Decisions, decisons!

[Ramblanista]

What an enormous wealth of information on this website - and others; possibly too much of the stuff! I have three weeks of freedom beginning 13th June and my gut instinct is to return to the Camino(s). The question is, which one(s)?

I did the Camino Frances in 2012; I didn't always enjoy it but the experience had such a profound and long-lasting effect that last year I started a PhD on landscape and theology, using pilgrimage as my principal research methodology. Next year is the big one - from the Mediterranean coast to Finisterre/Muxia via a combination of Caminos but this year I have several shorter options. After toying with the Liebena/Vadiniense and then the Norte from Santander I’m now giving serious consideration to the Madrid. I’m torn, as always, between being a ‘pilgrim’ – and I’m really interested in the ways that might be defined – and being a ‘hiker’. On the Frances I left St Jean with the intention of being the former, considered myself the latter when I got bored and frustrated across the Meseta before arriving in Santiago as something between the two.

This summer the main issue is do I just walk for the sake of walking, which is my normal modus operandi, or do I try to get to Santiago? I noticed another contributor taking the Madrid to Sahagun then following the San Salvador to Oviedo and this option is currently top of my list. The Madrid seems to offer a pretty good infrastructure in terms of albergues and signage, the San Salvador more rugged landscapes.

But that combination wouldn’t take me to Santiago, and there’s the rub. I can’t work out whether that really matters to me or not. I suppose I could do the San Salvador then take the Primitivo ...

See what I mean?! Either way, might bump into one or two of you somewhere in northern Spain next month.

 

[wayfarer]

You need to decide how much time you have to walk and then look at all the alternatives. Finishing in Santiago is always a great experience so maybe you should look at routes which will give you that finish. The Portuguese Coastal route is also very beautiful and may be a bit cooler than the inland routes at that time of year. Either way have a great Camino.
Buen Camino.

 

[bokormen91]

Hmmm - I do get where you're coming from. I've walked two Camino's, but have also done some other walking routes in Europe and this is how I've decided to look at it...

The Camino Frances is the one most people have heard about, it really just means French Road (In this context it probably means the path that the people from France walked). You can choose to walk any road. You can choose to go to a symbolic destination like Santiago, Fatima, Jerusalem, Rome etc etc. However, to me, a pilgrimage is not about the destination - it is about the path that you experienced. Some of these paths are "prescribed", some are "new", some are "old"...So what matters more? Labels (destinations) or "just going for a hike" and have time to reflect and make changes.

I met this woman when I walked from Le Puy, and when she found out that I'd already walked SJPP to Santiago a few years before, she said to our gite host that I should not be allowed to stay, as I'd already "done the pilgrimage". To her a pilgrimage could only be done once, and there was no point in doing another. At first I got annoyed - then I had a shower, food and wine, calmed down, and ended up just feeling tremendously sorry for her.

Others might recognize and be able to show some comprehension if you give your pilgrimage walk a more well known label. To me, though, spending time in "God's country", letting yourself reflect and feel is what makes a difference between a pilgrimage and a walk/hike. No one else can see that - the beauty of the Camino routes is that so many others are also seeking and we become easily recognizable to each other. Does not mean that other routes cannot offer the same privileges.

Whatever you choose - buen camino

 

[KinkyOne]

What an enormous wealth of information on this website - and others; possibly too much of the stuff! I have three weeks of freedom beginning 13th June and my gut instinct is to return to the Camino(s). The question is, which one(s)?

I did the Camino Frances in 2012; I didn't always enjoy it but the experience had such a profound and long-lasting effect that last year I started a PhD on landscape and theology, using pilgrimage as my principal research methodology. Next year is the big one - from the Mediterranean coast to Finisterre/Muxia via a combination of Caminos but this year I have several shorter options. After toying with the Liebena/Vadiniense and then the Norte from Santander I’m now giving serious consideration to the Madrid. I’m torn, as always, between being a ‘pilgrim’ – and I’m really interested in the ways that might be defined – and being a ‘hiker’. On the Frances I left St Jean with the intention of being the former, considered myself the latter when I got bored and frustrated across the Meseta before arriving in Santiago as something between the two.

This summer the main issue is do I just walk for the sake of walking, which is my normal modus operandi, or do I try to get to Santiago? I noticed another contributor taking the Madrid to Sahagun then following the San Salvador to Oviedo and this option is currently top of my list. The Madrid seems to offer a pretty good infrastructure in terms of albergues and signage, the San Salvador more rugged landscapes.

But that combination wouldn’t take me to Santiago, and there’s the rub. I can’t work out whether that really matters to me or not. I suppose I could do the San Salvador then take the Primitivo ...

See what I mean?! Either way, might bump into one or two of you somewhere in northern Spain next month.

Hi, Ramblanista!

Have you decided what camino you'll walk this year? Or are you already "on the road"? I'm coming to Madrid on Wed 18th and will start Camino de Madrid (with Frances, Invierno, Muxia/Fisterra afterwards) two days later.

Ultreia!

 

[peregrina2000]

What an enormous wealth of information on this website - and others; possibly too much of the stuff! I have three weeks of freedom beginning 13th June and my gut instinct is to return to the Camino(s). The question is, which one(s)?

I did the Camino Frances in 2012; I didn't always enjoy it but the experience had such a profound and long-lasting effect that last year I started a PhD on landscape and theology, using pilgrimage as my principal research methodology. Next year is the big one - from the Mediterranean coast to Finisterre/Muxia via a combination of Caminos but this year I have several shorter options. After toying with the Liebena/Vadiniense and then the Norte from Santander I’m now giving serious consideration to the Madrid. I’m torn, as always, between being a ‘pilgrim’ – and I’m really interested in the ways that might be defined – and being a ‘hiker’. On the Frances I left St Jean with the intention of being the former, considered myself the latter when I got bored and frustrated across the Meseta before arriving in Santiago as something between the two.

This summer the main issue is do I just walk for the sake of walking, which is my normal modus operandi, or do I try to get to Santiago? I noticed another contributor taking the Madrid to Sahagun then following the San Salvador to Oviedo and this option is currently top of my list. The Madrid seems to offer a pretty good infrastructure in terms of albergues and signage, the San Salvador more rugged landscapes.

But that combination wouldn’t take me to Santiago, and there’s the rub. I can’t work out whether that really matters to me or not. I suppose I could do the San Salvador then take the Primitivo ...

See what I mean?! Either way, might bump into one or two of you somewhere in northern Spain next month.

Hi, Ramblanista,
Ending in Oviedo, though it may not be Santiago, does have a lot of pilgrimage importance. I am not too well versed in medieval history, but I know that in the Middle Ages, many of the most important religious relics were spirited away to Oviedo in the north as the Moors advanced from the south. Others have talked about the importance of the Camara Santa in the Oviedo cathedral, too. There is a 12th century statue of El Salvador (Jesus the Savior) in the cathedral that was also the source of devotion for many pilgrims.

In fact, the "detour" from Leon on the Frances up to Oviedo to pay homage to the Salvador statue became quite common in those early years. There is an old saying, which I'll roughly translate -- He who goes to Santiago and not to Oviedo, goes to visit the servant and not the master (since St. James was an apostle of Christ, who was the savior/Salvador) (I probably garbled that a bit). My only point is that an ending in Oviedo would be a very proper way to end a Camino, IMO. And then you can just return for the Primitivo in a future year!

Buen camino, Laurie

 

[lettinggo]

Hola

As Laurie writes Oviedo has a historical Cathedral which I was told was the most important place for many years when Spain, and CF, was disputed land.
When I visited the Cathedral in Oviedo at Easter mass, a local pastor asked me if I was a pilgrim.
The cloth and backpack probably gave me away..
He was a very nice man and explained some facts about the Cathedral, which he obviously had many feelings for.
To end a Camino there would make much sense in many ways.

Or I can offer you another option, as Laurie. Walk the Camino Primitivo.
That way you will se both Oviedo and Santiago

Buen Camino
Lettinggo

 

[Ramblanista]

cV

Hi, Ramblanista!

Have you decided what camino you'll walk this year? Or are you already "on the road"? I'm coming to Madrid on Wed 18th and will start Camino de Madrid (with Frances, Invierno, Muxia/Fisterra afterwards) two days later.

Ultreia!

In the end I opted for the Ruta del Ebro and, hopefully, the Castellano-Aragones from Gallur to Burgos. Depends on how easy route-finding is - see my post on Ruta del Ebro thread.

 

[KinkyOne]

cV

In the end I opted for the Ruta del Ebro and, hopefully, the Castellano-Aragones from Gallur to Burgos. Depends on how easy route-finding is - see my post on Ruta del Ebro thread.

Although I'm leaving my hometown tomorrow for my new Camino I kind of envy you You'll be most possibly walking even less traveled Camino than me!

What else to say than - Ultreia!