24/09/2023
Santander to Connollys Bar Sligo
Bus—Plane—Bus—Car
From there to the other place and then on to the last place was pretty uneventful for the most part.
I had a good nights sleep, followed by an comforting shower and then a nice breakfast in the Albergue, it was actually very nice and reasonably priced to boot.
The bus to the airport was leaving from where I had arrived, just across the road, I still managed to confuse myself by going down the stairs to where I had landed last night. When asking an employee I was told to hurry back to the street as it was about to leave….I did so….but there was no panic I had at least a minute to spare once I took my seat.
When waiting in the airport I finished emptying my hip flask of Spanish Brandy which I had been working on since breakfast…...I recalled a sad moment that occurred earlier….my platypus that I had filled with brandy back in Pamplona still contained several measures and had to be poured down the drain of a wash handbasin in ElHostel….I remember thinking…..it’s not like shampoo or a silly sitcom….do not repeat…..next time just drink it all.
I had a good nights sleep, followed by an comforting shower and then a nice breakfast in the Albergue, it was actually very nice and reasonably priced to boot.
The bus to the airport was leaving from where I had arrived, just across the road, I still managed to confuse myself by going down the stairs to where I had landed last night. When asking an employee I was told to hurry back to the street as it was about to leave….I did so….but there was no panic I had at least a minute to spare once I took my seat.
When waiting in the airport I finished emptying my hip flask of Spanish Brandy which I had been working on since breakfast…...I recalled a sad moment that occurred earlier….my platypus that I had filled with brandy back in Pamplona still contained several measures and had to be poured down the drain of a wash handbasin in ElHostel….I remember thinking…..it’s not like shampoo or a silly sitcom….do not repeat…..next time just drink it all.
The plane ride was straightforward, I did manage to get a fly in my eye shortly after take off….this was okay as we were still over Spanish waters ( they had that warm look you to them that seems to elude the uisce around our Irish shores ) I also met a tiny spider that was sharing the view from my window. I thought fair play to him / her for getting a free ride on Ryanair.
So the bus to Sligo from the airport had one small twist. It ended up pretty full so when we hit Lucan, among others, a family of three boarded: Father, Mother and son of perhaps of 4 or 5. The father sat on the outside seat beside me, the mother in front of him and the kid opposite the dad. I noticed that the ignoramus beside the kid, pretending to be asleep sprawled in such a way that the tiny kid was pushed to the edge of his seat. While the kid was tiny the man was seriously in need of an extended date with lettuce leaves, tomatoes and a few other vegetables for a several years at least. I suggested to the husband that I swap seats with his son…...he was foreign and did not understand but his wife picked up on it and thanked me so I swapped and the first thing I done was lowered the arm rest between me and the non salad eater, in doing so woke him, I also managed to accidently step on his misplaced feet, in this case it was honestly an accident, I still had my hiking boots on and they are not really ideal for bus seats.
The kid ended up sitting beside his Mum as she and Dad swapped seats, I saw that the kid was smiling as he looked into the eyes of his mum…..life can be good.
So about two hours later and we pull into Sligo bus station. Jennie and Jack are waiting for me……..as we set off I suggested that we might stop for a quick pint in Connollys which we duly did and that quick pint was followed by a slightly slower one which was chased down by a Blackbush.
As I guessed the news was not good, however it was slightly worse than I expected. The cancer apparently found signs of intelligent life within her and was having a go upstairs.
I have to jump forward here and tell you that 11 months later and treatment is ongoing, Jennie is fighting away and working away and well not going away for the…...a while anyways.
So the bus to Sligo from the airport had one small twist. It ended up pretty full so when we hit Lucan, among others, a family of three boarded: Father, Mother and son of perhaps of 4 or 5. The father sat on the outside seat beside me, the mother in front of him and the kid opposite the dad. I noticed that the ignoramus beside the kid, pretending to be asleep sprawled in such a way that the tiny kid was pushed to the edge of his seat. While the kid was tiny the man was seriously in need of an extended date with lettuce leaves, tomatoes and a few other vegetables for a several years at least. I suggested to the husband that I swap seats with his son…...he was foreign and did not understand but his wife picked up on it and thanked me so I swapped and the first thing I done was lowered the arm rest between me and the non salad eater, in doing so woke him, I also managed to accidently step on his misplaced feet, in this case it was honestly an accident, I still had my hiking boots on and they are not really ideal for bus seats.
The kid ended up sitting beside his Mum as she and Dad swapped seats, I saw that the kid was smiling as he looked into the eyes of his mum…..life can be good.
So about two hours later and we pull into Sligo bus station. Jennie and Jack are waiting for me……..as we set off I suggested that we might stop for a quick pint in Connollys which we duly did and that quick pint was followed by a slightly slower one which was chased down by a Blackbush.
As I guessed the news was not good, however it was slightly worse than I expected. The cancer apparently found signs of intelligent life within her and was having a go upstairs.
I have to jump forward here and tell you that 11 months later and treatment is ongoing, Jennie is fighting away and working away and well not going away for the…...a while anyways.
So back to the Camino.
Reflection:
I can honestly say I never experienced a walk like it ( and I realise most of My Camino still has to be covered).
Just about all of my walking in Crete is done on my own while in Ireland most is done with a particularly good friend The German. Be it in Ireland or Crete I can honestly say I have never gone on a hike be it up a mountain, through a gorge or just a simple wander into the wild that I have regretted. None whatsoever and I have had a few dodgy experiences…..but that is what they were…..experiences, adventures, amazing days. Every walk, hike I have been on….might have been too hot a day in Crete where I prayed for shade or a day up a mountain in Ireland where not a single part of my body was not soaked through but every one of those times I always at some stage looked around me, more often than not there was nary a soul in sight for miles ( The German does not count here ), and realised how lucky I was to be in that spot at that particular time.
The Camino was so different: I do really love my alone time and there was little to none of it to be found here. The only solitude I found was in Churches and this I appreciated more than I could have anticipated. I did not spend a lot of time in them; enough to light a candle or two for Jennie and passed family, say a few words and more importantly give a few minutes over to letting the fly annoy my eyes. I found I could do so comfortably in the privacy of the Church where if I did so elsewhere people want to get involved and ask why or offer help.
The other thing that surprised me most was the amazing people I met: Antonio the retired Italian teacher, Joshua from the U.S. had some great stories, Pilar, Eva, Mercedes aka The Three Crazy Spanish Ladies with the Sparkling Eyes ( I did not spend enough time in there company but what I did was…...unforgettable.) And the two T’s Tia and Trish…...without a doubt they both made it so different for me. I have read more about the Camino since coming home and so much is said about the Family you make there…...it’s true. I feel I should say more about you guys but words do fail me.
Final word here is to thank all the other people I met, there was a lot of them, sometimes for 5 minutes others for hour or two, the amount of time spent in each others company is irrelevant the quality was and always will be seen as special.
P.S. to T…...always remember that without your company I would have spent at least 2 if not 3 nights sleeping on a public bench in Spain. Thanks.
Reflection:
I can honestly say I never experienced a walk like it ( and I realise most of My Camino still has to be covered).
Just about all of my walking in Crete is done on my own while in Ireland most is done with a particularly good friend The German. Be it in Ireland or Crete I can honestly say I have never gone on a hike be it up a mountain, through a gorge or just a simple wander into the wild that I have regretted. None whatsoever and I have had a few dodgy experiences…..but that is what they were…..experiences, adventures, amazing days. Every walk, hike I have been on….might have been too hot a day in Crete where I prayed for shade or a day up a mountain in Ireland where not a single part of my body was not soaked through but every one of those times I always at some stage looked around me, more often than not there was nary a soul in sight for miles ( The German does not count here ), and realised how lucky I was to be in that spot at that particular time.
The Camino was so different: I do really love my alone time and there was little to none of it to be found here. The only solitude I found was in Churches and this I appreciated more than I could have anticipated. I did not spend a lot of time in them; enough to light a candle or two for Jennie and passed family, say a few words and more importantly give a few minutes over to letting the fly annoy my eyes. I found I could do so comfortably in the privacy of the Church where if I did so elsewhere people want to get involved and ask why or offer help.
The other thing that surprised me most was the amazing people I met: Antonio the retired Italian teacher, Joshua from the U.S. had some great stories, Pilar, Eva, Mercedes aka The Three Crazy Spanish Ladies with the Sparkling Eyes ( I did not spend enough time in there company but what I did was…...unforgettable.) And the two T’s Tia and Trish…...without a doubt they both made it so different for me. I have read more about the Camino since coming home and so much is said about the Family you make there…...it’s true. I feel I should say more about you guys but words do fail me.
Final word here is to thank all the other people I met, there was a lot of them, sometimes for 5 minutes others for hour or two, the amount of time spent in each others company is irrelevant the quality was and always will be seen as special.
P.S. to T…...always remember that without your company I would have spent at least 2 if not 3 nights sleeping on a public bench in Spain. Thanks.
