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Credencial start. Madrid or Fromista?

  • Thread starter Deleted member 39850
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Dear Gentle forum folk,

I and in Madrid on the 29th and have a day there before I get an early train to Fromista. I will have with me my previous credenciale that was stamped for its beginning point in SJPDP and carried me all the way to SDC. I will also have a new, blank one (purchased from the forum store). Is there somewhere to get it officially recorded in Fromista? or am I better to do that in Madrid even though I am headed for the CF?

Crossing my fingers for the train not to be sold out.... according to RENFE I cannot buy the ticket except at the station.
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
There are plenty of places for a first stamp in Fromista. The albergues. The church. The bar. The train station. It is a bit of a stretch to say you are starting in Madrid! I suggest that Fromista is more your beginning point.

Buen camino.
 
The first edition came out in 2003 and has become the go-to-guide for many pilgrims over the years. It is shipping with a Pilgrim Passport (Credential) from the cathedral in Santiago de Compostela.
There are plenty of places for a first stamp in Fromista. The albergues. The church. The bar. The train station. It is a bit of a stretch to say you are starting in Madrid! I suggest that Fromista is more your beginning point.

Buen camino.

Thank you and yes, I agree, but is it "OK" just to get an ordinary albergue stamp? Don't I have to have it officially noted by a pilgrim office or something? That's why I thought I might have to go into somewhere in Madrid, or else be denied stamps from the albergues (perhaps denied entry into an albergue??) until I can reach Sahagun or Leon...

No? It's "OK" to arrive in Santiago for a distancia and not have an official starting stamp from a Pilgrim Office? or a church? I don't know. Second go around and I still don't know who is "allowed" to write up the first pages of our booklets.
 
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
Thanks everyone!!! I feel so much better now. My worry probably comes from not wanting to make the kinds of mistakes my students do -- like completing all their studies and then forgetting to apply for convocation... Now I know I can rest in Madrid and not chase after anything except my train ticket.

You are all lovely.
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
Thank you and yes, I agree, but is it "OK" just to get an ordinary albergue stamp? Don't I have to have it officially noted by a pilgrim office or something? That's why I thought I might have to go into somewhere in Madrid, or else be denied stamps from the albergues (perhaps denied entry into an albergue??) until I can reach Sahagun or Leon...

No? It's "OK" to arrive in Santiago for a distancia and not have an official starting stamp from a Pilgrim Office? or a church? I don't know. Second go around and I still don't know who is "allowed" to write up the first pages of our booklets.

To clarify further, absolutely everybody is allowed to stamp in the normal fields of the credencial.
Only the pilgrim office here in Santiago is allowed to stamp into the 'completed pilgrimage' field at bottom of first page.

Buen Camino, SY
 
To clarify further, absolutely everybody is allowed to stamp in the normal fields of the credencial.

When we were walking our last Camino Frances, in addition to the usual albergue, church and bar stamps, there were people set up by the side of the road offering stamps. There was a woman set up in front of her house near the entrance to Logroño who was carrying on a tradition of handing out stamps from her mother. There was another fellow who had parked his van before San Anton giving out stamps. And another fellow giving out stamps with a wax seal.

Inspired by this, and by my regret at having not shared contact info with any of the pilgrims I spent so much time with on my last camino, I had a personal stamp made.

I'm happy to add another sello to the credencial of any peregrino/a I come across in future caminos. :)
 
Stamp it all the way -- until you get to Santiago, it's all one pilgrimage, regardless your twists and turns.
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
Stamp it all the way -- until you get to Santiago, it's all one pilgrimage, regardless your twists and turns.

I agree with JabbaPapa - get a stamp at your home parish if your pastor gives your pilgrimage a blessing, then at Madrid, and again at Fromista and all along the way to Santiago de Compostela. The stamps before you start the walk at Fromista represent milestones on your pilgrimage and are worthy of being recorded. You can clarify at the Pilgrim's Office in Santiago what stamp represents where you started your walk to Santiago de Compostela.

Buen Camino,
--jim--
 
No? It's "OK" to arrive in Santiago for a distancia and not have an official starting stamp from a Pilgrim Office?
My first stamp in Ferrol on one walk was a bar, and no one batted an eye!

And I have read of people having them stamped before they leave home, by their church,
That once was part of the routine, getting "permission" from your parish. I think it disappeared at about the time the number of pilgrims exceeded 10,000. Madame Debril performed a similar function in SJPdP. If she did not like your level of religiosity, no "permission"!! She died.

get a stamp at your home parish if your pastor gives your pilgrimage a blessing, then at Madrid, and again at Fromista
There is nothing wrong with doing that, but I suspect your distance certificate will start from Fromista, the first point that is actually on the camino you are walking. :)
 
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Dear Gentle forum folk,

I and in Madrid on the 29th and have a day there before I get an early train to Fromista. I will have with me my previous credenciale that was stamped for its beginning point in SJPDP and carried me all the way to SDC. I will also have a new, blank one (purchased from the forum store). Is there somewhere to get it officially recorded in Fromista? or am I better to do that in Madrid even though I am headed for the CF?

Crossing my fingers for the train not to be sold out.... according to RENFE I cannot buy the ticket except at the station.

Morgan:

Why not walk the Madrid to Sahagun and pick up the Frances there. You can get a stamp at the Cathedral in Madrid. It is a nice walk that has one climb and then is pretty much pine forests ans Meseta.

This choice would eliminate your need for a train ticket.

Ultreya,
Joe
 
With respect to your train ticket, I think you’re having trouble because the RENFE site doesn’t recognize much in the way of through trains from Madrid to Fromista. From Madrid, you first have to take one of the fast trains to either Valladolid or Palencia. Then you pick up the local train to Fromista. Book your trip in separate legs and you’ll have no problem. For example, you could take the 7:45 AM to Palencia, have a leisurely cup of coffee in the Palencia station, then pick up the local train which leaves Palencia at 10:38 and arrives in Fromista at 10:59 AM. That same 7:45 train from Madrid also stops first at Valladolid, from which you could take the (same) local train to Fromista, which leaves Valladolid at 9:55.

Overall, there’s only 2 trains a day to Fromista. The first is the one discussed above. The second leaves Valladolid at 16:54 and Palencia at 17:36, arriving at Fromista at 7:59.

So the trick is to coordinate your train from Madrid to Valladolid or Palencia, with the local trains then going on to Fromista.

2 further tips: lots more trains from Madrid to Valladolid than to Palencia. On the other hand, if you don’t like the times of either of the local trains to Fromista, you can also get a local bus (or a taxi) from Palencia to Fromista. Bus station in Palencia is at the train station.

You should be able to buy these tickets right now on the Renfe site.

But remember. The trains from Madrid to Valladolid and Palencia leave from Charmartin. (We went to the wrong train station, and had a frantic trip across town to catch our train).
 
The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
Morgan:

Why not walk the Madrid to Sahagun and pick up the Frances there. You can get a stamp at the Cathedral in Madrid. It is a nice walk that has one climb and then is pretty much pine forests ans Meseta.

This choice would eliminate your need for a train ticket.

Ultreya,
Joe

because Spouse is already on the Frances and I am meeting him roughly half way from SJPDP to SDC
 
With respect to your train ticket, I think you’re having trouble because the RENFE site doesn’t recognize much in the way of through trains from Madrid to Fromista. From Madrid, you first have to take one of the fast trains to either Valladolid or Palencia. Then you pick up the local train to Fromista. Book your trip in separate legs and you’ll have no problem. For example, you could take the 7:45 AM to Palencia, have a leisurely cup of coffee in the Palencia station, then pick up the local train which leaves Palencia at 10:38 and arrives in Fromista at 10:59 AM. That same 7:45 train from Madrid also stops first at Valladolid, from which you could take the (same) local train to Fromista, which leaves Valladolid at 9:55.

Overall, there’s only 2 trains a day to Fromista. The first is the one discussed above. The second leaves Valladolid at 16:54 and Palencia at 17:36, arriving at Fromista at 7:59.

So the trick is to coordinate your train from Madrid to Valladolid or Palencia, with the local trains then going on to Fromista.

2 further tips: lots more trains from Madrid to Valladolid than to Palencia. On the other hand, if you don’t like the times of either of the local trains to Fromista, you can also get a local bus (or a taxi) from Palencia to Fromista. Bus station in Palencia is at the train station.

You should be able to buy these tickets right now on the Renfe site.

But remember. The trains from Madrid to Valladolid and Palencia leave from Charmartin. (We went to the wrong train station, and had a frantic trip across town to catch our train).


Yes! Thank you. I intend to be on the early train from Madrid to Valladolid and the 9:55 to Fromista -- IF that is where I am going. My darling Spouse keeps walking further than he intends so all bets are off! I may be arriving at midnight in Sahagun as it rolls over to the 22nd. That part is all up in the air and will get sorted when I land. Some tickets are not for sale on the Renfe site and say that I have to wait to be at the station -- Fromista, for example, but not Sahagun. Anyway, as it's all so dependent on what my beloved is doing, I have to just let it "go with God" and sort it on the other side of the big pond.
 
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That once was part of the routine, getting "permission" from your parish. I think it disappeared at about the time the number of pilgrims exceeded 10,000. Madame Debril performed a similar function in SJPdP. If she did not like your level of religiosity, no "permission"!! She died.

She's sorely missed.
 
Dear Gentle forum folk,

I and in Madrid on the 29th and have a day there before I get an early train to Fromista. I will have with me my previous credenciale that was stamped for its beginning point in SJPDP and carried me all the way to SDC. I will also have a new, blank one (purchased from the forum store). Is there somewhere to get it officially recorded in Fromista? or am I better to do that in Madrid even though I am headed for the CF?

Crossing my fingers for the train not to be sold out.... according to RENFE I cannot buy the ticket except at the station.
Buy a ticket in advance from Raileurope.
 
Join our full-service guided tour and let us convert you into a Pampered Pilgrim!
Fromista has lots of possibilities for stamps.
Yes! Thank you. I intend to be on the early train from Madrid to Valladolid and the 9:55 to Fromista
One caution if you are going to Fromista: A friend was meeting me there and missed the station - it's not much of anything. Fortunately she speaks Spanish and got help getting off at the next stop and taking another train back. But I'd inform someone official on the train where you intend to disembark so that they 'have your back.' Sahagun is a bigger station and harder to miss.
(Another site to try for tickets is Loco2; it's much easier to navigate than the Renfe site.)
 
Thanks for the great advice folks. As soon as I know for sure which station I should land in, I will book a ticket. I should have about 48 hours prior to train travel in which to make the booking. Beloved keeps walking further than we think he will... but one never knows what is coming tomorrow.
 
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When you get to Fromista, don't miss the San Martin church, one of my favourite romanesque churches on the Camino (which is saying a lot).

Thank you! We live beside an RC church at home, and it was built in 1906 to resemble the Romanesque structures so common in Spain. I have long been relieved that it is not a 1960's build from Vatican II with "modern" architecture that departs from the more traditional Gothic and Romanesque structures of Europe. However, it is built of red brick, and is not "beautiful" but I appreciate it far more since my first Camino. Raised Catholic, I do not attend mass -- for many reasons. But I will look for the church; thank you.

Mostly, I am fearful of being jet-lagged getting on the wrong train in Madrid, missing my transfer, or missing Fromista. On my last trip my complete fluency in French did not prevent me from standing on the station platform in Bordeaux, watching theist train to Bayonne depart after loading up with lots of people with backpacks. I recall thinking, "Oh, there must be so many places that people can go for hiking excursions..." before I went to ask the information people when my train, that was due to be late, would be arriving. Yeah... that was a quite funny moment. And totally OK (if embarrassing) because nobody was waiting for me. This time, I imagine rolling right past Fromista only to see my beloved standing there wondering why I am rolling past...
 
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Sahagun is exactly half way.
According to legend, yes but the maps and distances are more ambiguous. At any rate, I am meeting him *roughly* halfway from SJPDP to SDC. It won’t be in Sahagun because the logistics do not work for the train arrival time.
 
Sahagun is exactly half way.
I believe the monument with the two figures facing each other just before Sahagun marks the half way point between Roncesvalles and Santiago de Compostela. It is a Spanish monument, after all. :)

If one is calculating the halfway point from a SJPP start, it may come a little earlier.
 
Mostly, I am fearful of being jet-lagged getting on the wrong train in Madrid, missing my transfer, or missing Fromista.
Here are a few pics of the train station so you know what to look for. You should be OK if you let the conductor know you'll be getting off, and are reasonably vigilant.
The first one is taken from the tracks, facing roughly North, so it will be what you see from the train. The second is taken from the parking lot of the station looking towards the tracks - which gives you a sense of what you'll see on the other side of the tracks as you approach the station. Your train will be moving from right to left in that photo.
 

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The one from Galicia (the round) and the one from Castilla & Leon. Individually numbered and made by the same people that make the ones you see on your walk.
When you get to Fromista, don't miss the San Martin church, one of my favourite romanesque churches on the Camino (which is saying a lot).
I've been to see it on three caminos, and it has always been locked up. Apparently it's one of the finest examples in Europe, not just the camino. Have you been fortunate to see inside?
 
Join our full-service guided tour and let us convert you into a Pampered Pilgrim!
And I have read of people having them stamped before they leave home, by their church, or school, or some place of special importance that marks the start of their journey. I love the idea and plan to have my church stamp mine before I leave -- right after my pastor gives me a pilgrim blessing. :)
I like the idea also! Think I’ll do it too, thanks for sharing it.
 
Iglesia de San Martín1 Enero al 31 Marzo: 10:00 – 14:00 y 15:30 – 18:30 horas. Todos los días1 Abril al 30 Septiembre: 9:30 – 14:00 y 16:30 – 20:00 horas. Todos los díasPrecio: 1,50€ por persona. 1€ para peregrinos, jubilados y estudiantes
And just so you are prepared for the unpleasant surprise...there is an entrance fee. It's not huge, but still.
 
The building of San Martín is no longer a parish church and hasn't been for several decades; San Pedro is the parish church. If I'm not mistaken they have started in recent years to hold mass in San Martín once a week (Wednesdays?) during the summer season. Also weddings and christenings. And of course celebrations on 11 November as it's dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours (France).
I remember when I was in Fromista in 2011 that the San Martin church was desacrilized. I don't know if that's the right expression but the church is no longer "the church" but architectural monument. But I guess there could still be a holly mass given. I mean if they can do it in a meadow why not in a architectural monument, right?

San Pedro in attachment.
 

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