Going North: Day 1 Biarritz - St. Jean de Luz

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Did you ever have that tingling feeling in your stomach while getting ready for a new trip? 

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That's some stuff to carry!

I'm talking about that small tickling, butterflies for others, nervousness or even some goose bumps that, in my case, come every time something new and exciting is about to happen, like in this case, another adventure: cycling the Northern path of the Saint James Way!

After a little planning some weeks before, the previous travel night should be easy... but that's when all those emotions arise and I end up most of the night packing, and checking, packing some more, checking again, taking out some stuff, put it back again, checking some more, almost ready, but back to checking my stuff, in, out... and so on for a few hours, ending up with less sleep than desired.

Ready to fly!

But first things first, being too far a journey to leave from my actual home, Nice (France), I flew over to Biarritz to start closer. With some helping hand from my dear friend Alfio, or Rinco for friends, we carried my 20 to 25 kg heavy boxed bike so I could fly without any back pain before the real challenge :) However, once on the plane and without even starting my cycling trip, I suffered my first accident... true, accident and airplane are not a good combination... but rest assured, I just ended up drinking less beer and just got my legs wet. This didn't however avoid me jumping in my seat when I was approaching Biarritz; a town on the South West region of France, with such a diversity that it used to be visited by Monarchs from all around Europe and is now one of France's major surfing spots (more info here). Still warm from the mild and California-like Côte d'Azur, I quickly plunged into gloom and cloudiness, more typical from the Basque Country.

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HOPping out for a new adventure!

As soon as I literally HOPped off the airplane, I built up my dear Orbea and in no time I was out on the road with clouds but no rain, and with that tingling feeling of a new adventure to be reckoned!

What was supposed to be a quick trip to Saint Jean de Luz, ended up being a sweet Saturday ride, slaloming among all the tourists, surfers and beach lovers. Without being able to find anybody in the churches to get myself a Camino credential (the pilgrim's stamps passport), I left the bustling Biarritz to join the beauty of nature going through narrow pathways all along the amazing Basque coastline.

“Camino cycling tip:
enjoy the ride!”

— June 6th 2015

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Amazing Basque gastronomy!

Starting the route as relaxed as on my 1st Saint James Way (which turned out to be some gruelling 20km uphill, see it here), I couldn't resist temptation to stop at one lovely bar on the way when I saw their pillows, deck chairs and a counter over the beach with the magnificent sea view. Seeing the Basque dishes on their menu and the smell of their kitchen, some great txistorra and a Basque beer were more than enough to convince me for a pit stop before heading to the day's final destination.

Once I finally reached Saint Jean de Luz with sunset stalking me, I entered this beautiful town to discover that, although being on the Saint James Way, it doesn't have any specific accommodation for pilgrims. On the Camino, the most typical form of accommodation is the albuergue which rather than a hostel, it's a shelter conceived for pilgrims. The options you have can range from a hostel-like housing, a private owned home with some rooms for pilgrims, a church, a town's pavilion (during periods of time when there are many pilgrims on a given route) or even some amazing monasteries!

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Visca Barça!

With almost zero options at what was already 10pm in the evening... I had to resort to a thing I usually don't, a hotel! Strolling around, the cheapest I found was one with a very familiar name to me thanks to my work in Monaco... Café de Paris! My choice was based on availability, a safe storage for my bike and the nearby Pub where they were screening the Champions League final between FC Juventus and FC Barcelona, which was won 1-3 for the latter: visca Barça!

After a few pints and some surprise concert during the game, my first short, but intense, Camino day came to an end with a luxurious rest before heading to some very tough 14 days of cycling the coastline to my hometown.

Stay tuned for more Camino days every week and discover how it was to drag a heavy mule across Spain's Northern Coastline ;) ! 

Going North: day 0 of my Northern Way to Santiago!

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Bull runnings, punctures, clay roads, branches, vineyards, puddles, tornado like storms, singing, laughing, amazing people and many stories more... that’s the “Camino de Santiago”!

The "Camino de Santiago" is a historic pilgrimage route that leads to the grave of the Apostle Santiago (St. James) and the most popular path is the French Way that goes from St. Jean Pied de Port (French Pyrenees) to Santiago de Compostela (Spain), crossing unique cities like Pamplona, Burgos, León, Astorga and many more. There are 3 ways to do it, the classic walking, with a bicycle or riding a horse. The almost 800km that separate the French border with Santiago, the capital of the Galician region, are one big 30 days hike away for walking pilgrims or around 15 days for bike pilgrims. Keep in mind, most parts of it go through narrow forest paths, treacherous stoned and tree rooted hills, clay roads and only sometimes, some neat tarmac... With this in mind, I gave my dear Orbea mountain bike a very relaxing flight trip to St. Jean Pied de Port, before putting her to the biggest challenge yet! 

“The “Camino de Santiago”: cycling 800km, 15 days of fun & many amazing stories!”

— September 2014

It was in September 2014 when I had the chance to live this unique adventure that ended being one big turning point in my life. It brought me back my passion for cycling, adventures and photography as a means to tell stories. It pushed me to create my blog and start telling the incredible experiences I lived during this journey... if you’re curious, go over to www.theworldisahandkerchief.com/caminodesantiago where you can read and see my 15 days journey.

See below a few pictures of my last year's trip:

So it was then, that this journey reignited my love for the two wheels movement which I abandoned for some years. Thanks to this and my writings on this blog, it lifted up my involvement with the cycling World and soon after concluding my adventure I started to collaborate with LikeBike Monte Carlo: the most prestigious bicycle show in the World, managing their social media presence and content, as well as providing my photo skills for their events. It’s an exhibition of The Best in cycling in all its forms and colours; the next edition will be back in June 2016. On the other hand, I also started to bike commute to work, some 22km each way, which not only gets you fit, it also helps to avoid the very very common delays and strikes that the French rail system has us so much used to... and, it’s pure joy to overtake the cars queuing in traffic jams!

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The incredible routes of the Camino de Santiago

Having an 18 days holiday in June, my head started to look for options... hmmm the amazing Norway was always on my list, but I'd rather visit it in winter and see its Aurora Borealis... Iceland is another one on my bucket list and they even have a mountain bike competition in June... Oh! But maybe I could do another Camino, though the Northern route seems too long to do in those days with it’s almost 200km more than the French one... “let’s check” I told to myself. Once the idea stuck in my mind and since this route looked like a rather flat trail things started to get going.

Therefore, I was slowly preparing for yet another unique journey. It was very clear to me, that my trusted Orbea (also 'Orbeiña' for friends) was going to be again my inseparable companion. Not only, I also had some amazing new apparel to try out, two cycling kits, one more urban the other more road like, from the French clothing brand Café du Cycliste, with a style not far from the great tradition of French cycling, but with the quality and performance of today’s best clothing brands. They are mainly an online retailer, but they just recently opened a real Café which perfectly reflects their brand and in one of the best spots of Nice’s Port.

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The Real Café! ©Café du Cycliste

Being on a better shape than on my previous Camino, I was pretty confident to drag my 25kg loaded bike and bags across the 'easy' Northern path... delusional ... that’s probably what I can say now, from my former mental state!

“A UNESCO World Heritage Site!”

The Northern route is not as popular and crowded as the French Camino, but it's known to be a very beautiful route, harder than the French option and apparently closer to the St. James Apostle’s real one. Overshadowed by its French counterpart, which on top of its greater popularity, is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1993, this North against French rivalry finally reached equal terms; within the last meeting of the UNESCO committee on July 8th, the Northern path is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site too, due to its growing popularity (2nd option after the French Way) and its historic relevance. This will obviously increase the number of pilgrims going for it, but it will also increase the protection and services attached to it.

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The Northern Saint James Way (purple line)!

As I said to myself back on my first Camino “Off I go!”!

It was in June this year when freshly landed in Biarritz, bike mounted, gears in place and with the thrill for a new adventure growing and growing, I was getting ready for a 15 days journey crossing the Northern Spanish territory to encounter fascinating stories, stunning landscapes, delicious food and amazing friends of the "Camino del Norte"; the Northern St. James Way!

Stay tuned to my next blog entries to see what happened on my "Camino del Norte"!

Day 15: Arzúa - Santiago de Compostela

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Like in every good movie and story, the long expected moment, where all the bits and pieces come together for the final wrap of a unique journey, was going to be unfolded on my last Camino day. Day 15 was going to mark the end of another chapter in my life with the happiness of accomplishing my objectives and the friends I made on the Way. It wasn't without nostalgia of these amazing moments we lived, that Andrew and I were to face our last ride with some longing.

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Arzúa mornings

We joined our recent Nebraska friends (see day 14) for our good old habit of a fresh breakfast. To our surprise, Father Nolte offered us our first supper of the day to which we were really grateful. Having the other "Ondiñas" members leading the troop from a further away village, we still had to catch up our slowed down pace caused by our latter "Pulpo" day (check back on day 14 to discover this tasty regional dish). Although it was going to be our last day, we were still about to meet much more friends than we could have expected. 

With our belly replenished, we pedalled away from the Galician cheese capital (Arzúa), to reach the capital of the Galician region itself, the pilgrim destination of thousands of people from all around the World: Santiago de Compostela, which is the centerpiece that united all of us in this journey. And even if it was the first reason for this adventure... the most meaning ones were soon to be discovered. 

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2nd breakfast!

Going on with our path, even if the hills were not as hard as the ones we passed, every little hurdle seemed to be the biggest obstacle ever, and sometimes my legs didn't seem to respond. You might think that is probably due to the 14 days riding without rest, but the real reason behind my fatigue didn't seem to be physical, but rather mental. The amazing people and experiences I lived in these two weeks were so emotional to me that I knew my brain didn't want my body to finish... therefore, we simply stopped for our 2nd breakfast ;)

It seemed like the hotspot for pilgrims' breakfast, it was a small house with a garden which was filled with people from everywhere. We had a great Galician "empanada" (info here, in Spanish only), a typical regional dish that's similar to an English pie but much more thinner and bigger. My favourite ones are with "Pulpo" (=Octopus), cod fish, cockles and the really tasty "Zamburiñas" one, which are like small scallops. We added to this a good "cafe au lait" which was served with another typical Galician product: a Sargadelos like coffee cup. Sargadelos is a renowned pottery brand of Galicia (discover it here), which is distinguished by their typical blue-white colour pattern and high quality ceramics; it is often used for gifts and special occasions.

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Steph the smiling Aussie

After this good treat, early morning cold made us go back to our path through the magnificent woods of Galicia. Among the many "Ring rings, we're coming!" and "Buen Camino!" (=have a safe pilgrimage), one pilgrim made us slow down to walking pace thanks to one of the simplest, most universal and sincere ways of human interaction, a smile! To what seems so obvious, but is often forgotten in our stressed urban lives, was the reason to make another friend on the Camino, Steph from Australia. She started her Camino in Sarria after a few months backpacking around Europe, visiting her motherly origins in Greece and simply discovering the Old Continent. It wasn't going to be the last time we'd meet and the next one was going to be sooner than expected.

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Quique and Sonia and their amazing bar!

Having still to make up for the lost "Pulpo" time, we continued and at Salceda's municipal borders, we arrived to a quite unique place which can't be spotted at simple glance. First we only saw a terrace and a bar, after quickly dissolved doubts, we obviously went in for our 3rd coffee of the day. Once inside, it turned out to be a magical place full of history, where apart from wall messages and carvings, the most striking thing were... T-shirts! Yes yes, T-shirts hanging everywhere from the ceiling, there were at least 100 of them in all possible colours, left by pilgrims, visitors and friends from all around the World. In addition, the friendliness and energy of its owners, Sonia and Quique, made the experience even better. Obviously, under these circumstances, one of my photo interviews was mandatory; the recent story behind this unique place was both moving and interesting to hear. However, as all the other photo-interview stories, they will be published later within their own context.

After this surprising and positive moment, and going for my now very cold coffee, I joined again Andrew and... Steph! Yes, the happy Aussie we met before caught up with us and joined our coffee moment (and you're right, our longing was making us reeeally slow). Since we were near Santiago, we exchanged selfies and whatsapp to meet up again and celebrate together our Camino arrival!

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A very comfortable horsegrino

With only a few kilometres to go for Santiago, Andrew and I pedalled away... but still with some nostalgia of the finishing adventure, hunger kicked in and Andrew stopped for some bacon and eggs, while I resorted to my beloved Galician beer, Estrella Galicia. There, we met two more Aussies, Sam and Jayne, and also some horsegrinos; horse pilgrims. If you're thinking if they qualify to be called pilgrims, yes they do. The requirements to be a Santiago de Compostela pilgrim state that it can be done walking, on a bicycle or riding a horse.

Once we were arriving to Pedrouzo (last hill before Santiago), the spectacular skyline of Santiago awaited us in all its beauty and with a completely blue lit sky, pierced only by the unique towers of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, where the remains of the famous Santiago Apostle rest. Which is precisely the reason that motivated this famous religious pilgrimage for many centuries.

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Finally, in Santiago!

The feeling of accomplishment, happiness and satisfaction of entering my studies town, where I spent almost 10 years of my life, with just the strength of my legs on my dear 20kg heavy bicycle, was one of the greatest feelings I ever had. I was so happy to see my hometown again that I even jumped on its sign (check out the cover picture above)... going down the cobblestoned streets, passing by the "Museo do Pobo Galego" (Museum of the Galician people), then going up to the "Plaza Cervantes" (named for one of our greatest Spanish writers) and the last descent to the magnificent cathedral of Santiago made all my memories and feelings mingle into a big burst of joy. Best thing, I was received by my parents and one of my best friends, Jorge, to share together this unique achievement. We then went to another nostalgic place for me, the "Hostal de los Reyes Católicos", the 5 star hotel just next to the cathedral and where I did one of my summer internships some years ago. After the Cathedral itself, it's probably one of the most iconic and historic constructions of Santiago, which used to be a hospital for pilgrims (find out more about its history here). We were very well received by my former colleagues and we had great tapas at the "Enxebre" restaurant. 

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Pilgrims' patience

While my parents had to leave, Jorge, Andrew and I had lunch together before we went for our "Compostela", the certificate issued by the Holy Apostolic Metropolitan Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, which certifies the completion of the pilgrimage. In order to obtain it, you must do the journey with the Pilgrim's credential (see mine below), which you need to have stamped during your pilgrimage in any church or albergue you pass by. There are also distance requirements, at least 100 km walking or 200 km on your bike are needed to obtain it (find more information here). 

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My Camino credential

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"Ich bin dan mal weg" the film

So we went then to the last step of our pilgrimage and to one big...queue! The "Oficina del Peregrino" (=the Pilgrim's office, where you get your certificate), was full of people, but contrary to what you'd expect (specially for those who do it in August, month of greatest pilgrim arrivals), it wasn't due to too many pilgrims, but because of German "Hollywood"(which we first met on my Day 11). Therefore, patiently as a pilgrim, we waited for them to finish their few scenes and observed those immaculately clean "pilgrims" carrying featherlight backpacks... so after some "Action!" moments, we finally could write the last dot in our journey.

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That's my Compostela!

Last dot...? Not quite yet, heading back to the "Obradoiro" square, where the Cathedral is, I reunited with 3 of my faculty friends, Pablo, David and Martin. They came to say hi before Andrew and I headed to our Albergue and joined our "Ondiñas" friends for dinner and pilgrimage celebration!

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So what started as a "Let's pedal to Santiago" finished by being one of my greatest adventures and eye opening experiences. There's not one unique reason to do the Camino, there are as many as people and stories you can find while doing it, and as with most travels and adventures, what matters are who you encounter, the journey and what you will learn for your own life.

Therefore, I will finish my last day with my Sixteenth recommendation for the Camino:

Start the Camino with your own personal reason, forget it on the way to indulge the journey and get inspired by the people you will encounter.

"Buen camino" my dear friends!

PS: You wonder where it all started? See here Day -1 and Day 1.