Kindle App and Guide Book with History

[JansCamino]

I'm walking the French Way in May, 2013 and downloaded the Kindle App on my iphone 5 from which I purchased the the book CAMINO DE SANTIAGO History Culture Architecture from St. Jean Pied De Port to Santiago De Compostella and Finesterre by Gerald Kelly, updated summer, 2012.

It is the best, most efficient guide book I have found and I don't have to worry about the weight of a paper guide book since it is on my iphone. Since it is a Kindle book, I can increase the font size and won't have to use my reading glasses and can view it night or day with the lit screen.

The guide not only has maps and directions of main and alternative routes and maps of the cities, but also history along the Camino and historical sites to visit, places to stay, eat, and shop, and other valuable information. I believe the author also has the same offerings in books on other routes than the French Way.

The best map I found is the Google Map. You can choose your route and view it as a flat map or satellite view: http://www.elcaminosantiago.com/Camino-Santiago-Maps.htm and see great detail by zooming in on the screen down to terrain, city streets and houses, and highlights in yellow the route you choose to take.
See the google map website for the French Way here:
http://www.elcaminosantiago.com/Camino-Santiago-Map-Camino-Frances-Google.htm

Along with the app for this forum to help me find all of the albergues on the trail, the Kindle guide book and the Google map will definitely help me stay on the right path, offer alternatives, and let me find what I need on the way.

I hope this will help someone.

 

[colinPeter]

Gitlitz & Davidson's classic, "The Pilgrimage Road to Santiago: The Complete Cultural Handbook" [Kindle Edition] is also available through Amazon.

 

[alicia]

Wow, I just downloaded the sample book into my iphone, so much info. I'm trying to figure out how to purchase, keeps getting stuck, maybe I'm just being impatient. How did the Kindle book and Google map work out for you on your 2013 Camino? We plan to start ours at the end of March 2014 and I'm looking for a book with good historical information, this one seems to fit the bill if I can get it to download....

Thank you for sharing JansCamino!

Blessings,
Alicia

 

[Stacey Wittig]

Here's a very detailed map of El Camino built by Godesalco using Google Earth http://www.godesalco.com/maps/frances

Simply click on the city/town/village on the right column and then zoom in. He has also added

• Peaks
• Rivers, bridges, dams and sluices
• Churches and other monuments
• Other points of interest

and you can "choose" to add these or not to your view. Sweet!
Blessings, Stacey

 

[alicia]

Hi Stacey,
I like the map, thank you. I only plan to take an iphone so I'm thinking I'll bookmark it on Safari but I'm wondering if I'll be able to access it along the way or only in the larger towns.

Yes, my hubby, daughter and I are doing this as a spiritual pilgrimage; first one we're doing with our daughter but we've been on a few guided ones before...I would love to read your book, will you please send me the info on how to get it? Thank you again,
Blessings!

 

[Stacey Wittig]

Hello Alicia,

So tell me about your guided pilgrimages... on El Camino? Name of company? I'm interested in what people expect, if they got it from the tour and what would make the tour better.

My spiritual guide will be out on Amazon soon. I'm just putting the the finishing touches on the last edit. I'll send you a link once it is ready! Maybe you can help spread the word once it is out! Thanks for asking, Stacey Wittig, Freelance writer, Flagstaff, AZ

 

[alicia]

Hi Stacey,
No, our previous pilgrimages have not been on a Camino. We've only been on pilgrimage tours with our church; company was Unitours. I loved that our tours have been geared towards 'Catholic' experiences; there's nothing like having Mass in quiet, sacred places in the Holy Land, Fatima and Lourdes. Our Pastor is a theologian so we learned much from him.

As for what would have made the tours better; we love to shop...icons, special regional items, spices, wine, etc. On our trip to the Holy Land, we were not 'allowed' to shop in places of our choosing,. Experiencing the 'local' atmosphere was the absolute best.

 

[Stacey Wittig]

Hi Stacey,
No, our previous pilgrimages have not been on a Camino. We've only been on pilgrimage tours with our church; company was Unitours. I loved that our tours have been geared towards 'Catholic' experiences; there's nothing like having Mass in quiet, sacred places in the Holy Land, Fatima and Lourdes. Our Pastor is a theologian so we learned much from him.

As for what would have made the tours better; we love to shop...icons, special regional items, spices, wine, etc. On our trip to the Holy Land, we were not 'allowed' to shop in places of our choosing,. Experiencing the 'local' atmosphere was the absolute best.

Hello Alicia,
Thanks for sharing about your experiences. You'll have fun shopping on your El Camino pilgrimage -- but don't buy too much until you're done. You won't want to weight down your back. LOL! I bought a very nice green ceramic shell on a leather lanyard for my neck on my first pilgrimage. I found a blue and white version on my second journey. In Santiago Compostela I bought a gorgeous silver ring with a black (jet) stone from the local area and malachite in a setting of traditional Galician design. I get compliments all the time on this one-of-a-kind design. I'll take a picture, put it on my website and let you know once it is posted. De Colores, Stacey Wittig