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Full Frances 2022 (May-Jun)
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That’s certainly what I would expect as well.The counter must not be working properly (or they just haven't done the total yet). In September of 2021, 37,463 compostelas were issued, and I expect there were more in 2022.
Yes, something went wrong on their website. 1,774 is the number of Compostelas for the 1st of September 2022 and not for the whole month. The total for September 2022 is around 66,000 Compostelas.That’s certainly what I would expect as well.
Just left Santiago, it was busy. As I have mentioned elsewhere not everyone walking is getting a compostelaLooking at the official Oficina de Peregrino website it shows only 1774 compostelas issued for September. There were 85,842 issued in August, 67,734 issued in July, and 58,012 issued in June. Can this be right? Is there really that big of drop-off? According to the statistics, 66 of those people started in St. Jean. That means only 2 per day. Seems like the Camino would have been practically empty in September.
I was there this last September, and I can confirm that the Camino was emptier than I have ever seen it. I did it twice; first in June 2017 and the second time in July 2019 and both were full of pilgrims. Both times were the happiest, most exhilarating experiences of my entire life. I fell in love at once with everything. This year was completely different. First, I immediately noticed a noticeable change in atmosphere. In Navares and the Rioja in particular, the few pilgrims you'd encounter on the way were often uncommunicative, almost avoidant of each other and the Buen Camino you'd normally hear from any stranger on your path was actually quite rare. There was a dullness in the air, something less joyful. People were happy to talk to each other if someone started a conversation, but it wasn't as effortless, spontaneous as before. Some hospitaleros were rude, abrupt or not particularly friendly. We did a few Albergues that felt business-like. Rooms were more expensive and when in new hotels or renovated places, they all had the charm of hospital rooms: walls painted intense white or grey, nothing decorative or pleasant to look at. Same thing in some caf's whose redecoration is the opposite of what pilgrims are looking for on the Camino; I am thinking for example of the little cafe next to Sarria's train station, all wooden panels and full of local history 5 years ago; now, everything has been stripped down to the usual white walls and it looks as drab as a cantina, with a fairly bored looking owner stuck behind the bar on his mobile.Looking at the official Oficina de Peregrino website it shows only 1774 compostelas issued for September. There were 85,842 issued in August, 67,734 issued in July, and 58,012 issued in June. Can this be right? Is there really that big of drop-off? According to the statistics, 66 of those people started in St. Jean. That means only 2 per day. Seems like the Camino would have been practically empty in September.
Are you talking about September 2022?I was there this last September, and I can confirm that the Camino was emptier than I have ever seen it. I did it twice; first in June 2017 and the second time in July 2019 and both were full of pilgrims.
It would be interesting to know which part of the month, and what part of the Camino you walked, to better compare the experiences.I wonder if others who would have been there at the time felt the same thing.
You apparently didn't read all the replies on this thread. The numbers cited in the first post have been updated, and the Pilgrims Office statistics say that 66,196 pilgrims arrived in September 2022.I wonder if the huge reduction of Compostelas this year are a reflection of that. I
October - December 2019 was ≈ 47,000
Januar 2022 - today is ≈ 382,000
So the final sum for 2022 is likely to be more than 430,000 Compostelas! Only a small minority, however, will have walked SJPP to Santiago ...
Previous annual record was ≈ 347,000 Compostelas.
(Figures taken from solviturambulando.es)
Hi!Are you talking about September 2022?
It would be interesting to know which part of the month, and what part of the Camino you walked, to better compare the experiences.
I walked in May-June 2022 on the Invierno, and found that after 2 years of no travel and some remaining Covid concerns, it did take me a bit more time to get into the pilgrim mindset and figure out how things might be different for that particular Camino. But I am confident that the differences were more in my own mind than in the people or activities around me. After a week or so, I got used to things, and my post-pandemic freedom, and I was able to relax and appreciate/enjoy the journey as much as before. But, as @wayfarer says, every journey is different.
I think that explains the solitude you found. You got a time interval that is, indeed, normally slow on those sections. You missed the September crowds in SJPP and the summer crowds starting in Sarria. It is important for people to understand the finer points of the reputed "crowding."We started on the 24th August from Roncevalles and walked up to Sarria where we arrived on the 17th September.
I just left Santiago today, and it was mobbed. I walked in a day earlier than I had planned and had real trouble finding a hotel. I walked to Finisterre and Muxia and heard various times that October has been busier than September.Even Santiago was so incredibly quiet and empty compared to my 2 previous Camino. Both times, youn struggled to make your waythrough it's streets. This last September, we ate in empty restaurants, quasi empty caf's
There were 2,156 Compostelas issued yesterday. I found that an extraordinary number for a Sunday in October. The third day in a row where numbers were well over 2,000. A friend living in Santiago has also told me that the city has been exceptionally busy recently.I just left Santiago today, and it was mobbed. I
I think you may have been seeing a special event for this Ourense diocesan pilgrimage. A huge gathering of nearly 2,000 though most arrived by bus then walked from the Seminario Menor to the cathedral en masse.The mass was in Spanish only, no foreign words now and then as can so often be heard from a priest or lay person. It looked to me as if they may have been a mixture of foot pilgrims and bus pilgrims.
Bingo! I could not remember what I had heard when it was announced: Whether they came from Oviedo or Ourense. But yes, now I am certain: it was Ourense. I had noticed that many of them wore these orange scarves that one can also see in the photo of the news article.you may have been seeing a special event for this Ourense diocesan pilgrimage. A huge gathering of nearly 2,000 though most arrived by bus then walked from the Seminario Menor to the cathedral en masse.
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