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So if I am nicked by someone who sounds like Noddy Holder then I have you to blame @Al the optimist ?I always wave to them to show my appreciation. Mine you I am a little influenced by the fact that I taught many of their commanders English many years ago.
I refer to the recent terrible terrorist attacks in Barcelona and for that reason I would like to bring the following experience that I had with Guarda civil to your attention.
I know that there have been many references to the Guards Civil in previous posts but I thought that I would just also like to add to that. During my recent Camino Frances Walk in April and May 2017, I at one stage took the wrong road and was walking along a tarred road which was a secondary Road. I never realised that I was on the wrong road because I was walking alone and it looked normal to me.
It was not long before an unmarked vehicle stopped and the driver told me that I was on the wrong road. I said that I did not notice that but he explained to me than that I must have missed a turn off about 2 km earlier. He kindly offered to take me to the next townabout 5 km away, and I gladly accepted it because I was not gonna turn around and walk 2 km back. He then introduced himself as Major Jose from the Guarda Civil and he told me that he and his men were responsible for the security\safety of the Pilgrims on this stage and a few other stages around the Town that I left that morning
He told me that the Spanish authorities take the personal safety of all the Pilgrims on all the Camino in Spain very seriously. He told me that he even had 2 officers of his own detail to walk some of the stages on a regular basis , and he actually pointed out 2 of his officers ,which we passed in his car , on the way to the next town that he was going to drop me .
He gave me the impression that Spanish authorities are very concerned about any possible attacks on any stages of the Caminos in Spain , because it will bring economic hardships to all the small towns that we pass through as Pilgrims on the way to SDC. ( And all over Spain) and well as to the prestige of tourism sector which is a huge contributing facctor to the Spanish economy per se.
I told him that I was very glad to hear that they are so serious about the safety and security of us and he told me that for the Spanish authorities these Camino Pilgrims (although small in numbers) are a pride to the country.
I would like to know whether anyone of you I have experience with any of these security arrangements . I did not really see very much ofthem along the route ???
Hi, Gerhard,...
I told him that I was very glad to hear that they are so serious about the safety and security of us and he told me that for the Spanish authorities these Camino Pilgrims (although small in numbers) are a pride to the country.
I would like to know whether anyone of you I have experience with any of these security arrangements . I did not really see very much ofthem along the route ???
I always wave to the police where ever I walk and mostly the wafe back .I always wave to them to show my appreciation. Mine you I am a little influenced by the fact that I taught many of their commanders English many years ago.
I was also wondering how much of this story was literally true. It would worry me if it were, just on the simple fact that there are no majors in the Guardia Civil. The equivalent rank to major appears to be that of comandante, so I would find it unusual that someone would introduce themselves as anything but Comandante Jose (in this case). It puzzles me.
We have got the odd sello of the Guardia.
It could well have been lost in translation. For example, if the individual introduced himself as "Commandante Mejor Jose," the poster could easily have heard "Major Jose," in place of "Senior Commander Jose."
I was genuinely asking what it meant. I was at a loss.Here we go again... YOU are a native, or near near-native speaker of Spanish. I am not. However, I am trying to learn and improve, not easy at 64-years of age...
Let us not engage, once more, in a spat over language interpretation. You say "potato," and I say "potatoe." It is all the same in the end...
Certainly on the first day of the Via de la Plata four years ago, when there had been reports of robberies at knife-point just out of Seville, there was a Guardia Civil 4x4 patrolling the stretch where these attacks had taken palce. I was very relieved because I was a woman walking alone.I refer to the recent terrible terrorist attacks in Barcelona and for that reason I would like to bring the following experience that I had with Guarda civil to your attention.
I know that there have been many references to the Guards Civil in previous posts but I thought that I would just also like to add to that. During my recent Camino Frances Walk in April and May 2017, I at one stage took the wrong road and was walking along a tarred road which was a secondary Road. I never realised that I was on the wrong road because I was walking alone and it looked normal to me.
It was not long before an unmarked vehicle stopped and the driver told me that I was on the wrong road. I said that I did not notice that but he explained to me than that I must have missed a turn off about 2 km earlier. He kindly offered to take me to the next townabout 5 km away, and I gladly accepted it because I was not gonna turn around and walk 2 km back. He then introduced himself as Major Jose from the Guarda Civil and he told me that he and his men were responsible for the security\safety of the Pilgrims on this stage and a few other stages around the Town that I left that morning
He told me that the Spanish authorities take the personal safety of all the Pilgrims on all the Camino in Spain very seriously. He told me that he even had 2 officers of his own detail to walk some of the stages on a regular basis , and he actually pointed out 2 of his officers ,which we passed in his car , on the way to the next town that he was going to drop me .
He gave me the impression that Spanish authorities are very concerned about any possible attacks on any stages of the Caminos in Spain , because it will bring economic hardships to all the small towns that we pass through as Pilgrims on the way to SDC. ( And all over Spain) and well as to the prestige of tourism sector which is a huge contributing facctor to the Spanish economy per se.
I told him that I was very glad to hear that they are so serious about the safety and security of us and he told me that for the Spanish authorities these Camino Pilgrims (although small in numbers) are a pride to the country.
I would like to know whether anyone of you I have experience with any of these security arrangements . I did not really see very much ofthem along the route ???
I refer to the recent terrible terrorist attacks in Barcelona and for that reason I would like to bring the following experience that I had with Guarda civil to your attention.
I know that there have been many references to the Guards Civil in previous posts but I thought that I would just also like to add to that. During my recent Camino Frances Walk in April and May 2017, I at one stage took the wrong road and was walking along a tarred road which was a secondary Road. I never realised that I was on the wrong road because I was walking alone and it looked normal to me.
It was not long before an unmarked vehicle stopped and the driver told me that I was on the wrong road. I said that I did not notice that but he explained to me than that I must have missed a turn off about 2 km earlier. He kindly offered to take me to the next townabout 5 km away, and I gladly accepted it because I was not gonna turn around and walk 2 km back. He then introduced himself as Major Jose from the Guarda Civil and he told me that he and his men were responsible for the security\safety of the Pilgrims on this stage and a few other stages around the Town that I left that morning
He told me that the Spanish authorities take the personal safety of all the Pilgrims on all the Camino in Spain very seriously. He told me that he even had 2 officers of his own detail to walk some of the stages on a regular basis , and he actually pointed out 2 of his officers ,which we passed in his car , on the way to the next town that he was going to drop me .
He gave me the impression that Spanish authorities are very concerned about any possible attacks on any stages of the Caminos in Spain , because it will bring economic hardships to all the small towns that we pass through as Pilgrims on the way to SDC. ( And all over Spain) and well as to the prestige of tourism sector which is a huge contributing facctor to the Spanish economy per se.
I told him that I was very glad to hear that they are so serious about the safety and security of us and he told me that for the Spanish authorities these Camino Pilgrims (although small in numbers) are a pride to the country.
I would like to know whether anyone of you I have experience with any of these security arrangements . I did not really see very much ofthem along the route ???
Good story Jill, Scott had several run ins with the Guardi when hitch hiking back in the 70s, he said back then that they were best avoided, however time passes and they are now quiet focused on the welfare of pilgrims. An early poster is right, it's not just safety of the economy they are protecting, they take an earnest pride in ensuring pilgrims can walk safely across the ancient routes.When I was hitchhiking in Spain in my joven days, I once got picked up by a car of four Guardias Civiles. None of them looked over 20 years old. This was back in the Franco era and they wore those funny backwards-looking hats...
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