Wim Wes (age 84) to Compostela, son Tom Wes walking with him (briefly).

He leaves tomorrow Wim wes84 years old, by train to the south of France, to begin his journey towards Compostela. He has more than 800 kilometers to go, and he wants to walk 25 kilometers every day, with his walking partner Hugo. He also made the trip five years ago. “My wife and children no longer let me sleep in hostels. They said, ‘Abba, you are no longer out with Al-Shabaab.’ “Choose a hotel with some comfort,” he says. HLN.

To encourage him, his sons Sam and Tom joined him for three days. Not intuitive, given the well-known TV maker's agenda. “I'm very worried about his work rhythm. The fact that we will see each other for three days is a small miracle.

My brother's ashes

In recent months, Wim has walked about 700 kilometers in training. But the elder Weiss is about more than just pilgrimage. “I want to show that the elderly are not being written off from their pensions. There is also an emotional reason. My brother ran the tour twice. He died eight years ago. I will also take some of his ashes with me later to scatter them along the route. In addition, we want to use the walk To bring attention to a fund for brain tumor research.My walking partner lost his brother-in-law to this tumor.

Wim hopes the journey will take about forty days. And after that? “I also secretly wonder what it will be like to go to Santiago at the age of ninety…”