Kitchen sinks and voicemail

Don't panic and freak out. No, really.
That's what I'm telling myself.

I just phoned one of the albergues (hostels) in Irun, which is my starting point. I dialled the number. Forgot the country code. Looked up country code. Dialled again. Ring-ring! Voicemail. I'm sure whoever recorded the message is a very nice lady, but here's what she sounded like:
kjbw oilksn lkjhweb!!! afg haugbbjawern a apoasdghg?!?! uno dos tres quatro cinco cinco seis. BEEEP!
So I hung up.
You can't ask a voicemail message to "repita, por favor" or "hable despacio".
I went on the Camino forum and searched about albergues in Irun, and got a different phone number. It took a few minutes for me to work myself up into phoning again, double-checking all of my words to say to begin a conversation. So I phoned. Ring-ring! Busy signal(?)! So I hung up. Without a reservation for a bed.

Hablo espanol un poco, but I have no idea how the hell I'm going to function. I know that in-person, communication will be easier. I can read Spanish better than processing spoken-word, and if all else fails, charades will work. But over the phone sucks.

Ha! I'm leaving without reservations! (ba-da-bum-tiss!)
I'm going on an adventure!!!


I ended up buying new boots. Size 10. I call them my moon-boots: they look like something an astronaut would wear. The first time I wore them around the house, I supplemented their racket with elephant-stomping noises from my mouth as I walked around. But they are fairly comfy and have room for my toes.
I also bought new shirts - for the 3rd time. Wore one out in training, replacement is just a smidge too tight and I'm not dragging a too-tight shirt with me on the chance that I might lose weight. So I bought a few merino wool t-shirts- happily they were on sale. Still expensive, but less expensive than they were last week.

I weighed my pack at the airport a couple of weeks ago, and it was too heavy. Took it home and unpacked it, looked at all of my stuff, and repacked it as it was. I don't think there's anything non-essential in it. And try as I might, I can't eliminate anything. I did chuck a pair of shorts from it last week, but beyond that... ?
So I looked up carry-on regulations, and I can have a carry-on item (up to 10 kg), AND a personal item. So I'm just going to split the weight among the backpack and my totebag. It should be okay. I'm not going to be one of those people who cuts off the end of their toothbrush handle to eliminate a few grams from their load. It's not like I'm carrying a camp stove, or curling iron, or some-such.

I'm three days away from leaving. Eeek!

Emotional baggage and shoes

I've been planning my Camino journey for a year and a half now, and I can't believe it is only three weeks away!
Part of me is exhilarated, and part of me is anxious. I've never traveled alone, and it's a mixed bag of emotions. I pity my poor husband, who has been so patient through all of my excitement and fear (and repeated viewings of the film "The Way", which is on  Netflix right now, apparently).

Attached is a photo of my boots, which, although I've been breaking them in for several months, are now too small. My feet have flattened out (because of my 9 kilo backpack?) and swollen with the heat. Sigh. I'm trying out some foot exercises (thanks, Dallas McP), which may help; otherwise, I'm buying and breaking in new boots, OR I'm hiking Spain in Sketchers. 

I'm grateful for all of the support and encouragement from my family and friends. I can hardly wait to share my walk with all of you!