Even if I'm a little bit late (a week, to be precise) with telling this, last weekend, on the 30th of May, I had my first camping experience!
It all started with a bicycle tour; through Couchsurfing I had the chance to join this tour, which my boyfriend Geert was attending as well. At first I was not that sure I wanted to go along with this tour because of several reasons, but after my friend Dustin and Geertje insisted and this other friend, Giorgio said he was going to be happy about me being at the meeting, I thought it was not such a bad idea to just go. So I went to Decathlon, bought a couple of stuff (swimming suit, shorts, flip flops) just because I had nothing in my flat that was proper to swim or bike, and got ready for this adventure.
My boyfriend and Dustin left together in the early morning because they wanted to bike all the way to reach our destination, while me and other people were heading to the station to catch a train, reach another town and then start the tour. So at 9:25 I arrived at the station, and I was extremely happy to meet Giorgio there, who was sooo welcoming and said at least 2 or 3 times he was very happy that I was there to join the group. Greeted the others, put my bike in a truck and jumped on the train, which was very busy and feeling like New Delhi. I tried to talk and get to know the others better, which was not too easy in the beginning, though I realised that the all of them knew who I was because of Geert talking bout me in the previous tours. It was very nice.
Honestly when I got off the train the only thing I wanted to do was getting on the bike, don't know exactly why, but I felt that my patience was not there, probably because I wanted this journey to start. I'm not that fit anymore, I haven't been doing any sports in a while, I'm not a great biker, I'm not mad about the countryside, but I had -and still have- that kind of feeling that I want to taste freedom, the outdoor world, just moving and not being in the same place and eventually go back to teh sporty me that everybody knew and I guess that this was a chance like any other, maybe more special.
After 45minutes we finally got on the bikes and I decided I wanted to enjoy it, so I just had my own pace, and tried to talk with others, to get to know them, and I have to say that Sam was my new compagnion in the first hour of the trip. We went through different towns and biked all together. I enjoyed the sun, so hot, maybe even too hot, and I enjoyed just looking here and there and understanding my limits, how my body was working, how the bike could be a silent compagnion as well...
Our first stop was at a Botanic Garden; it was very nice and I was amazed by how many plants and flowers there are and how much nature can just be an artist! There were some animals as well, and they were all very cute! Usually I wouldn't really enjoy gardens, but this was a real nice one, and I enjoyed walking in it while sharing a word with others as well. We spent about a hour in there and after refreshing ourselves with some cool water from a fountain, we got back on our bikes. This time though the sun was getting tooooo hot for me, and we didn't stop to have a little lunch or anything, so it was harder for me to back and I felt weaker, which made me be the last one of the group... and I really wanted just to get to the next town where we were going to have a swim and get some rest! Luckily my boyfriend came to save me with some more water, an apple and some love to encourage me and stand close to me, so that I could make it to the end. I really aprpeciated his help, and even Nunzia's help, this other girl, so nice and helpful.
After a few more kilometres and some steeps up and down, we got to Castro, on the coast, where we headed on the rocks leading us to the sea... The sea, yes, looking so blue, deep, lovely; just a few waves and a nice sun. We dived, though the water was actually cold, and had a swim, then laid to sunbath and relax. Once again I had a real good time with Geert, who was looking like a happy kid playing games or eating his favourite sweets. He was extremely gorgeous. And we had a good time. After biting on a sandwhich, he told me he wanted to go swimming again, while others wanted to try kayaking. Now. I really wanted to try some kayaking, but then I thought it was okay not to do it and just wait sitting in the sun, but then Giorgio told me he needed a partner for the kayak and since I was sooo curious and after all really wanted to do it, I just said yes and the only thing I know is that after 15 minutes I was actually doing some kayaking, having a lot of fun! I laughed alot, worked a lot to learn how to do it and enjoyed the waves, thinking how cool it was actually and I really think is one of the greatest sports to do to have some fun and also to be fit, because damnit, you really have to work hard with all your body if you want to make it right! It was a great fun with Giorgio on the kayak and with Dustin and Geert just swimming around us and Geertje jumping on the boat to kiss me, hehe. After 40 minutes I couldn't stop laughin and I was feeling very happy!
It didn't take long though to leave this lovely place, because we needed to head to the final destination. This was a hard hard part for me, because with all these ups and downs, it was not too easy to bike, and in the final part of the trip, after another little break to eat something, me and Geert got left behind - I don't like to slow him down, but as I'm not a good biker yet, hilly roads are not the best ones for me - and after even getting lost, we finally made it to the place, a kind of pinewood, just on a little hill, from which you could see the sea. Others were already fixing their tents and we did the same.
The only thing I could think of was "wow, I made it. 42kms. I made it". I really couldn't believe it, but that was it! But I really wanted to rest, eat, sit... and the group got downhill again to watch the Champions League match and eat something. Around midnight, after a slice of pizza, some chatting and singing, I wanted to go back to the "basecamp" and get some sleep... it took long to convince someone to drive us up again, but we made it... and that's when this new adventure of camping started.
All I can say is that it was not as bad as I thought! It was nice to be cuddled up in the tent. It was nice to feel somehow "not-so-outside", still safe and warm, and sleeping on the ground is not a bad bad thing.
The next day I was feeling very tired though and after a bad experience with a big spider and just being in the countryside discovering I have a kind of insects/bugs-fobia, I thought it was better for me not to go on with hiking and being just in the countryide walking, sitting, eating. It was not a great moment... I felt a bit ashamed, and even hurt, if you know what I mean. I felt like I was failing in my "mission".
Me and Geert got back to the headquarter after a nice lunch, rested, and went back to the sea, to enjoy the lovely amazing place we had close to us. It was very nice to swim! The was was first not soo deep, then we swam under a cave that led us to the open water, and wow! Even if I couldn't really swim for long because of my short breathe, I thought it was amazing to just have the chance to do it and once again I felt very proud of my little achievement, even though that costed me some bruises and some bleeding. The sun was still lovely and we tanned even more and while the sun was starting to go down, we got back to the camp.
Some people left, some other attended an event and some others, like us, stayed there reading and chatting, and I had the chance to talk with Enrico, who is a nice fun guy to hang around with. And it's incredible how easy can be to talk about nothing and everything with someone you've just met... this always makes me think. It's a good feeling though to learn about others and from others. Always a good lesson for life.
After a nice dinner with the few left in the camp, we went to bed... I mean, we went sleeping in the tent! and once again it was fun for me, despite the rain during the night. And the next morning Geert woke me up to see the sunrise. It was nice to take a walk to the sea and sit on a rock just waiting for the sun... such a shame there were some clouds... but still it was a little bit special, and felt like a moment of empathy with nature and everything surrounding me. Good for sure.
And this led us to a new day and to the station... from which we caught our train to go back to our place and out end to the weekend and this adventure.
I'm sure that words cannot totally express everything I felt and tasted and lived in those two days and a half. It was not awlays easy, but I have good memories. On Monday I was feeling hyper, excited for what I had done and still I had in my nose every smell of the countryside, the sea, the grass, the fields, and my hands and my arms and my legs were still feeling all that work out, and feeling proud of the achievement, and my body could still feel the sun on my skin, the sea washing me, te cool water on my hair, the sweat from all that sports and my mind, even after those bad moments when thinking "ah, this is not good for me", or "damnit, I'm no good for doing it", or also "I so dislike this countryside", was still feeling good, free, happy about this new experience that after all didn't make me lose anything but enriched me at least on some things. And these things are those which I won't forget those easily, because they are more like lessons, not object and not only memories... but lessons; a process of learning how to have trust and confidence, how to believe in what your body & mind can make together, how to feel even more free by doing little things and how to appreciate these kind of journeys, really not caring about where to go, or what do to, but only bout how to do it or who doing it with, because that's what makes every journey so different and new from any other old journey.
Love,
Mary
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