In May 2006 I have walked from St. Jean Pied de Port (Pyrenees) to Fromista. This year I have walked the other half (495 kilometres/307 miles) of the Camino, which goes from Fromista to Santiago de Compostela. Just like last year I asked family and friends to sponsor my footage from which Scooby and the Greyhounds in Nood foundation will profit.

On Thursday the 27^th September at 8.00 AM. I started walking from Fromista and finished at 2.00 PM at an inn run by the Clarissa order in Carion de los Condes. Usually pilgrims leave very early in the mornings for they want to avoid the heat during the day. You can walk stages from 24 kilometres and more, depending on, among other things, the ascent of the path. There were also days of eleven hours walking which meant 40 kilometres per day. But at the end of those days I was completely worn out! My feet did not really ache; I did not even have had blisters. But I did  feel my shoulders. The weight of my rucksack was approximately 9 kilos/20 lbs. including lunch and water. What nearly did me in were the large quantities of snorers in the sleeping-accommodations!

The Spanish people were kind and helpful and always wishing you a Buen Camino! Encounters with the other, international pilgrims were always very special. A lot of Spaniard, Canadian and German pilgrims amongst other nationalities. One really does not walk the Camino alone for there are always other pilgrims walking ahead and behind you. There is always a chat when passing, and after walking together for a while, one hears the most private stories. In bars for lunch and in inns for the night, you always meet the people you have already met along the way. It always felt good seeing them again. I got a lot of enquiries when people saw me wearing the Scooby and GINN badges. It were chances to tell about the good works done by both foundations and about my sponsored kilometres.

Pilgrims are very helpful to each other. When I had to climb to the summit of O’Cebreiro (1250 metres/4100 ft.) a fellow pilgrim gave me a branch which made a very fine walking stick.

The pain in my shoulders, due to a wrong adjustment of my rucksack, was very obvious to a German young man. He adjusted the straps and the pain was gone!

At one time we met two Swiss men walking beside their mules. The animals had very nasty wounds at their legs. Instead of showering and eating their dinner, for the next hour the men were taking care of the wounded animals.

Spaniards are often cruel to animals. During the walk we saw a lot of chained guard dogs with no protection of the soaring sun, and often without accessibility to food and water. The countless stray dogs and cats often had nasty wounds and we asked ourselves how they got them! In a small village I noticed, amidst other dogs, a dog with a large, dark spot on his back. When I looked closely I saw the dark spot consisted of about 30 thick ticks! The dog and cat from our host at the inn looked very well groomed so I felt free to ask him if he could do something about the ticks. When I arrived back in Holland I called him first thing and he assured me that the dog is taken care of!

Arriving together with a group of other pilgrims at the Cathedral in Santiago (on the 11^th October, 4.00 PM) was a very emotional moment. Everybody embraced and congratulated one another. A lot of pictures -  from and for each other -  were taken. E-mail addresses went back and forth together with promises to write and send photographs.

Hereafter we went to the Cathedrals administration bureau and showed our credentials. These consisted of stamps from all the inns on the Camino were we have stayed. After the stamps had been verified, we received our Compostela-document in Latin with our names on it (the first name also in Latin). Then we all went inside the Cathedral to embrace the statue of Saint Jacob. From the other way around, because he stands in front of the altar facing the entrance.

The next day I went by bus to Finisterre. This was a three-and-a-half hour trip one way. I made a ritual by throwing the 36 stones, with a good wish attached to it, in the sea. One for each friend and family member as they have sponsored my kilometres for the greyhounds and made a donation to GINN or Scooby!  

The journey to Holland by bus took 35 hours and was an ordeal, due to the loud television and music played in the bus!

I am so grateful for having done this Camino. I have seen beautiful landscapes, picturesque villages and lovely churches. Especially the encounters with my fellow pilgrims and the countless nice people along the way taught me a lot about life. I have made a lot of pictures to remember those landscapes, villages and churches. But the impressive scenes from meeting the people and animals along the way are carved in my heart.