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On the Camino: One Day at a Time, one Photo at a Time 10.0

There is a Templars Exhibition in Comillas on the Norte. One item on display is the Physio’s table. Someone must have found it useful for getting rid of the knots in their back

Your photo struck me for its similarities with modern back pain modalities. (Minus spikes on the rolling pins! And the addition of soft cushions for the table - which certainly did not exist for medieval Templars or their clientele.)

Back pain is so intractable for sufferers, so perhaps it's not surprising to recognize ancient practices still in use. It also reminds me of other, older healing methods seen on the Camino Frances. I took no photos of them, so unfortunately have none to share, but it was fascinating to see Spanish naturopaths combining old treatment methods with new medical frameworks.
 
3rd Edition. More content, training & pack guides avoid common mistakes, bed bugs etc
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,-
The 2024 Camino guides will be coming out little by little. Here is a collection of the ones that are out so far.
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,-
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,-
53C215D2-C7DD-4C89-939B-3C38F6FF125F.jpeg11, May, 2022 Onwards to Zubiri on a very warm day. We were later to assist a French lady pilgrim who had collapsed at the side of the path, about an hour before Zubiri, from heat exhaustion on her first day walking with her very large pack. We had to call 112!! There was a great response from the Bomberos, they were wonderful. Everything worked out and we saw her again in Pamplona, she was staying in the same Albergue.
 
Camino Frances
Burgos
Cathedral de Santa Maria, west facade

photo taken November 8, 2013

Burgos cathedral.jpg

Anyone wishing to worship/meditate may freely enter Burgos cathedral through the sw corner door, beneath the pointed arch furthest to the right in this west facade view. However free access is limited within the vast complex, a fee is charged to visit the cathedral/museum.
 
Join the Camino Cleanup in May from Ponferrada to Sarria. Registration closes Mar 22.
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.
Down bag (90/10 duvet) of 700 fills with 180 g (6.34 ounces) of filling. Mummy-shaped structure, ideal when you are looking for lightness with great heating performance.

€149,-
Join the Camino Cleanup in May from Ponferrada to Sarria. Registration closes Mar 22.
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The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
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.
New Original Camino Gear Designed Especially with The Modern Peregrino In Mind!
Down bag (90/10 duvet) of 700 fills with 180 g (6.34 ounces) of filling. Mummy-shaped structure, ideal when you are looking for lightness with great heating performance.

€149,-
Very light, comfortable and compressible poncho. Specially designed for protection against water for any activity.

Our Atmospheric H30 poncho offers lightness and waterproofness. Easily compressible and made with our Waterproof fabric, its heat-sealed interior seams guarantee its waterproofness. Includes carrying bag.

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This is the end of the river walk at Navia on the Norte. It takes you about a mile out of town to where the river meets the sea. There there are a couple of beach bars plus a statue acknowledging the Emigrants that left the area for a new life elsewhere.
 

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Get a spanish phone number with Airalo. eSim, so no physical SIM card. Easy to use app to add more funds if needed.
Passing the ruins of the church of Rosario del Virgen in Villalval. Camino Frances, September 19, 2012.
It was raining sideways the day I did that etapa, so I only have photos from when it finally began to clear, as I was near the airport. What I most remember about that day was sticky mud, the relief of getting to the graveled road around the runway - and the long but pleasant walk along the river into the city.
 

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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,-
Redecilla del Camino, September 19, 2012

I guess I REALLY loved this house, with its beautiful flowers and happy cats. I just recognized it as the same place from July 2007 (shared in post #7 of this thread). Maybe this was a grown kitten of those cats. I was shocked to see the same house again, going back through photos! Love at first sight and love again at second sight... :)

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Camino Frances
Villarmentero de Campos

photo taken November 14, 2013

Villarmentero de Campos, 2013.jpg

Walking towards Itero de Vega I met a Korean photographer. Overwhelmed and overloaded she needed a sherpa; thus for 3 subsequent days I served as her shepherd(ress).
 
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It was raining sideways the day I did that etapa, so I only have photos from when it finally began to clear, as I was near the airport. What I most remember about that day was sticky mud, the relief of getting to the graveled road around the runway - and the long but pleasant walk along the river into the city.
Oh how I wish I'd known about the river route! It does look like a pleasant way. The hot day long busy road industrial way in to Burgos brought me a doozy of a blister or two or three 🙂
 
The focus is on reducing the risk of failure through being well prepared. 2nd ed.
Very light, comfortable and compressible poncho. Specially designed for protection against water for any activity.

Our Atmospheric H30 poncho offers lightness and waterproofness. Easily compressible and made with our Waterproof fabric, its heat-sealed interior seams guarantee its waterproofness. Includes carrying bag.

€60,-
Camino Frances
Villarente
two bridges

photo taken November 19, 2013

Villarente, bridges.jpg

What a relief it was to stroll fearless across the rio Porma on this new wooden way which replaced the need to walk on that distant medieval bridge which was too narrow for two lanes of N 601 traffic plus pedestrians.
 
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It’s the International Day of Peace, and I’m reminded of what that day felt like for me in 2018, as I approached Santiago.

My only concern that day was a loud snorer in the albergue at Ribadiso de Baixo.

My life now is calm, peaceful, and relatively stress-free, largely thanks to the lessons I began learning on the Camino.

But how unfair it is that so many people around the world are denied that peace.

When will their turn come, I wonder?

 
16, May, 2022 Estella to Los Arcos. In 2014 we walked via Villamayor de Monjardin, this year we took the alternative path after Monasterio Irache via Luquin and this is a view looking towards the conical peak of Monjardin with Villamayor de Monjardin in front. It was a beautiful path, enjoyed by a small number of pilgrims the day we walked. A welcome cafe was open in Luquin.
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Join the Camino Cleanup in May from Ponferrada to Sarria. Registration closes Mar 22.
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.
Camino Frances
east of the Cruz de Santo Toribio
Casa de los Dioses

photos taken November 23, 2013

All we need is love

2013 All you need is love.jpg

A vibrant graffiti partly covered an ad hoc shelter at the Casa de los Dioses, a remote haven of camino caritas.

Casa de los Dioses, 2013.jpg

David Vidal created/maintained this simple oasis on the inland CF path west of Santibanez de Valdeiglesias/east of the Cruz de Santo Toribio amidst a vast plain with sweeping vistas. He offered friendly conversation plus a seat and coffee, tea, juices, fruits and cookies to those who passed.

What was most plentiful at the Casa de los Dioses was David's special spirit and unconditional, selfless love.
 
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On this day four years ago, I was almost at the end of my first Camino, pausing at Monte do Gozo so I would arrive at Santiago the next morning in good time for the mass at the cathedral.

But I missed seeing one of the most iconic spots on the Camino Francés - the Monumento ao camiñante.

Tucked away on a little hill off to the left from the path, I wonder how many other peregrinos might have missed them too?

I had to wait until this year, when I had some time to spare after walking the English Way, for a side trip back to Monte do Gozo to see them at last.

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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.
Taken yesterday at around 9am, somewhere between Ponte das Tábuas de Balugães and
Vitorino Dos Piães on the Portuguese Central.

After realising it took me 6 hours to walk 12km and I had a further 12 to go, I called a taxi and got rescued. Then a second taxi the next day to drop me 28km ahead.

Now recovering by the pool at Casa da Quinta do Cruzeiro - zero regrets!

I loved how the vines overtook the tree in this image.

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Santuario da Virxe da Barca in Muxia. September 2022. Muxia is very busy with coach trips with waves of people (and a few pilgrims) coming towards you as you head back into town. Strange place.
 

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Join the Camino Cleanup in May from Ponferrada to Sarria. Registration closes Mar 22.
St James' Way - Self-guided 4-7 day Walking Packages, Reading to Southampton, 110 kms
Camino Frances
near Manzarin

photo taken November 25, 2013

near Manzarin, 2013.jpg

Beneath a cobalt sky on this cold early winter day fresh snow covers the fields where highway LE 142 meets the camino; since all non essentials are hewn away, to paraphrase Descartes I walk, therefore I am.
 
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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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The Tintin book that we might have enjoyed, had it been written…
John Lloyd,
What a wonderful book that would have been! Thanks for sharing the dream. Your photo is dated 2018. Did you see this then in an expo re Hergé and his followers?
 
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John Lloyd,
What a wonderful book that would have been! Thanks for sharing the dream. Your photo is dated 2018. Did you see this then in an expo re Hergé and his followers?
No, it was on the wall in the refugio at San Anton itself. Then I found three more on the 'net.
 

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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.
Faro de Finisterre. September 2022.

Despite the signs, discards being left. Visitors have now moved onto leaving padlocks on fences and metal towers. Someone should mention sacrificial corrosion.
 

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The 2024 Camino guides will be coming out little by little. Here is a collection of the ones that are out so far.
Camino Frances
towards Molinaseca

photo taken November 26, 2013

towards Molinaseca, 2013.jpg

Each sunlit morning there was one constant matinal companion, my shadow. Whenever this uncomplaining presence was glimpsed I immediately become more aware of each precious fleeting moment of the day.
 
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Our Atmospheric H30 poncho offers lightness and waterproofness. Easily compressible and made with our Waterproof fabric, its heat-sealed interior seams guarantee its waterproofness. Includes carrying bag.

€60,-
Join the Camino Cleanup in May from Ponferrada to Sarria. Registration closes Mar 22.
Praza do Obradoiro. Today.

Car rally. Pilgrims. Tourists. Nightmare
We were also in Santiago,at the end of our Camino Primitivo, and there was a Vintage Car Rally for the end of the Feast of St James week, on our last, very hot, weekend in Spain, 30-31, July, 2022.
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Camino Frances
east of Villafranca del Bierzo

photo taken November 27, 2013

2013, near Villafranca del Bierzo.jpg

When walking on a dirt road crossing vineyards before Cacabelos/east of Villafranca del Bierzo a fellow German pilgrim took my photo. We both enjoyed the glasses of local wine offered in the small building nearby.
 
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New Original Camino Gear Designed Especially with The Modern Peregrino In Mind!
September 25, 2012. A chilly rainy windy day on the long stretch between Carrión de los Condes and Calzadilla de la Cueza. New and recent friends gather at a picnic area for a lunch of shared provisions. A wonderful memory - lots of laughs as we tried to keep food and water bottles from blowing away.

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Very light, comfortable and compressible poncho. Specially designed for protection against water for any activity.

Our Atmospheric H30 poncho offers lightness and waterproofness. Easily compressible and made with our Waterproof fabric, its heat-sealed interior seams guarantee its waterproofness. Includes carrying bag.

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I really enjoyed the photos of vintage cars on Praza do Obradoiro. Such unique sightings, revealing a different aspect to the square.

Much smaller in scale, here is a sighting from Santiago de Compostela that revealed a fun aspect of the city to me one otherwise quiet morning, off a side street from the cathedral. I loved how local children ran after these stilt walkers with unabandoned joy.

santiago_stilts.JPG
 
Down bag (90/10 duvet) of 700 fills with 180 g (6.34 ounces) of filling. Mummy-shaped structure, ideal when you are looking for lightness with great heating performance.

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Camino Frances
Villafranca del Bierzo
Plaza de Prim, 4,

photos taken November 27, 2013

Villafranca del Bierzo, resto.jpgVillafranca del Bierzo, room.jpg

Located on the CF opposite the castle
the hostal/resto La Puerta del Perdón
offered an upbeat mood, comfy private rooms and a very good reasonably priced set dinner with delicious local Bierzo wine.

I had eaten here on earlier caminos.
On this night when I entered cold and bedraggled the gracious polyglot owner/manager, a veteran pilgrim, greeted me exuberantly "Bienvenue, c'est un plaisir de vous revoir/Welcome back it is great to see you again!!"
Of course I stayed, ate and later slept, very content.
 
Get a spanish phone number with Airalo. eSim, so no physical SIM card. Easy to use app to add more funds if needed.
Nine years ago today. 🥰 After a long night in Foncebadon with the wind howling all night, we woke up to rain, just a little. It didn’t last long, nothing to detour us from getting to the cross. The clouds started to part as the sun came up. This was the last picture I was able to take for a while due to dead batteries in my camera. 😕
(Picture is a repeat)
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Down bag (90/10 duvet) of 700 fills with 180 g (6.34 ounces) of filling. Mummy-shaped structure, ideal when you are looking for lightness with great heating performance.

€149,-
Camino Frances
Ruitelán

photo taken November 28, 2013

Ruitelan 2013.jpg

The Pequeño Potala refugio in Ruitelán was always a pleasure. This night there was one other pilgrim. As usual Carlos, one of the hospitaleros, prepared a delicious copious dinner served by candlelight on the scrubbed wooden table. The temperature was -5 C. outside as ice froze the land. .. What bliss it was to be sheltered here and warm.
 
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St James' Way - Self-guided 4-7 day Walking Packages, Reading to Southampton, 110 kms

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