Kærlighed på Caminoen

Leder efter den eneste ene på Caminoen.
Amerikanske Damien Reynolds fra Californien, der har gået på Camino Frances 5 gange og desuden prøvet på både Nordruten, Via de la Plata og Primitivo, vil tilbage til Caminoen og hvorfor? Næste gang må det lykkes at finde den eneste ene. Det beskriver han i dette indlæg, hvor han samtidig må konstatere, at det ikke er så let, som han kunne ønske sig:

Ok, its melodramatic but true... One of the reasons I keep going back is because I'm looking for "her".
This year, before I left for the Camino, I had a dream, literally. I dreamt I met a woman fair, who could keep up with extended distances, who would sing with me along open expanses and not be shy even when we could be heard by others, always telling good jokes in between.
I met this French girl who satisfied those criteria, and we walked a fabulous walk from SJPdP to Santiago in a breeze, together, all along the way, singing.
She went home to her life and her boyfriend.
Oh well.
On a trip previously in 2009 I met a fantastically beautiful, incredibly smart, politically savvy Peregrina from the USA, who could walk like the wind. We met up again for another trip together in 2011. She was recently wed and had her first child.
I am embarrassed to admit it, but these two camino experiences have bookended my camino memories. I also walked with my mother, my sister, on separate occasions, and alone on still more.
Still though, I can't let go of thinking "what if"? What if on my next camino we actually can meet and explore life beyond the camino together.
The romance of it all, we've all seen the young ones get caught up in it. On the Norte two years ago I talked with a young woman who was explaining that she had to get away from her best friend and that new German boy because after three days that couple had gone from introductions to infatuation and then on to incompatibility, obviously causing a palatable tension among their group.
The thing is, when people ask me about why I go back to the Camino, I tell them its because of the like minded folk. Adventuresome. Seeking. The strength to take on the unknown in a foreign land. Searching for meaning.
But really its because I am looking for her. Like minded.
And also because I lose a bunch of weight at the same time. And get better at Spanish. And there is nothing more relaxing than waking up, walking, eating, walking more, finding a place to stay, showering, laundry, eating, and sleeping, over and over again.