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I finished the Portuguese (Coastal Route)
Are there any other peregrinos that also had a moment of emptiness finishing there Camino?
i haven't done any camino yet... but hope the emptiness feeling you have now finds the miracles that overjoyed along your journey, memories that will make you smile.moment of emptiness finishing there Camino
Yes me too, for me it's the journey not the destination.Oh @Eswee , yes. First of all, congratulations on finishing your pilgrimage. Look back on it as what you have achieved and what you felt as you walked on.
I'm only telling you my own experience, hopefully others will be more helpful and positive.
I never liked arriving. It was always a let down. Wherever it was. And yes, arriving in Santiago or Rome or even Jerusalem....was a ... Sort of let down? I don't know how else to say it.
But think back on it.... think back on your pilgrimage... That is what mattersyou'll never forget it.
Thank you for these inspiring words.I too walked for religious reasons, though for me, arriving in Santiago was a relief. My feet were a mess, and Santiago remains in my heart, a place of physical healing. We stayed for 3 days before returning home. Happily, luckily, it was in early Spring and so the cathedral was never full, and tourists did not pack the square. -- I went daily to the English mass, and spent time in the chapel set aside for prayer. -- Coming home, I have tried to shift my life as a continued pilgrimage, remembering Christ's words "Yo soy el Camino". I have come to realize that as my Camino was a walk towards Santiago, my life is a walk towards Christ. - I try to walk to my church -- which is about 7 miles away-- to give me time to get back to walking. Walking has become a kind of prayer. -- But really, to find that place I found while walking the camino, I need to walk for a number of days. -There are times I feel I succeed in bringing my Camino back, and times I am overwhelmed with day to day cares, and feel very much alone.-- There are a number of ways my life at home has changed since my first Camino. I wake up my teenagers with music, instead of hollering at them. I attend daily mass when I can. I work to find ways to help others, and spend time with them. And I am often, in my head, planning my next Camino.
I finished the Portuguese (Coastal Route) Camino on 17 October. When walking the last couple of kilometers into Santiago and then up to the Cathedral, I had an overwhelming sense of anticipation. I was finishing my first Camino and could not wait to get to my final destination, the Cathedral. I was so excited with the adrenaline pumping that I nearly started to run the uphill to the Cathedral. After months of preparation and training, I was on the final stretch to reach my goal.
When reaching the Cathedral, and walking onto the plain in front of the Cathedral, I just suddenly felt an emptiness I cannot explain. I was standing there, empty. Not the WOW that I thought I would experience. I just sat down there on the plain between all the tourists and tried to understand this emptiness. After a couple of minutes (could have been half an hour), I came to the following conclusion.
The reason for me feeling empty was probably because of the following two reasons:
1. I have reached my goal. I have finished my Camino. After months of planning and excitement, after 11 days of walking, from Porto to Santiago, everything had ended. The WOW of the last 11 days are now gone. Now I only have the memories and I have to return back home.
2. Walking onto the plain (I am a Christian and I walked the Camino for religious reasons), I walked into this ants nest of tourists. My sacred end to my pilgrimage was not sacred at all. I did not want to go into the Cathedral because of the queue of tourists standing at the entrance of the Cathedral. When walking to the pilgrims office, I walked past a small Cathedral at the bottom of the steps. I entered the Cathedral and it was quiet. I then had my silent moment with my Lord in this small Cathedral, and not in the Cathedral where pilgrims are supposed to finish.
Are there any other peregrinos that also had a moment of emptiness finishing there Camino?
I finished the Portuguese (Coastal Route) Camino on 17 October. When walking the last couple of kilometers into Santiago and then up to the Cathedral, I had an overwhelming sense of anticipation. I was finishing my first Camino and could not wait to get to my final destination, the Cathedral. I was so excited with the adrenaline pumping that I nearly started to run the uphill to the Cathedral. After months of preparation and training, I was on the final stretch to reach my goal.
When reaching the Cathedral, and walking onto the plain in front of the Cathedral, I just suddenly felt an emptiness I cannot explain. I was standing there, empty. Not the WOW that I thought I would experience. I just sat down there on the plain between all the tourists and tried to understand this emptiness. After a couple of minutes (could have been half an hour), I came to the following conclusion.
The reason for me feeling empty was probably because of the following two reasons:
1. I have reached my goal. I have finished my Camino. After months of planning and excitement, after 11 days of walking, from Porto to Santiago, everything had ended. The WOW of the last 11 days are now gone. Now I only have the memories and I have to return back home.
2. Walking onto the plain (I am a Christian and I walked the Camino for religious reasons), I walked into this ants nest of tourists. My sacred end to my pilgrimage was not sacred at all. I did not want to go into the Cathedral because of the queue of tourists standing at the entrance of the Cathedral. When walking to the pilgrims office, I walked past a small Cathedral at the bottom of the steps. I entered the Cathedral and it was quiet. I then had my silent moment with my Lord in this small Cathedral, and not in the Cathedral where pilgrims are supposed to finish.
Are there any other peregrinos that also had a moment of emptiness finishing there Camino?
I know the feeling.... I've felt so empty when finished the Camino Portugues last year actually quit my job in the US and moved to Santiago. I now work in a Camino de Santiago travel agency that helps pilgrims have an amazing experience and connect with the Camino as much as I did. Honestly, best decision ever. It feels like I've never finished it cause I deal with pilgrims and help them every day, plus I have nice work perks like free tours and get to learn Spanish, so can't really complain.I finished the Portuguese (Coastal Route) Camino on 17 October. When walking the last couple of kilometers into Santiago and then up to the Cathedral, I had an overwhelming sense of anticipation. I was finishing my first Camino and could not wait to get to my final destination, the Cathedral. I was so excited with the adrenaline pumping that I nearly started to run the uphill to the Cathedral. After months of preparation and training, I was on the final stretch to reach my goal.
When reaching the Cathedral, and walking onto the plain in front of the Cathedral, I just suddenly felt an emptiness I cannot explain. I was standing there, empty. Not the WOW that I thought I would experience. I just sat down there on the plain between all the tourists and tried to understand this emptiness. After a couple of minutes (could have been half an hour), I came to the following conclusion.
The reason for me feeling empty was probably because of the following two reasons:
1. I have reached my goal. I have finished my Camino. After months of planning and excitement, after 11 days of walking, from Porto to Santiago, everything had ended. The WOW of the last 11 days are now gone. Now I only have the memories and I have to return back home.
2. Walking onto the plain (I am a Christian and I walked the Camino for religious reasons), I walked into this ants nest of tourists. My sacred end to my pilgrimage was not sacred at all. I did not want to go into the Cathedral because of the queue of tourists standing at the entrance of the Cathedral. When walking to the pilgrims office, I walked past a small Cathedral at the bottom of the steps. I entered the Cathedral and it was quiet. I then had my silent moment with my Lord in this small Cathedral, and not in the Cathedral where pilgrims are supposed to finish.
Are there any other peregrinos that also had a moment of emptiness finishing there Camino?
I finished the Portuguese (Coastal Route) Camino on 17 October. When walking the last couple of kilometers into Santiago and then up to the Cathedral, I had an overwhelming sense of anticipation. I was finishing my first Camino and could not wait to get to my final destination, the Cathedral. I was so excited with the adrenaline pumping that I nearly started to run the uphill to the Cathedral. After months of preparation and training, I was on the final stretch to reach my goal.
When reaching the Cathedral, and walking onto the plain in front of the Cathedral, I just suddenly felt an emptiness I cannot explain. I was standing there, empty. Not the WOW that I thought I would experience. I just sat down there on the plain between all the tourists and tried to understand this emptiness. After a couple of minutes (could have been half an hour), I came to the following conclusion.
The reason for me feeling empty was probably because of the following two reasons:
1. I have reached my goal. I have finished my Camino. After months of planning and excitement, after 11 days of walking, from Porto to Santiago, everything had ended. The WOW of the last 11 days are now gone. Now I only have the memories and I have to return back home.
2. Walking onto the plain (I am a Christian and I walked the Camino for religious reasons), I walked into this ants nest of tourists. My sacred end to my pilgrimage was not sacred at all. I did not want to go into the Cathedral because of the queue of tourists standing at the entrance of the Cathedral. When walking to the pilgrims office, I walked past a small Cathedral at the bottom of the steps. I entered the Cathedral and it was quiet. I then had my silent moment with my Lord in this small Cathedral, and not in the Cathedral where pilgrims are supposed to finish.
Are there any other peregrinos that also had a moment of emptiness finishing there Camino?
What really got to me though was that as soon as we got into Santiago, the conversation was all about going home. This person had a flight to catch, someone else had a friend picking them up... All these wonderful and amazing people you've met along the way, it really hits you that this will probably be the last time you ever see them. And it hurts. It's been almost 4 years since my Camino and I think about the people I met every single day.
Many congratulations on completing your Camino. I understand your feeling of anticlimax. However a very wise man on my first Camino once said to me it is not the walk that is your Camino but your journey within. For me this ring true and buoys me up when I reflect back. My first two Camino I got sick went home went back a few weeks later and completed. My most recent “repeat” was completed carrying my own backpack - previously I had had it carried twice so this was important. I didn’t get sick this time as I listened to my body and progressed slowly - a luxury for many I know. For me it came down to the expectation, I have learnt this time to live in the moment without expectation ( thank you David with your wonderful free snack bar and Sally ) and accept what comes. What a glorious gift of a cathedral that offers time for reflection and time with our Master Jesus. May God bless and keep you.I finished the Portuguese (Coastal Route) Camino on 17 October. When walking the last couple of kilometers into Santiago and then up to the Cathedral, I had an overwhelming sense of anticipation. I was finishing my first Camino and could not wait to get to my final destination, the Cathedral. I was so excited with the adrenaline pumping that I nearly started to run the uphill to the Cathedral. After months of preparation and training, I was on the final stretch to reach my goal.
When reaching the Cathedral, and walking onto the plain in front of the Cathedral, I just suddenly felt an emptiness I cannot explain. I was standing there, empty. Not the WOW that I thought I would experience. I just sat down there on the plain between all the tourists and tried to understand this emptiness. After a couple of minutes (could have been half an hour), I came to the following conclusion.
The reason for me feeling empty was probably because of the following two reasons:
1. I have reached my goal. I have finished my Camino. After months of planning and excitement, after 11 days of walking, from Porto to Santiago, everything had ended. The WOW of the last 11 days are now gone. Now I only have the memories and I have to return back home.
2. Walking onto the plain (I am a Christian and I walked the Camino for religious reasons), I walked into this ants nest of tourists. My sacred end to my pilgrimage was not sacred at all. I did not want to go into the Cathedral because of the queue of tourists standing at the entrance of the Cathedral. When walking to the pilgrims office, I walked past a small Cathedral at the bottom of the steps. I entered the Cathedral and it was quiet. I then had my silent moment with my Lord in this small Cathedral, and not in the Cathedral where pilgrims are supposed to finish.
Are there any other peregrinos that also had a moment of emptiness finishing there Camino?
Hi Anne. Thank you for the positive comments. I am walking the Primativo route next year and will keep your thoughts in mind.Many congratulations on completing your Camino. I understand your feeling of anticlimax. However a very wise man on my first Camino once said to me it is not the walk that is your Camino but your journey within. For me this ring true and buoys me up when I reflect back. My first two Camino I got sick went home went back a few weeks later and completed. My most recent “repeat” was completed carrying my own backpack - previously I had had it carried twice so this was important. I didn’t get sick this time as I listened to my body and progressed slowly - a luxury for many I know. For me it came down to the expectation, I have learnt this time to live in the moment without expectation ( thank you David with your wonderful free snack bar and Sally ) and accept what comes. What a glorious gift of a cathedral that offers time for reflection and time with our Master Jesus. May God bless and keep you.
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