This, for some reason, stirred something in me. I became even more fascinated with the whole phenomenon when visiting the Museo das Peregrinacións, a museum in Santiago that tells the story of pilgrimage routes all over the world in general and pilgrimage on the route of Santiago de Compostela in particular. Ever since then I’ve often wondered what it would be like to go on a pilgrimage, not so much for religious reasons, but more because of the whole experience.

Recently I’ve taken to walking for an hour and a half on the days that I that I don’t work out. It helps me to relax and take my mind of things. While walking I started thinking again about that holiday and the pilgrims we saw walking on the route of Santiago to Compostela and decided that I should put thought into action. Which means that next year, 2010 (which happens to be a holy year), I’ll be walking from Leiden, The Netherlands to Santiago de Compostela. I haven’t decided when I’ll go exactly or whether I’ll do the whole journey in one go or in a couple of stretches (this would probably be more practical in terms of my job and the number of holiday days I get every year), but the decision has been made.

I still have lots of preparations to make. Becoming a member of the Dutch Confraternity of Saint James would probably be a good idea. Along with extra training. Getting a sponsor wouldn’t be such a bad idea (in case you know someone let me know ). I’ll keep you posted.

Perhaps it’s a one-off and a bit of a prank, mimicking the likes of Ruud Gullit and Matthijs van Nieuwkerk. Or perhaps it’s here to stay, like Linda (Dutch) or Oprah. It certainly brings back memories, because I grew up with Donald Duck. Often I could hardly wait for the next issue to arrive and would dwell in front of the mailbox on the days it came out, so I could read immediately. I had a habit of keeping them in my closet. A whole stack, hundreds, of them, which I would reread on a regular basis. If this one’s only half as much fun as what I remember it should be an entertaining evening this evening.

I had great time. Sun, some sea, lots of hiking, great food, fantastic wines and lot of unwinding in general. So, let me kick off by quoting Abraham Lincoln.

It has been my experience that folks who have no vices have very few virtues.

What about any of you, have any new year’s resolutions?

We – my friends Giorgos and Gijs, plus his brother-in-law Ivo – recently went to Disney for a good old day of coaster riding. It was kind of a crazy trip, because the four of us set upon our journey around five o’clock in the morning, driving approximately five hundred kilometers and arriving just in time for the park to open at ten.

Luckily it wasn’t very busy, so we didn’t have to wait for too long at any of the rides. We were also lucky in the fact that, although cloudy, it only rained a little in the morning. We did whole thing again when we left at eight o’clock in the evening, arriving home at around two o’clock in the morning. I think I was already asleep before my head had even hit the pillow…

Zelf heb ik tot op heden volgens mij nog nooit voor een dergelijke spiegel gestaan. Sterker nog, meestal zijn de spiegels en de verlichting in pashokjes dusdanig geplaatst en ingesteld dat het alles behalve flatterend is. De laatste keer dat ik de spiegel van een paskamer keek (in de Bijenkorf in Breda) zag ik er vadsig en bleek uit, dusdanig dat ik op dat moment besloot om maar eens een aantal kilo’s te verliezen en een weekje op vakantie te gaan naar de zon.