Yossi Fuchs
Member
- Time of past OR future Camino
- May 2016
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With respect I cannot disagree more, about both of these things.In my opinion, this section is outright boring and worth doing just for the challenge of walking the whole Camino. If you want to meditate, you can do better at home.
In my opinion, this section is outright boring and worth doing just for the challenge of walking the whole Camino
In my opinion, this section is outright boring and worth doing just for the challenge of walking the whole Camino.
Mine too!! Every step!Unfortunately, you went with big expectations that the meseta would deliver something in particular, and that can set you up for disappointment. I'm glad it gave you a sense of completion, at least.
The meseta is one of my favourite parts of a longer journey, and one year I walked was more special than the other.
There are many many things that we could "do better" at home, and that's what most people in the world prefer to do!
Last year on what turned out to be my last Camino day into Moratinos in 34 degree heat, I spied a solitary tree in the middle of a sun scorched field. I thought to myself “that’s me that is”.
I agree completely. For me, walking the Camino is not about checking the boxes. Taken out of context, perhaps the Meseta could be considered boring, but in the context of a complete Camino Frances, it is an essential and meaningful part of the experience.For me walking the "whole Camino" means walking from wherever I choose to start to my final destination. That might be SJPDP, Burgos, Leon, Sarria or even Lavacolla. The total distance walked is not the issue for me but skipping sections would completely undermine my experience. Taking in all that the route offers - even the "boring" or the "ugly" - is an integral part of the journey. For me walking all the way is not a "challenge" - it is part of the very essence of what a pilgrimage is.
Having just returned from Spain, I would like to share with you some facts and thoughts:
Two year ago, May 2016, I walked with two friends from Pamplona to Burgos, took a bus from Burgos to Leon, walked on to Santiago, then to Muxia and down to Finesterre. Altogether some 650 km.
Last year, May 2017, My wife joined me and we walked from SJPP to Pamplona in 4 days (the first day just to Orisson). from Pamplona we travelled by train to spend 4 lovely days in Barcelona.
This year I felt a strong desire to complete the Camino by walking the missing section; the Meseta, from Burgos to Leon. We skipped it two years ago for lack of time and when weighing the pros and cons of which section to skip, the Meseta "won" for being the least interesting part of the Camino. So early this year I started looking into it again, mainly in this very useful forum. Most opinions I read were glorifying the Meseta as "spiritual" allowing you to look deeply into your soul, meditate, etc. So, May 22nd 2018, my wife and I took a flight to Madrid and on by Alsa bus to Burgos. The next day we started on our 8 day walk to Leon. We were not so lucky with the weather; it mostly ranged from almost raining to raining... Arriving in Leon we stayed at Albergue San Francisco which I highly recommend (take a private room if you can spare the 30 euros). Leon is a lovely city and we arrived early enough in the day to take in most of the city's beautiful sights. The next day we took an early bus to Madrid and spent 4 days in this beautiful city.
In conclusion: I feel a sense of accomplishment, having completed the Camino Frances, alas in three years... I must say though that for me the "spiritual" thing did not work at all. In my opinion, this section is outright boring and worth doing just for the challenge of walking the whole Camino. If you want to meditate, you can do better at home.
Bottom line: I am glad I did it for the right reason for me...
Having just returned from Spain, I would like to share with you some facts and thoughts:
Two year ago, May 2016, I walked with two friends from Pamplona to Burgos, took a bus from Burgos to Leon, walked on to Santiago, then to Muxia and down to Finesterre. Altogether some 650 km.
Last year, May 2017, My wife joined me and we walked from SJPP to Pamplona in 4 days (the first day just to Orisson). from Pamplona we travelled by train to spend 4 lovely days in Barcelona.
This year I felt a strong desire to complete the Camino by walking the missing section; the Meseta, from Burgos to Leon. We skipped it two years ago for lack of time and when weighing the pros and cons of which section to skip, the Meseta "won" for being the least interesting part of the Camino. So early this year I started looking into it again, mainly in this very useful forum. Most opinions I read were glorifying the Meseta as "spiritual" allowing you to look deeply into your soul, meditate, etc. So, May 22nd 2018, my wife and I took a flight to Madrid and on by Alsa bus to Burgos. The next day we started on our 8 day walk to Leon. We were not so lucky with the weather; it mostly ranged from almost raining to raining... Arriving in Leon we stayed at Albergue San Francisco which I highly recommend (take a private room if you can spare the 30 euros). Leon is a lovely city and we arrived early enough in the day to take in most of the city's beautiful sights. The next day we took an early bus to Madrid and spent 4 days in this beautiful city.
In conclusion: I feel a sense of accomplishment, having completed the Camino Frances, alas in three years... I must say though that for me the "spiritual" thing did not work at all. In my opinion, this section is outright boring and worth doing just for the challenge of walking the whole Camino. If you want to meditate, you can do better at home.
Bottom line: I am glad I did it for the right reason for me...
1 minute agoHaving just returned from Spain, I would like to share with you some facts and thoughts:
Two year ago, May 2016, I walked with two friends from Pamplona to Burgos, took a bus from Burgos to Leon, walked on to Santiago, then to Muxia and down to Finesterre. Altogether some 650 km.
Last year, May 2017, My wife joined me and we walked from SJPP to Pamplona in 4 days (the first day just to Orisson). from Pamplona we travelled by train to spend 4 lovely days in Barcelona.
This year I felt a strong desire to complete the Camino by walking the missing section; the Meseta, from Burgos to Leon. We skipped it two years ago for lack of time and when weighing the pros and cons of which section to skip, the Meseta "won" for being the least interesting part of the Camino. So early this year I started looking into it again, mainly in this very useful forum. Most opinions I read were glorifying the Meseta as "spiritual" allowing you to look deeply into your soul, meditate, etc. So, May 22nd 2018, my wife and I took a flight to Madrid and on by Alsa bus to Burgos. The next day we started on our 8 day walk to Leon. We were not so lucky with the weather; it mostly ranged from almost raining to raining... Arriving in Leon we stayed at Albergue San Francisco which I highly recommend (take a private room if you can spare the 30 euros). Leon is a lovely city and we arrived early enough in the day to take in most of the city's beautiful sights. The next day we took an early bus to Madrid and spent 4 days in this beautiful city.
In conclusion: I feel a sense of accomplishment, having completed the Camino Frances, alas in three years... I must say though that for me the "spiritual" thing did not work at all. In my opinion, this section is outright boring and worth doing just for the challenge of walking the whole Camino. If you want to meditate, you can do better at home.
Bottom line: I am glad I did it for the right reason for me...
I have mentioned it on here before, but the section of the Camino Frances called the meseta seems to get quite a bit of discussion time on here and in some guidebooks, blogs etc. That is odd, because that section is so similar to many other places in the world. I wonder why it seems to invoke mysticism from some pilgrims, dislike from others, and to many like me it invokes nonchalance. To me it is just a section of the Camino. If one were to route out an 800 kilometre walk in many places in the world, it very may well have an agricultural section of plains and rolling hills just like the meseta of the Camino Frances.
I never really divided the Camino Frances into sections like that. Liking some more than others. Dreading some like it is a death march, ha ha. I am just happy to wake up very morning, lace up the shoes and get to walk across Spain. So many of the faithful poor will never have that luxury.
Amen.I am glad I did it for the right reason for me...
It is designed to be taken from head to tail, not only physically but also philosophically. And I can see that it purpose is lost when it is done in pieces.
While, like others, I tend to disagree with what you wrote in this post, I can see where you are coming from in your response to the original poster.
It is true that one can start the Camino pretty much anywhere. The length and the geography will differ, but it will still be the Camino. It is also true that many people (especially Europeans, it seems) do the Camino quite successfully in pieces.
But it is also true that the vast majority of people discussing their experience of the Camino and the place of the Meseta in their experience, are people who have walked from the SJPP to Santiago de Compostela. That is a route of a particular length, with a particular geography. The experience of the Meseta in the middle of that journey is different than the experience of the Meseta would be at the beginning, or at the end, or by itself.
While everyone's Camino is different and unique, there are common patterns that, while not universal, appear to be quite frequent for those who walk that particular route as a whole: dealing with physical challenges at the beginning, spending time in introspection in the middle, etc. Someone walking from Le Puy, I would imagine, wouldn't find Navarre as physically challenging as someone starting in the Pyrenees. Someone starting their first Camino in Burgos might find the Meseta more physically challenging, which might distract from the introspection that others find there, So to go to the Meseta with expectations based on the experience of people for whom it had a very different place in the overall structure of their journey, as the OP did, is to set oneself up for disappointment. (Although one could say that taking any expectations to the Camino is to set oneself up for disappointment.)
My personal experience of the Meseta, while very meditative, was not at all like the introspective journeys into my life that others describe. I wasn't reliving moments of my past or thinking about my future or character. I was very much "in the present". If I was thinking about anything other than where I was at that moment and what I was seeing, I was thinking about how far I had walked that day and how far I still had to walk.Yet, I found the Meseta to be one of my favourite parts of the Camino. I didn't find it quite as monotonous as I was prepared for. There were hills and gullies. You could be 250 metres from a village and not see it at all. There were rivers and canals. And, more than anywhere else on the Camino, I really got the feeling that the Camino was central to all of the villages or towns we passed through. Whether it was the romanesque church in Fromista or the singing nuns in Carrion de los Condes or the Mudejar architecture in Sahagun, I felt that the places in the Meseta had as much to offer as their counterparts in any other part of the Camino.
Absolutely correct!!Ha, ha! One either loves it or hates it. That's OK.
You either get it or you don't get it.
You have to do the meseta alone to get it.
Jill
Respect!Having just returned from Spain, I would like to share with you some facts and thoughts:
Two year ago, May 2016, I walked with two friends from Pamplona to Burgos, took a bus from Burgos to Leon, walked on to Santiago, then to Muxia and down to Finesterre. Altogether some 650 km.
Last year, May 2017, My wife joined me and we walked from SJPP to Pamplona in 4 days (the first day just to Orisson). from Pamplona we travelled by train to spend 4 lovely days in Barcelona.
This year I felt a strong desire to complete the Camino by walking the missing section; the Meseta, from Burgos to Leon. We skipped it two years ago for lack of time and when weighing the pros and cons of which section to skip, the Meseta "won" for being the least interesting part of the Camino. So early this year I started looking into it again, mainly in this very useful forum. Most opinions I read were glorifying the Meseta as "spiritual" allowing you to look deeply into your soul, meditate, etc. So, May 22nd 2018, my wife and I took a flight to Madrid and on by Alsa bus to Burgos. The next day we started on our 8 day walk to Leon. We were not so lucky with the weather; it mostly ranged from almost raining to raining... Arriving in Leon we stayed at Albergue San Francisco which I highly recommend (take a private room if you can spare the 30 euros). Leon is a lovely city and we arrived early enough in the day to take in most of the city's beautiful sights. The next day we took an early bus to Madrid and spent 4 days in this beautiful city.
In conclusion: I feel a sense of accomplishment, having completed the Camino Frances, alas in three years... I must say though that for me the "spiritual" thing did not work at all. In my opinion, this section is outright boring and worth doing just for the challenge of walking the whole Camino. If you want to meditate, you can do better at home.
Bottom line: I am glad I did it for the right reason for me...
walking the whole Camino.
The most common mistake made by most pilgrims , we recommend 40 - 42 days [6 weeks] to all our friends.We skipped it two years ago for lack of time
There is a beautiful church on the path in this section which accommodates a dozen pilgrims within its walls.... I must say though that for me the "spiritual" thing did not work at all.
On our return for a second Camino Frances then later the Norte , Madrid and Primitivo Camino's we have never walked the last 100km ......on the bus to SDC then have a walk to Muxia and Finisterre.the Meseta "won" for being the least interesting part of the Camino.
Unfortunately, you went with big expectations that the meseta would deliver something in particular, and that can set you up for disappointment. I'm glad it gave you a sense of completion, at least.
The meseta is one of my favourite parts of a longer journey, and one year I walked was more special than the other.
There are many many things that we could "do better" at home, and that's what most people in the world prefer to do!
I live in Quebec and was born in Saguenay (5 hours north of Montréal), so October will not be cold for me, and Nature is wonderful in Fall, particularly the light. I'm not a fan of heat and crowd. I'm soooo looking forward to walk.COLD October ,
Enjoy the peace in this month.
I love this - I felt the same way.I have just arrived back after completing the Camino from SJPP to Santiago, Finestera and Muxía. I walked with a friend and while planning our trip I read a lot about how “boring” the Meseta was and how many pilgrims caught a bus to miss this section. So going over I was concerned about what to expect. Well, sitiing in a room one night I asked my friend “when do we get to the Meseta?” She laughed and said “we’ve done it days ago”. Thinking back I recalled this was the long stretch of paths. I didn’t find it boring. In fact I recall this is when I did a lot of thinking about my life at home and how lucky I was to have a great mother, husband, son, daughter in law and two beautiful granddaughters.
Hi YossiHaving just returned from Spain, I would like to share with you some facts and thoughts:
Two year ago, May 2016, I walked with two friends from Pamplona to Burgos, took a bus from Burgos to Leon, walked on to Santiago, then to Muxia and down to Finesterre. Altogether some 650 km.
Last year, May 2017, My wife joined me and we walked from SJPP to Pamplona in 4 days (the first day just to Orisson). from Pamplona we travelled by train to spend 4 lovely days in Barcelona.
This year I felt a strong desire to complete the Camino by walking the missing section; the Meseta, from Burgos to Leon. We skipped it two years ago for lack of time and when weighing the pros and cons of which section to skip, the Meseta "won" for being the least interesting part of the Camino. So early this year I started looking into it again, mainly in this very useful forum. Most opinions I read were glorifying the Meseta as "spiritual" allowing you to look deeply into your soul, meditate, etc. So, May 22nd 2018, my wife and I took a flight to Madrid and on by Alsa bus to Burgos. The next day we started on our 8 day walk to Leon. We were not so lucky with the weather; it mostly ranged from almost raining to raining... Arriving in Leon we stayed at Albergue San Francisco which I highly recommend (take a private room if you can spare the 30 euros). Leon is a lovely city and we arrived early enough in the day to take in most of the city's beautiful sights. The next day we took an early bus to Madrid and spent 4 days in this beautiful city.
In conclusion: I feel a sense of accomplishment, having completed the Camino Frances, alas in three years... I must say though that for me the "spiritual" thing did not work at all. In my opinion, this section is outright boring and worth doing just for the challenge of walking the whole Camino. If you want to meditate, you can do better at home.
Bottom line: I am glad I did it for the right reason for me...
maybe beyond.
Agree with you. The hill is called "The Mule killer"- and the sight on top of it was fantastic. I loved the meseta.We loved the hill after Castrojeriz. It was hot last year, so we were up at before dawn and made it up the hill as the sun was coming up. Incredible view all around and one of my favorite scenes from the entire 800 km. And the cafe on the right after the 17KM of nothing... the proprietress there had a beautiful soul and delicious French omelets. I won't forget her kindness to my daughter. Yeah, the meseta wasn't so bad.
Yossi, congratulations. I'm glad you did it for the right reason for you!
And...
With respect I cannot disagree more, about both of these things.
But that is my experience.
Anyone who wonders should try it and see for themselves.
Having just returned from Spain, I would like to share with you some facts and thoughts:
Two year ago, May 2016, I walked with two friends from Pamplona to Burgos, took a bus from Burgos to Leon, walked on to Santiago, then to Muxia and down to Finesterre. Altogether some 650 km.
Last year, May 2017, My wife joined me and we walked from SJPP to Pamplona in 4 days (the first day just to Orisson). from Pamplona we travelled by train to spend 4 lovely days in Barcelona.
This year I felt a strong desire to complete the Camino by walking the missing section; the Meseta, from Burgos to Leon. We skipped it two years ago for lack of time and when weighing the pros and cons of which section to skip, the Meseta "won" for being the least interesting part of the Camino. So early this year I started looking into it again, mainly in this very useful forum. Most opinions I read were glorifying the Meseta as "spiritual" allowing you to look deeply into your soul, meditate, etc. So, May 22nd 2018, my wife and I took a flight to Madrid and on by Alsa bus to Burgos. The next day we started on our 8 day walk to Leon. We were not so lucky with the weather; it mostly ranged from almost raining to raining... Arriving in Leon we stayed at Albergue San Francisco which I highly recommend (take a private room if you can spare the 30 euros). Leon is a lovely city and we arrived early enough in the day to take in most of the city's beautiful sights. The next day we took an early bus to Madrid and spent 4 days in this beautiful city.
In conclusion: I feel a sense of accomplishment, having completed the Camino Frances, alas in three years... I must say though that for me the "spiritual" thing did not work at all. In my opinion, this section is outright boring and worth doing just for the challenge of walking the whole Camino. If you want to meditate, you can do better at home.
Bottom line: I am glad I did it for the right reason for me...
Agree with you. The hill is called "The Mule killer"- and the sight on top of it was fantastic. I loved the meseta.
I must say though that for me the "spiritual" thing did not work at all. In my opinion, this section is outright boring and worth doing just for the challenge of walking the whole Camino. If you want to meditate, you can do better at home.
But it is also true that the vast majority of people discussing their experience of the Camino and the place of the Meseta in their experience, are people who have walked from the SJPP to Santiago de Compostela.
That is a route of a particular length, with a particular geography. The experience of the Meseta in the middle of that journey is different than the experience of the Meseta would be at the beginning, or at the end, or by itself.
While everyone's Camino is different and unique, there are common patterns that, while not universal, appear to be quite frequent for those who walk that particular route as a whole: dealing with physical challenges at the beginning, spending time in introspection in the middle, etc. Someone walking from Le Puy, I would imagine, wouldn't find Navarre as physically challenging as someone starting in the Pyrenees. Someone starting their first Camino in Burgos might find the Meseta more physically challenging, which might distract from the introspection that others find there, So to go to the Meseta with expectations based on the experience of people for whom it had a very different place in the overall structure of their journey, as the OP did, is to set oneself up for disappointment. (Although one could say that taking any expectations to the Camino is to set oneself up for disappointment.)
My personal experience of the Meseta, while very meditative, was not at all like the introspective journeys into my life that others describe. I wasn't reliving moments of my past or thinking about my future or character. I was very much "in the present". If I was thinking about anything other than where I was at that moment and what I was seeing, I was thinking about how far I had walked that day and how far I still had to walk.
Yet, I found the Meseta to be one of my favourite parts of the Camino. I didn't find it quite as monotonous as I was prepared for. There were hills and gullies. You could be 250 metres from a village and not see it at all. There were rivers and canals. And, more than anywhere else on the Camino, I really got the feeling that the Camino was central to all of the villages or towns we passed through. Whether it was the romanesque church in Fromista or the singing nuns in Carrion de los Condes or the Mudejar architecture in Sahagun, I felt that the places in the Meseta had as much to offer as their counterparts in any other part of the Camino.
Absolutely true that statistically most Camino's don't start in SJPP. More start in Sarria than anywhere else. SJPP comes second. But I don't think that the people walking from Sarria are discussing their experience of the Meseta. Nor the people who walk the Norte. And I fully acknowledge that some walk the Camino in sections. My experience was that these seem to be the minority. I think, all in all, I still believe that, for those discussing their experience of the Meseta on forums like this, those who experienced it in a Camino from SJPP are in the majority. (And I write that as someone who started in Roncesvalles.)And statistically, I don't think that most Caminos commence at SJPP, nor that all who start there, walk every step to Compostela in one go.
Absolutely true that statistically most Camino's don't start in SJPP. More start in Sarria than anywhere else. SJPP comes second. But I don't think that the people walking from Sarria are discussing their experience of the Meseta. Nor the people who walk the Norte. And I fully acknowledge that some walk the Camino in sections. My experience was that these seem to be the minority. I think, all in all, I still believe that, for those discussing their experience of the Meseta on forums like this, those who experienced it in a Camino from SJPP are in the majority. (And I write that as someone who started in Roncesvalles.)
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