- Time of past OR future Camino
- 2006 to date: Over 21 Caminos. See signature line
Just reminiscing about "the old days" and wondering . . .
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Just hope it is helping Spain’s economy.No, it will not. It is what it is.
Neither good nor bad, but is simply people doing what people do.
Just hope it is helping Spain’s economy.
I don't think it will slow down on the Camino frances any time soon ...we reached Santiago on Saturday and the pilgrims arriving from the CF were unbelievable...mostly groups of students ....from Sarria I presume but maybe further backJust reminiscing about "the old days" and wondering . . .
And what about all the people who will go in 2020 because they are also worried about 2021?!I'm worried about 2021.
I'm worried about 2021.
I'm on the mozarabe writing this in the albergue la fondacio/casa rural in moclin..on my own of course. Owner left the key under a bucket and said sleep where you like. There are 3 f loors with about three separate bedrooms..all singles with sheets pillows and a towel on each bed. Top floor has lounge,pool table and ping pong...plus a washing machine.Dowstairs is large dining room with 3 large sofas and a large table. Nice outdoor seating area...and a bbq. Fully equipped kitchen with 2 big fridges. €20..pay carlos in the supermarket. I signed my self in..first person since 28/6. Never ceases to amaze me the mania for doing the cf...my first one was vdlp....be brave!
The only thing constant is change. This is a good thing for Spain, and exactly what they intended when they invested so heavily in promoting the Camino. I expect we will continue to see various routes develop to manage the numbers.
I am attaching the 2019 two-week ACC volunteer bracket schedule. The 2020 brackets will not be available until late this calendar year.
The ACC has all it can do to get through THIS year without worrying too much about NEXT year.
That is why I am trying to generate interest in volunteering next year, and beyond...
See the attached .pdf file (below) for the 2019 brackets. Extrapolate from there using a 2020 calendar.
NOTE: The standard two-week volunteer periods ALWAYS start on a Monday and end two weeks later, also on the Monday. Technically, it is 15-calendar days. You report the first Monday morning with your luggage. At 14:00 that day, you have access to the volunteer flat. So, I would not show up until after noon.
On the final day, also the Monday, you must be out of the flat by 10:00. You can bring your baggage to the office until later. Actually, you don't work the first or last Mondays. However, you can, if you choose, come early and stay late. I usually do.
I usually arrive at Santiago a few days early, to get the lay of things, before I start work, staying in commercial lodging. I do the same thing on the back end. Others arrive in Santiago the Monday morning of the first week, going directly from the airport train or bus station to the office, and depart Santiago on the afternoon of the final Monday. It's up to you. But I always use the opportunity to renew friendships, see things, and just enjoy being there.
Hope this helps.
This is great thank you. I will try to ensure my planning means I can fit in two weeks. I really hope I can make this work in June... I already have some fixed concerts for June 2020 so I'll start planning! I'm quite excited about this... I just need to do some Hosp. Training and then I can also volunteer for this too! many thanks
Not to put too fine a point on it, but you still need to apply to ACC, be approved, and scheduled for the time slot you would prefer.
Look at my post on “Volunteering at the Pilgrim Office in Santiago.” Use the search function to find it. Everything you need to know is there.
Hope this helps.
So is 2021 a Holy Year or is it 2020?
Wax on, wane off....I don't think it will significantly slow down any time soon. I won't say it will never slow down. It was massively walked (or ridden) for centuries and then slowed to the barest trickle. The year I did my first Camino they gave out about 5,000 compostelas, and if you look a decade before then, it was a tiny fraction of that. It has waxed and wanted before and, while it is certainly currently waxing, it could wane again. I just wouldn't pin my hopes on that happening any time soon.
Thanks for the info. Sending my CV off today, hoping to volunteer in the autumn.I am attaching the 2019 two-week ACC volunteer bracket schedule. The 2020 brackets will not be available until late this calendar year.
The ACC has all it can do to get through THIS year without worrying too much about NEXT year.
That is why I am trying to generate interest in volunteering next year, and beyond...
See the attached .pdf file (below) for the 2019 brackets. Extrapolate from there using a 2020 calendar.
NOTE: The standard two-week volunteer periods ALWAYS start on a Monday and end two weeks later, also on the Monday. Technically, it is 15-calendar days. You report the first Monday morning with your luggage. At 14:00 that day, you have access to the volunteer flat. So, I would not show up until after noon.
On the final day, also the Monday, you must be out of the flat by 10:00. You can bring your baggage to the office until later. Actually, you don't work the first or last Mondays. However, you can, if you choose, come early and stay late. I usually do.
I usually arrive at Santiago a few days early, to get the lay of things, before I start work, staying in commercial lodging. I do the same thing on the back end. Others arrive in Santiago the Monday morning of the first week, going directly from the airport train or bus station to the office, and depart Santiago on the afternoon of the final Monday. It's up to you. But I always use the opportunity to renew friendships, see things, and just enjoy being there.
Hope this helps.
Well I certainly helped in May. Eight nights accommodation in hotels and guest houses and fully enjoyed my food and drink. Only had one pilgrim’s menu in 8 days. Like others have already said, I don’t mind sharing my money with the SpaniardsJust hope it is helping Spain’s economy.
Just hope it is helping Spain’s economy.
I'm interested in your journey. Are you going all the way to Santiago? While I never thought of or intended to walk the CF in the summer, I have a daughter and son who teach and June/July is the only time they could go, and they are interested. I'm curious if it is much busier than the spring/fall, or if most of the walkers are still just going from Sarria.Where I am it’s been calm—started Saturday from Pamplona and just stopped at the first Albuergue I spotted and immediately got a bed. I am a very slow walker (took me from 6:15 to 4:30 to walk from Villamayor de Monjardín to Viana today, granted with two long coffee breaks) but despite my snail’s pace I have been lucky so far with beds. Fingers crossed this continues!
In my experience, for most of the Camino Francés, until Sarria, it's less busy in the summer than Spring and Fall.I'm interested in your journey. Are you going all the way to Santiago? While I never thought of or intended to walk the CF in the summer, I have a daughter and son who teach and June/July is the only time they could go, and they are interested. I'm curious if it is much busier than the spring/fall, or if most of the walkers are still just going from Sarria.
This is my plan for May/June 2020. God Willing!I'm on the mozarabe writing this in the albergue la fondacio/casa rural in moclin..on my own of course. Owner left the key under a bucket and said sleep where you like. There are 3 f loors with about three separate bedrooms..all singles with sheets pillows and a towel on each bed. Top floor has lounge,pool table and ping pong...plus a washing machine.Dowstairs is large dining room with 3 large sofas and a large table. Nice outdoor seating area...and a bbq. Fully equipped kitchen with 2 big fridges. €20..pay carlos in the supermarket. I signed my self in..first person since 28/6. Never ceases to amaze me the mania for doing the cf...my first one was vdlp....be brave!
May I inquire about the spanish immersion course?@t2andreo ... Do you know if the 2020 schedule is available yet? I would love to volunteer but I have to book my holiday in advance so I'm now planning for summer 2020. I seem to remember you saying the weeks are fixed (first 2 weeks and the second 2 weeks)? I'm worried that my dates won't fit in that window but it would be good to check? I'm doing a 3 week Spanish immersion course in January to help improve my Spanish and I'd like to come in June ...I don't mind what I do, I would just love to give some time and help?
May I inquire about the spanish immersion course?
Thanks for the info. Sending my CV off today, hoping to volunteer in the autumn.
BTW, is there a thread solely for volunteering on this forum?
You are right but there are many Caminos other than the Frances which aren't packed and they are prettierNo, it will not. Barring a world war, global depression, or a deadly pandemic, volumes of pilgrims will only continue to increase.
If Ivar needed help from us in the peanut gallery, no doubt he'll have asked. Sometimes volunteers are more of a burden than a help.BTW, is there a thread solely for volunteering on this forum?
I don't think that @gerip meant volunteering to help Ivar, but a thread devoted to volunteering on the Camino.If Ivar needed help from us in the peanut gallery, no doubt he'll have asked. Sometimes volunteers are more of a burden than a help.
I never could manage good behavior all year, even if I planned for it. Congratulations.I plan. budget and look forward to this "time off for good behavior" all year.
I haven't 100% decided on the course provider but I am going to be in Malaga in January and there are several well recognised schools offering spanish language courses. I'm opting for 25 hours a week for 3 weeks. I think my final choice will come down to dates that their beginer courses start and my travel dates. I hope in the hope that at the end my Spanish will progress from Hola to a little more depth. My biggest problem seems to be as I learn a spanish word, it replaced the word I already know in French... I come home to France from a camino speaking a mix of French, Spanish and English... I think it might be an age thing
I just decided enough was enough... I need to make an effort and learn.
I've noticed that they had quite a heat wave a few weeks back. How hot are the albergues at night, for sleeping?Day 20 on CF and it is way less crowded than I anticipated. No bed rushing at all. Some days I rarely see another pilgrim!
They are all different. But none I recall had ac. And there is a cultural glitch. I love sleeping with the windows open. On the HOT VDLP some years back we had pilgrims from one European country who seriously feared sleeping under an open window could cause deathly illness. Tip: get there early and get a bed under the window!I've noticed that they had quite a heat wave a few weeks back. How hot are the albergues at night, for sleeping?
Just reminiscing about "the old days" and wondering . . .
I haven't walked a winter Camino yet... something I'd love to do (maybe) but I tend to get sick when I get chilled, so I am a little hesitant. I should look into it...You've been walking the Camino for many years now, but I don't know if you tend to walk it in the same seasons. I walked a winter Camino (Frances) starting in January, and as far as the number of pilgrims, it was perfect. Rarely found full albergues, but there were still many people to share the experience and meals with.
Yes totally! We were sleeping in an attic area/top floor of a hostel, 3 of us, and there was a window and fan but the one young European girl insisted on closing the window and not having the fan on Needless to say we were quite warm.... I'm from an Eastern European background but thought it was only the older generation that were afraid of "catching a draft"!!They are all different. But none I recall had ac. And there is a cultural glitch. I love sleeping with the windows open. On the HOT VDLP some years back we had pilgrims from one European country who seriously feared sleeping under an open window could cause deathly illness. Tip: get there early and get a bed under the window!
How you view the current situation depends a lot on your expectations and your previous experience. The numbers walking the Caminos are now more than sixty times larger than they were on my first Camino Frances. On that journey I could sometimes walk for several days and cover 50 miles or more without ever seeing another pilgrim. That first walk is my personal benchmark and so I find the situation today pretty unappealing.Supposedly the camino was filled with 10x more people during the middle ages. It cant be that bad since last year I found myself alone on the CF with nobody in sight for a mile either way multiple times.
I am only seeing this now; apologies for such a late response. I also teach and therefore can only go July and August.I'm interested in your journey. Are you going all the way to Santiago? While I never thought of or intended to walk the CF in the summer, I have a daughter and son who teach and June/July is the only time they could go, and they are interested. I'm curious if it is much busier than the spring/fall, or if most of the walkers are still just going from Sarria.
For the majority of the Camino Frances - until Sarria, there are not nearly as any pilgrims as in the May or September which are the busiest months for starting from SJPDP.I am only seeing this now; apologies for such a late response. I also teach and therefore can only go July and August.
the only days I had reservations was Sarria to Santiago. (Prevention rather than actual problem). From my starting point, Pamplona, to Santiago, there really was no problem. I am a very slow walker, middle aged and fat, and I deliberately stayed “off-stage” when convenient.
i had absolutely no problems.
Twice in the WHOLE way I had an upper bunk. There were always lower bunks available when I would pop in somewhere. So I let others fret about the “bed race” and compete. I never once was concerned about a bed. Once I had to walk about 3 km farther than I had planned, but a bed was forthcoming.
HTH
Villateurta was chockers 10 days ago. Hornilis was completo quite early this afternoon.I'm the only person in my 5-person room in Villatuerta. The other rooms have the same occupancy.
Where I am it’s been calm—started Saturday from Pamplona and just stopped at the first Albuergue I spotted and immediately got a bed. I am a very slow walker (took me from 6:15 to 4:30 to walk from Villamayor de Monjardín to Viana today, granted with two long coffee breaks) but despite my snail’s pace I have been lucky so far with beds. Fingers crossed this continues!
Now don't start that up again!No matter what, only a minority of the hundreds of thousands per year appearing in the statistics of the pilgrims office walk the whole of the Camino Frances for example ...