Fitness for travel

You have to walk, a lot, in Europe. Walkers and wheelchairs won't function on cobblestone streets. 

I've been lifting weights for 28 years, and I kept that up. I raised my daily walking mileage from 5 to 10 km (3 to 6 miles). I fully expect to have some 15 km days there. 

Occasionally, I've walked with my new backpack, loaded with towels. Today, I did my first walk at 3 a.m. with my 20.4 pounds of packed luggage. Figured 2.5 miles was good enough with the added weight.

I did the first mile in 17 minutes, the last half mile in 11 minutes. So I did slow down at the end, but not badly. 

I've booked hotels and apartments mostly within a mile of the main train stations, 17 in total. Now I know I'll be fine with that, plus the strolling along embarcaderos, through old cities, and climbing around Medieval castles I have planned 

One day to go! Except for giving away a bit of food, unplugging things, and taking off car battery cables, I'm ready and excited for a new life adventure. 

P S. Thanks to pal Pat for the luggage-weighing dodad!