Cycling through my life on the road to Santiago de Compostela (Engelse tekst)
In 2018, I cycled with two friends from Tilburg to Santiago de Compostela. I begin my story by telling who I am and where I grew up. I then recount the 2,150-kilometre journey – the first part by train to Bordeaux, the second and final leg by bicycle. We rode through southern France and the hospitable north-west of Spain.
The journey – a pilgrimage – was a tribute to my late son Lambiek, who had tragically passed away two years earlier. I wanted to feel his pain during the final two days of his life. On his bike – a mountain bike, hardly suited for a trip like this – I was determined to complete the pilgrimage. Good heavens, I suffered. I had to give it everything I had – dig deep, in every possible way, just to keep going.
The life I began so full of promise and innocence, within the safety of my childhood, gradually took a sorrowful turn.
It was a journey with two friends, in which camaraderie, humour and perseverance came together. It became an unforgettable adventure. Along the way, the major themes of life were never far from our minds: faith and the Catholic Church, music, life – and death.
It was a ride through mountains, valleys and plateaux – not just those of north-west Spain, but even more so of life itself.
Buen Camino!
Paul de Kanter
2025 / softcover / formaat 148 x 210 mm / 184 pagina’s
