Sunday 27 January 2008

Is this normal?

After three weeks we have perfected a daily routine. We wake, wash our faces and dress. After breakfast everything goes into its rightful place in the rucksack. In France, at the end of January, there is little point setting out before 9am as it is still too dark to sea.

We walk a long morning – 8 to 10 miles – aiming to stop for lunch if we find a restaurant. Ideally we arrive at our accommodation by mid afternoon, where we immediately shower, wash the day’s clothes, wring them out in towels and hang them to dry. We stretch. Time next to write up the diary for the day or to sort through the photos. If we’ve eaten lunch we’ll just snack in the evening; otherwise we find the nearest set menu around.


Then a highlight of the day: a foot rub apiece with Badger’s Foot Balm. And if we’re not asleep after that, we’ll listen to a book on the phone, or write.

Is this now our normality? I guess so – it feels very tranquil and ordered, far from the rush of too many things to fit into the day, which characterises home life. But whereas David has already become hooked on the walking and feels restless after a day without the pack on his back, I’m not yet at that point. I look forward to the evenings more than the mornings.

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