• For 2024 Pilgrims: €50,- donation = 1 year with no ads on the forum + 90% off any 2024 Guide. More here.
    (Discount code sent to you by Private Message after your donation)

Search 69,459 Camino Questions

Coffee machines, playground equipment and excercise equipment

Jakke

Active Member
Time of past OR future Camino
Eleven different ones in Poland, Finland, Portugal and Spain
What is it with coffee machines, playground equipment and excercise equipment on the VdlP? I never once got coffee from a normal coffee automat. Every village has playground equipment (but few if any children!) and many have excercise equipment. I started to see some children only when I was well on the Camino Sanabrés and I only saw two men using the training equipment (also near SdC).

Very efficient salesmen must have been touring Spain and convinced the populus that they really needed to buy those machines from their EU funds! I wonder how much the price of a cup of cafe con leche went up after the bar owner bought the coffee monster...

It was sad to see the many playgrounds and so few children. The hard-working Spaniards hardly need more excercise and especially out in the open under the burning sun
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
In Portugal last year I saw children playing and women using the exercise equipment quite regularly. I did see some coffee machines and other vending machines but don't recall them being used.
 
Enjoy it.
 
Join our full-service guided tour and let us convert you into a Pampered Pilgrim!
I've seen lots of kids playing on the equipment in Salamanca and Sevilla. My kids have joined in the fun, too. *Full disclosure, we were visiting family, not walking a Camino* My oldest still remembers her little sister playing with the locals in Sevillla. The youngest only remembers the stories of that trip, but has her own memories of playing in Salamanca (and cities on the CF, too). I fully support spending money on parks, so I am admittedly biased.
 
I noticed several of the playgrounds on the VdP were next to cemeteries. My warped sense of humor guessed that when moms need a break they send the kids out to visit grandparents. :p
 
Typical Spanish village where Caminos go through may look decent sized, with impressive church, well maintained medieval walls, albergues, restaurants, bars, etc, but actually have just a few dozens of adults living there who mostly have Camino related jobs (or that village would be abandoned ruins like so many others that you can buy for peanuts in Spain) and less than 10 children in total who go to school in another village. But there usually are lots of locked houses whose owners live and work in Madrid and come over during vacations, longer holidays that quite often are "bridged" to the closest weekend. Those may bring more children to play in the playgrounds.
 
Technical backpack for day trips with backpack cover and internal compartment for the hydration bladder. Ideal daypack for excursions where we need a medium capacity backpack. The back with Air Flow System creates large air channels that will keep our back as cool as possible.

€83,-
@SeaHorse You are spot on. Move off the established routes and it becomes more and more apparent. Of the three towns I know I have family history (La Redonda, Cerallbo, & Sobredillo) only Cerallbo is viable, and it is just barely so. Everyone has moved to Salamanca or Valladolid (or Madrid or even Burgos). For us it is the trek to La Redonda for water that is most important.
 
In Portugal last year I saw children playing and women using the exercise equipment quite regularly. I did see some coffee machines and other vending machines but don't recall them being used.
You are right. Portugal is different in several ways. I also noticed many more know English there.
 
I wonder if it was a matter of timing for the playgrounds. After 5pm we would often find them to be bustling (right up until we had to leave for albergue curfew), but any earlier than that and my kids had them to themselves.
 
Down bag (90/10 duvet) of 700 fills with 180 g (6.34 ounces) of filling. Mummy-shaped structure, ideal when you are looking for lightness with great heating performance.

€149,-
I wonder if it was a matter of timing for the playgrounds. After 5pm we would often find them to be bustling (right up until we had to leave for albergue curfew), but any earlier than that and my kids had them to themselves.

Maybe but in Spain I frequently see the whole family and extended family walking the plaza in the evenings, getting some fresh air, stretching their legs, and catching up on the latest news with friends.
 

Most read last week in this forum

Could I ask what may be naive question. This will be my 1st Camino and I will be mostly staying in alberques. Could you please explain the bathroom/shower etiquette to me? I have no idea what...
Do i need both these apps? I want to spend as little time my device as possible so if one app will do fine that’s my preference.
I was planning to document my journey through my blog (or Vlog, as I would probably take lots of videos). I was thinking of using my iPhone, and I ordered a foldable keyboard to facilitate typing...
I did the Norte in 2017. This set off a wild ride of changes in life - shifting many things. I am now at a new plateau and it feels like the right time to do Camino #2, this time the...
Hi to all, I'm looking for a really, really good place (an artist) to get a Tattoo in Santiago, it could be before Santiago but I presume in Santiago I will be ready to have my first one. The...
My daughter and I will be on the Portuguese on June and July starting in Lisbon. We will arrive in Porto about the 27th of June. We want to stay for three nights. Can we stay in an albergue for...

❓How to ask a question

How to post a new question on the Camino Forum.

Forum Rules

Forum Rules

Camino Updates on YouTube

Camino Conversations

Most downloaded Resources

This site is run by Ivar at

in Santiago de Compostela.
This site participates in the Amazon Affiliate program, designed to provide a means for Ivar to earn fees by linking to Amazon
Official Camino Passport (Credential) | 2024 Camino Guides
Back
Top