遇到大太陽、高溫、暴雨、嚴寒、很長的陡上坡、很長的碎石下坡、平緩但距離很長且風景單調無趣的道路…等各種困難的狀況
- 你可能無法預約到理想的住宿點、走到某小鎮之後發現每家庇護所都客滿不得已只能繼續走到下一個小鎮、你可能在寢室遇到夜裡打呼非常大聲的人
- 你的身體有可能產生各種病痛，例如：膝蓋痠痛、腳底僵硬痠痛、肩膀僵硬、在庇護所被傳染感冒
- 各種困難的加總，使得走朝聖之路這事情真的很困難。不能輕忽困難，但你可以樂觀。如果你完成了，請好好地恭喜自己。也許在往後的人生裡，你會記得你曾經克服過這麼多困難
It’s your own Camino
- 在出發之前查資料時或是在路途中，你可能會聽到各種「居高臨下的見解」，例如：應該要全程真的用腳走完不可以偷搭公車、使用物流服務 (donkey service) 把背包預先寄到明天的住宿地點是很遜的行為、在某個叉路應該要走 路線A 而非路線 B…等
- 其實如前所述 “Camino is a small world”，如同在你原本的生活之中，本就會聽到很多別人的看法意見，大多數都不需要太放在你的心上。你要找到「你自己真心想要做的事情」，然後用「適合你的方式」走出你自己的路
- 你可以參考很多人的遊記、網路資訊，但當你面臨疲累、壞天氣、住宿地點名額有限…等各種狀況，你必須很誠實面對自己的心情、身體狀態、喜好，為自己做出各種決定
- Listen to your heart. At the end of the day, it’s your own Camino. Enjoy it!
Camino will be with you for the rest of your life
It starts even before you make the first step
- 有人走 100公里、779公里、甚至是數千公里，無論距離或長或短，那都不是件容易的事情。不但花費體力、時間、金錢，更加需要決心、毅力、逆來順受、隨機應變
- 早在出發之前的幾個月內、甚至在數年之內，你很可能已經思考過無數次是否要踏上這條路、預想了在這一路上可能需要面臨和處理的各種事情
- 其實， Camino 早就在你的心中存在很長的時間了
It does not end after you reach the Santiago
- 有些人在完成第一次朝聖之旅之後，再次回去重複走同一條路線、或是挑戰不同路線
- 你在這一路上聽到看到的風景和人事物、你無形中磨練出的體力和毅力、你也許不自知但在潛意識和思維中默默沈澱出來的新想法，這些種種，可能會在你到達終點 Santiago de Compostela 之後，持續陪伴你走向未來的人生，或是在某些無法預期且無以名狀的時刻，突然湧現心頭
A better version of yourself
- 確實有些人是因為生離死別、人生低潮、對生命茫然等原因而走上朝聖之路，希望藉此獲得慰藉或是淡化傷感的會議。然而，很難因為「徒步了幾百公里」就因此「找到人生的意義或是方向」
- 藉由這數百公里的徒步對體力和肉體的考驗，有可能磨練了你的意志力和毅力
- 在這一路上的所見所聞、認識的人，拓寬了對世界和人事的理解，提高了接受和寬容的範圍寬度
- 在徒步的過程中，你有可能與別的朝聖者聊天，但當然也可能處於獨自一人的狀態。一步一步前進，聆聽和感受自己的呼吸聲。你可能會有足夠長的時間去回想和反思過往生活中的種種。你可能會因此萌生新的想法、釋懷某些從前的糾結
- 在往後生活和人生的路上，你可能會回想起曾經走過的長路、曾經克服的困難。也許，無形中你已經變成了一個「更好的自己」
Buen Camino!
(English version)
About my Camino
- I completed the Camino Frances (French Way) in the spring of 2024. It is the route that most people choose to take.
- Perhaps it was due to proper preparation or regular jogging training, my feet did not have blisters during the whole process. Although my muscles and joints were occasionally sore, it was not a serious problem. All physical discomforts, big and small, did not hinder me. I continued hiking the next day, and I didn’t plan a rest day at all.
- When I set out, my backpack weighed around 11 kilograms. After I started walking for a few days, ever since the first week I realized that it was indeed too heavy. I carefully checked every piece of equipment in my backpack, and threw away or gave away everything that was unnecessary for me. In the end, my backpack weighed around 9 kilograms.
- It took me 32 days to walk from Saint-Jean Pied du Port to Santiago de Compostela. I walked the entire distance of 779 kilometers without relying on buses or other means of transportation.
- 8 out of the 32 days, I used donkey service to send my backpack to the town that I planed to stay on that evening.
Camino is a small world
- Everyday, you might stay in a different city or town every day and meet different pilgrims and albergue managers. They come from all over the world with different cultures, languages , and perspectives.
- The people who you met on the road or at the albergue today, are very likely to be met again in the next few days before the finish line. It’s possible that they walk with you at the same pace for several days and live in the same albergues ahead.
- Also there will be some people that you will never see again in the rest of your life.
- Although it is said that most of the people who come to walk on Camino de Santiago are probably spiritually-pursuing and are probably not narrow-minded people. However, wherever there are people, there are good and bad ones. Although most people on the Camino are willing to help each other, there are also a few weirdos and selfish people.
- Along the way, you may hear pilgrims exchanging information, reminding each other to be wary of certain people, such as making noise in the albergue or hostel room early in the morning or late at night, walking silently behind women at close range, etc.
- What you do not want done to yourself, do not do to others.
Don’t be selfish
- No matter how well you prepare in advance, including the luggage, equipment, and information search, there is still a high chance that unexpected situations, missing equipment, insufficient cash, and other miscellaneous things will happen during the actual hiking days. Therefore, you might need the assistance from other pilgrims or strangers.
- Some minority people are used to “only” asking for help, but they may not be generous in helping others in return.
- As mentioned above, the Camino is like a microcosm of the world you originally lived in. Good things may not always happen to people who are willing to help others, but it is usually difficult for selfish people to have everything goes well.
Yes, it’s very difficult
- Whether you walk 15 kilometers, 25 kilometers, or more than 30 kilometers in a day, long-distance hiking for multiple days is not an easy task.
- You might run into various difficulties such as
- You may encounter bright sun, high temperatures, heavy rain, severe cold weather, long steep uphill climbs, long gravel descents, gentle but long-distance roads with monotonous and boring scenery.
- You may not be able to reserve an ideal accommodation, you may find that every albergue or hostel is full after you walk to a certain town and have to continue walk to the next town, or you may encounter someone in your dormitory who snores very loudly at night.
- Your body may develop various ailments, such as sore knees, stiff and sore soles of feet, stiff shoulders. You might get a cold.
- The combination of various difficulties makes it really difficult to complete the Camino de Santiago. Those difficulties cannot be ignored, but we can also be optimistic. If you complied it, give yourself a big congratulation.
- Maybe in the future of your life, you will remember that you have overcome so many difficulties and be proud of yourself.
It’s your own Camino
- When researching for the information of Camino before or after the starting point, you may hear various “opinions” from others, such as:
- you should really walk the entire journey on feet, no bus or taxi,
- you should not take the bus, or like It is bad behavior to send your backpack to tomorrow's accommodation in advance,
- or at a certain fork in the road, you should take route A instead of route B because blah blah blah...etc.
- In fact, as mentioned above, "Camino is a small world", just like in your original life, you will hear a lot of other people's opinions. And most of those opinions are not important enough to be put into your heart. You have to find out “what you really want to do", and then “do it in your preferred way”.
- You can refer to many people’s travel notes and online information, but when you face various situations such as fatigue, bad weather, limited accommodation places, etc., you must be honest to your actual mood, physical condition, and preferences, and then make decisions for yourself.
- Listen to your heart. At the end of the day, it’s your own Camino. Enjoy it!
Camino will be with you for the rest of your life
It starts even before you make the first step
- Some people walk 100, 779, or even thousands of kilometers subtotally. No matter how long or short the distance is, it is not an easy task. Not only does it cost physical strength, time, and money, it also requires determination, perseverance, and adaptability.
- Therefore, as early as a few months or even a few years before your departure, you have probably thought countless times about whether to embark on this route and imagined various things that you may need to face and deal with along the way.
- In fact, the Camino has been in your mind for a long time. Long before you make the very first step.
It does not end after you reach the Santiago
- After completing their first Camino route, some people go back to repeat the same route or take on a different Camino route.
- The scenery, the people and many things you encounter along the way, the physical strength and perseverance you have invisibly honed, and the new ideas you may not be aware of, all have silently settled in your subconscious and thinking process. After you reach the destination of Camino, Santiago de Compostela, those things will continue to accompany you towards your future life. And they might suddenly appear in your mind at a random and indescribable moment.
A better version of yourself
- It is true that some people goes to Camino because of the deep sorrow from family member’s death, life depression, confusion about life and other reasons, hoping to gain comfort or to dilute the sadness. However, it might be difficult to find the meaning or direction of life simply because you walk hundreds of kilometers.
- Through the test and torture of physical strength and body, your willpower and perseverance may be honed.
- What you saw, heard, and encountered along the way, may broadened your understanding of the world and people, and increased the scope of your tolerance.
- While the walking, you may chat with many other pilgrims, but you may also be alone. Taking one step at a time, listening and feeling your breath. You might have enough time to reflect on your past life. You may come up with new ideas and let go of some past entanglements.
- In the rest of your life, from time to time you may recall the long road you have traveled and the difficulties you have overcome along the Camino de Santiago. Maybe, invisibly, you have become a "better version of yourself"
Buen Camino!
西班牙朝聖之路 Camino de Santiago 系列文章
西班牙朝聖之路 感想 - Thoughts about my trip of Camino de Santiago
西班牙朝聖之路 感想 - Thoughts about my trip of Camino de Santiago
西班牙朝聖之路 旅行建議 - 法國之路徒步日程表
西班牙朝聖之路 旅行建議 - 法國之路徒步日程表
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 1 - Saint-Jean Pied du Port → Roncesvalles
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 1 - Saint-Jean Pied du Port → Roncesvalles
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 9 - Nájera → Santo Domingo de la Calzada 
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 9 - Nájera → Santo Domingo de la Calzada
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 10 -Santo Domingo de la Calzada → Belorado
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 10 -Santo Domingo de la Calzada → Belorado
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 14 - Hontanas → Boadilla del Camino
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 14 - Hontanas → Boadilla del Camino
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 15 - Boadilla del Camino to Carrión de los Condes
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 15 - Boadilla del Camino to Carrión de los Condes
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 16 - Carrión de los Condes → Terradillos de los Templarios
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 16 - Carrión de los Condes → Terradillos de los Templarios
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 17 - Terradillos de los Templarios → Bercianos del Real Camino
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 17 - Terradillos de los Templarios → Bercianos del Real Camino
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 18 -Bercianos del Real Camino → Mansilla de las Mulas
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 18 -Bercianos del Real Camino → Mansilla de las Mulas
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 19 - Mansilla de las Mulas → León 
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 19 - Mansilla de las Mulas → León
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 20 - Leon → San Martín del Camino
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 20 - Leon → San Martín del Camino
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 21 - San Martín del Camino → Astorga
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 21 - San Martín del Camino → Astorga
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 24 - Ponferrada → Villafranca del Bierzo
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 24 - Ponferrada → Villafranca del Bierzo
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 25 - Villafranca del Bierzo → La Faba
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 25 - Villafranca del Bierzo → La Faba
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 27 - Triacastela → Sarria → Vilei
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 27 - Triacastela → Sarria → Vilei
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 29 -Portomarín → Palas de Rei → Ponte Compaña
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 29 -Portomarín → Palas de Rei → Ponte Compaña
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 32 - O Amenal → Santiago de Compostela
西班牙朝聖之路 遊記 - Day 32 - O Amenal → Santiago de Compostela
About Alex
- Software Product Manager. Work experiences in Taipei, Singapore, and Shanghai.
- Currently based in Taipei City, Taiwan.
- Contact me via: alex.ho.helloworld@gmail.com