Greetings

[Esther Osborne]

Greetings to All:

I also am new to the listserve, although I've been following the
conversation for about a month now.  My partner and I plan to walk the
Camino in 2004, God willing.  We are both "seniors"  (I think I like
"elders" better!)--I will be 66, and Chris 68.  We are both in training
for a float/hike in the Grand Canyon this May, and hope that will also
get us in shape for the Camino, a much more ambitious project.  Melissa,
I am a retired social worker, and a West Coast person--it's nice to see
someone on the list who is from the west, aside from Califormia.  My
clinical interest was chemical dependency, but gerontology is also an
interest, especially as I age!

Speaking of chemical dependency, neither of us drinks alcohol.  Is that
going to be a problem at refugios?  In France we drank lots of mineral
water, and it wasn't a problem, but I have been in some situations
where wine was the only drink offered.

I love this list!  It is so interesting to see who's been there and what
concerns there are, especially the details like pack weight and water.
We have camelbacks and were planning to use them, but may rethink that
in light of what we've read so far.  Anyway, at this point 2004 seems a
long way off.

Previous pilgrimage experience was a trip to Chartres Cathedral in 2000
to walk the labyrinth there as part of a group of 40 from our
(Episcopal) parish, which is St. Mark's Cathedral in Seattle,
Washington.  The idea of a 500 mile pilgrimage is a little scary, but
very exciting.

Esther