There I was.....

Kiwi-family · Sep 27, 2017

.....thinking my next camino might be a solo one (finally).....then friends suggested we go together. We would be hubby and me and two to four kids and the other couple with their daughter (same age as our youngest).
They want a pretty route.
They think they couldn't do albergues.
They are thinking three weeks (I'd want at least four!!(
We have travelled together before - in NZ and in Cambodia when our youngest were two.
Most importantly my hubby is keen....so it may well happen (and he has six weeks leave up his sleeve)

Now to choose a route.....

Bradypus · Sep 27, 2017

Kiwi-family said:
.....thinking my next camino might be a solo one (finally).....then friends suggested we go together. We would be hubby and me and two to four kids and the other couple with their daughter (same age as our youngest).

"best laid schemes" and all that! As a confirmed hermit that all sounds like a fair definition of hell to me but thank heavens we are not all the same I hope you find ways to meet everyone's hopes and expectations - sounds like a major planning exercise on your hands. Being so much closer to Spain and with few ties at home it is much easier for me to just sneak off on my own. Deepest sympathies

natefaith · Sep 27, 2017

Bradypus said:
"best laid schemes" and all that! As a confirmed hermit that all sounds like a fair definition of hell to me but thank heavens we are not all the same I hope you find ways to meet everyone's hopes and expectations - sounds like a major planning exercise on your hands. Being so much closer to Spain and with few ties at home it is much easier for me to just sneak off on my own. Deepest sympathies

Haha @Bradypus so what you're saying is that we should NOT invite ourselves and all our children to go with you on any Camino .

Enjoy, @Kiwi-family ! What route are you guys thinking?

Bradypus · Sep 27, 2017

natefaith said:
Haha @Bradypus so what you're saying is that we should NOT invite ourselves and all our children to go with you on any Camino .

@natefaith By this time next week my wife and I should both be walking. However, I like my solitude so much that I will be walking the Via de la Plata but my wife will be walking the Shikoku temple circuit about 11,000km away in Japan

Paladina · Sep 27, 2017

Bradypus said:
@natefaith By this time next week my wife and I should both be walking. However, I like my solitude so much that I will be walking the Via de la Plata but my wife will be walking the Shikoku temple circuit about 11,000km away in Japan

The ideal solution for a marriage of true minds and divergent paths! I wish you a joint and several buen camino.

David · Sep 27, 2017

I'm with Bradypus - sounds like a literal hell on earth!! But, for those entangled in all that joyful stuff - enjoy!!

Oh dear .. can you just imagine ...... where the silence, where the thoughts .. where the keeping a bottle to yourself!

Aidan21 · Sep 27, 2017

Wow, you are one very resilient lady; 6 weeks, 4 adults, 3 - 5 children and hundreds of kilometres. Never mind the 24 hours travelling from NZ to Spain. Respect!!!!!

JillGat · Sep 27, 2017

And the fun of finding lodging that can accommodate you all... Let us know how it goes!

KinkyOne · Sep 27, 2017

Kiwi-family said:
.....thinking my next camino might be a solo one (finally).....then friends suggested we go together. We would be hubby and me and two to four kids and the other couple with their daughter (same age as our youngest).
They want a pretty route.
They think they couldn't do albergues.
They are thinking three weeks (I'd want at least four!!(
We have travelled together before - in NZ and in Cambodia when our youngest were two.
Most importantly my hubby is keen....so it may well happen (and he has six weeks leave up his sleeve)

Now to choose a route.....

I would suggest Madrid-Frances-Invierno-Sanabres Combo. Not too hard to plan stages where albergues and other accommodation is in the same village/town. I'm guessing here but I assume your friends haven't walked any Camino so far. This Combo is easy to start as you fly directly to Madrid which is a great place to spend at least two days and deal with jet lag. Also it gives you diverse terrain to Segovia with a climb thrown in at the start, followed with flat Tierra de Campos and Meseta to Astorga (not to mention beautiful Leon and "experience" of Camino Frances from Sahagun to Ponferrada for them) and gradually more hilly but unbelievably beautiful Invierno which connects with Sanabres (again a bit more people) in A Laxe. And of course not so touristy entering to Santiago at the end.

domigee · Sep 27, 2017

You can do it @kiwifamily9
and you know it! Enjoy!

KinkyOne · Sep 28, 2017

domigee said:
You can do it @kiwifamily9
and you know it! Enjoy!

I think that's another Kiwi Family

Kiwi-family · Sep 28, 2017

natefaith said:
Haha @Bradypus so what you're saying is that we should NOT invite ourselves and all our children to go with you on any Camino .

Enjoy, @Kiwi-family ! What route are you guys thinking?

Oh how I'd love to meet @Bradypus en route;-)

@natefaith Absolutely no set plans. To be honest, we think these guys may change their mind if push came to shove....but then again they DID come to Cambodia with us as their very first ever travel overseas, and they have subsequently done some extended travelling, including through India, so they aren't too squeamish.
My initial thought is Salvador/Primitivo as they would love the scenery and Rob (my husband) has not done these routes. But I'm aware the kids and I walked some very long distances through these sections so I need to see if it is possible to keep days around 20km. How dreadful to have to do some Camino research;-)

David said:
I'm with Bradypus - sounds like a literal hell on earth!! But, for those entangled in all that joyful stuff - enjoy!!

Oh dear .. can you just imagine ...... where the silence, where the thoughts .. where the keeping a bottle to yourself!

Now this may come as a surprise - even when I walked with husband, four kids, Seriously Extroverted brother-in-law and aged father-in-law, we had long periods of walking in complete silence. And if my journal is anything to go by there was plenty of time for thoughts......and I'm not a drinker - but the ability to share a ten-pack of ice-creams on a hot day is actually an advantage ;-)

Aidan21 said:
Wow, you are one very resilient lady; 6 weeks, 4 adults, 3 - 5 children and hundreds of kilometres. Never mind the 24 hours travelling from NZ to Spain. Respect!!!!!

At the risk of sounding obnoxious....no respect needed. The pleasure will be all mine (even the bit where travel time is actually another ten hours as we take cheap flights ;-) ) No resilience needed - it will be the highlight of my year if it comes off.

off to gronze.com.......

nycwalking · Sep 28, 2017

Vaya con Dios. And, a double buen camino to you all.

scott the farmer · Sep 28, 2017

I would stick with the frances it will offer more options and flexability which would suit your diverse group
A start in ronchaville would be easier

domigee · Sep 28, 2017

KinkyOne said:
I think that's another Kiwi Family

Oops!

Bogong · Sep 28, 2017

The really good thing about it is the very long plane trip across. If they show signs of misbehaving as early as that at least you can ask them to go and play outside!

Bogong(ducking for cover)

Panama Francis · Sep 28, 2017

If you are thinking the Camino Frances, make reservations well in advance for such a large group! Good luck and Buen Camino!

Kiwi-family · Sep 28, 2017

Panama Francis said:
make reservations well in advance for such a large group!

It's all a matter of perspective- our first camino was done with eleven of us (all eight kids and grandpa), last year's with half the kids - and grandpa and uncle and Daddy joined us for three weeks.
We've been mostly spared accommodation woes (except on the Primitivo where there was quite a bed race but I hear new albergues have opened)......but we just might make reservations and try a planned camino for a change. As we will be walking shorter distances than we are accustomed to (at our friends' request), the kids and I will be spending more time each day sketching and painting, and also goi g out of our way to find people to speak Spanish with (and ask if they'll correct our Spanish journal entries)....so even if we want to walk farther we'll have other things to occupy ourselves.

Panama Francis · Sep 28, 2017

Kiwi-family said:
It's all a matter of perspective- our first camino was done with eleven of us (all eight kids and grandpa), last year's with half the kids - and grandpa and uncle and Daddy joined us for three weeks.
We've been mostly spared accommodation woes (except on the Primitivo where there was quite a bed race but I hear new albergues have opened)......but we just might make reservations and try a planned camino for a change. As we will be walking shorter distances than we are accustomed to (at our friends' request), the kids and I will be spending more time each day sketching and painting, and also goi g out of our way to find people to speak Spanish with (and ask if they'll correct our Spanish journal entries)....so even if we want to walk farther we'll have other things to occupy ourselves.

Sounds like a wonderful adventure to me. Hope you enjoy every moment of your planning and your walking. Buen Camino, one and all!

HedaP · Sep 29, 2017

Kiwi-family said:
As we will be walking shorter distances than we are accustomed to (at our friends' request), the kids and I will be spending more time each day sketching and painting, and also goi g out of our way to find people to speak Spanish with (and ask if they'll correct our Spanish journal entries)....so even if we want to walk farther we'll have other things to occupy ourselves.

And hopefully blogging again?

Kiwi-family · Sep 29, 2017

Panama Francis said:
Sounds like a wonderful adventure to me. Hope you enjoy every moment of your planning and your walking. Buen Camino, one and all!

Your positivity made me smile. Indeed it is a wonderful adventure. I am so accustomed to having all these people round all the time that even though I am an introvert I would be lost without them! I love our camino-ing because it gives me hours every day where the kids are occupied safely and I can be "alone" (or fr enough away from them that I can have my own thoughts). And I do love travelling with them. But for those moments that are challenging we quote Mark Twain, “I have found out that there ain’t no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them.”
We always end up in love.

HedaP said:
And hopefully blogging again?

Really? I was thinking this might be the first trip I take and don't blog! Maybe I should;-)

HedaP · Sep 29, 2017

Kiwi-family said:
Really? I was thinking this might be the first trip I take and don't blog! Maybe I should;-)

No?!!
It would be a definite yes please from me.
You can post in Spanish if you like. I’m up for a challenge! Might be the incentive I need to improve my Spanish. But if you do, make sure you post a lot of pictures.

Kiwi-family · Sep 29, 2017

HedaP said:
No?!!
It would be a definite yes please from me.
You can post in Spanish if you like. I’m up for a challenge! Might be the incentive I need to improve my Spanish. But if you do, make sure you post a lot of pictures.

No puedo "postar" en español (look, I'm already making words up!....if I start thinking "publication" = "publicación" I might try "publicar" instead of postar....or I could stick with escribir I suppose, but can you use that for blogging?) Me gusta immediate feedback (would responsa immediata work?...you can see I'm really not up to blogging in Spanish.
Although I must say I am now thinking about it;-)

HedaP · Sep 29, 2017

Kiwi-family said:
No puedo "postar" en español (look, I'm already making words up!....if I start thinking "publication" = "publicación" I might try "publicar" instead of postar....or I could stick with escribir I suppose, but can you use that for blogging?) Me gusta immediate feedback (would responsa immediata work?...you can see I'm really not up to blogging in Spanish.
Although I must say I am now thinking about it;-)

Oh go for it! If it’s like that, there’s a chance I might understand it.

Bogong · Sep 29, 2017

Kiwi-family said:
No puedo "postar" en español (look, I'm already making words up!....if I start thinking "publication" = "publicación" I might try "publicar" instead of postar....or I could stick with escribir I suppose, but can you use that for blogging?) Me gusta immediate feedback (would responsa immediata work?...you can see I'm really not up to blogging in Spanish.
Although I must say I am now thinking about it;-)

Es valle. Saludos y que le vaya bien

De colores

Bogong

Bob from L.A. ! · Sep 30, 2017

Bradypus said:
"best laid schemes" and all that! As a confirmed hermit that all sounds like a fair definition of hell to me but thank heavens we are not all the same I hope you find ways to meet everyone's hopes and expectations - sounds like a major planning exercise on your hands. Being so much closer to Spain and with few ties at home it is much easier for me to just sneak off on my own. Deepest sympathies

@Bradypus - LOL!!!!!!! You read my mind about the definition of Hell! Funny one..

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There I was.....

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