So It Begins!

Ever feel like doing something epic? Something that is the challenge of a lifetime?

My name is Nicole Godwin... and I am craving such an adventure. And I have found the perfect adventure to fill this need; the Camino de Santiago Compostela AKA Way of St-James.

The Camino is hundreds of historic pilgrimage trails throughout Europe that all lead to the same end point in Santiago de Compostela, Spain. It is tr

aditionally considered a religious journey; however, modern day pilgrims go for all sorts of reasons...

A bit about myself; I am a 23 year old lifeguard from Ottawa, Ontario in Canada. I have a B.A. in Communication Studies from Laurentian University as well as a specialization in Public Relations from Cambrian College. After graduation, I moved home to Ottawa and came to live with my parents in an attempt to save money. Since

April 2010 I've been working to pay off my loans, and missing all my amazing friends from university.

I definitely was not ready to begin a career after the summer ended; so much as over thinking what the future may hold is enough to make my eyes water. So, I have gone back to college and enrolled in Documentary Production at Algonquin. I've always been fascinated by cinema and how movies are made, and besides, this was a perfect way to be constructive while delaying my "real" life for another year.

This program has been great. We learn how to make a documentary from start to finish including budgets, all the paperwork, proposals, media kits, camera work, editing.... everything! Probably the most valuable lesson in all this for me is that I will truly never be great at every aspect of filmmaking; however, I will be great a some aspects, and those are the ones I need to focus on and develop into a career.

Anyways, I digress...

How am I able to go on any sort of trip at the moment? I am the recipient of an international scholarship from Algonquin College! The stipulation of the scholarship? Leave the country by March 31st, 2011. Okay, check!

March 27th, 2011 I am leaving Ottawa and flying to Paris, France to begin my journey. First I will visit family and friends who live in Europe.

April 27th my best friend Tasha will be arriving in Madrid; we will meet up and head to St-Jean Pied de Port, France to commence our incredible journey! Tash and I went to university together since 2005, but we only met in the summer of 2009 when we worked at camp together. She's the sort of person who is best described by a list: adventurous, spontaneous, unpredictable, easy-going, nothing-is-impossible attitude. Obviously the perfect choice in a travel companion!

Back to the Camino... We will be doing 800km on foot, from St-Jean Pied de Port, France to Santiago de Compostela, Spain. The route we are taking is called the Frances route and is the most popular trail. This hike is going to take approximately 30 days, and at the end of the walk, I will be celebrating the beginning of my 24th year on Earth, and if all goes well the victory of conquering this pilgrimage... and hopefully Tasha and I will still be on speaking terms after all that time together!

Oh, I almost forgot to mention that I plan to film all of this!

Thanks for reading, more to come...

Nicole!

(Cathedral in Santiago de Compostela, Spain... Wow, I can't wait!)