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Yes, they get nicked.I noticed that the Zunta municipals did not have any cooking utensils available ever since my first Camino in 2015...I never knew why.
My experience of Xunta albergue kitchens in Galicia (Sept. 2019 Camino Sanabres) was mixed. For example:In 2019, we discovered that all the cooking utensils had been removed from all the municipal albergues in Galicia. No-one seemed to know why. Could be cost-cutting or could be pressure from local businesses, who knows. I'd be interested to hear any explanations (one hospi told it was because pilgrims kept nicking it - as if someone has walked 1000kms across Spain solely for the purpose of helping themselves to a 4 litre cooking pot). The microwaves and stoves are still there. So, if you want to self-cater, you'll need a billy + mug and spoon/fork. Total weight, if you buy from Decathlon, 375 grammes.
Knives, forks, corkscrews etc, but a cooking pot? But yeah, I've seen a few pretty shady characters in the municipales.Yes, they get nicked.
Pilgrims are not the only residents of municipals tho I wouldn't put it past some pilgrims I've met. In fact I'd bet on it.
I am not sure why, but I cannot see theft as the reason that most of the Xunta albergues have no kitchen utensils, as it is so close to universal that I suspect it is due to a decision made by the central administration at one time. I wonder if anyone remembers why. I do remember staying at a private albergue where I found in the kitchen a large pot left full of water to soak after cooking and I decided to do a good deed and scrub it out so someone else could cook. Someone did, possible the same group, as I found it in the morning again dirty and full of water, and decided to go on withut scrubbing it again.I thought part of the reason to remove cooking implements was because too many people weren't cleaning up after themselves, and the Xunta doesn't have enough staff to add kitchen cleaning to their duties.
No cooking implements = no cooking = no messy kitchen.
Cleaning seems to be budgeted for. At least, in my experience, the municipal albergues are kept clean. I understand that the pandemic has brought about additional cleaning regulations. Perhaps accommodation fees will need to increase to help offset the additional cost.They would have to include enough to cover the additional costs of management and cleaning, as well.
I was just thinking that if the kitchens were more fully used, there would be additional cleaning needs.Cleaning seems to be budgeted for. At least, in my experience, the municipal albergues are kept clean.
The municipal albergues are certainly well-kept, but I wonder who pays for it? Is it the local ayuntamiento or the Xunta? As I mentioned, I am pretty sure the Xunta plans to increase fees to 8 euros a night which should just cover costs.Cleaning seems to be budgeted for. At least, in my experience, the municipal albergues are kept clean. I understand that the pandemic has brought about additional cleaning regulations. Perhaps accommodation fees will need to increase to help offset the additional cost.
I just didn't understand why the other municipals all along the Camino had kitchens with utensils, but it seemed as soon as you set foot in Galacia there were none.I was just thinking that if the kitchens were more fully used, there would be additional cleaning needs.
Robo, check out my cookbook. I wound up using my pot and cup a lot (works well with wine and scotch)I've been thinking of carrying an Ultra Lite pot on my next, more remote Camino, but gave up the idea.
I'd probably only use it 2 or 3 times, where here were either no pots/pans or nowhere that provided a meal.
And those times I can eat cold food out of a tin/packet if need be.
But it was tempting...
I know! It was so weird. They were all so modern and sparkling with stainless steel...kind'a like being "all dressed up, but nowhere to go."Especially since some of them have really beautiful kitchens like the one on O Cebreiro
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I really don't know the answer, but each province/region/municipality would provide heir own funding, and Galicia has decided not to fund kitchen maintenance. Their prices are on the low side. Galicia has many more pilgrims, so I wonder if that is a factor.the other municipals all along the Camino had kitchens with utensils, but it seemed as soon as you set foot in Galacia there were none.
Please ask the person who told you this how the restaurateurs manage to systematically remove the utensils from the municipal albergues across the length and breadth of Galicia. And then ask why these highly organized criminals leave the private albergues alone. And then ask why they haven't managed to recruit any restaurateurs beyond the borders of Galicia to join their crime syndicate. And then ask why these nefarious bar owners and restaurateurs very rarely engage in any sharp practices when we are drinking and dining in their establishments.I was told that kitchen utensils kept being removed by local restaurant and bar owners in order to force / mildly encourage pilgrims to eat out. Whether this is true, or whether this the camino equivalent of an urban myth, I do not know ...
Definitely a myth. The kind that needs to be squashed very, very quickly. Can you really imagine this happening?I was told that kitchen utensils kept being removed by local restaurant and bar owners in order to force / mildly encourage pilgrims to eat out. Whether this is true, or whether this the camino equivalent of an urban myth, I do not know ...
Please ask the person who told you this
Definitely a myth. The kind that needs to be squashed very, very quickly. Can you really imagine this happening?
Definitely a myth. The kind that needs to be squashed very, very quickly. Can you really imagine this happening?
We know it is not an urban myth although I think it happens infrequently.Next they'll be painting their own yellow arrows to make Pilgrims walk past their cafe!
It was an explanation that was told and shared by many pilgrims when I was walking in both 2012 and 2013. I am not saying it is true, that's why I used the term urban myth. Or maybe it has happened occasionally, and the story has been blown out of proportion since. As tends to happen with urban myths.
If you do a quick search on this forum, you will find that this topic has been discussed before. The explanation mentioned by me has been mentioned by many other forum members in the past (including those much more knowledgable than me). Then again, that's what tends to happen with urban myths.
There are some advantages to looking as shady as I doubtless do when nearing the end of the journey: it's offered reliable protection from any pilfering pilgrims. No one has ever coveted my goat's cheese- perfumed clothing hung out to dry. Sadly, on the last occasion, the immunity did not survive a thorough scrubbing in the (non-pilgrim-specific) seminary in Santiago, where some unfriendly traveller drained my celebratory bottle of wine from the communal fridge, leaving me likewise hung out to dry, without so much as a taste of my own well-earned 'medicine'.BTW a shady looking character does not a shady character make, we can all look shady after a few days/weeks on camino.
I recommend decanting your wine to travel-sized, theft-deterrent containers before leaving it to cool.There are some advantages to looking as shady as I doubtless do when nearing the end of the journey: it's offered reliable protection from any pilfering pilgrims. No one has ever coveted my goat's cheese- perfumed clothing hung out to dry. Sadly, on the last occasion, the immunity did not survive a thorough scrubbing in the (non-pilgrim-specific) seminary in Santiago, where some unfriendly traveller drained my celebratory bottle of wine from the communal fridge, leaving me likewise hung out to dry, without so much as a taste of my own well-earned 'medicine'.
I carry a titanium pot (700ml) and cup (450ml) with lids, along with a plastic spork and deep dish (€2 from Decathlon). Complete, lightweight cook and eating kit.
I was told that kitchen utensils kept being removed by local restaurant and bar owners in order to force / mildly encourage pilgrims to eat out. Whether this is true, or whether this the camino equivalent of an urban myth, I do not know ...
Yes, and if it were true it would be happening up and down the whole Camino, not just in Galicia.I heard that myth in 2001.
I wonder.
I recommend decanting your wine to travel-sized, theft-deterrent containers before leaving it to cool.
I wonder which would prove the greater deterrent: fake blood or a ‘urine’ specimen. Either way, I’ll remember this device for the next camino, whenever or if ever it may be.
You could print up some labels to bring that say "Don't touch!"
Over the years, I don't think that I have put any food that I was carrying in a communal fridge more than once or twice. Maybe once in New Zealand, where I stayed a few times in city hostels. The identification of whose it is and how long it has been hiding out in that particular fridge is just too complicated for all the fridge users to follow it. And some, of course, consider the contents to be communal property. Single meal food purchases seem to me to be simpler, and can be just about as economical if purchased the same day and meals prepared in the communal kitchen.That might make the temptation irresistible! I’d have been perfectly happy to share the contents had the secret drinker been fairer in the division of the spoils.
In my honest opinion this has nothing to do with it.Being the last 100 kmts walked by so many pilgrims, some of them are not aware, or not respectuous of that simple rule:
"Clean what you use"
It was the same when I was there in Spring 2011.I noticed that the Xunta municipals did not have any cooking utensils available ever since my first Camino in 2015...I never knew why.
(Edited for typo.)
You are rigth. There are lots of people who do not clean up. But those people who start walking at Roncesvalles, or Irun, Sevilla etc are much more less than the 100 km walkers, and they learn all along the Way to clean their plates. (Many of then honestly belive the staff will do it)In my honest opinion this has nothing to do with it.
Whether you walk 100 or 800km people who do not clean up their mess or leave it on the road you have everywhere.
That IMO is the most logical explanation, no co-ordinated conspiracies or underhand scheming needed, simply human nature taking it's course...You are rigth. There are lots of people who do not clean up. But those people who start walking at Roncesvalles, or Irun, Sevilla etc are much more less than the 100 km walkers, and they learn all along the Way to clean their plates. (Many of then honestly belive the staff will do it)
Usually the hospitaleros in those albergues with kitchen all along the Camino lives in the albergue, being aware of warning the pilgrims to clean the mess they do. That do not happens in Xunta´s albergues, the workers find the s..t the next morning, when pilgrims have left.
And that makes the difference too, nowadays they are workers nor owners or volunteers, they have not been paid for cleaning the plates daily, if they do it, its a unpaid work what they are doing, but they are responsibles of the cleanliness of the alberge. And belive me, some people no used to cook, mainly youngers, can be like Attila for the kitchenware.
They ended up getting tired of doing all that unpaid clean daily, and end up throwing the burned pans away.
What I´m saying its not my personal opinion, but what three of those former hospitaleros told me in three diferent ocasions.
The mess of diverted arrows plastered on the ground just before Porriño springs to mind. I cursed one particular cafe owner as I trudged in the heat through that industrial area in 2017...Next they'll be painting their own yellow arrows to make Pilgrims walk past their cafe!
Well, this thread has some informative value: despite the often repeated anecdotal “evidence” to the contrary, it seems that neither pilgrims nor bar owners have removed cutlery and pots and pans from Xunta albergues.This subject is so known and has been talked about on a regular basis since I at least started walking in 2010, that I feel unless someone is able to cover the costs of staff staying on to wash dirty items left by Peregrinos, or replace items that have gone walkabout then it is better to just move on ( from this subject
I wouldn't go that far, I have come across 5 Xunta albergues which have had full kitchen utensils since 2010, however at least one of them on a later visit no longer stocked them. There is a rule, but what is the reason for the rule?Instead, there is a simple explanation: the kitchens had never been equipped with any of these items to start with and it’s been like that for at least a decade.
Instead, there is a simple explanation: the kitchens had never been equipped with any of these items to start with and it’s been like that for at least a decade.
Well, there are some Xunta´s albergues equiped with some stuff.Well, this thread has some informative value: despite the often repeated anecdotal “evidence” to the contrary, it seems that neither pilgrims nor bar owners have removed cutlery and pots and pans from Xunta albergues.
Instead, there is a simple explanation: the kitchens had never been equipped with any of these items to start with and it’s been like that for at least a decade.
The official rules for the use of the Xunta albergues in Galicia from 2010 already state that the albergues have the following offer: bed with disposable (removable?) bed linen, use of the kitchen (without kitchenware), shower (with hot water).
SERVICIOS
* Cama con ropa de cama desechable
* Uso de la cocina (sin menaje)
* Ducha (con agua caliente)
The Xunta in A Laxe is an example or at least it was when I stayed in early May 2018..it had a well equipped kitchen.Well, there are some Xunta´s albergues equiped with some stuff.
All of them where equiped when were inaugurated.
Some or those that are "not equiped" nowadays, still have a few pans, plates etc that have been keeped away by the "hospitalero" (remember, many of them are not very well paid workers , nor true hospitaleros; not saying they are "bad " ,but they are only doing their work; but a few of them, on the other hand, are really exemplary); I know two of those albergues, in my own experience.
Please, be also aware that nowadays it´s not the Xunta itself who runs the albergues.
This service is offered to private companies to run it, under certain conditions. and obviously those conditions have been negotiated along the years. and now its not mandatory in many places to have kitchenware for the use of pilgrims.
But in some of them, for example Pedrouzo, they have enougth of it to serve many people.
Or like O Cebreiro´s one, which have some, or at least had some, twenty months ago, the last time I was there.
Now all we have to do is explore what the situation was like during the eight years between 2001 and 1993 when the government of Galicia first established their net of public pilgrim albergues.
I walked the Frances in 1998 & when we reached Galicia the new Junta alberues had no kitchen utensils. As we had all walked from France we were puzzled by this? I don't think any Pilgrims were stealing the crockery, we felt it was a conscious decision by Galicia to make Pilgrims spend more in local establishments.
By the way, the Camino was not a tourist walk in those days. All the people I met treated the Alberues with great respect.
JR
I'm not sure if that can account for the lack of pots, pans, utensils, etc. in O Cebreiro which, I believe, is situated a few days before the huge influx of pilgrims in Sarria.If you ask former hospitaleros in Xunta´s albergues you´ll get the answer to that "mystery":
Being the last 100 kmts walked by so many pilgrims, some of them are not aware, or not respectuous of that simple rule:
"Clean what you use"
After day after day cleaning used pans, dirty plates, greasy forks etc, they simply started trowing to the trash can the dirty utensils.
Or hiding it.
It seems ridiculous to go to the expense of putting in a kitchen that won't really be used. Not to mention that the space could be put to another use.We will soon have objective evidence about the policy on cooking utensils in Xunta albergues. The Xunta albergue in Diomondi on the Camino de Invierno is scheduled to open soon. Brierley reports it will have a kitchen, but the key unknown is whether that kitchen will be stocked with cooking utensils. My guess is that it will not be.
Also the Diomondi albergue, like a few othe Xunta albergues, is a fairly long way from any town with restaurants or any food shops. So pilgrims may need to carry food for at least supper and breakfast for some distance: and it had better not need to be cooked. Lunch could be eaten at Torre Vilarino, on the way past.It seems ridiculous to go to the expense of putting in a kitchen that won't really be used. Not to mention that the space could be put to another use.
In 2019, we discovered that all the cooking utensils had been removed from all the municipal albergues in Galicia. No-one seemed to know why. Could be cost-cutting or could be pressure from local businesses, who knows. I'd be interested to hear any explanations (one hospi told it was because pilgrims kept nicking it - as if someone has walked 1000kms across Spain solely for the purpose of helping themselves to a 4 litre cooking pot). The microwaves and stoves are still there. So, if you want to self-cater, you'll need a billy + mug and spoon/fork. Total weight, if you buy from Decathlon, 375 grammes.
I just don't understand why "only Galacia" has an issue...and yet their Xuntas have the most beautiful kitchens of all (from my limited experiences)? It seems to make no sense.They do not want to clean up after the pilgrims
I'm sure that it has to do with how each locality funds and staffs their albergues.I just don't understand why "only Galacia" has an issue...and yet their Xuntas have the most beautiful kitchens of all (from my limited experiences)? It seems to make no sense.
Without wishing to generalise or pigeon-hole folk and it has already been alluded to....and at the risk of being shot down for it:I just don't understand why "only Galacia" has an issue...and yet their Xuntas have the most beautiful kitchens of all (from my limited experiences)? It seems to make no sense.
The big difference is the xunta albergues are managed by local minimum-wage employees, while many of the more basic albergues outside Galicia are overseen by volunteer hospitaleros... or they're on a "pick up the key at the bar" status. The ones overseen by volunteers usually do not suffer this fate, as someone is there to keep an eye on things. The Xunta employees often only show up to take down passport info, stamp credentials, and collect money; they return in the morning to clean up.Some valid points, and the last one about small villages where one extended family runs the show: the private albergue, the bar, the restaurant and the tienda is worth noting. But it is widespread in Galicia munis. While it may occur elsewhere, it isnt so widespread....
is it?
Having a nice kitchen will help with the value for any future sale of the building.It seems ridiculous to go to the expense of putting in a kitchen that won't really be used. Not to mention that the space could be put to another use.
Yes, then perhaps it is simply down to circumstances and human nature after all...a pity on both counts..The big difference is the xunta albergues are managed by local minimum-wage employees, while many of the more basic albergues outside Galicia are overseen by volunteer hospitaleros... or they're on a "pick up the key at the bar" status. The ones overseen by volunteers usually do not suffer this fate, as someone is there to keep an eye on things. The Xunta employees often only show up to take down passport info, stamp credentials, and collect money; they return in the morning to clean up.
Volunteer hospitaleros are the heartbeat of the Caminos. Remove them, and this is the kind of thing that happens.
Is it hard to recruit volunteer hospitaleros? It seems that there are always people on the forum who are interested in volunteering, but I realize that staffing 70 albergues in Galicia would be quite an undertaking.Volunteer hospitaleros are the heartbeat of the Caminos. Remove them, and this is the kind of thing that happens.
I was told at one albergue the resaon was due to the state in which the kitchens were left in and the huge amount of work this caused for the hospitaleros. I can understand how this may be as many on the last 100km are "tourists' and as on one poster I saw said "tourists are demanding, pilgrims are grateful". I appreciate this is probably unfair to many who may be "tourists". It does however gell with the apparent experience of the hospitaleros. I have taken to including a lightweigth pot. plastic cutlery and micowave safe folding plate and this allows me to still prepare my own meals if needed.In 2019, we discovered that all the cooking utensils had been removed from all the municipal albergues in Galicia. No-one seemed to know why. Could be cost-cutting or could be pressure from local businesses, who knows. I'd be interested to hear any explanations (one hospi told it was because pilgrims kept nicking it - as if someone has walked 1000kms across Spain solely for the purpose of helping themselves to a 4 litre cooking pot). The microwaves and stoves are still there. So, if you want to self-cater, you'll need a billy + mug and spoon/fork. Total weight, if you buy from Decathlon, 375 grammes.
Sorry, but that statement is getting into "true pilgrim" territory. It's not for me to say what someone's motivation is to walk any part of the Camino.I can understand how this may be as many on the last 100km are "tourists'
That’s my usual camp equipment but when I walked the Caminos I didn’t take any....,I had to fashion cardboard as a dish and spoon scoops !I carry a titanium pot (700ml) and cup (450ml) with lids, along with a plastic spork and deep dish (€2 from Decathlon). Complete, lightweight cook and eating kit.
That was actually a rhetorical question. Why would they bother? I am pretty sure no self-respecting café owner owner would commit petty theft (and risk getting caught) for the sake of a few extra euros.In order to answer your question I need to speculate, as you ask me if I can imagine this happening. I can imagine this has happened, occassionaly, in some places. This was actually told to me by a local hospitalero in 2013. But I find it hard to imagine this has been happening in a structural way all over Galicia.
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