Paul Salopek is on an amazing walk: from east Africa to the southern tip of South America. It’s only going to take nine years. He was interviewed this week on The Current about his experiences. The interview is here; one of his essays about walking, “A Stroll Around the World,” is here. Both the interview and the essay are worth a look.
Hi Ken
We have just read ‘A Stroll Around the World’. It is a great comment on our contemporary world from a perspective that few question – how can a fish question water??? It is interesting the way more and more people, like us, are feeling called to the pilgrim ways – almost as if something within knows we need to subvert something without.
We really appreciate his notion of ‘earned distance’ and the way that makes a difference to both arrival and departure. This so resonates with our camino experience.
We’ve been in the mountains these past days and have enjoyed short walks along some of the tracks nearby, and even this has been cleansing and deeply renewing – something about reconnection with self and world.
We are intrigued about your blog name and its origin??
Buen camino
Neil and Sarah
Hi Neil, hi Sarah,
The name of the blog? It was a temporary name at first. I knew I was going to write about my own walks, and about texts about walking, so I thought “Reading and Walking” would work as a working title. But then I didn’t change it. I don’t think I can without starting a new blog.
Yes, Salopek’s thoughts about earned distance and stepping (literally) outside of the annihilation of time and space are very interesting and very true, I think. I’m glad to hear that you’re enjoying your time in the mountains. Do I sense another blog post coming on?