As uplifted as I was over the ease at which I had crossed into Switzerland, I couldn’t help but feel an immense wave of disappointment wash over me when the first Swiss “business” I encountered proved to be a zoo — a zoo, in the most cruel twist of ironies, that charged no entry fee […]
I make it without major incident into the city of Basel, and am flowing smoothly towards the majestic towers of the famous Basel Munster already seen on the horizon when I come across a delightfully odd series of artist-stalls and sage-like slogans* graffitied nearby … 🙂 “There is a fundamental stubbornness within me that cannot […]
It’s hard enough trying to follow pilgrimage routes through larger cities in general, and yet I soon discovered that Switzerland made this task even harder still — by not having any Camino-specific waymarkers at all (at least not on the Basel to Geneva route I was treading*). That having been said, I did make my […]
One of the most important logistical lessons to be learned on any pilgrimage is the simple fact that the strangers you meet along the way are for the most part NOT effective providers of distance or direction. Indeed, the vast majority of the people I met along the way had no idea whatsoever which direction […]
Up early after a surprisingly restful sleep on the cold, hard floor of the lodging that was provided the night before (a trailer-turned-playroom located behind a neighboring farmstead) and head slowly but surely onward through the crisp, foggy morn. Notice as I do so that the massive swelling in my ankles had dissipated during the […]
Finally, after wobble-limping along what turned out to be the shortest leg of my entire Walk (just covering 11 km), the beautiful town of Mariastein, with its stunningly beautiful monastery, came into view. “Though life is mostly froth and bubble,Two things stand like stone:Kindness to another’s trouble,and Courage through your own.” ~ via Adam Lindsay […]
Well, even though the town’s rumored pilgrim-friendly hostel turned out to be a solely-pay-to-stay bed & breakfast — and even though the local monastery (quite contrary to a similarly vehement rumor relayed to me on more than one occasion previous) in fact did NOT maintain the habit of taking in anyone other than officially pre-registered […]
In pilgrimage (as in Life, and as in Love) it is considered prudent and even proper to prepare for the unexpected; to carry along items (or, in Life & Love, possessions &/or backup plans) “just in case” anything goes wrong. And even though I had intentionally organized my own Walk to be a radically minimalist […]
“Some would say that we must uncover what we long for to re-discover who we are. Others proclaim that we must change what we long for to alter who we are becoming. Of course, the far deeper truth is that we must completely release all that we long for in order to then & only […]
Walking through the sunny woods on my way through Switzerland, I was climbing up a steadily sloped trail when I came to a fork in the road — to the slight right my chosen Camino path that continued along its upward trajectory, and to my slight left a route sloping downward back towards the way […]
“Indeed I am almost certain that there are no heights that can’t be scaled by a man who knows the secrets of making his aspirations come true. And the way to this most special of secrets can be summarized in three C’s: curiosity, courage, and constancy, with by far the most crucial of all being […]
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