What does it feel like when we leave our routine for an indefinite period of time? When we have no idea of the life that awaits us, neither tomorrow nor in a month. In this article we describe how we felt at the start of this adventure.
From awakening to departure
When you wake up everything seems normal. Strangely there is no particular excitement, we get up and do the usual routine, breakfast, shower, brushing teeth. We take our time, enjoying these last moments with our family in our home. We don't yet realize what's going on and we know it. When we say goodbye to our families, there is certainly emotion, but not as much as we had imagined.
“Even the greatest of journeys begins with a first step.” - Lao Tseu
Quickly we find ourselves giving a thumbs up to the side of the road. After a few minutes of waiting, our first motorist takes us on board. That's it, we are leaving Pau, it is the beginning of the adventure, of our adventure. We feel good, confident and serene.
A sweet feeling of freedom
This feeling of freedom took hold of us for the first time as we had lunch on the beach in Biarritz. We had barely done a hundred kilometers when we decided to stop to enjoy the beach. At that point, there was very little chance that we would be in Portugal before the end of the day but that didn't matter. We weren't expected by anyone anywhere. We were exactly where we needed to be, and knowing it, gave us an incredible feeling of freedom as if we had just been relieved of an invisible weight.
Luckily, we still managed to reach Portugal thanks to Bruno, a Portuguese who lived in his van and returned to Portugal after a stay in Norway. Since then, we have felt free and at ease, free not to know what will happen in the next few hours but also at ease not to have any constraints. We are happy to be able to experience simple things.
"Warm feet, happy man" - Bruno
A good omen for the future
Our life in Porto was punctuated by some very pleasant encounters. After two days of sightseeing, we decide to leave this city with a warm and welcoming atmosphere to go down the Portuguese coast with two charming Quebecers we met the day before.
