The Road Goes Ever On and On

Part of my preparation for the Camino (less than two weeks away now!!) has been reading what others have written about their experiences.  One theme which I've noticed is a nostalgia for the journey, but also the sense that walking along the Way continues even after one has reached Santiago de Compostela. 

 

This provides a good context for sharing a poem from my favourite work of prose fiction.  (Yeah, the recommendation would seem stronger without the qualifiers, but there you have it.) 

 

The Road goes ever on and on
Down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it with eager feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say.

Earlier I wrote something about the Way of the Pilgrim.  What I didn't include was a discussion about where I hope to wind up after this.  Yes, I've made some plans which may turn into a career, but I've done that before.  "And whither then?  I cannot say."

One of the few things of which I am certain is that the Way will only unfold before me to the extent that I am walking forward.  Pilgrimage is not something which one does once, adds to the list of tasks accomplished, and then forgets about.  Pilgrimage is a way of being in the world.  It is an acknowledgement that no matter how good the present moment is, it is nothing more than a way-station, a temporary stop along the way.  (For the curious amongst my readers, I heartily recommend perusing Leaf by Niggle.  If you aren't able to purchase a copy or borrow one from a library, it is available here.)

travel dates

I really need to spend more time on the Camino forum. I checked in a few days after my introductory post and saw that several people had replied to me with some very good advice.

Following that advice, I have booked my flight home so that I will have the longest time possible to spend on the Camino. This does mean that I won't be returning to Paris, but especially after reading about Jo's snow adventures I decided it would be prudent to allow for a few non-walking days.

The trade-off (and there is always a trade-off, isn't there?) is that I will not be able to begin Great Lent at home, or even in an Orthodox parish. There aren't many Orthodox in Spain, and I couldn't locate any churches along the Camino Frances.

I have booked a flight from Santiago de Compostela to London Stansted for February 16, and I will be flying home from Gatwick on February 18. That leaves me with two evenings in London. While there are certainly cheaper places for a stopover, it is a fantastic city and I know that I will not be bored. And I'll get to church each evening I'm there, which is a matter of great joy. I'm rather partial to Ennismore Gardens, but perhaps I should find a parish with services in English.

Ultreia!! Camino de Santiago 2008

Yesterday I posted my itinerary (such as it is) on the Camino de Santiago forum. A few hours later, a fellow Canadian pilgrim contacted me on Flickr and included a link to this video montage he made of photos from his 2008 Camino. If you have eleven minutes and want to see and hear some of what I'll be experiencing shortly, I think you'll enjoy it!

lessons learned, time to move on

Over a decade ago, I instituted a rule for myself. After several unfortunate and stressful incidents, I resolved to never start any kind of maintenance work on a computer after midnight, whether software or hardware maintenance.

I suspect I ought to do the same for dealing with people on the phone. On Monday, I called the "Senior Travel Consultant" who had booked my return ticket for a month earlier than I actually needed. (My day starts at 12:30 AM, so by 5:00 PM I'm at the level of mental acuity that most people experience at around 11:00 PM.) It didn't go well.

I reached the agent at her extension, and she told me she would call me back as soon as she was off the other line. An hour later I sent an email to her, outlining my problem and asking her to call. Five minutes later, my phone rang.

Although I began by acknowledging I had failed to catch the error when I gave permission to book the ticket, I was also demanding and sarcastic when I spoke to her. After several delays, she eventually told me that it would cost $250 to change the ticket to the dates I need. Since the ticket I paid $800 for was advertised online for $600, the final total would have been 66% higher than the price which initially caught my attention.

I asked what the company could do to help maintain good customer relations. Half an hour later I received a call, in which I was told that the airline would not drop the $250 charge for changing the date and that if I wanted to get the change locked in at the same price (plus the surcharge, of course) I would have to do it today since my departure date is now sold out. I thanked her calmly and hung up.

Shortly after my final conversation with the agent, I received an email from her. Although it was addressed to me, I'm pretty sure I wasn't supposed to read it.

Client is fine and has been advised of the change fee for his return date . I guess you can say he did do all he could to scare me thats for sure. I did know Janet, l did not book him a wrong date. l am very very careful on air only. I never confirm without having client look at it first always.
Thanks again for being there for support. :)

Based on the address used by the other agent, I guessed at the email address for Janet and forwarded the email to her. I also tried to explain the situation from my perspective. Since the agent had not told me she'd consulted anyone other than the airline, I suspected that Janet was a supervisor. I requested a phone call to discuss the situation.

Tuesday. Wednesday. Thursday. No phone call, no email.

When I looked the company up on the Better Business Bureau website, I learned that I got the email address right. Janet is listed as the "Principal" of the company, and she has decided to completely ignore me.

Instead of naming the company and making a stink, I've decided instead to simply file a complaint with the BBB and warn my friends and colleagues to take the advice of the ancient Romans: Caveat emptor.

This, of course, leaves me with the problem of getting home again. The cheapest option would certainly have been to pay the $250 charge, but the company doesn't seem interested in customer service.

So. Rather than travel back to Paris after I reach Santiago, it looks like I'll hop a cheap flight to London Stansted and then fly directly home to Toronto out of Gatwick. I hope to be in time for Forgiveness Vespers at my home parish.

Instead you ought to say, "If the Lord wills..."

This year, our Bible study group is looking at the General Epistles. The title of this post is taken from the epistle of St. James. (No, not the one buried in Santiago -- the other one!) Here is a bit more of the context:

Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.”

James 4:13-15

Almost 20 years ago, I was part of a small group of college kids who went downtown every Friday evening and attempted to "witness" to people using a combination of music, mime, and dance to draw a crowd. Once in a while I got into some very interesting conversations with people. One of those conversations had actually been started by one of my friends, who then called me in to participate. The gentleman he was speaking with was a Muslim visiting from Egypt, who told my friend that if he could convince him of the truth of Christianity, he would become a Christian right then and there.

It didn't happen, of course. What did happen is that Ayman and I spoke for almost an hour, and then agreed to meet again to continue our conversation. As we parted I said, "See you next week, insh'Allah." He was amazed to hear a Christian say this, so when we met again the next week I was able to point him to this passage in James. "If the Lord wills" is a very good translation of the Arabic expression that is used by both Christians and Muslims in the Arab-speaking world.

So, why am I posting this on my Camino blog? Well, this evening as I was looking over my flight details in the confirmation email I had received from the online booking agent I noticed that my return date was 16 January, and not 17 February as I had requested. While I could send an email now, I'd rather wait until Monday to call during office hours. I must say that the representative who had "helped" me book my ticket only got my credit card number because they were able to offer me a price that was $40 cheaper than if I'd booked it myself directly with the airline.

Today or tomorrow I will go to such and such a city and spend six weeks there.... or perhaps I should be saying, "If the Lord wills, I shall live and do this or that."

يا رب ارحم -- Lord have mercy!