A few thoughts just before the start...

Last year, at the beginning of December, I was sitting in my kitchen baking cookies and decided to walk the Camino de Santiago...

Back then, it was all so far away and not really tangible - all that remained at that time was a vague feeling of having made a significant decision in my life. Now, a few months later, the time has finally come...

It's really shocking how the past few days have just flown by. WHERE DID THE LAST SIX MONTHS GO???

So, on Saturday at 10:00 a.m., I will be sitting on a plane heading towards adventure. From Berlin, via London, and on to Biarritz. And from there, I will continue by car to Saint Jean Pied de Port - where my pilgrimage will begin.

I can't put into words how incredibly strong my anticipation has grown day by day. Some people probably felt really annoyed by my almost disgustingly good mood :p - let me tell you, I enjoyed every second of it and I still do! Rarely have I looked forward to a vacation so much!

The past few weeks have been simply wonderful. And what has particularly impressed me are the incredibly great and kind well-wishes, encouragements, and conversations with the people around me. I never thought that I would experience so many wonderful little moments beforehand - simply looking into the initially stunned or surprised face of the other person, which then turns into a genuine smile with shining eyes. I hope that I can keep these faces in my memory and remember them exactly when the Camino presents me with one or the other seemingly insurmountable challenge...

Best regards,

Nicole

And finally, a picture of the initially planned items for the next six weeks. Just so you know, I had to sort out over a kilo of stuff :D. But everything would have fit into the backpack ^^