A Camino and a Thesis

[Quint]

Hi, wonderful Camino-forum people! With bated breath and a healthy dose of nervousness, I will start my Camino from Saint Jean the day after tomorrow (August 1, fittingly in a heatwave?) and equally healthily underprepared (but with a reservation in Orisson in hand- or in phone at least).

My long-time interest in the Camino has only led me to Spain now, but has also driven me to start writing my master's thesis on the Camino, so I will have the additional impulse to get out of my comfort zone to try to interview other Pilgrims for my studies. I will be doing ethnographic research, looking at what shapes the Pilgrimage experience on the Camino, and especially how this takes shape through practices, locations and interactions with others. I won't bore you with the rest of the details (unless you really want to), but all I can say is that I'm happy that doing this finally gives me the opportunity to do the Camino, and I get to enjoy the Camino for long after when writing everything, haha.

I hope to see some of you on the trail! Come say hi if you see a long-haired pilgrim with a silly UV-protection umbrella attached to his backpack!

 

[Kiwi-family]

All the best. I walked for 60 days in spring and intended to be writing as I walked. I found in the end I threw up a blog post each evening and took a few notes in my OneNote document, but didn't get any serious writing done at all. It turned out to be more important to me to be really present and interact with the people I was meeting...and now, a month after returning home, I am doing the serious work of writing every day. As you say, it truly is a pleasure.

 

[J Willhaus]

You may find your research limited only to people who want to talk after they find out you are a researcher which will thin out the subjects. (This from a retired professor.)

 

[HeidiL]

I am interested, and would love it if you were to post more about your research...
(Did an ABT Master in social anthropology many years ago.)