Travel – Page 12 – Pat the Expat

Krakow: Sacred and Profane (I)

Vilnius was just beginning to look like Spring; in Krakow, Spring has fully sprung.

Prior to his death in 2005 there was some evidence of Saint Pope John Paul’s life in Krakow. However since the death of its former bishop and first Polish Pope, Krakow has really embraced its most favorite son and now he literally looms over the city. Karol Wojtyla was a most amazing character. He lost his mom and brother when he was still young, and his dad died during World War II. All alone and in the midst of Nazi-occupied Poland, he decided to become a Catholic priest, and attended a secret underground seminary in Krakow.

This sounds matter-of-fact now, but at the time it was a particularly courageous decision. The Nazis had singled out the Catholic hierarchy (all of the priests and religious) as well as the Polish nobility for liquidation. They sought to turn Poland into a vast farm and industrial labor camp to support their master race. Polish peasants would be the workforce for their Nazi overseers, but if the Polish leadership was still intact, they would oppose the Nazi plan. By joining the Polish clergy, Karol Wojtyla was signing his death warrant, since 90% of Polish priests were killed during the war!

Today, Saint John Paul is everywhere in Krakow. We visited his shrine, as well as the Shrine of Divine Mercy which John Paul established in Krakow in honor of Saint Faustina. Unlike some modern churches which resemble theaters-in-the-round or gymnasiums, the Divine Mercy Basilica is a remarkably modern take on ancient religious architecture.

When we travel, we prefer to stay in eclectic local accomodations and eat where the locals do. For example, our BnB in Vilnius was a converted monastery connected to a church, but with no resident staff. In Krakow our room is just around the corner from the main square, off a dark entryway and up three flights of stairs. We had an excellent lunch at one of the few remaining milk bars in Poland. Milk bars were a communist phenomenon: inexpensive, government subsidized diners serving large portions of hearty fare for the workers of the worker’s paradise. After communism collapsed, most milk bars did too. Krakow still has one, although it is a cross between a traditional milk bar and a Portlandia sandwich shop. Dinner that night was a basement cafe hidden inside a library. The theme was Grandma’s cabin in the woods. You stand in line to order, pay and wait for your number to be called, retrieve and eat your dinner, then bus your own plates. Meanwhile, the staff is mostly grandmothers supervising everything.

There is an amazing archaeological museum beneath the Rynek market in the middle of Krakow. They discovered layered ruins back in the early 2000s, and decided to unearth and preserve them. They did so, then rebuilt a roof over the now underground museum so the square looks unchanged. The layers of market history trace all the way back to the 14th century, showcased in a state-of-the-art facility which overlays video effects on the exposed ruins. The market square remains much as it has been for 700 years, despite all the other changes over that period.

Krakow is a very interesting mix of well-preserved tradition, proud culture, and vibrant youth (Jagiellonian University is one of the world’s oldest) and well worth the visit.

Travel day

Wednesday was a non-stop day on the move. We departed for the bus station around 5 AM and hiked a mile in the dark with everything we owned packed on us like mules. It was so early nothing was open yet except the McDonalds at the adjacent train stration, so we had that for breakfast. We took an uneventful 8 hour bus ride to Warsaw, where we intended to catch a train to Krakow.

But the first train was full, so we ended up with one first class ticket and one standing ticket on a later train. Which took 3 hours to get there. I’ll let you guess who got what ticket. What I don’t understand is that with one hour left on the trip, the train staff opened up another car and gave us seats, when they could have just sold us those seats in the first place, and the standing ticket I had was discounted. Sometimes you just have to accept things as they come: those “why?” questions can drive you crazy.

The extra time in Warsaw gave us a chance to grab a lunch at…wait for it…McDonalds. This one was outfitted with surly big city folk, people crowding the aisles and talking loudly on cell phones, security guards making sure only customers used the restroom, and wait staff who dismissed our questions with a contemptuous wave of the back of the hand. We looked like a couple of refugees with all our packs and bags, and we were treated accordingly. Even the view out the window was ugly.

We squezzed on board the train, rode to Krakow and disembarked. We had to traverse a shopping mall to get to the old city and arrive at our BnB, where we unpacked and went out for some warm cabbage soup, kielbasa, and beer before collapsing into bed.

Travel days are never fun. They must be rated on an entirely different scale. Did you arrive safely? Were you injured? Were you ever at risk? If you can answer yes, no, and no, it was a good day.

Vilnius, Lithuania

On the way to Vilnius we got sidetracked by a cancelled SAS flight which cost us the better part of another travel day at the Stockholm airport. All of which reminds me of two more travel tips! First, whenever flying a minor route which has multiple flights a day, always search to see what the cancellation rate is. Some airlines are known to cancel flights just to consolidate the route, and they do it often enough to make planning on a given flight impossible. I can’t swear that is what happened to us, but our half-filled morning flight got cancelled and we flew on a now full flight in the afternoon.

Very suspicious. The other tip is related: if you are flying in the Eurozone, you have great customer rights to refunds and compensation. Despite getting us on a later flight, SAS now owes us almost 500 Euros cash! They don’t advertise it much, but that is the law in Europe.

We are staying just down the street in Vilnius from the Shrine of Divine Mercy. Here’s the story:

Back in the early 1930s, a young Polish woman named Helena Kowalska joined the sisters of Our Lady of Mercy in Vilnius. As Sister Faustina, she started having ecstatic visions of Jesus, who instructed her to keep a record of what He said. Her diary became an extended meditation on the notion of Divine Mercy, despite the fact she only had a few years of formal education. Many of her fellow religious were skeptical, although one priest, Father Michael Sopocko, believed and encouraged her.

According to her diary, Jesus instructed her to be his “Secretary” of Divine Mercy, in order to help mankind understand just how overwhelming God’s mercy is. He directed her to have an exact replica made of His image of Divine Mercy, to profess certain prayers, and to have a Feast of Divine Mercy established for the entire world…quite a to-do list for a poor, barely literate, Polish nun.

While Sister Faustina was having the image painted, she began a long decline in health (probably due to tuberculosis), resulting in her death in October, 1938. She had predicted a terrible war would break out, and when the Nazis and Soviets occupied Poland, her cause and most of Church leadership in Poland went underground. The Divine Mercy image went on an extended, secret journey to escape capture by first the Nazis, and then the Communists.

While the Divine Mercy devotion continued to grow over the next few decades, it remained mainly a Polish or Polish-American phenomenon. Some in the Church opposed the devotion, and sought to have it declared heretical. In a twist of fate (perhaps Divine intervention?), a papal conclave in 1978 elected the first ever Polish Pope, John Paul II, who happened to be one of the principal proponents of the Divine Mercy cause. He canonized now Saint Faustina in 2000, and established the worldwide feast of Divine Mercy as the second Sunday of Easter.

Judy has been especially devoted to the Divine Mercy cause, so this stop was especially meaningful for her.

Vilnius is a lovely city with much intact architecture despite its violent history. We really enjoyed strolling its narrow streets and trying some of its hearty cuisine. We walked over seven miles and climbed the Hill of Three Crosses, a local landmark with amazing views. We also enjoyed such Lithuanian delicacies as meat-filled dumplings (Zeppelins), cold beetroot soup with warm potatoes, and hearty game stew.

Here are a few parting shots:

Travel tips en route

We made it successfully to Stockholm, Sweden where we are staying overnight. The Aeromexico flight from Guadalajara to Los Angeles went without any fuss. I wish I could say the same about the Norwegian Air Shuttle from LAX to Stockholm.

When we arrived at LAX, we changed terminals and got into a Catch-22. Norwegian does not check your bags until three hours before take off, so we could not check our bags or proceed to enter the terminal, beyond security. The Tom Bradley International terminal is very nice, but before security it is a service wasteland with few seats or restaurants. The bargain airlines it serves all have similar policies, so we found ourselves stuck in an old fashioned airport hub dump with several hundred of our closest friends for three hours.

When we finally checked bags and passed through security, our plane was three hours late for takeoff due to poor ground coordination. Luckily, we had premium seats which gave us access to the OneWorld lounge, so we waited and waited in relative comfort.

The buffet,

and Judy (rolling her eyes) fresh back from the showers.

The open bar.

The indoor fire pit.

Travel tip #1: if you book Norwegian, do not try to make close connections. They have very cheap fares (some on our flight flew to Europe one way for under $200 USD), but they are notorious for delays.

Travel tip #2: if you book with Norwegian, know that the low cost fare means everything will be extra. No water, no checked bags, weight limited carry-ons. If you want better services, upgrade to their Premium, which is something closer to Business class at other airlines.

Travel tip#3: if you can, fly the new 787 Dreamliner for long haul trips. It uses more modern technology to fly faster, with a darker cabin, better humidity and air pressure, leading to a significantly better experience in whatever class you fly.

Our biggest worry was losing our backpacks. So far we are two-for-two.

Final Travel tip: if you ever need to travel with a backpack, many airlines won’t let you take them as carry-ons. Just buy an Ikea Cary sack for a few bucks! They are large enough to hold even a very large backpack, and they are easy to spot coming off the luggage-go-round.

More from our first official stop tomorrow.

Truckin’

We are leaving for our extended religious pilgrimage to Europe on Saturday: to say we are excited is an extreme understatement. Months of physical training, research, prayer and preparation can now be put to practical use. This week, we’re taking care of all the admin details surrounding an extended absence, getting final dental and doctor visits in, packing and re-packing, and then settling in for planes, trains, buses, automobiles, and–of course–walking.

Last Sunday our parish sent us off with a Pilgrim’s Blessing, an ancient rite of the Church which was very emotional for both Judy and me. We were called forward before the altar, promised to pray for our congregation while we are on the pilgrimage, and then the entire congregation called down God’s blessing on us for our safety, sanctity, and sanity (I may have made the last one up).

A recent commercial Stateside asks “Who glows?” Well, we are.

Our itinerary takes us on flights from Guadalajara to Los Angeles to Stockholm, with a overnight to account for time change. Next morning, off to Vilnius, Lithuania. I know it is not exactly on everybody’s bucket list, but I’ll explain why when we get there. After a day and a half there, we’ll take a bus to Warsaw and then a train to Krakow, Poland, where we’ll spend three days. From there it’s an early Sunday morning RyanAir flight to Lourdes, France, for a day and a half. Then some occasionally reliable French trains to Saint Jean Pied de Port, where we’ll begin the 800 kilometer (500 mile) walk to Santiago de Compostela, after a few days rest, on May 3rd. After arriving in Santiago (God willing) some thirty days (mas o meños) later, we’ll get a rental car and visit Muxia (a quiet pueblo on the Atlantic coast), travel down to Fatima, Portugal for a day or two, and then to Lisbon to start the flights home. The end of the trip is less exact: when you don’t know when you’ll be where, you need to leave the details to later.

Needless to say, my blog will be less about expat life and more about travel, which is (for us) an important aspect of expat life. In addition to all the usual fun of travel, we’ll be praying and offering thanks to God, so if you have a prayer request, share it with me via the comments function or private message, if you prefer.

Oh, and since I titled this Truckin’, let me end with an appropriate cut:

Why be a pilgrim?

So why do people walk the 500 miles from St. Jean Pied-de-Port, France, to Santiago de Compostela, Spain? There are as many reasons as there are pilgrims, but they can be organized in several logical categories.

Like pilgrims from the Middle Ages to the present, the largest category would be religious/spiritual. Originally this would have been a primarily Catholic endeavor, as Catholics were encouraged to go on pilgrimage to various shrines, including Santiago, where the bones of St James were allegedly discovered. Now there is an equal number of “spiritual, not religious” types who go on pilgrimage to re-center their minds, disconnect from the electronic chatter of modern life, or strip life to the bare essentials and engage more honestly with other people. This last point is a common refrain from peregrinos (pilgrims): on the camino, you have only what you need, so you eliminate the artifice of modern society and have more meaningful relationships with your fellow pilgrims.

Another large group is seeking simple self-improvement. They want to lose weight, quit smoking or kick some other bad habit, get in shape, or simplify one’s life. There are some similarities here to the first group, but without any specific spiritual content. Smaller sets of pilgrims are on vacation, after a personal accomplishment, or do it just because it is there.

For whatever reasons pilgrims have, the numbers have been consistently increasing. Last year over 300,000 walked the Camino Frances, with the frequency diagram displaying a familiar normal distribution (I promised no math, but this is statistics) centered on the Summer months.

This counts “completions” with most taking 30-45 days

To receive the official completion certificate, or Compostela, you need only complete the last 100 kilometers of the Camino Frances. When you arrive in Santiago, they ask whether you walked for religious/spiritual reasons or for other reasons. If the former, you receive a Latin script Compostela attesting to your accomplishment; if the latter, your certificado is in Spanish. If you wish, for a few Euros you can also receive a certificate of distance which attests to the actual time and distance hiked.

Whatever one’s motivation, one theme among peregrinos is consistent: how well pilgrims treat one another, and how well pilgrims are treated by their Spanish hosts. Out on the camino, people share with and care for each other. The small towns, some of which only survive by association with the camino, provide a warm welcome. Stories abound of services provided or help rendered by anonymous pilgrims to those in need. Likewise, there are numerous tales of pilgrims finding “no room at the inn” and being taken to stay in local’s homes. There are exceptions, but crime or simple boorish behavior stand out mostly as exceptions to the rule of good behavior.

This is the magic of the camino, and what really brings many pilgrims to come back and walk the camino over and over.

As for me, I am walking in thanksgiving. From early on when my wife Judy and I considered walking the camino, I saw it as a way of saying “thank you” to God for good health, a great family, a satisfying career, and all the other blessings I have received. We’ll spend time every day giving thanks, looking to help others (or maybe accepting help from others–that’s a blessing too) and praying. If you have a prayer request, let me know!

A Camino Day (Proposed)

Some of you may be wondering what that 800 kilometer hike across northern Spain will look like. From a geographic perspective, it starts in the Pyrenees mountains, crosses the Basque country and heads into the meseta or Spanish plains, and ends in Galicia. Much of it crosses fertile cropland, including vineyards, with about three mountain ranges. Along the way we’ll pass through numerous small villages along with the cities of Pamplona, Logroño, Burgos, León, and Santiago de Compostela. Some of the way is roadside, some farm trails, some traditional hiking routes. But what does an average day look like? Based on the preparatory research I have done, here is what pilgrims tell me.

The pilgrim’s day starts early, perhaps 6 am, especially if you stay at an albergue or hostel. Most albergues insist everyone leaves by 8 am so they can clean for the next night’s pilgrims; yes, you can only stay one night in each albergue. Breakfast may be available at or near the albergue, or at least some coffee. Most pilgrims want to get on the road before the heat of the day, and many albergues are first-come, first-served, so there can be a little bit of an Oklahoma landrush in the morning to get an early start. One of the banes of pilgrims in the the albergues is the rustling sound of other pilgrims, which may start as early as 4 am, as they try to get packed and depart.

Tortilla de papas, almost always available

Whenever the time comes, breakfast is probably continental, such as a pastry with coffee. Lunch is often a sandwich called a bocadillo, which is some form of ham on french bread. Some push lunch back until 1-3 pm, perhaps coinciding with arriving at the next stop’s albergue, but others keep a lunch break around noon. Most pilgrims hope to get in to their next albergue or inn sometime in the afternoon. After check-in, you find your bed/room, unload, shower and switch into your casual dinner outfit, and wash your hiking gear from that day. Next comes some quiet time to siesta (my favorite), read, catch up on social media, buy some trail food for the next day, or fix any physical issues (blisters?).

Some towns have a pilgrim’s mass at night, and many restaurants will serve a pilgrims menu of three courses (soup/pasta, meat, dessert) and vino de casa for a nominal fee (E10). After socializing with fellow pilgrims, most retire early for the evening. This might mean sleep, but it might not, as the cacophony of snoring, people rustling in their backpacks, and the usual comings-and-goings can make sleep a challenge. Some pilgrims only stay in albergues; others only use hotels and private rooms.

Wake up and do it all over again. For 30-45 days.

Now of course there are the many hours of time spent walking, which can also be an opportunity for prayer, sight-seeing, introspection, or meeting one’s fellow pilgrims. That gets to the “why” of the Camino, and I will return in a future post to answer it.

Camino Gear

As promised, here is my follow up post on the gear we plan to take when we walk the Camino Frances from St. Jean Pied-de-Port (France) to Santiago de Compostela (Spain) in May.

First, here’s the photo layout:

Now here is what you see. Starting in the upper left corner (and moving clockwise) is my pack, an Osprey Kestrel 48. This is an overly-large pack for the Camino, but it fits me well, and if we need extra room I have it. On top of it is a Venture ID bag for our passports and camino credencial, the document which identifies us as pilgrims and gets us into albergues. Next is a Melt travel roller, a lightweight device for stretching; on top is my Diamond red light headlight, and below it is a pair of Keen travel slippers.

Moving due right is a soap/wash solution and the Brierley guidebook, and slightly right and up from that is a large travel towel (folded) with a pair of walkie-talkies. Above that is my emergency caffeine kit (24 packets of starbucks instant coffee), which is all that is standing between me and disaster if Judy needs a coffee fix some morning!

In the upper right corner is an Osprey 2 liter water bladder which fits into my pack with a drinking tube right to my face. Below left is a lightweight set of stuff sacks, a cocoon brand mummy liner (sleeping bag liner, no bag), a set of lower leg protectors (keeps rain/pebbles out of our boots) and an electric travel adapter. In the lower right corner are my Cascade adjustable hiking poles and gloves.

To the left is my lightweight, collared travel shirt and a long-sleeve Under Armour shirt, with my toiletries bag on top of them. Next left is a pair of running shorts which double as swim trunks, then my other detachable hiking pants and short-sleeve shirt. Curling back in to the center are two more pairs of quick-drying travel underwear and two sets of travel socks and silk liners. Above that is an over-the-pack rain poncho, and to the right is a Cool-rag brand towel, a travel utensil kit, and a blacklight flashlight.

And that’s it.

Not pictured are a small Android tablet and phone, and one set of gear I will be wearing (t-shirt, Keen hiking shoes, merino wool socks with silk liners, detachable hiking shorts/pants, quick-dry travel underwear).

Most of the gear is self-explanatory. We bought lightweight, quick-drying equipment because (1) we’re carrying everything, and (2) you wear one pair, wash those when you are done for the day, then wear the other pair. We tried to get gear which is multi-purpose, like the detachable shorts or the running shorts/swim trunks.

Some things are unique. The Cool Rag is a towel which stays cool and moist in its container: on hot days you pull it out to cool off. The black light is great for identifying bed bugs, a nemesis when staying in dormitories. We found Melt rollers a necessity to recover from hard workouts. The headlamp is great for early morning (dark) starts, and can be used inside an albergue in the red light mode (without disturbing other sleepers).

We probably don’t need the 2 liter water bladder, and on some legs I won’t fill it, but it is a nice emergency item for us (or other pilgrims).

In yet another follow-on post, I’ll cover what I anticipate a camino day to be like.

Camino veterans, or those who are just meticulous planners, if you see something missing, please ask about it in the comments section!

Training down the homestretch

We’re now under 90 days out for our departure for the Camino Frances to Santiago de Compostela, so it is time to get serious about training. We have done once- or twice-a-week walks thus far, getting up early or walking under the hot tropical sun to experience different conditions. We have gone as far as 24 kilometers carrying our loaded packs and wearing our gear.

After a few weeks off for Christmas and a trip to the States, we started back in yesterday with a 8 mile mid-morning hike. No sooner had we left our development then we found ourselves heading against the herd, literally.

It was difficult getting back into the swing of hiking: neither Judy nor I felt very motivated this hike. We ran into our friend Lisa who stopped to talk, and even she noticed we didn’t look very motivated (good assessment). By the time we took a lunch break, we began feeling better, and the last few miles felt like old times. We are very tired for such a short walk, but I think we will recover our form rapidly as we increase the frequency and duration of our training hikes.

Part of my problem was probably overpacking. I have been gradually increasing the weight in my pack, well beyond what I will actually carry, so that the hike seems easy in comparison to our training walks. However, I did not keep track of how much I was adding: I would just see something fairly heavy but still compact, and I would think “that would make great pack filler!” so I would throw it in the pack. After yesterday’s hike, I went back and unloaded and weighed everything, and I was up to 25 lbs. Seasoned Camino pilgrims suggest never carrying more than 10% of your body weight, which would give me an 18 lb target. Seven pounds may not sound like much, “but ounces make pounds, and pounds make pain” is the mantra.

Keeping your pack weight to a bare minimum is critical for an 800 kilometer hike. I will detail what we’re bringing, and why, in a follow-on post.

A little Whiplash

So during the last 10 days, we left our relatively perfect lakeside weather for a quick Stateside trip.

First, we spent a cold snowy weekend near Cincinnati. We had pre-staged some cold weather gear there, so I was able to hit the sledding slopes with my Grandson Ian.

We hopped over near to Baltimore, where it was even colder! There wasn’t enough snow to sled or make a snowman, but there was a steady wind. I didn’t stash as much weather gear. The granddog didn’t even want to go out for a walk at night. But Grandson Henry and I did get to build a fort out of the sectional couch, and defend it from the beasts (Granddaughter Quinn and Granddog Rufus) outside the walls.

That cheap flight I mentioned last post got us to Playa del Carmen, where we thawed out. We were the only tourists NOT complaining about the cloudy weather with occasional rain, as the temps were all 70 degrees and up.

Beautiful view from the balcony, but notice the missing Sun

So we were forced to eat French food indoors (sigh)

Not looking for any sympathy, just noting what it is like on the road. I do claim my “winter credentials” for another year! Winter is a season best only visited.