Casey White: How I Spent My Summer Vacation
11/30/2006 12:00:00 AM | Wrestling
HOW I SPENT MY SUMMER VACATION
Five Weeks of Trekking Across Europe
By Casey White
As a varsity athlete at the University of Michigan, my commitment to athletics and academics is year-round. Because of this commitment, I had long believed that a study-abroad program was never going to be option. A traditional study-abroad program was indeed out of the question; a year or a semester away from school and wrestling was a sacrifice I was unwilling to make. But I can still remember sitting in Spanish class last fall when my world started spinning.
My Spanish professor, a man who I really respected, started talking about a five-week study-abroad program in Spain. This specific program was unlike other study-abroad opportunities: instead of taking classes, the students would be out experiencing the culture and participating in an ancient European pilgrimage. It was on that very day that I decided I would be part of this adventure.
The Camino de Santiago is an ancient European pilgrimage which began sometime around the 10th century when the remains of St. James were discovered in Spain. Many paths from all over Spain and all over Europe converge as thousand of pilgrims travel the Camino each year. The journey ends in the exact location it has for more than 10,000 years, at the marvelous Cathedral of Santiago, in which lie the bones of St. James.
I set out on this journey on June 27. The trail would endure more than 800 kilometers starting from St. Jean Pied de Port, France, crossing over the Pyrenees, and finally ending at the Cathedral of Santiago on July 31. Each morning I rose before the sun to walk and converse along the ancient trail along with fellow pilgrims from countries including Spain, Brazil, Canada, Germany, Denmark, Italy, Portugal, and many more. We would all arrive to the albergues (hostels), which were often large rooms packed full of anywhere to 30-100 bunk beds, in the early afternoon just as the sun began beating down its most furious rays. The rest of the day was spent hand washing clothes, preparing meals, and enjoying the company of such a diverse group of people.
Looking back, my decision to complete the Camino de Santiago was the best decision I have ever made. Completing the pilgrimage with nothing more than the necessities, which I carried in my backpack, helped me to put my life into perspective and to more fully understand the important things in life -- specifically, that life and happiness are all about developing relationships. I'll never forget the feeling I had standing in front of the Cathedral and placing my hand upon its central pillar. My hand began to sink into the grooves worn away by the millions of hands which have been placed in precisely the same position; I experienced a feeling of completion and connectivity that I cannot begin to explain in this short writing.
The Camino de Santiago is an experience that will stay with me for the rest of my life. I am thankful to the GIEU program at the University of Michigan for providing me with the opportunity to expand my horizons, and I hope that this trip abroad is only a steppingstone to the many adventures I will pursue in the future. Come up and talk to me about the Camino some time after a wrestling match. I would love to meet you and talk with you about my journey.
Top of the Pyrennes between St. Jean Pied de Port (France) and Roncesvailles (Spain) :: This was our first day of hiking, and one of our hardest. This was about the six-hour point of a 35k uphill hike with a backpack strapped on. I had just completed a one-hour nap before this picture was taken. | Sunrise on the walk between Puenta la Reina and Estrella :: On average, we were up at 6 a.m. every morning to get an early start and beat the heat. So, we saw the sunrise every single morning of this trip. On the other side of the coin, we were usually asleep before sunset. | |
Sunrise on the walk between Astorga and Rabanal :: This was the only picture I was able to take on this day. I had terrible shin splints and lagged far behind the rest of the group. Our site leader tried to get me to take a taxi, but figuring I had wrestled through injury often enough, I politely declined and pressed on. | Spain's Cathedral of Len :: Camino has many, many different routes, and many meet up in Len and continue on together. So it really was a wonderful place to meet new people. Inside this cathedral are the most beautiful stained-glass windows I have seen. These windows provide the only light, so it's dark inside but spotlighted by colorful rays. | |
Crumbling village just outside the Cruz de Ferro (Iron Cross) :: Traveling through Spain, I was amazed at how many small, crumbling and abandoned villages there were. Many of these people didn't have the resources that we have really come to rely on. It made me realize how lucky I am to be so blessed. | Spain's Cathedral of Santiago :: I had broken off from the rest of the group when we reached Santiago. I asked a couple older ladies how to find the cathedral. I really just stumbled upon it. I turned the corner, and it was right there. Santiago is the resting place of the bones of Saint James. We actually, without any foreknowledge, arrived on the final day of the holy week of Saint James and enjoyed the huge celebration. |
Note: This story was featured in The Riding Times: an inside look at U-M wrestling.
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