Feetzgerald
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A beautiful intention!For me, the Camino is an opportunity to unplug and be in the present moment.
I think you make a very good point here. Even when I was younger, you had to purchase CDs or cassette tapes, and if you wanted to listen to it out and about, you had to buy a portable CD/cassette player which were often bulky and required batteries. Fast forward to today, and you simply download an app on your phone, pay a monthly fee, and you have virtually every song ever created at your finger tips. If you missed a an episode of your favourite TV show, tough luck - maybe catch a repeat in a few weeks/months and in the meantime read a book . Now it's all on demand and you don't even have to click a button to watch the next episode.There's also a possible age divide here. When I was younger you could only listen to music through a speaker on a radio, a turntable, or later some kind of tape (8 track, reel to reel, cassette) and music wasn't very portable. Later with the advent of the "Walkman" you could listen through a headset that was bulky although we thought it was portable! Music playing has become more compact and portable and podcasts are actually a thing, but they did not exist when I was younger. And in the military it was forbidden to listen to music on earbuds or headphones while running or exercising on post (several people were killed attributed to the distraction of not having all senses available). I enjoy reading books, but don't enjoy listening to them. I don't want to watch a YouTube video about cooking a recipe as I can read the steps faster on paper, etc. My brain has is wired that way now just as younger people may have brains wired more towards multimedia that they have been exposed to.
I went without music the first time. Nope nope nope. Not doing it again. Yes, there are times to listen to birds and give nature your attention. But it’s a very long walk. I’m also a music addict (rather obsessed with collecting vinyl, too) and when it feels right, I’ll be using one of my earbuds (not safe for females alone to use 2, sadly).I'm a lifelong music addict…Podcast? perish the thought. This is time to play B sides…
Walking in a rhythm with poles…it’s easy to get the weirdest songs stuck in your head if you’re also a “sing out loud” person, which I am.I' m just like that! No earplugs for my, I sing a lot myself when I'm walking! Outloud, that makes me walk on. All kinds of songs, as long as I know the lyrics. So if someone meets me on del Northe and Primitivo this may, please sing along!
View attachment IMG_2747.MOVSomebody has to speak up here. That guy who breezed past you on the trail with a mumbled buen camino, earbuds in, unresponsive, well that was me. A defiant and unrepentant me.
I'm a lifelong music addict with a wide range of taste. I nearly always have the earbuds in when I am walking. This is time for contemplation, reflection, and purity of thought. Far from being a distraction, music is the perfect catalyst for finding that zen state that I prefer to walk in. The distractions are the cars, the birds, and the chatter of my fellow pilgrims. I'll be happy to chatter with you when we are eating lunch, having a coffee, or admiring the architecture in a town. On the trail is my time. I want to be alone with my thoughts, and that calls for a soundtrack. Podcast? perish the thought. This is time to play B sides, and really have the music take you where the composer intended.
Are you planning to use earplugs to block out the sounds of the environment?I'm going to walk my first Camino in May and I plan to do it without any auditory stimulation.
I meant specifically artificial stimulation, i.e. that from an electronic device/headphones.Are you planning to use earplugs to block out the sounds of the environment?
Like others, I find that stimulating in its own right. I do carry noise cancelling earphones or earbuds for the flights to Europe, and might listen to my own music in the evening, but not while I am walking.
Aah, I understand now. I did think you might have been considering of some new form of hermit-ism!I meant specifically artificial stimulation, i.e. that from an electronic device/headphones.
Exactly! Why do we need to polarize our positions? That's what I was suggesting in my post, which crossed with yours in the ether.Why is it an either or question? Why not a little of both.
I never listen to anything when walking. Music or audiobooks (or podcasts and the like) take me into their own world and hence disconnect me from where I am walking. I want to feel, see, smell and hear ... feel the world with all senses. If I need a distraction from my walk, then the walk is maybe not worth walking.Hello all,
I'm going to walk my first Camino in May and I plan to do it without any auditory stimulation. That means no music, no podcasts, no audiobooks etc. For me this is a big change from my every day life in which I always seem to need some kind of distraction. For me, the Camino is an opportunity to unplug and be in the present moment.
I'm curious about how other people walk or will walk their Camino. If you would like, please select an option from the poll.
If you've walked a Camino before, what was your experience? Did you also decide to "unplug" and if so, did you find it benefited you at all?
Buen camino!
But it’s a very long walk
External things are not intrinsically boring. It's a subjective experience that comes from lack of connection. Distracting ourselves only amps up the tendency to fall into boredom - it's a positive feedback loop.I'm walking for exercise on a boring street or road, I'll listen
I walked listening to the world around me however I had music at night ( as good as ear plugs) and I loved having my phone to take photos and message home to family.Hello all,
I'm going to walk my first Camino in May and I plan to do it without any auditory stimulation. That means no music, no podcasts, no audiobooks etc. For me this is a big change from my every day life in which I always seem to need some kind of distraction. For me, the Camino is an opportunity to unplug and be in the present moment.
I'm curious about how other people walk or will walk their Camino. If you would like, please select an option from the poll.
If you've walked a Camino before, what was your experience? Did you also decide to "unplug" and if so, did you find it benefited you at all?
Buen camino!
I'm going on my Camino hoping that I will feel bored and learn to become tolerant of it.External things are not intrinsically boring. It's a subjective experience that comes from lack of connection. Distracting ourselves only amps up the tendency to fall into boredom - it's a positive feedback loop.
And Pascal was onto something.
Boredom is not all bad, even if it's unpleasant.
It's just a matter of learning to cope with it constructively, rather than increasing habits of disengagement.
You won't miss them!Hello all,
I'm going to walk my first Camino in May and I plan to do it without any auditory stimulation. That means no music, no podcasts, no audiobooks etc. For me this is a big change from my every day life in which I always seem to need some kind of distraction. For me, the Camino is an opportunity to unplug and be in the present moment.
I'm curious about how other people walk or will walk their Camino. If you would like, please select an option from the poll.
If you've walked a Camino before, what was your experience? Did you also decide to "unplug" and if so, did you find it benefited you at all?
Buen camino!
Good for you! Spend your time conversing with an getting to know your fellow pilgrims as you walk and reflect on the beauty of the experience.Hello all,
I'm going to walk my first Camino in May and I plan to do it without any auditory stimulation. That means no music, no podcasts, no audiobooks etc. For me this is a big change from my every day life in which I always seem to need some kind of distraction. For me, the Camino is an opportunity to unplug and be in the present moment.
I'm curious about how other people walk or will walk their Camino. If you would like, please select an option from the poll.
If you've walked a Camino before, what was your experience? Did you also decide to "unplug" and if so, did you find it benefited you at all?
Buen camino!
I've walked a few caminos and never listened to anything but birds singing and groups of very noisy pilgrims who drive me crazyHello all,
I'm going to walk my first Camino in May and I plan to do it without any auditory stimulation. That means no music, no podcasts, no audiobooks etc. For me this is a big change from my every day life in which I always seem to need some kind of distraction. For me, the Camino is an opportunity to unplug and be in the present moment.
I'm curious about how other people walk or will walk their Camino. If you would like, please select an option from the poll.
If you've walked a Camino before, what was your experience? Did you also decide to "unplug" and if so, did you find it benefited you at all?
Buen camino!
I listen to nature and all its sounds.Hello all,
I'm going to walk my first Camino in May and I plan to do it without any auditory stimulation. That means no music, no podcasts, no audiobooks etc. For me this is a big change from my every day life in which I always seem to need some kind of distraction. For me, the Camino is an opportunity to unplug and be in the present moment.
I'm curious about how other people walk or will walk their Camino. If you would like, please select an option from the poll.
If you've walked a Camino before, what was your experience? Did you also decide to "unplug" and if so, did you find it benefited you at all?
Buen camino!
When I trained for the Camino, I had 200+ songs (11 hours) on my playlist and listened incessantly. However, when I began my ascent of the Pyrenees, I felt that the music blocked out nature's symphony.Hello all,
I'm going to walk my first Camino in May and I plan to do it without any auditory stimulation. That means no music, no podcasts, no audiobooks etc. For me this is a big change from my every day life in which I always seem to need some kind of distraction. For me, the Camino is an opportunity to unplug and be in the present moment.
I'm curious about how other people walk or will walk their Camino. If you would like, please select an option from the poll.
If you've walked a Camino before, what was your experience? Did you also decide to "unplug" and if so, did you find it benefited you at all?
Buen camino!
I completely unplugged for my first Camino, not hard for me. But I also asked my teen daughter to unplug. This was initially and anxiety producing event, but absolutely beneficial. She agrees. The only thing she missed was a convenient camera. She lugged her Canon the entire way, and had beautiful pictures, but it was a nuisance for a while until she became accustomed to it. But that's it, isn't it? We can become accustomed to most anything, healthy (or unhealthy.) Aren't you curious to learn what thoughts and feelings will enter your mind and heart if you ditch the sound? I say go for it if you're tempted.Hello all,
I'm going to walk my first Camino in May and I plan to do it without any auditory stimulation. That means no music, no podcasts, no audiobooks etc. For me this is a big change from my every day life in which I always seem to need some kind of distraction. For me, the Camino is an opportunity to unplug and be in the present moment.
I'm curious about how other people walk or will walk their Camino. If you would like, please select an option from the poll.
If you've walked a Camino before, what was your experience? Did you also decide to "unplug" and if so, did you find it benefited you at all?
Buen camino!
AMEN! If you walk on the CF in May, there will likely be lots of pilgrims. Although many cyclists are courteous and do slow down when approaching and warn of their approach, some cyclists still think they are racing against each other on The Tour de France! If you are wearing ears pods when these Yahoos are approaching you could place yourself in a dangerous situation. My advice to you, if you need music sing in your head ( it helps my rhythm) and keep your auditory processes alert for those maniacs. If you really need the music, think about walking off prime time when there will be less traffic. Remember it only takes one jerk to get injured!Honestly I feel it's a bit dangerous to have earphones in your ears while walking.
Bicycles, especially, can be dangerous. Some don't ring the bell and come up behind you on the foot paths like race cars! Pilgrims are hurt every year by cyclists. Pilgrims are also hit by cars. You really need to pay attention, imo.
Keep the earphones out of your ears.
Listen to the wind, the birds, the water.
That's my advice.
I did the same when trying to drown out heavy snoring as I found the earplugs didn't work well for some instances.Like most of those who've replied, I don't listen to music (other than the natural 'music' of the environment) when walking. But I do bring along my earbuds. There have been many nights when I couldn't sleep due to the 'music' of the dormitory! So, I'd put my earbuds in and listen quietly to a meditation tape in the hope of falling asleep. And if that didn't work at least I enjoyed the meditations.
I personally walk unplugged - it’s safer for a woman alone who has to be aware of her surroundings, plus it allows me to get into my head in a good way. I’ve worked out many issues and trauma while walking, thinking and admiring my surroundings.Hello all,
I'm going to walk my first Camino in May and I plan to do it without any auditory stimulation. That means no music, no podcasts, no audiobooks etc. For me this is a big change from my every day life in which I always seem to need some kind of distraction. For me, the Camino is an opportunity to unplug and be in the present moment.
I'm curious about how other people walk or will walk their Camino. If you would like, please select an option from the poll.
If you've walked a Camino before, what was your experience? Did you also decide to "unplug" and if so, did you find it benefited you at all?
Buen camino!
I'm sorry that your friend would do that to you.Yes! I was very deeply chastised by a friend for listening to my earbuds during my last camino.
Thank you SO MUCH for this. I was struggling to articulate it.I'm sorry that your friend would do that to you.
I'm also sorry that anyone feels judged for the choices that they make that don't affect anyone else. It makes me sad that those on this thread that like to listen to music/podcasts/audiobooks as they walk are using words like I admit - as if they were guilty of something horrible.
I listen to my soul and the sounds of the trail but mostly I listen to the greetings from the locals and fellow pilgrims. Buen Camino peregrinoHello all,
I'm going to walk my first Camino in May and I plan to do it without any auditory stimulation. That means no music, no podcasts, no audiobooks etc. For me this is a big change from my every day life in which I always seem to need some kind of distraction. For me, the Camino is an opportunity to unplug and be in the present moment.
I'm curious about how other people walk or will walk their Camino. If you would like, please select an option from the poll.
If you've walked a Camino before, what was your experience? Did you also decide to "unplug" and if so, did you find it benefited you at all?
Buen camino!
I agree. Just because I don't choose to listen to music etc when I walk - or should I say, I haven't so far - I don't see anything wrong with doing so. Of course there isn't. In fact, after reading some of the replies on the thread, maybe I'll give it a go on my next Camino!I'm sorry that your friend would do that to you.
I'm also sorry that anyone feels judged for the choices that they make that don't affect anyone else. It makes me sad that those on this thread that like to listen to music/podcasts/audiobooks as they walk are using words like I admit - as if they were guilty of something horrible.
Thank you SO MUCH for this. I was struggling to articulate it.
You know what? Looking at my own reply I see how unassertive and sort of apologetic I was! Silly, because everyone does judge and there's no need to feel apologetic for music, poetry, or anything of the sort. I took the criticism and suggestion with love and consideration. However, at the end of the day, or the beginning of that mountain/hill, music might've been my best friend! And, I love that for someone it was reciting poetry! It could've been a podcast, or book. Doesn't matter. The arts have a way of also uniting us with the divine...whatever that may be to you!I'm sorry that your friend would do that to you.
I'm also sorry that anyone feels judged for the choices that they make that don't affect anyone else. It makes me sad that those on this thread that like to listen to music/podcasts/audiobooks as they walk are using words like I admit - as if they were guilty of something horrible.
QHello all,
I'm going to walk my first Camino in May and I plan to do it without any auditory stimulation. That means no music, no podcasts, no audiobooks etc. For me this is a big change from my every day life in which I always seem to need some kind of distraction. For me, the Camino is an opportunity to unplug and be in the present moment.
I'm curious about how other people walk or will walk their Camino. If you would like, please select an option from the poll.
If you've walked a Camino before, what was your experience? Did you also decide to "unplug" and if so, did you find it benefited you at all?
Buen camino!
Hello Feetzgerald. Walked my first Camino back in 2017, used my headphone for only half an hour causing me to veer off the path in the wrong direction. Never used them again, best thing ever . Now I could hear the owls and swallows.Hello all,
I'm going to walk my first Camino in May and I plan to do it without any auditory stimulation. That means no music, no podcasts, no audiobooks etc. For me this is a big change from my every day life in which I always seem to need some kind of distraction. For me, the Camino is an opportunity to unplug and be in the present moment.
I'm curious about how other people walk or will walk their Camino. If you would like, please select an option from the poll.
If you've walked a Camino before, what was your experience? Did you also decide to "unplug" and if so, did you find it benefited you at all?
Buen camino!
Even without using earbuds I don't always hear them coming; mostly local energenic young men having some weekend fun and I've almost been knocked down a couple of times.Listen for bicyclists. . . it could keep you healthy.
Listen for bicyclists. . . it could keep you healthy.
There will be plenty of auditory stimulation, it just won't come through an electronic device you are carrying with you. In fact, what you describe as auditory stimulation is exactly the opposite: it is a kind of auditory anaesthesia against the world around you - a world which is making all kinds of noise and sound. What you might call earphones are actually earplugs and walking the camino with earphones makes as much sense as walking the camino blindfolded. I have only ever seen one pilgrim, out of hundreds if not thousands, listening as he walked; and he was crooning tunelessly at the top of his voice as he strode past without acknowledging our presence or the existence of anything except himself. I think you may have got my message by now - no sane person would walk the camino and listen to music. Please don't do it. Unless you are in a crowded albergue and trying to sleep.Hello all,
I'm going to walk my first Camino in May and I plan to do it without any auditory stimulation. That means no music, no podcasts, no audiobooks etc. For me this is a big change from my every day life in which I always seem to need some kind of distraction. For me, the Camino is an opportunity to unplug and be in the present moment.
I'm curious about how other people walk or will walk their Camino. If you would like, please select an option from the poll.
If you've walked a Camino before, what was your experience? Did you also decide to "unplug" and if so, did you find it benefited you at all?
Buen camino!
Hello all,
I'm going to walk my first Camino in May and I plan to do it without any auditory stimulation. That means no music, no podcasts, no audiobooks etc. For me this is a big change from my every day life in which I always seem to need some kind of distraction. For me, the Camino is an opportunity to unplug and be in the present moment.
I'm curious about how other people walk or will walk their Camino. If you would like, please select an option from the poll.
If you've walked a Camino before, what was your experience? Did you also decide to "unplug" and if so, did you find it benefited you at all?
Buen camino!
There are two issues as I see it - preference and danger.I listen to my music for short periods normally around busier or built up areas but I don’t use ear buds I use bone conductor headphones, these sit outside your ears and allow you to hear the ambient sounds around you like traffic, bicycles etc I especially find this useful around industrial areas
I must admit though I will in future be listening out for some of our crooners I think hearing someone belt out a song badly without care is a joyous sound to behold and I’m guilty of it myself sometimes
I’m also a little taken aback with the suggestions that “we” are all distracted daily or chained to a screen. Some of us retired/semi-retired folks have a ton of quiet time for contemplation in our real lives, and the implication that we aren’t doing it correctly when we listen to music or audiobooks on the Camino is kind of offensive to me.Exactly! Why do we need to polarize our positions? That's what I was suggesting in my post, which crossed with yours in the ether.
David expressed it better than I could. I fully agree. I never listen to anything while hiking anywhere, to remain present and open to my surroundings and the experience of hiking.Good for you - I think it is crazy to disappear into ear buds when surrounded by a brand new universe manifesting.
Thank you for saying this. Most days on my Camino there were no other pilgrims, and I had made a commitment to a language I had been learning daily for 16 months before the Camino. I managed to keep my 4x weekly online language lessons by stopping early on those days to find a cafe and wifi, and listening only to music and podcasts in that language. This was an important commitment for me, and accomplishing that and the Camino at the same time was incredibly satisfying.I'm sorry that your friend would do that to you.
I'm also sorry that anyone feels judged for the choices that they make that don't affect anyone else. It makes me sad that those on this thread that like to listen to music/podcasts/audiobooks as they walk are using words like I admit - as if they were guilty of something horrible.
Same here. If I need a tune, I go into my onboard memory (brain) and dredge up a tune. Martial music works for me, guess too many years in uniform. “Don’t need no stinking earbuds.”I advise all pilgrims to use earbuds or even full on headphones and to play their music LOUD. However this is only absolutely necessary if their Camino is coincident with mine.
I love toSING while I’m walking. Traditional Folk, music hall ditties, re-writes of Regimental songs.
Fair warning has been given. Lovers of music are advised to avoid Andalusia in May
This is the sort of thing that usually makes me stop reading the forum for a while. It comes across as quite judgmental and doesn't account for the fact that we are all individuals with our own needs, and ignores “walk your own Camino”. I’m glad you found a way to experience the Camino that works for you, and luckily I don‘t care if anyone sees me as “crazy” for walking with music or podcasts on a route where most days I didn’t even see another pilgrim and very few locals, except in the villages.Good for you - I think it is crazy to disappear into ear buds when surrounded by a brand new universe manifesting.
It's a forum. Lots of people will support your opinion, some will challenge it. Everyone gets to express himself, whether they meet your expectations or not. Long as we're all respectful, it keeps rolling on, throughout all these years.This is the sort of thing that usually makes me stop reading the forum for a while. It comes across as quite judgmental and doesn't account for the fact that we are all individuals with our own needs, and ignores “walk your own Camino”. I’m glad you found a way to experience the Camino that works for you, and luckily I don‘t care if anyone sees me as “crazy” for walking with music or podcasts on a route where most days I didn’t even see another pilgrim and very few locals, except in the villages.
I guess we can agree to disagree that calling others “crazy” for doing things their own way is judgmental or unkind.It's a forum. Lots of people will support your opinion, some will challenge it. Everyone gets to express himself, whether they meet your expectations or not. Long as we're all respectful, it keeps rolling on, throughout all these years.
I guess we can agree to disagree that calling others “crazy” for doing things their own way is judgmental or unkind.
Am I not allowed to feel the way I want to feel about the way he said it? This is not the first time that I sense an attitude of “walk your own Camino as long as it’s exactly like I did it”. So I decided to make an annual donation to the forum today to thank Ivar for providing the information helped me complete my Camino last year, but I’m going to stop reading and just walk my next Camino with the knowledge I have accumulated.<sigh> David did not call anyone 'crazy'; he used a common euphemism to state how he felt about the issue. He made no reference to any specific individual, not did he demand others stop blocking out the sense of hearing to the real world on Camino.
Am I not allowed to feel the way I want to feel about the way he said it? This is not the first time that I sense an attitude of “walk your own Camino as long as it’s exactly like I did it”. So I decided to make an annual donation to the forum today to thank Ivar for providing the information helped me complete my Camino last year, but I’m going to stop reading and just walk my next Camino with the knowledge I have accumulated.
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