The Camino de Santiago or The Way of Saint James is one of the most important pilgrimage routes of all times and, in fact it is so famous that hundreds of thousands of people from all over the world set out every year, from their homes to make their way to Santiago de Compostela. Most of them travel by foot, as my friend here does. But some choose to do it on a bicycle or even on a horseback or donkey. Why am I talking about it here? Because I find it fascinating and definitely not only a courageous thing to do, but such a wonderful way of spending time by yourself and learning some lessons about life. You must have seen some movies about such pilgrimage and most of them are based on true stories. I am now following the true story of Veronica Soare’s way to Santiago de Compostela. She decided to cross the Spain by foot, over 800 km. I texted her the other day and she answered in her own funny way. You’ll love her, but just let me tell you even more. She’s doing the pilgrimage not only for herself but for helping new borns, and here is where she caught my attention, even more. Veronica set out to Santiago for raising money. She will help newborns with health problems to get better. I’ll give you the link where you can symbolically by steps and be a part of Veronica’s journey.
What’s the biggest joy of this journey? “This pilgrimage is for me, undoubtedly about the people I meet and even more about finding myself. I was of course expecting this but, the intensity of all this is beyond my dreams. Most of the people crossing Camino live their door open, conversations are loose. I would like for us to be always like this, to share more from what we really are. On the other hand, the moments of loneliness, they make me find myself. There are days, or hours when I am alone here and I can reflect about my life, about the lessons in life, about what I am and what I want to become. I have this feeling that I am going to be more peaceful when I turn back home.”
Do you have any fears? “I started this pilgrimage having one real fear, but the Universe has solved it from the first day. The thing is there are sections of road when you pass through the forest, and that was not a funny thought, imagining the fact that I’m going to be alone in there. You are never alone on Camino, in theory, but still, there are moments/hours when you are. So, here I am, me myself and I, alone in the woods, from the very first day, right before the first stop, so I had to face my fear. And talking to you now, it means it was a successful exercise. There’s no other fear, well, maybe one! The needle we have to use for the blisters!”
How can you manage to sleep with so many people in the same room? “Well, sometimes there’s only 10, but we were 60 once! Actually I spent one night in the same room with 96 people! That was an experience! And I am sure you won’t believe me when I tell you it was and still is, my most restful night I had here! Yeah, but it’s easier than it looks! I am not al ways content, but if I can, anybody does. Doing this, gets me out of the comfort zone, but It’s manageable. It is not even about the snoring, but more about how you wake up in this sounds produced by bags. This can be really annoying and the ear plugs won’t even help. But, still you can live with all of this! “
On Camino, they call her the “Prinicpessa” and she likes it, of course! Why are they calling her that way and so many other amazing stories we’ll find out soon when Veronica will be talking in “3 minutes & 45 seconds with Anamaria”. Until then we can follow her on Facebook as Veronica Soare and on Minuni.ro. We can also symbolically buy steps here and help newborns live a healthy life.
See you soon Principessa!
P.S. And not to forget! This amazing red dress she’s wearing is actually a t-short made by this incredible smart Romanian designer, Adrian Oianu.
