A Journey of Days: Relearning Life's Lessons on the Camino de Santiago

Enjoyed taking the journey along with you through your story. Loved how personal the book was. Felt like you were reading a letter from a friend. Kept reading and reading it was so interesting. When I finished the book I wanted more perhaps Part 2.
Glad I choose it for my first ebook. Thank you Guy for sharing your journey with us through the written word.

An amazing journey that captivates and inspires.

In 2003 my wife and I were pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago, and walked every step from St. Jean Pied de Port, France to Santiago, Spain. We returned for a second trip in 2005. I purchased "A Journey of Days: Relearning Life's Lessons on the Camino de Santiago" by Guy Thatcher a few days ago and could not put it down. The book was very well written, accurate, funny, honest and truthful, and I enjoyed every page.
Mr. Thatcher tells his Camino story in a day-to-day format so the reader gets a sense of what it is like on the trail. His description of the Camino de Santiago, places along the trail, people he met, weather, and the everyday experience, brought back many good memories of our trek across northern Spain.
I would highly recommend "A Journey of Days: Relearning Life's Lessons on the Camino de Santiago" to anyone interested in the Camino de Santiago. If you have done the pilgrimage, you will enjoy revisiting it through this book. If you are thinking about doing the pilgrimage Mr. Thatcher's book is a must read.
Jim Clem www.ourcamino.com

I could not put this book down. I have read numerous books on the camino but this one spoke to me. The camino is a different experience for everyone and yet Mr. Thatcher is able to speak about his experience in a way that we all can relate to with his personal and physical struggle to understand what is going on here (Camino). He captured on paper 'the walk into the interior' where you see how others see you and you are guided into becoming a better person or an awareness of what you need to do to become who you really are. I walked the Camino around the same time as Mr. Thatcher and experienced the same weather and met some of the same characters. The camino can be difficult at times but who ever said that being a kid was easy. The freedom of being a kid is one of the gifts of being a pilgrim. The Gatineau Gypsy.

Having just finished reading Eckhart Tolle's "The Power of Now" I had the good fortune of reading Guy Thatcher's "A Journey of Days".This is an extraordinary book that is a real life example of how the power of NOW (being truly present in the moment) can lead to spiritual enlightenment, renewal of a belief in the goodness in people, and how, when we let go of our ego, we see the truth and find the power and joy of the essence of our being. All that intertwined with a history of the Camino de Santiago.

Guy: I am a pilgrim who was given your book by a friend who thought I might like it. I did. In my view, you describe the emotion, wonder and joy of the Camino experience in a way few writers have. The physical and mental discipline one draws upon daily to accomplish the simple task of putting one foot in front of the other. You capture moments in time when meeting people becomes a human experience like no other in one’s lifetime. Whether it is a religious or spiritual experience is left to each pilgrim. I liked your take.

I have previously read 8 books on walking the Camino and my 9th was Guy Thatcher's "A Journey of Days", which I consider the BEST story. His dream of one day walking the Camino in Spain was now a reality and it did not matter what things got in his way (like losing his backpack) he was determined and positive that his dream would come true. He was open to whatever would happen to him, therefore, the Camino provided wonderful experiences and wonderful frienships that will last him a life time. The Camino Frances keeps calling me back. I have walked from Leon to Santiago 3 times since 2004 and could follow his beautifully written book with excitement and envy. Since reading this book, my husband and I have already comitted to walking the front end of the Camino from Pamplona to Leon next year (Sept/10). It is another holy year and will be another wonderful experience. We will try to discover all the wonderful things that Guy did in this first half. PATRICIA HOHS, STITTSVILLE, ONT.

I've just finished the audio book - I listened to "A Journey of Days" in just one day - a bit of an oxymoron in my case. I found that when I took breaks away from my work and the book, I was excited to get back and hear where Guy Thatcher's walk would lead him to next.

The story was wonderfully human, and I don't believe Thatcher's journal was embellished at all. The written visuals and personal encounters described came together to create a beautifully heart warming true story about an amazing journey over 700km of trail in Spain. Thatcher really put his cards on the table in places where many of us may have left out certain thoughts or emotions... or bodily functions, which definitely make this book so much more 'real'. Overall the book was intelligent and wise, with several anecdotes that left me giggling and others were so moving, they literally brought me to tears.

The real treat was the numerous reminders about all of the little things that we could all do more of including having more fun, slowing down and smelling the roses, and loving people and the earth more completely. I also found that the 'Butterfly Effect' or "the Power of One" is shown throughout the book, demonstrating how a gesture or action that seems small or insignificant can have an unknown impact on the people and the world around us. At times, those small gestures can even restore our faith in the kindness of humankind.

What a wonderful and inspiring true story and an incredible achievement for the author.

This was one of the most enjoyable books I've had the pleasure to read in quite some time. The combination of place, time and Guy's personal observations gave me many hours of reading pleasure. I found myself reading the book in the timeframe in which it was presented by reading a day of Guy's journey one day at a time. This placed me in a somewhat synchronistic experience that was unique for me in my readings.

I thoroughly enjoyed meeting the characters along the way and fully appreciated the juxtaposition of the Spanish cultural experiences and the international flavour of the pilgrims.

Time I hope for Guy to set out again - and return with another tale to tell. I would recommend this book very highly.

This is the third account of the Camino experience I've read, and certainly the best. The author's writing is witty, humorous and thoughtful. Much attention has been given to background information and Guy Thatcher has succeeded in conveying the sense of history associated with the Camino. Throughout the book, the reader gets the feeling that life is about relationships, as he meets the many people who have accompanied the author along his journey, both on his walk and in life. The reading of A Journey of Days is, in itself, a lesson learned.
André Pinard, Ottawa

I was given this book as a gift as I was off on my own 4 week adventure.
I couldn't put it down. Read it well into the wee hours. Great writing style, interesting and thought provoking insights with some good out loud chuckles. I'm not a history buff and found the history info really interesting. Highly recommend this book.

Guy has captured his personal contemplation on life's lessons within a travelogue commentary that is highly readable. Written in journal format, this book is never too heavy and frequently triggers a chuckle! Guy's travel adventures - a great accomplishment for a 70 year old - are captured in a way that contemporaries can appreciate and youth can aspire to! A great book for an afternoon sitting by a fire.

I savored every page of this well written tale of an Ottawa man who fulfilled his dream of walking the challenging Camino de Santiago

I can’t help but recommend this book to any traveler of any age, I especially suggest it to high school graduates who want to travel! It probably also makes for a fun easy summer trip. It’s a must read, and an easy read. That was a really cool life goal. I am a 22 year old working at Capital City Luggage and not only can I appreciate the story with the adventure and history lessons, but I can also appreciate the difficulty of starting off the trip with the frustrations of losing all your travel gear. Does anyone have the recipe for those Churros con Chocolate? Or do I have to go to Spain to get them. After reading of this Journey, the Camino de Santiago is on my bucket list.

Written by a man who has flown helicopters in military service, given lectures on management and been strong enough to learn how to be silent and walk. His book is a quiet meditation on life. We hear stories of the people Guy meets and the lessons he learns about himself.

I highly recommend this book as an easy, contemplative and adventurous read; even an excellent Christmas present. We purchased one for our delinquent son who hasn’t seen fit to visit his dear Mother since returning from a honeymoon in Peru. Perhaps if he and his chosen one would follow in Guy’s footsteps they might see the error of their ways and join the enlightened ones.

This book is a fascinating account of the author's experiences in fullfilling his own dream, & as you absorb his daily challenges & triumphs it gives the reader 'pause' to reflect on what you can also accomplish in life. It is written with such descriptive & exquisite detail that you find yourself walking right along side Guy, feeling & sensing the same things as he does. As the journey unfolds, you not only learn about the wonderful people he met along the way but you also gain an insight into the history of the land that the camino traverses. Guy mixes humour with some of his own philosophy; discovers 'churros de chocolat' & the reader finds out just how simple life can be if you just let it unfold. The narrative is sprinkled with really nice photos that greatly enhance the story and puts faces on not only the people but the history & landscape as well. It is an excellent book beautifully presented and worth reading at least twice to fully appreciate it - I did, and highly recommend it to anyone!

This is an elegantly presented, intelligent book. Your goal may not be to walk the camino, as Guy has done, but you'll come away informed, inspired and touched by this beautiful narrative. The style is so direct that it's easy to imagine sitting across a small bar table chatting with the author. Wonderful colour photos compliment the text on magazine-quality pages. The book feels great as you hold it; the cover is a fabulously crafted design. What's not to like?

I have been somewhat interested in travelling the camino but thought my age would be a hindrance. This book set me straight since the author is older than I am.The hiking and scenery is interesting but the real story is the pilgrims met along the way. This story would be of interest to the "senior" generation but also the 20 to 30 year olds as they were the ones the author walked with most often. So, an intergenerational story and an inspiration to all.
I quite liked the book cover, the glossy pages with photos, the font and the diary type entries. Buy this book.