I was awoken by Gregorian chants and the human alarm clock wandering the dormitories at 6 in the morning. After the paraphinalia of gathering boots and getting my plastic canopy over me and the rucksack, managed to leave the auberge at 7 10 am. Those who know mevwell will know that getting up at 6 is no mean achievement.
It was barely light and very misty when I set off and did most of the walking on my own. After about an hour I ran into David a chap well into his seventies who was English but lived in France , this was his second camino and he was full of handy tips. We stopped for coffee and snacks about 4 miles outside Burgette ( where Hemingway once stayed) he bought me a coffee and i ate one of the sandwiches left over from my st jean packed lunch. Then I left him to push on.
The routine is already starting to make itself clear now and it goes like this: get up early leave by 7 30 am stop to pick up snacks along the way aiming to arrive at next destination around 2 to 3 pm book into an aubergue, jump in shower, wash clothes ( possibly in shower) book meal for eve , always around 7pm, back to aubergue doors locked at 10 am. I seem to be getting the hang of it along with at least 50 other people looking for a place to stay.
Forest after forest and horrendous mud is the best description for today. In fact many places looked and felt like a tabogan run rather than a foot path. However after about 1pm the sun came out and Im sitting here now writing in lovely sunshine at 6 in the evening. Apart from David I did meet some other interesting people. Trishia and her sister from Perth, Rody from Bulgaria a lovely couple from Canada and Andre from UK. I have lost track of Daniel and the Dutch people, but the way of the Camino seems to be that you will bump into people again. I am beginning to get used to this being on my own, but not on my own. More about characters as they develop. Aubergue tonight is basic , but only 6 euros! I seem to have developed some kind of strange rash on my feet and ankles probably from socks. oh yeh and I look like sh@@, but apart from that I am enjoying myself so far.