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Bottled water or wine are the only "proper" beverages to be consumed with a meal in countries such as Spain, France and Italy. Even the beer drinking Germans mostly drink wine with dinner. Many Europeans prefer sparking water so that why the water must be bottled. Each country has their own...
If you had previous travel experience in Europe, you would have already learned the proper European dinning etiquette. That leaves more time to think about the Camino.
-Paul
Can you walk the Camino on a whim? Yes!
Will proper preparation by investing in travel skills and training with a backpack result in a better Camino? In my opinion, this results in the best possible Camino experience. Why settle for anything less?
-Paul
I attribute my wonderful experience on the Camino because I already had many independent trips to Europe and hundreds of miles of training with a backpack. That gave me a solid background and set me up for a successful Camino.
I don't understand how anyone could recommend doing the Camino on a...
There is nothing "old fashioned" about independent European travel. This style of travel is alive today - it just cost a little more these days - about $50 or more per day. Once you have had this experience, the Camino is easy!
In contrast, a person attempting to do the Camino on their first...
It's sad to see people making the same mistakes over and over again.
Why are there so many pickpockets? There's always is fresh group of travelers that don't have the skills necessary to secure their valuables. In almost all cases, pickpockets can easily be avoided by investing the time and...
How did the thief know where to look for the money? You were watched when you last accessed the money, so the thief knew exactly where to look.
Always keep your money and passport in a money belt under your clothes. In some albergues, I even slept in my sleeping bag still wearing my money...
Welcome to Europe!
Now that you have discovered the European date format, now we can move on to a discussion of comma as decimal point, slashes in the number seven, and many other European cultural differences.
This is just the first of many lessons. You have lots to learn about Europe!
-Paul
I would not recommend doing the Camino on your first trip to Europe. You have so much to learn about European travel and culture that this will only distract from your Camino experience.
I suggest taking one or more training trips, starting in the UK where there is little language barrier...
Every inch of the Camino is important!
I suggest starting in SJPP, walk as far as time permits, then come back to that spot when time permits and continue.
There is no need to rush to Santiago. It's the journey, not the destination!
-Paul
A €12.000 fine is nothing!
Imagine being responsible for the death or injury of a First Responder attempting your rescue. How could you live your life with that guilt?
-Paul
The Camino has been around for over 1200 years. It will be there next year, too! Why go now and risk injury to yourself?
Spend this year training for the Camino at home. Then go to Spain next year with complete confidence that you can walk the required mileage, with much less chance of...
Since you have to ask this question, then it shows that you do not know how to uses a dSLR or mirrorless camera. It's almost as silly as the question, "What exposure settings should I use for Spain?"
I'd suggest that you take something simpler to use and lighter to carry.
-Paul
SAN NICOLÁS DE PUENTE FITERO for pilgrim foot washing ceremony and common meal.
See the movie "Camino Documentary: Six Ways to Santiago".
In the morning, I discovered that I slept on a crypt in the floor!
-Paul
The QR code by itself does *not* grant passage on the Cercanias subway train. You need to take your long-distance ticket to a Cercanias ticket machine, scan it, and the machine will print a free Cercanias ticket. The QR code is only valid for a certain amount of time after your long-distance...
What are the restrictions for mailing a small Opinal knife back to the USA?
I was able to once mail a No. 7 knife from the post office in the Madrid airport. There was a lot of language confusion at the window with the customs forms, but they eventually accepted, and it was delivered in a few...
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