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never worried about anything really. Most of my worrying was the year before when my youngest son went on his. By the time he came home I knew there was nothing to worry about
on my first camino, 2013, you could enter by any door except the portico at the front. It was always easy to get in with no 'hordes' and I saw the botafumeiro swing. 2015 it was a bit more crowded and they definitely seemed to be enforcing the no back pack rule. Once again the botafumeiro was...
Excellent piece of work. I researched much of it for my own book. Like them, I made a mistake. Modern historical research and thinking says that the battle of Clavijo never happened therefore Matamoras never happened. My other point of contention is the constant use of the word 'worship'. I...
Have walked the Napolean twice both times in April. The first time was fine not too warm, not too cold and dry the whole way. Second time was early April and I started off in glorious sunshine. Stopped in Orisson for the night during which the bad weather moved in. as I came to the end of the...
I have an Irish passport but as I live in the North of Ireland I am entitled to a British subjects passport but never took up the option . I have had my Irish passport since 1970 but when it changed to an EU one I was initially reluctant to renew. I am a bit old fashioned. However, my Irish/EU...
There are two routes down to portomarin. First two times I walked it, it was fairly decent descent. Third time, I got kinda lost in fog and came in by a different route. Because of the fog, I don't know where the second route deviates from first. Find my first trail and you will be grand. The...
I am thinking of almost 1300 years of pilgrimage. The estimate is in the millions. The religious aspect has really only reduced in the last 10 years when the Camino became a collectable hiking trail. I am not a hiker as such and can't fathom why anybody would want to walk 800km unless for...
Boots to Bliss by Claude Tranchant and The Man With The Camino Tattoo by Dermot Breen and did I mention I Have Walked 500 Miles by me. I am so sad with these plugs. But seriously, the first two in this post are really good
A bit off topic but 'Total failure' is debatable. He converted a few people during his short time in Spain but then over the next 2000 years, the millions of pilgrims is a success. How many followers did Jesus have during his ministry but now has millions. Failure and success depends on the...
Never had return flights booked either. I don't have a problem with people booking. It's booking more than one to allow for change of plans and not cancelling the one they don't want. I just think that with some people, they tend to overthink the Camino. I read of one person who was booking...
Never booked, never rushed to get anywhere and on occasion just stopped cause I liked the look of the town even if I had only walked 10k. That kind of spontaneity seems to be gone. I started at 6.30/7.00 and walked for about 6 hours. Then stopped at the first place I came to. No plans in...
No
I found a convenient fast food in Pamplona then one in Santiago. In between I found nothing. Found an arrow pointing to McDonald's (it wasn't yellow,😂) in Ponferrada but got fed up following it as I didn't seem to be getting any closer. But I still enjoyed my bread and tuna. Even at home, I...
I used to buy a pack of 3 mini tins of tuna and some bread and that would be a tuna sandwich. Would have loved some onion and mayonnaise with it but too much to carry. Of course there was always the good old banana, apple and orange. Almost forgot the loop of chorizo that I would hang on my...
It actually doesnt cause any problems with your socks. However, i dont use vaseline. A couple of times I found it hard to come by. Vick on the other hand available in all farmacias. Umguentum del peregrinos is another vaseline like ointment and is really excellent. It is however quite a bit more...
There already is a terminal in Vigo where many ships dock and run bus excursions to Santiago. Have done the excursion myself a couple of times. Cruise ships also stop in A Coruña and run buses to Santiago.
It is a valid Irish passport for use within the EU. As Ireland is not in Schengen, we still need passports to enter and exit Spain and other Schengen countries.
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