Caminando sin cesar.

Hola de españa, todos! I'm currently sitting in a small cafe next to our albergue (shelter) in the small town of Grañón, about 160 miles into my 500-mile trek across El Camino in Spain. The last month has been a complete whirlwind. I never thought hiking with a pack for 15-20 miles per day would seem like time to slow down, but that's what it has become! A few quick updates since my last post…

The end of my time in Colorado was great, even though it was really difficult to leave. I got to show my parents around the Fort Collins/Denver area and see the Rockies from a hot air balloon with them when they visited, finished my first marathon and met up with some great friends in San Diego, spent a few great days in Las Vegas experiencing the behind-the-scenes action of an audition, and survived jumping out of a plane from 14,000 feet with a guy named JK strapped to my back and my friend Vanessa a few hundred feet below me (like a true gentleman, I let her jump first). I got a whole 30 hours at home to get ready for my trip to Spain and then got on my 6 AM flight from Omaha to Dallas, TX, completely exhausted. 

Hot-air ballooning with my parents and Adyson. No better way to see the Rockies!

In Dallas, I met up with my friend (and fantastic travel buddy) for the Camino, Jessica. We spent the day-long layover exploring her hometown and saw everything from the grassy knoll where JFK was shot to the Dallas Museum of Art. It was great! I spent the nine-hour flight across the Atlantic catching up on some movies and trying to sleep as best I could. The plan was initially to sneak into first class for some more comfortable seats but the flight was full…so that will have to wait until the flight back home. We arrived in Madrid with some bad jet lag but ready to fight it in order to take advantage of our one day in the city. Our afternoon trek across the city (which appropriately started with a Starbucks run) ended up being great. We saw Madrid's major highlights including parks, cathedrals and palaces, and even accidentally got our palms read by some gypsies. Don't worry, mom, they told us our predictions weren't valid since we didn't have enough money to pay them. 

First day in Spain -- attaching the El Camino pilgrim shell to my backpack to get ready for the journey.
Tradition says that the shell collects the energy of 'the way.' 

After barely making our train to the Camino's starting point the next morning (who knew you needed to have a special document to buy the cheap student tickets in Europe?!), we arrived in St. Jean Pied-de-Port, France, ready to start the Camino the next day. The owner of our hostel, Eric, gave us some great tips for the Camino while also telling us about the three main gifts each pilgrim receives during the 500-mile-long trek: humility, love for self, and love for others. As I fell asleep that night in our smelly albergue room, I was full of anticipation for what the coming days would bring. 

Jessica and I set out the next morning after breakfast, ready for the challenges our 3000-foot climb over the Pyranies mountains would bring. I quickly realized that while it was very liberating to be carrying my life on my back, it was also exceptionally painful. Adrenaline pushed us through that first day, though, and we made it to Roncesvalles with energy to spare. 

Done with our first hike over the Pyrenees! Jessica and I, as well as our new friend, Tim.  

We quickly made some new friends along the way that we have been traveling with ever since, and the sense of community is absolutely incredible. I never would have imagined how quickly people could learn nearly every facet of another person's life…but walking for 7-10 hours per day with nothing to do but talk and think will definitely get relationships forming quickly. 

Our grupo! Some amazing people. 

In one short week, the Camino has taught me much more than I could have imagined. I have made a lot of memories already, and I have also learned a lot about myself and my humanity. Some quick notes about my journey so far:

We found a WINE FOUNTAIN on the way.
Whoa.

-Walking with a 20-lb pack for 15-20 miles each day makes you incredibly sore. It was brilliant to have the Camino run through Spain, where good wine only costs around 2.50 euros per bottle. This is the best Camino medicine there is. 

-Never miss an opportunity to talk with someone new. A great part of El Camino is that people come from all over the world; it is its own unique melting pot.

-Walking down hills isn't as easy as you would think, for several reasons. First, it is hard on your feet and knees. Second, it means there is most likely another hill close by that you will need to walk up. We don't like hills.

-Nothing will make you more humble than having blisters and aching muscles but still needing to wake up early and start walking anyway. And nothing will make you more patient than seeing a city one mile away and knowing that while it would only take you a moment to reach in a car, that it will take 20-30 minutes to reach on foot. 

It has been a great journey so far, and I am learning more about myself, my humanity, and other people than I was expecting. And in the end, I guess that is what the Camino is all about--- surprises. Here's to some time full of openness and humility, while always experiencing all life has to give us.

The site where St. Ignatius was shot in Pamplona, Spain. Cool detour for the day!

Hasta pronto, buen camino.

Paz,

Nico

Cambios y Oportunidades de la Vida.

¡Hola y bienvenidos al verano, todos! Winter – including several feet of snow in April and early May – has given way to summer (we sort of skipped spring I think) here in Fort Collins, and both my work schedule and summer plans have changed almost as much as the weather.  In the last six weeks I have become a certified barista, taken a quick trip to DC for an interview, played in my roommate’s sister’s wedding in Omaha, and been blessed with some unexpected surprises that have reminded me how important it is to chase opportunities when they arise.

Going-away dinner for Sabrina (right), who is rocking the volunteer work in Peru this summer. 

Life in Colorado has been fun, hectic, and filled with new friends and experiences. Work has been keeping me busy and I am learning new things each day. I am feeling really comfortable at the homeless shelter now and rarely need to look at the cheat sheet I made for myself to help keep things on track for the daily schedule. I have also had some great opportunities to use my Spanish with one of my coworkers and some of the clients.

Kelsey, Jenna and I ran the Horsetooth Half Marathon in late April. So many hills...but amazing friends.

I am officially a certified barista at Starbucks as of early April! It is so nice to be able to walk in to work and not have to wonder “how many pumps of mocha does that drink get?” when someone orders a drink. I have become really close with my team and love going into work each day --- even though sometimes that means waking up before 4 AM for the opening shift…

As I mentioned earlier, the last few weeks have brought a lot of change and surprises. I am embracing each one as it comes, even though it means regularly changing my plans for the rest of my year off. I faced the most daunting part of the process last week: I gave my two-week notice at work. This was harder than I thought it would have been when I started in February, mostly because of the relationships I have built with my co-workers and managers. My time working in Fort Collins has been an amazing journey and has helped me become more open-minded, developed my ability to be present in each moment, and taught me how to give more effective feedback. I am also really good at remembering names and faces (and people’s favorite lattes) now. J

I got to fly home for a day when I was in Omaha this weekend.
Wine, grilling, beautiful weather and family made for a perfect 24 hours.

The next few weeks promise to be a bit of a whirlwind, and although I am a little overwhelmed I couldn’t be more excited. With reunions, a marathon, hot air ballooning, an audition and skydiving all thrown in the mix, it should be anything but boring. I am also getting ready for one last big hoorah before school starts up in August: El Camino. I’ll be walking the 500-mile-long pilgrimage across northern Spain with a great friend from undergrad and am thrilled for the six-week trip that I’ll be leaving on in mid-June. If anyone has done it before and has some tips, send ‘em my way!

On my flight home this weekend...one of my favorite air shots. 

With so many changes coming my way in the next few weeks (and months), I have been spending a lot of time thinking about relationships: the strong ones I treasure with my family and close friends, some more transitive ones I have formed in Fort Collins, and the new ones I am going to be establishing on El Camino and in DC. I have learned a lot of things in the past five years, but I think the most important realization I have come to is the importance of people and continually working toward developing and maintaining meaningful relationships. It has been exactly one year since I graduated from Creighton, and the road has been a tough one sometimes. Relationships are what have gotten me through, and I could not be more thankful for them…for you. Thank you for joining me on this journey, whether it be through following the blog, making a phone/Skype call or two, or sending thoughts and prayers. Here’s to the next two months and all of the challenges and opportunities they hold – and to telling those people we love that we appreciate them.

Georgetown: my new home for the next five years as I work toward an MD/MBA dual-degree.
Couldn't be more thrilled!

I’m hoping to post again before heading out to Spain, otherwise I will talk to you from El Camino! Un abrazo fuerte para ti.

Paz,

Nico

La vida en Colorado.

¡Feliz Abril, todos! I just finished a little Fort Collins ‘Tour de Starbucks’ with my friend Sarah from work and am a little jittery from all of the caffeine, so I guess this is as good a time as any to get caught up on the blog. Eight Starbucks in four hours. It was a lot of fun and a great way to get to see some new parts of FoCo!

Enjoying some St. Patty's Day beer in downtown FoCo with Sabrina when she was visiting from Omaha.

The last month has definitely gotten me hooked on the Colorado life…I love it here. It is so fun to be able to go skiing or hiking in the mountains without having to travel hundreds of miles, and my jobs at Starbucks and the homeless shelter are going great. I am meeting some great people, forming new friendships, and strengthening existing relationships.

Views like this have made marathon training a lot easier. Things are going well, and I worked up to
16 miles this week!

A good, quick way to describe the last month would probably be ‘checking things off the bucket list.’ Kelsey and I are both pretty into those lists, and we push each other to take advantage of opportunities and pursue the random things we want to do. So, in the last month I have learned how to play chess (I’m not great yet, but let me know if you want to play sometime!), read the Great Gatsby and started the Harry Potter series in Spanish, continued learning more about wines and coffees, memorized some new recipes, enjoyed the best day of skiing I have ever had, and bought Groupons (no turning back now!) to go skydiving over the Rockies and ride in a hot air balloon. I am challenging myself to get the most I can out of the coming months and appreciate each moment.

Skiing at Copper Mountain on fresh powder...perfect!

Moving around so much in the past year has taught me a lot of things…and one of those things is that it takes me around two months to start feeling ‘at home’ in a place. I am thinking of developing this into a theory (my methods of personal observation are super scientific, I know!), as it has once again been the case here in Fort Collins. In late March, I had one of those ‘aha’ moments where I stopped long enough to realize that I had reached a milestone here in Colorado: I felt at home. I was used to the routine of getting up for an early-morning workout, going to work, and then coming home to cook dinner and hang out with Kelsey and friends. I had developed some meaningful friendships. I knew what streets to take and how to get around town. I even started to appreciate beer more (which is a big deal since there are seriously at least a dozen breweries here).

I went to my first Starbucks employee forum this week. It has been great learning more about the
 company and meeting people!

I am realizing more each day – through work, through adjusting back to life in the States, and through the challenges that come with everyday life – the importance of adapting to change and channeling uncertainty and frustration into something positive. I still walk through supermarkets and get overwhelmed by the amount of goods we have available to us compared to people living in other parts of the world, and there are days when I am blown away by being able to drive a dependable car on a flat, smooth road. Change, especially from one lifestyle to another in a short amount of time, can be incredibly difficult. In those times, I realize just how much living in Guatemala has changed me. I am determined to use those small daily reminders to help me count my blessings and push me forward as I work to continue becoming a person who serves with and for others.

I made it home for Easter and was able to see a lot of my family as well as some friends in Omaha...it was great!

I hope you are doing well and that the last few weeks have been great. I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers as we move full-bore into springtime. Te extraño y te quiero!

Paz,

Nico