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Miracle of Plastic

SUNDAY 13TH JULY 2003

The next day we get up at nine, pack the tents, and head-off on the next leg of our journey.

It’s still a long drive to get to St.Jean-Pied-de-Port, the place where we’ll leave Lujzi and start walking the hundreds of kilometres to Santiago de Compostela.

AVIGNON AND CARCASSONNE

We go to Avignon , a very friendly city, former seat of the popes. There’s actually not much to see other than the papal palace, though that’s well worth checking out because it’s got a lot more atmosphere than some religious buildings.

Later on, we decide to stop in Carcassonne which is famous for its ‘cité’ - a medieval-looking city which was actually built in the 19th century. There’s some festival going on when we arrive so the car park is very crowded and the city is lively. The town is very enjoyable and reminds me of Rhodes. We meet some very nice French people and Csaba gets to show off how well he speaks French.

LOURDES

We move on to Lourdes, site of the famous miracles of Lourdes and its beauty really grabs my imagination. Illuminated with blue light, there’s a church and a cave system. We see numerous nuns and sick people gathering for mass - hoping for a miracle to cure their ills.

We’re fast running out of fuel but, as it’s Sunday, no petrol stations are open. The automatic dispensers are working - where you pay with credit card - but none of them will accept our Visa cards. How funny and how un-international it is. But after a while, it’s more irritating than funny.

Why are there times when God seems to help people out and other times when God doesn’t seem willing to offer the support you want? When was the last time you met an angel? When was the last time you were an angel to someone who needed your help?

Then we experience our own private miracle at Lourdes. A French man sees our plight and, in exchange for cash, he uses his credit card to fill our tank!

As we motor along we get into a funny but deeply philosophical discussion about miracles. Perhaps this man was really an angel sent by God in our time of need.

Are there such things as angels? Why do they need wings? Do angels work 52 weeks a year or only at Christmas and Easter? Do you need a university degree to qualify as an angel?

THE PYRENEES AND ST. JEAN-PIED-DE-PORT

It’s a pure pleasure driving through the Pyrenees. From the road signs we can tell we’ll soon be in St. Jean. It’s an important landmark on our journey - the start of the hiking section of our camino and I want to make our arrival something we will remember forever. A minor quarrel breaks out about how to make the moment eternal. Gábor and I want to play the loudest music we can find but Gergő and Csaba, the people with their ear-holes nearest the speakers, vote for silence. Andi just wants to arrive and doesn’t see the point of making a theatrical experience out of it. At this moment I realise how different each of us is.

[ From left to right: István, Csaba, Gábor, Gergő & Andi ]

How do you celebrate significant moments in your life - such as birthdays and other important occasions? How well do you get on with people who aren’t like you, who don’t see the world as you see it?

We have all travelled different roads to get to this moment in our life and these roads have made us different personalities. In a funny way, I like that, though it means we don’t celebrate our arrival in St. Jean in the way I’d wanted.

St. Jean is a very pleasant town, embraced by huge mountains.

SIGNING ON

Carnets (in French) or credenciales (in Spanish) are the pilgrims’ documents. Pilgrims carry them, and have them stamped every time they visit a refugio (church-run dormitory accommodation) or auberge (private or religious order run accommodation). We ask a German pilgrim to tell us where we can get our carnets and he shows us the way - through streets crowded with little medieval houses.

We get to the office and register for 2 euros each. You can indicate a motive for doing the camino: religious, recreation, cultural, historical, artistic or whatever you like. Independent of each other we all indicate on the form that our trip will be of a spiritual nature. This amazes me and is another pointer that perhaps I don’t know these close friends as well as I thought I did. This trip is turning out to be full of revelations.

We started out as ordinary people but now we are officially spiritual pilgrims! Yippee!! In fact, Gábor now feels so spiritual, he immediately buys a bottle of wine and some Bailey’s for us to celebrate our new status! After pitching the tents we eat a good meal and enjoy the wine. That night, I sleep like a baby.

15 JULY 2003

It’s about ten in the morning when I wake up. The others are already up, making breakfast. We realise how many things we have that we can’t take with us because they’re just too heavy to carry great distances. We have 10 litres of juice and other drinks and at least a dozen tins of canned food. After a long discussion we decide that we won’t take a tent either. We will always sleep in the refugios.

Gergő and Andi are very reluctant because sleeping in a tent really appealed to them but they give in to the majority decision.

In order to use up the food we don’t want to carry we have a major feast. Packing takes another 2 hours, and then we still have to find a comfortable place for Lujzi to rest while we’re away.

Not far from the camping ground we find a parking spot that will protect her from rain and sunshine. Lujzi has done her camino already... and now gets to rest until we return to collect her. I can’t help thinking she looked very relieved and very proud of herself. Even seeing her parked next to a very expensive car, we were proud of her too.

Part 2 continues...

LINKS

Part 2: Cruising The Riviera | Miracle of Plastic | The First Step

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© copyright Culham Institute / REEP March 2004.