Friday, March 30th

Melide - Pregontoño

We wake up to pouring rain. Well, saying we wake up isn't exactly accurate, as none of us got much sleep last night.

Personally, I maybe slept for two hours. Why? Emotions! And the other two didn't get much more sleep either.

Nevertheless, none of us waste a thought on not putting on our hiking shoes! Because that's what we do. Shoes, rain jackets, rain pants, rain ponchos, gloves, headbands... There's no way to sugarcoat the rain and the cold!

Outside, it's 2 degrees Celsius and raining heavily.

Despite the lack of sleep, we don't start today until 10:00 am.

We leave Melide by passing its small church and here we get our first stamp. An hour has passed since we started and my gloves are completely soaked. My fingers are freezing, and I'm tired from the lack of sleep. "Rock bottom, baby!" I exclaim. "It can't get any worse!" "Don't say that," Conny says, "you never know!" How right she would be!

The rain doesn't let up today, so we take only a few photos and breaks along the way. "People walk faster when it's raining," I think.

At 12:00 pm, we pass a small pub. Mom is cold, we are drenched. "Let's stop for a while!" she says. We have coffee and eat granola bars. But it's poorly heated here too, and we get cold from sitting still. So, we put on our rain capes and continue. We are silly today, laughing at everything the other says. "Laugh when it's not enough to cry," I think. The lack of sleep is taking its toll. This thought will also come back to haunt me later.

At 1:50 pm, we have covered 9 kilometers and therefore reached the halfway point of today's journey.

"There's hot food here," Conny suddenly says longingly. Before we can think about it, we are already sitting at a wooden table and the menu is handed to us. Mom and Conny order something warm to eat and a cup of tea. Today, I'm not fighting physically, but mentally with the Camino, so I order only yogurt alongside my white tea. The yogurt is really delicious, and the tea warms me up almost completely, but I sit there crying over my meal. I apologize to the other two. "I have to keep going," I say. They understand without asking. I am infinitely grateful. Today, it doesn't help, even though I had something else in mind, I put on my headphones and let the music play from my phone.

I need this hour for myself today. I cry most of the time. It must be that way today. I pass through the town of Arzua and for a moment I'm not quite sure if I haven't gotten lost in these few kilometers alone. But I haven't. Shortly after the town, the Camino becomes more rural and green again. Overall, the scenery is very varied today, making the stage very entertaining!

At 3:20 pm, I decide that I've had enough of being alone and wait for the other two. With all the rain, all the cold, and all the silliness on the verge of positivity, Conny says two things today that won't leave me. Quite early in the day, she looks into my eyes and says, "The thing is: no one is forcing you to be here! You're doing this of your own free will!" I feel a little embarrassed because I know it was me who suggested this vacation and got it rolling. On the other hand, the three of us quickly agree that none of us would give up now, after we've started, and not complete the way to Santiago. I know my mom is just as stubborn as I am, and I'm surprised by my sister's ambition. I'm proud once again! And then she says something that ultimately gives this day its meaning: "If we can make it here, we can make it through anything!"

I don't need any more to end the day on a positive note...!

At 3:50 pm, we reach the camper van and the scent of fresh coffee fills our noses! Thanks, Dad 💕