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The sounds of the cow bells. Watching families and children play. Stray dogs and cats strolling up to greet me as I passed. Those were the things that pop in my head.So what small thing made you smile on Camino?
For me I entered a small unattended chapel somewhere I cannot recall to get a stamp and they had Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by J S Bach playing, my favourite piece of classical music. I am musically illiterate but it sounded as if played on small bells and a harp. Made my day. For those who do not know it listen to Lady Lynda by the Beach boys, it is the intro music.
I was having a pretty gruelling day near the end of the Camino Frances and this older gentleman and his companion, whom I had crossed paths with many times, passed by me as I sat on log, feeling at the end of my rope. He stopped, smiled and told me "you're doing a great job!". I almost cried but smiled. Still brings a tear to my eye and a smile to my lips. And, it got me through those last few kms.So what small thing made you smile on Camino?
For me I entered a small unattended chapel somewhere I cannot recall to get a stamp and they had Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by J S Bach playing, my favourite piece of classical music. I am musically illiterate but it sounded as if played on small bells and a harp. Made my day. For those who do not know it listen to Lady Lynda by the Beach boys, it is the intro music.
So what small thing made you smile on Camino?
For me I entered a small unattended chapel somewhere I cannot recall to get a stamp and they had Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by J S Bach playing, my favourite piece of classical music. I am musically illiterate but it sounded as if played on small bells and a harp. Made my day. For those who do not know it listen to Lady Lynda by the Beach boys, it is the intro music.
The many unafraid mice in the Meseta were very funny.So what small thing made you smile on Camino?
For me I entered a small unattended chapel somewhere I cannot recall to get a stamp and they had Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by J S Bach playing, my favourite piece of classical music. I am musically illiterate but it sounded as if played on small bells and a harp. Made my day. For those who do not know it listen to Lady Lynda by the Beach boys, it is the intro music.
Singing----At one Municipal Albergue, after the communal supper, they ask each person to sing a song from their home country. Interesting that NONE of the Ozzies knew the words to, "Waltzing Matilda" and even more interesting was that the pilgrims from Wales all said there was no music in Wales so they could not sing. Also walked part way with a young cupule from Slovenia--the young woman had a voice that traveled for kilometers thru the valleys and mountains.The bar at Roncesvalles. A bunch of us were having a beer after the long hike from SJPP when a local woman drove her tiny car up to the bar, made a wrong turn, and managed to high-center her car on a tall curb. All of we men got up as a group, walked to the car, lifted it off the curb and put it down where she could drive off. It was a fun act of camaraderie, and we all felt like we earned the right to finish our beers!
Also, running into a wonderful Swiss couple and a young Irish guy taking the less-traveled detour after leaving Villafranca del Bierzo, taking turns singing. As we walked through the mountains, the Swiss couple sang a Swiss folk song in perfect two-part harmony. The Irish guy sang a sad, lilting Irish ballad. I sang a funny song that I knew. It was a moment of sheer joy.
Ditto! I too loved meeting all the animals on the way. For some reason, that was the highlight of my camino.All the animals that have approached me for pettings (mostly cats and a few dogs)
What made me smile was a Service Dog that had travelled with his owner from Brazil to walk from ,Porto to Santiago with his owner. He had his own seat on the plane!So what small thing made you smile on Camino?
For me I entered a small unattended chapel somewhere I cannot recall to get a stamp and they had Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by J S Bach playing, my favourite piece of classical music. I am musically illiterate but it sounded as if played on small bells and a harp. Made my day. For those who do not know it listen to Lady Lynda by the Beach boys, it is the intro music.
Love the animals, but Love, Love the dance more!!This March, walking between O Cebreiro and Fonfria, we passed some men building a wall and one man started dancing. Here is video I took complete with their music (it takes a minute to load): https://photos.app.goo.gl/XpSNFeKapHQy6fK7A
The geese who greet Frances Peregrino's at Esquiroz!So what small thing made you smile on Camino?
For me I entered a small unattended chapel somewhere I cannot recall to get a stamp and they had Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by J S Bach playing, my favourite piece of classical music. I am musically illiterate but it sounded as if played on small bells and a harp. Made my day. For those who do not know it listen to Lady Lynda by the Beach boys, it is the intro music.
So what small thing made you smile on Camino?
For me I entered a small unattended chapel somewhere I cannot recall to get a stamp and they had Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by J S Bach playing, my favourite piece of classical music. I am musically illiterate but it sounded as if played on small bells and a harp. Made my day. For those who do not know it listen to Lady Lynda by the Beach boys, it is the intro music.
In 2018,just beyond Arzua, I stopped at BAR PREGUNTOÑO for a bite to eat. It wasn't busy and, since I speak Spanish, I engaged the owner in some conversation. Part of it was my comments about how some pilgrims just seem to walk straight ahead, never looking left or right, never stopping to take any pictures or pausing to smell the roses, so to speak. I am the exact opposite. I took a few pictures of the bar and grounds - none of him - and off I went.The geese who greet Frances Peregrino's at Esquiroz!
Me, too stopped there in July 2019, just as a big group of spanish cancer-survivors had been served.In 2019, almost a year later, I passed by again. I don't even think I remembered what he looked like. I went to the counter and ordered. He immediately said, "YOU WERE HERE LAST YEAR." And he proceeded to repeat the entire conversation that we had had. I nearly fell over from shock. How could he POSSIBLY remember me a year later when
What a wonderful story. It reminds me of when my wife and I were walking the CF last fall, and I got on the phone with the owner of a pension to make a reservation in my dreadful Spanish. I asked if he had "una habitación para mi esposa y ti." He laughed and told me he was already happily married but could find a room for the two of us!On my first CF in 2013 with my recently graduated nurse granddaughter we would stop at the end of the day and our first thing was to order a cerveza (to replenish all the carbs we had used up)!. After about two weeks my granddaughter told me it was my turn to order the beers. Now, I did not speak any Spanish and she gave me a short lesson on what and how to ask for two beers. So, with a little bit of anxiety, I got to the table where I could get a beer and the gentleman behind the table looked at me and I nervously asked for two beers, please! "por favor, dos cer besos." He came around the table, took my face in his hands, kissed me on each side of my face and in perfect English said "you asked for two kisses". I was modified but we had a good laugh over it. Two years later I stopped there again and as I walked in he was coming out and said "Hello, Wanda". I couldn't believe that he had remembered me!
On my first Camino starting out in April, my birthday came a few days later. A group of four Koreans were walking behind me and one of them came up to me from behind and offered me a wrapped piece of candy. I jokingly said "Thank you, how did you know it is my birthday today?" He laughed and fell back in line with his little group. A minute later they all sang the "Happy Birthday" song loudly in unison to me. It was a very special moment and definitely made me smile!It was my birthday.
I loved reading the responses to this question. It brought back such sweet memories to think of how I would answer it. Thank you so much for posting it David!So what small thing made you smile on Camino?
For me I entered a small unattended chapel somewhere I cannot recall to get a stamp and they had Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by J S Bach playing, my favourite piece of classical music. I am musically illiterate but it sounded as if played on small bells and a harp. Made my day. For those who do not know it listen to Lady Lynda by the Beach boys, it is the intro music.
This is the BEST story! Thank you for sharing.Meeting my future wife. When I asked why she did not have a Shell on her pack, she replied. "A friend in Germany told me to NOT buy a shell as I would meet a man on the Camino who would be important in my life and he would give me a shell". Gave her a shell that I had picked up off the trail an hour previous and married her later.
What village? I lived in Burgos for three months ad visited several nearby villages. I missed the dinosaur.In a village near Burgos. Quite a surprise!
I was standing near el fuente de vino (Irache). A woman said to me in Spanish, "I heard it wasn't working. Do you know anything about that?" I pointed to the bilingual sign saying there are only a hundred liters a day, said that to her, and said "Maybe they ran out." She turned around and told a bunch of people in English, "This nice fellow explained to me that …" The group then took a bunch of pictures, jumped back in a van, and drove away. What made me smile was the irony: lettered on the van was "The best way to see the world is on foot." (emphasis mine).So what small thing made you smile on Camino?
Yes, here is my photo, but we cheated and walked a straight line to the center.I was walking out of Atapuerca, up a steep hill to a plateau. On the plateau was a bunch of rocks that didn't look random. I had to go investigate. Turned out to be a labyrinth, and I felt compelled to walk it. I kept thinking how funny it was to take a detour from my daily walking to...walk. (Did anyone else see/walk that labyrinth?)
So what small thing made you smile on Camino?
For me I entered a small unattended chapel somewhere I cannot recall to get a stamp and they had Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by J S Bach playing, my favourite piece of classical music. I am musically illiterate but it sounded as if played on small bells and a harp. Made my day. For those who do not know it listen to Lady Lynda by the Beach boys, it is the intro music.
I was very exhausted on the way to Burgos. I sat down on the ground. A dog came to greet me and sniff me. Also, an old man was asking if I was okay. I said I am okay but very tired. He told me to rest, walk, rest and walk (presumably in my poor spanish). I was often encouraged by locals especially senior citiziens who said, buen camino.So what small thing made you smile on Camino?
For me I entered a small unattended chapel somewhere I cannot recall to get a stamp and they had Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by J S Bach playing, my favourite piece of classical music. I am musically illiterate but it sounded as if played on small bells and a harp. Made my day. For those who do not know it listen to Lady Lynda by the Beach boys, it is the intro music.
This morning at 7:45 am, as we walked out of Santander, a bus driver leaned out the window and shouted, “Buen Camino! Better get a move on! You’re losing the night!” A pilgrim behind us translated for us.So what small thing made you smile on Camino?
For me I entered a small unattended chapel somewhere I cannot recall to get a stamp and they had Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring by J S Bach playing, my favourite piece of classical music. I am musically illiterate but it sounded as if played on small bells and a harp. Made my day. For those who do not know it listen to Lady Lynda by the Beach boys, it is the intro music.
I wonder if thats the same guy we saw with a rabbit on a lead in AstorgaWalking the streets of Astorga on a Sunday afternoon, there was a distinguished Spanish gentleman in a suit with a duck on a leash
Thank you DJ. It just crossed my mind in the early hours of another sleepless night.I loved reading the responses to this question. It brought back such sweet memories to think of how I would answer it. Thank you so much for posting it David!
Reminds me of the climb up the hill in Zabaldika where Peg, accustomed to cuckoo clocks but not cuckoos, was counting the bird's calls to figure out the time. I had a smile then too.Watching my companion try, in vain, to coax a "Hello" out of a caged parrot in a backyard next to the CP...
Love the Camino catsAll the animals that have approached me for pettings (mostly cats and a few dogs)
Awesome! My favorite in this thread so far.Meeting my future wife. When I asked why she did not have a Shell on her pack, she replied. "A friend in Germany told me to NOT buy a shell as I would meet a man on the Camino who would be important in my life and he would give me a shell". Gave her a shell that I had picked up off the trail an hour previous and married her later.
I too, fell in love with donkeys on my Caminos; they are so darn cute and I have many pictures.Not sure who looked more blissful in this picture, the donkey or my wife! From our 2018 Primitivo walk.
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On the Norte in Galicia, made be break out into a big smile
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