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How About Work?

Time of past OR future Camino
[Camino Francés - June 2013]
[South Downs Way - June 2014]
[Annapurna Circuit - April 2015]
To those of you who do the entire Camino Frances in 1 go (not splitting it up into different parts), what about your jobs? What kind of job do you have (if you have one), and how did you manage to get off for the right amount of time?

Just curious. :)

- Ramon.
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
The amount of employment leave allocated by each country differs tremendously but here in Sweden, the minimum is 25 working days. If you include what adds up to 5 weekends, then you get a total holiday period of 35 days....my Camino.

Others are either retired, self-employed, have accumulated sick days or quit work although there are tons of other reasons as well.
 
The statistical answer to your question:
Professions Nº of pilgrims
Employees 43596 (23,78%)
Students 31839 (17.36%)
Technical 25082 (13,68%)
Retired 20399 (11.12%)
Liberal 18862 (10,29%)
Professors 13886 (7,57%)
Officials 9434 (5.14%)
Workers 6861 (3.74%)
Unemployed 4230 (2.31%)
Housewives 4040 (2.20%)
Artists 1529 (0.83%)
Executives 1475 (0.80%)
Priests 827 (0.45%)
Farmers 563 (0.31%)
Religious 362 (0.20%)
Marine 232 (0.13%)
Athletes 119 (0.06%)
The 30+% who are retired, students, or unemployed pretty much have time on their hands! The others get time off for a variety of reasons.
 
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.
Hola

Please take the "unemployed" figure above with a pinch of salt. With unemployment in Spain running at 26% in the over 25 population and over 50% in the under 25's - this stat simply cant be true. It is however how pilgrims record themselves in the pilgrims' office and clearly people give their profession or trade rather than their current employment status.

John
 
Hi Ramon,

Here in Belgium there's a possibility to take ( in total ) a year of absence from work ( or you can split it in four times three months if you want ), if your employer gives the green light ( not more than five percent of employees per company can be in the same system AND you have to be replaced by an umemployed person or someone fresh from school).
The state will give you then an unemployment fee ( in my case enough to cover mortgage of house ). Your normal wage of course will stop for that amount of time. So you will still have to have some extra money on the side...

If not in this system : minimal time of holidays in Belgium is 21 paid days but extra days up till a total of 26 is possible ( varies per sector ).
Also if working in health and social services you gain extra days with getting older.
So if you combine all these things you can take up a month of leave.
 
€2,-/day will present your project to thousands of visitors each day. All interested in the Camino de Santiago.
Walking in summer I met a large amount of teachers. One lady who lived in London said it was cheaper for her to walk the Camino for six weeks than stay at home.
 
For Americans, the "unemployed" status COULD be true.
It's cheaper for me to walk the Camino than to pay rent here in the USA for those months.

I'm unemployed due to disability, have no income except what I make doing fiber art, and I walk every 2 years.

It's not easy, but it is a choice a person can make.
 
Thanks for the replies!

@SabineP: I live in Holland, so we're neighbours. :) I think you're refering to what we call a 'sabbatical', and I've actually heard of people in Holland doing the same thing.
With my freelancing job and flexible hours, I think I might simply work out a plan with my employer, so I'm not too worried about that. I was simply curious about how others did it. :)
 
A selection of Camino Jewellery
Hi neighbour,
Yup it is a sabbatical, but the unique thing is that in Belgium it is a paid leave whereas in Holland the government does't give a fee. Well, we pay enough taxes here to cover those kind of things.. :wink:

Anyway, Buen Camino en veel plezier met de voorbereiding.
 
I work for the Québec government so I get 20 days of vacation a year, which is a at least 5 days more than the average worker. I can transfer up to 10 days to the following year so this year my vacation days have been long weekends. The last week of my 7 week 2013 camino is from overtime.
 
I work in the public sector in Australia and we get 20 days leave per year which you can accumulate up to a point. So I saved 2 years worth of leave so I could have 2 months in Europe which was plenty of time to do the Camino. I've also just got my first lot of long service leave (3mths paid leave after you've worked for 7 years) so I'm going to use that this year to do some more hiking :)
 
A selection of Camino Jewellery
Hi Frances

Count y/self lucky you're in the WA PS getting paid long service leave every 7 years! In Queensland paid l/s leave kicks-in after 10 years service! Still pretty generous tho' - I accumulated mine and took leave after17 years service - that way I had quite some time away from work a few years ago.

happy trails
Peter
 
We certainly are lucky Peter! I'm not sure how much longer the 7 year rule will stand though, there a moves to change it to 10. Thankfully I got mine in time :)
 
I am from the United States. My first camino was taken on an unpaid leave, and I was lucky to have a job to go back to. (I belonged to the Newspaper Guild, a labor union.)
I took another unpaid leave the summer of 2006 to return to Spain and look for a place to live. I never did go back to work... the "unpaid leave" paid me back in spades!

Reb
 
The 2024 Camino guides will be coming out little by little. Here is a collection of the ones that are out so far.
I had a case of "Be careful what you pray for" & the angelic realm has some sense of humor... I felt called to do the Camino "when my job ended" (My contract ran through Aug 2014). I had taken holiday to explore Ecuador & Peru in November. The highlight was hiking the Inka Trail to Machu Picchu with friends. I am getting signs galore to do the Camino along the Inka Trail.

I return to my home in Bermuda around late November & discover I was unexpectedly made redundant. I was given the all too rare gift of time, fitness & unexpected money. I still needed some extra resources such as someone to care for my dogs. I told God/Angelic Realm that if those needs were met I would go. If not, I would take it as a sign & go some other time.

I secured a dog / house sitter on Dec 11. I commence my Camino on Dec 27.
 
Ramon: I'm having to take unpaid leave to complete a portion of my trip. So I am trying to save extra money to cover my bills while I'm gone and not being paid. I'm also lucky to take the unpaid leave and have a job to return to after my pilgrimage. Good luck to you and Buen Camino!
 
I work for the govt in Canada. We have a program called Leave with Income Averaging (LIA). LIA allows you to take minimum 5 weeks up to a maximum of 3 months. This year I’m taking 6 weeks of LIA. So what they do is take the salary I would have earned during those 6 weeks, subtract it from my yearly salary, and what is left, they spread it out over 12 months. Basically my leave is unpaid but while I’m gone, I’ll still have money coming in to pay those pesky bills! :roll:
 
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,-
Since I won't be able to get leave from my job, even unpaid, I may be filling out job applications while on the Camino.
 
I just quit my job with two months notice.
"You don't choose a life,,, you live one"
As a paramedic, I see life snuffed out all too often before it's time.
Don't worry about the mundane, get out there!
Yeah, I will be watching the money, but I will still enjoy.
I will do the camino in about 6-8 weeks. While I am there, I may as well look around.
I am going Late March 2013
 
Recently an Australian nurse published 'Five Regrets of the Dying''.

One was "I wish I hadnt worked so hard".
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
Jubilado said:
"I wish I hadnt worked so hard".

That's what I've been very afraid of for the past few years. I graduated last year, and since then I've had this freelancing job where I can simply decide how many hours I work every week, from 4 to 40 hours. I can't ever see myself working 40 hours a week, it just seems to me like I'd be throwing away my life.

Annyways, still haven't talked to my boss about going away for 2 months. I'll do it soon, very curious about what he's going to say. :)
 
I can't ever see myself working 40 hours a week, it just seems to me like I'd be throwing away my life.
One possible outcome of walking the Camino is discovering the joy of being responsible only for yourself. It is amazingly liberating. Of course, as a lifestyle, it means no commitment, no spouse, no children, no stability, and no permanent relationship. Achievements would all be short-term. It is nice for a few weeks, but not something I would choose permanently early in life. Others would choose differently, though.
 
I love my job! Finally got around to asking if I could leave for such a long time, and it's not even a problem. So relieved right now! :D
 
Ideal sleeping bag liner whether we want to add a thermal plus to our bag, or if we want to use it alone to sleep in shelters or hostels. Thanks to its mummy shape, it adapts perfectly to our body.

€46,-
ramonvanderburgt said:
I love my job! Finally got around to asking if I could leave for such a long time, and it's not even a problem. So relieved right now! :D

Congrats Ramon! I'm excited for you and hope you enjoy prepping, planning, and walking your Camino. I got back in November and have not stopped thinking about it since (I qualify myself as a "seasonal bum" in life right now- I move around about every 6 months, so quitting a job to do the Camino was nice and easy ;) ) Have an amazing time!
 
When I first started thinking about seriously planning my Camino, I started talking to my boss about how I could go about it. I work at the local university as a staff member, so I don't naturally have summers off....also, there are certain times when we are busier than others, so thinking about the timing of it was HUGE. My boss and I had several conversations about it before he told me yes...I earn 9 hours of vacation time a month, so it is just a matter of saving up to get the time off, but getting approved to go was another thing. However, the whole campus shuts down from the Friday before Christmas to the day after New Year's, so I was told that I would be able to take the time off as long as I scheduled the rest of the days I need around that break.

So, I'm going to be a winter pilgrim, even though I must admit that I would really rather go in the fall months....I live in the southwest and am a self-described desert rat (lots of beach, no water!), so I'm not looking forward to the cold, but am really excited to be able to go at all!!!

Blessings,
 
I asked my (now former) boss a leave of absence in the (not so busy) summer months. I had saved enough days (mainly due to working extra time). I asked him one year in advance, he took half a year to make a decision and then said no. No one at work understood his decision. For me it was the last straw and I decided to change jobs.

One and a half week after I started my new job my new boss agreed on a four weeks leave. By far not enough to follow my big dream to walk from Le Puy to Santiago, but I found a smaller dream. The end of April I will be on the Via de la Plata to walk the first 500 kms of it!
 
Get a spanish phone number with Airalo. eSim, so no physical SIM card. Easy to use app to add more funds if needed.
Transport luggage-passengers.
From airports to SJPP
Luggage from SJPP to Roncevalles
Those statistics are great to see Falcon. Thanks for doing that. One thing I'm pretty sure of is that you're going to see a significant increase in retired people doing the Camino. What with Baby Boomers leaving the work force, the higher level of physical health consciousness there has been, el Camino might see more senior citizens in fit form participating in the pilgrimage! :)

Ultreia!

Mary
 
I've only vaguely broached this topic with my horrible boss, but I'll be saving my annual leave up (20 days per year) so that next April I'll have almost enough, then I'm going to use flexi days, and probably take about a week and a half of unpaid leave so that I don't feel like I need to rush my mum along!
 
A selection of Camino Jewellery
I am leaving on the 1st June from Irun. Guess what, I will be un-employed when I return. Could not get the time off so have handed in my notice. It is now coming very close and at last a reality. I intend to do the entire Norte route and then on to Finisterre.
 
Hi,
I plan to walk the Frances in 2015 and let every body know that I will be 5 weeks absent. There is no shock because it will be over 2 years. Time enough to gather some leavedays and for my girlfriend to get used to the idea to manage the household by herself. We have 3 dogs ;-). With a map on my wall in the office everbody gets enthusiastic and people are starting questions about the camino. Even If I wont have enough leavedays it will be oké to go, but with one condition, I must send a frequent log for the other empoyees.
Motip Dupli top Company!
 
I don't work, although I wish I did, but I am a student and have put in a leave of absence for 2 months. Then when I come back I will have finish my associates 2 months later. Then go right into my bachelors. I thought I would be finished beforehand but didn't work out that way.:)


{Candace}
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
Hi

At the end of March I accepted Voluntary Retrenchment after 18 years of hard work.
I guess I am one of those unemployed guys right now.
I will be walking the Camino in May and June, two full months in order make the most of it.

Take care,
Darren
 
I am fortunate that as I teach, I have lots of time off in the summer. The down side is that when I take holidays is not up to me, but that is a very very small--tiny! down side.
The biggest blessing is that I can take a long time, no rushing. I am able to walk the camino in 2014, July and August. My DH does not do well in heat nor crowds so, while he is welcome to join me on the Camino Frances, I doubt he will. He'd love to walk a less populated route at a different time of year. However, he did give me maps and a Jakobsweg guidebook for Christmas so I can safely assume he's supportive!
I will take it as easy as possible. I thoroughly love to walk, but I am a plodder not a racer.
The equipment that seems necessary, and the albergues, freak me out a little. I live in Europe so airfares won't be exorbitant; I might dish out for private accommodations though. But will I miss out on the camaraderie?

So many questions...
 
Get a spanish phone number with Airalo. eSim, so no physical SIM card. Easy to use app to add more funds if needed.
I am a full time free lance (I know, sounds like a contradiction) translator, so I have flexible hours. In fact I have flexible weeks, a flexible life. Before my Camino in August-October 2012 I had to work a lot to make time to walk, and when I came home I had to go straight back to life at the desk. But it was so worth it! Right now I am working long hours to make time and money for a 10 day walk from Tønsberg to Oslo along St Olav's Way in Norway, and next year I am hoping to be able to take five weeks off to walk from Oslo to Trondheim and the Nidaros Cathedral. So I don't have weekends, I have walks :D
 
I am from the US, will be taking my 4 weeks annual vacation plus up to an additional 4 weeks unpaid leave of absence. I plan to complete my camino in 6 weeks. My boss and colleagues are very supportive
 
I work contracts. In some ways it's not ideal, since I don't get any paid holidays, but my work is really flexible. I can take all the time I want...so long as I can finance the time myself. I'll stop working, and then pick up where I left off when I get home. From now until next Spring, I'm working a second part-time job, with every penny being squirreled away for gear, flight, cash on the trip and bills while I'm away.

I used to be a teacher, which gave me 2 months off every summer. But then I'd be walking along with thousands and thousands of other people. Oh, and I'd have to still be a teacher. Ha!
 
€2,-/day will present your project to thousands of visitors each day. All interested in the Camino de Santiago.
I quit my job. When i come back i will try to get a job in my profession when i was a young girl, becoming a nurse again..so the camino is also a new period in my life!
 
I'm a free-lance film&TV director, so I took my time (which wouldn't be payed anyway) off for Camino. And would do it again and again.

But you all now the financial situation...

Hope to get some money on the lottery :twisted:
 
Hi Guys and Ladies

This post is really awesome.
It's wonderful to read in this post how everyone makes some kind of sacrifice to have the opportunity to walk the Camino.

Buen Camino to those walking this year.

Regards,
Darren
 
A selection of Camino Jewellery
As a teacher, I'm lucky to have good summer hols, so that's why I'll be in Spain this summer for 6-7 weeks! I expect to meet a lot of teachers from the UK and Ireland, in particular! It's something that I've wanted to do for a long time anyway, so I feel this summer is the right time for me to do it! Buen Camino! :)
 
Here in Iceland we are so lucky to get 5 weeks of paid vacation every year. It is not granted that you can take the whole 5 weeks in a row. So when I asked my boss if I could take all my vacation days in a row so I could go to Spain an walk for 5 weeks in October she thought it was a bit crazy but a great idea and confirmed my request.

Saludos de Islandia

Ólafía Lár.
 
I don't get holiday in my current role.

The project I am working on goes live in January 2004 and my contract goes through to April 2014

My plan is to then set it all aside and take the way of St James, walking the 500 miles of the Camino Frances to arrive in Santiago de Compostela on Friday July 25th 2014 to celebrate the Feast of St James The Apostle.

What a buzz!

Bostin!,

Dax...
 
The 2024 Camino guides will be coming out little by little. Here is a collection of the ones that are out so far.
I am fortunate enough to have had a career from which I could retire early.

The problem is filling the time.

The camino fits that bill nicely. I may have to go again.

Even if I had known about the camino when I was employed, I wouldn't have had the time.
 
At 30 I decided that I would work 80 hours a week for 20 years instead of 40 hours a week for 40 years. So I turned 50 and retired. This did have it's consequences, which makes my upcoming Camino even more important.

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Camino de Santiago Forum mobile app
 
We get 4 weeks a year(very fortunate), I haven't had holidays since 2010 and now have plenty of leave to take. (it's hard to get away from my boss, he doesn't even believe in public holidays.
Getting the boss use to the idea of me not being here for 6 to 8 weeks has taken him awhile to get use to. It will be harder for him as the time gets closer. Not for me yeah
Alex
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
At my number of years of service with Florida I get just over 20 paid days of annual leave each year. I can accumulate from year to year, up to a point (don't know what that point is since I love vacations :wink: ). I plan on saving my vacation from know until October 2014 (minus a few days for a family reunion (family first :) )). So with weekends I will have somewhere around 28 days to walk + travel days-rest days. Not enough at my age and speed to do the whole Camino.
I'm still trying to decide whether to start at SJPP and just walk as far as I get or start somewhere closer to Santiago :? The descriptions of the first part of the walk appeal to me but walking into Santiago does too. I have no problems getting the time off if I have the leave since quite a number of my coworkers are from distant countries and so take a month or more when they go home to visit.
I could possibly take leave without pay for the extra time but would need to win the lottery or work a 2nd job from now til then to save the $ I'd be missing.
 
I'm on the Camino right now and I have my 76 year old mother, I'm 45 and my kids 25 & 18. We started in St. Jean and broke it up into to two days staying at Orrison. It was magnificent! I highly recommend doing the first 10 days of the Camino at your own pace. We have been able to really enjoy the walk without too much pain and this is really valuable. We have also found that our bodies really need rest every few days. If you are rested, then a 19 mile day isn't hard. I would take a bus whenever you want a rest day and then you will keep to your schedule. If you don't have enough days to make the trip comfortable, then I highly recommend taking the bus to keep up.

I came to the realization during this trip that there are MANY things that will make you uncomfortable (crowded albuergues, no hot water, snorers, bad food), but the one thing you can prepare for is keeping your body healthy and rested. It really makes a difference in your trip.
 
WayWalker63 said:
Not enough at my age and speed to do the whole Camino.
I'm still trying to decide whether to start at SJPP and just walk as far as I get or start somewhere closer to Santiago :? The descriptions of the first part of the walk appeal to me but walking into Santiago does too.

Because of work and family commitments in the past I only had short periods to spend on the camino. I've had three, one week walks along it from SJPP to Burgos, but I did the stretch from Pamplona to near Burgos twice it was so pleasant. Having done it in 2008 on my own, I went back next year with a friend and did the same stretch again. I loved the Navarese towns, especially Vianna. Obviously, this isn't the same experience as doing the whole thing, but it was wonderful walking in that region.

Of course, I haven't walked in Galicia - so maybe that is even better.
 
Ideal sleeping bag liner whether we want to add a thermal plus to our bag, or if we want to use it alone to sleep in shelters or hostels. Thanks to its mummy shape, it adapts perfectly to our body.

€46,-
We walked in the winter, so conditions were quite harsh, and when we got to the meseta we were worn down by the weather and at risk of gaving up - or at least we were toying with it. Instead we took a bus to Leon and stayed a couple of days in the parador there. All recovered, and went on with a smile. What I'm getting at, is that there are local buses all along the way, and you can take bites out of the journey if you wish - if you want to do the start at SJPP and also walk into Santiago, you can do both by taking some buses to make the journey fit in with your timing. There are no rules - it's your camino.
Maggie Ramsay
"The Italina Camino" (Amazon)
 
I'm thinking of now of starting in or near Leon and walking to Santiago and then if time allows to Finisterre. If I still have time maybe turn in to a tourist and sightsee since I've never been to Spain. Of course if my wish is granted I will have enough time and € to walk from Saint Jean. :D
 
Great question. We have completed the Camino over stages in the past and had to do it that way due to time constraints with work etc. Lots of people do it that way and it's easy to see why, Most of us only get certain allocations of leave from work, I am lucky in that I get a few days more than the average and I also had the opportunity to carry some leave over from last year and add it this years allocation - then with some careful planning around public holidays etc for the rest of my leave for this year (I wanted to make sure I get a break from work at other times in the year too) I was able to book a large chunk of time in August/Sep to give me time to undertake it from "start" to "finish". My partner is studying currently so is able to make use of the long summer holiday this year to so she too is not constrained by Work as she has been in the past.
 
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.

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