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I really do not want to argue.First of all I would argue with "paying a fortune", especially if you are from a nearby country and travel to the Camino isn't too expensive. As for the rest, I think you answered your own question already ;-) Buen Camino, SY
Some are walking in the footsteps of countless pilgrims who have gone before. Some are hoping, for what? There are other Pilgrim journeys in other parts of the world. So, why, the Camino to Santiago?
Too true - and a pity, that.IMHO the era of the early adapters, the pioneers, is long past.
IMHO the era of the early adapters, the pioneers, is long past.
Too true - and a pity, that.
I sometimes also wonder - why some people spend literally many thousands of dollars to sort-of-walk the Camino in a posh guided tour like this one. I suppose for the cocktail party bragging rights, I don't know.
That part of the world is not my 'habitat,' fortunately.
Only $6,695.
A bargain.
But that doesn't include airfare. Or maybe these people will be using their own private jets.
Can you imagine paying all that money and then having such a clipped, uninvolved experience of the Camino?
Welllll...given that other companies offer such 'exclusive journeys,' too, we may be surprised how many there are, especially after Sarria.Are the $6,695 tour participants - as fascinating a topic as they are - the ones that are the major reason for the increase of the numbers of people on the caminos in Spain?
IMHO the era of the early adapters, the pioneers, is long past.
Actually, no. I think aloud, and then I just might know what I want to say! The wonderful contributions on the thread tell the story I was trying to ask about. There is surely something deep beyond us all, and when I referred to the fortune spent, I meant by those who travel from the ends of the earth to walk and be pilgrims. I did not intend to be looking for argument or agreement. I just was wondering why, just why, the Camino is such a magnet...and so thanks to those who have shared their thoughts.Only $6,695.
A bargain.
But that doesn't include airfare. Or maybe these people will be using their own private jets.
(@kirkie, is this the kind of thing you meant in your OP?)
I heard about the Camino by Paulo Coelho long time ago and now it is my turn. Leaving from St.George,Utah USA and starting in SJPP on May 24. Wish me luck.First of all I would argue with "paying a fortune", especially if you are from a nearby country and travel to the Camino isn't too expensive. As for the rest, I think you answered your own question already ;-) Buen Camino, SY
Only $6,695.
A bargain.
Pilgrim A: What's your daily allowance?
Pilgrim B: I'm trying to keep it below $669.
Mister Nelson, welcome aboard, your first post. We are currently in the same gorgeous city in the best looking state. You will do fine. No pares de caminar.I heard about the Camino by Paulo Coelho long time ago and now it is my turn. Leaving from St.George,Utah USA and starting in SJPP on May 24. Wish me luck.
Beautifully written. However one starts a Camino, I expect the end is much different.For what it is worth.
Since finishing a career where I saw enough of life to feel the need for some space both in spiritual and more down to earth terms. Walking a Camino was suggested to me, 2015 aged 54 I had never even heard of the Camino de Santiago. Like many others I chose the Frances as I felt it was the most accessible for me and just to see how I got on. I am not religious although I was christened. I do have views on organised religion but can take quiet moments sitting in an empty church and that is where, for me, the essence of Camino can be found. To paraphrase Supertramp "it's in the quietest moment's". That is why it does not really matter why anyone starts a Camino, if you go with an open mind how can you not be altered in some positive way along the path. Act's of kindness remembered and passed on, stories told and heard, people met and views exchanged. It is all positive and reinforces our humanity irrespective of what our beliefs are or where are starting point is.
Since retiring I have walked several long distance footpaths in the UK, travelling in much the same way as I walk my Camino's. There is a difference. It may be subtle but it is significant. There is a real sense of "belonging" to a Camino, you become part of the path and the path gives back in what ever form. I see a painted yellow arrow and feel like I am amongst friends, reassured. Long distance walking on other non-Camino routes are great but lack an "X" factor. That is not to say that they are not worth walking it is just that they are an "A" to "B" route with no overtones or common bond. Maybe I am wrong but that is just my take on it.
Completing the Primitivo some months after the Frances I noticed that the final concrete post's had been well and truly covered with graffiti. Nothing meaningful or deep just an aggressive variation of "Kilroy was here". Asked I may have said that the Camino Frances has now become to many what InterRail was to my generation.
But that is the Frances. The Via de la Plata and Camino Sanabres took me nearly 7 weeks and I hardly saw anyone. On the Levante I reckon I saw 8 pilgrims up to the point I reached Zamora. In late August I will walk the Ruta de la Lana and expect I will see even less people on the path. Original experiences are therefore still available but not if you expect crowds and albergues at every stop.
Money. A cheap holiday ? The commitment and effort needed is a long way away from sitting back on a beach for a month. Surely anyone expecting that is going to be going home quite soon after starting. Some may see it as a cheap holiday but as long as they complete the Camino they will have gained something positive from the experience and hopefully pass the light on in whatever way. Does it really matter if that light is a flicker or the full beam of a lighthouse ?
I am grateful to the Camino's I have walked. For the people I have met, the places I have seen, the quiet moment's and the experiences I have had. Maybe it is a generational thing, people do change and times move on, that will be as true for the spirit and direction of Camino as for everyone else reading this.
Buen Camino,
Don.
It is also a lot shorter than the walk to JerusalemBecause I already walked to Rome and Jeruzalem is not too safe at the moment
Well..that depends on the starting point.It is also a lot shorter than the walk to Jerusalem
You are currently well equipped to speak on the subject! Hope all is going well for you. Take care!Well..that depends on the starting point.
IMHO the era of the early adapters, the pioneers, is long past.
I heard about the Camino by Paulo Coelho long time ago
My rambling thoughts
If you ask 10 walkers why they are doing the Camino, I believe a minority will say "for spiritual reasons
But I, for one, will be happy when nobody else writes a book or makes a movie
I guess I'll write a book! :::cackling::
Exactly. The long distance trails in the US, while beautiful, have almost no infrastructure. You must carry tent, cooking supplies and food, often for a week at a time before resupply is available, and then you may have to hike off trail to get them. Being older, that's all too much hardship for me. While I love the outdoors, I want a roof over my head at the end of the day, and the lovely caminos provide that AND a hot meal, too!I walked my mini Cami Sant Jaume for the romance of it. I'm not catholic, not spiritual, not an art historian, not a Spainophile or oenophile or gourmet. My photos reveal my interests: ancient bridges, tilework, plants, water fountains, small architectural details. I walked 50 miles in 5 days, got very hot, hungry, stronger, happy, liberated. That was my greatest feeling: liberated from obligations to my family until I got home again. So free!
I'm American, and my trip cost me about $100 per day, all told. I stayed with friends sometimes, and chose the cheapest hostel or hotel I could find near my route. I could not find any albergs in Catalunya, although I did later, after I got home. I also went shopping in Barcelona before going home: fabric and chocolate and wooden spoons.
I have a friend heading out tomorrow morning for a few weeks alone on The Long Trail in New England, but it doesn't go through any towns, and she is worried about food and water, and weight, and equipment; and she is a small woman walking alone. I hope she goes as far as she wants to, whatever that is.
The Camino infrastructure makes the expense and distance from home worthwhile.
That's what I think.
My rambling thoughts:
The Camino was originally a religious journey.
Then it became a religious/spiritual journey.
Then movies and books, and more movies and books, came out and now it is a fad.
If you ask 10 walkers why they are doing the Camino, I believe a minority will say "for spiritual reasons."
I lead small groups of 7-8 people on the Camino.
I do this to pay for my OWN long distance walking, the ONLY prescription that helps my MCS.
Many who book with me are people who either
1) cannot get 6 weeks off of work, or
2) are disabled and can't carry a backpack, or
3) do not want to sleep in crowded albergues or race for a bed.
4) haven't traveled to another country and are afraid to go walk alone
All have different reasons for walking, but a minority are Catholic and walk to have their sins forgiven.
However, I HAVE had very wonderful spiritual or religious people in my groups, and at least a few who made every Mass in every village every day.
I ask questions these days before I take people into my small group, and I do my best to educate my walkers and encourage them to be good guests while on the Camino.
I have also had a few rotten tomatoes in my groups; people who were rude to taxi drivers and elderly hotel owners; people who didn't respect the property of others; people who drank themselves into oblivion; people who were "ugly Americans" but from other countries too. It's been a mixed bag.
I've heard different opinions from hospitaleros.
Some LOVE the pilgrims and the money they bring in.
Others feel they're like destroying locusts and wish they'd all go away, especially toward the tail end of the season.
I've learned a lot.
For one thing, I've learned (shockingly) that is it WOMEN who leave most of the nasty toilet paper and feminine product trash along the route. I just have a hard time wrapping my head around that one. I often wonder what these women would do if I squatted to take a break in THEIR front yard, leaving behind my dirty paper and menstrual pads? They'd probably be out there screaming and calling the police. But they seem to have no problems doing it in someone else's yard. It's crazy.
Myself, I'm so very grateful that I had the opportunity to walk the Camino BEFORE it became a zoo. To walk when there were days we saw no other pilgrims. Just a few short years ago, 2004, that was the case for Joe and I, and I'm SO very grateful. There was a comradery that often no longer exists. We were grateful to have a bed and a piece of bread at the end of the day. We were grateful to meet other pilgrims. We were grateful for peace and quiet and any small consideration. Nobody demanded anything.
It's different now.
And to me, it's sad.
Every year I say, "This will be my last Camino" and my children and friends laugh.
Because then after a month or two, I'm longing for the trail again...
But I, for one, will be happy when nobody else writes a book or makes a movie or a youtube video, and people find something else to challenge them, far, far away from the Camino. And it returns to its original purpose - a pilgrimage, not a cheap vacation.
I shut down my Facebook Group yesterday - the one meant to help new pilgrims plan their Camino. I put a "donativo" button on my website for a month just to see if anyone was willing to give back.
Nada.
So I decided I was willing to help PILGRIMS by sharing information freely, but if tourists wanted it, they could pay for it.
I guess I'll write a book! :::cackling::
This post seems to me to be at times teetering on the debate about what a "real" pilgrim is and what a fraud pilgrim is, with the ones who are religious or "spiritual" getting more points. (But you walk because it is the only thing that helps with your MCS.) Anyway.... well, I won't go into the rest of what I was going to write. Live and let live.
This post seems to me to be at times teetering on the debate about what a "real" pilgrim is and what a fraud pilgrim is
My rambling thoughts:
The Camino was originally a religious journey.
Then it became a religious/spiritual journey.
Then movies and books, and more movies and books, came out and now it is a fad.
If you ask 10 walkers why they are doing the Camino, I believe a minority will say "for spiritual reasons."
I lead small groups of 7-8 people on the Camino.
I do this to pay for my OWN long distance walking, the ONLY prescription that helps my MCS.
Many who book with me are people who either
1) cannot get 6 weeks off of work, or
2) are disabled and can't carry a backpack, or
3) do not want to sleep in crowded albergues or race for a bed.
4) haven't traveled to another country and are afraid to go walk alone
All have different reasons for walking, but a minority are Catholic and walk to have their sins forgiven.
However, I HAVE had very wonderful spiritual or religious people in my groups, and at least a few who made every Mass in every village every day.
I ask questions these days before I take people into my small group, and I do my best to educate my walkers and encourage them to be good guests while on the Camino.
I have also had a few rotten tomatoes in my groups; people who were rude to taxi drivers and elderly hotel owners; people who didn't respect the property of others; people who drank themselves into oblivion; people who were "ugly Americans" but from other countries too. It's been a mixed bag.
I've heard different opinions from hospitaleros.
Some LOVE the pilgrims and the money they bring in.
Others feel they're like destroying locusts and wish they'd all go away, especially toward the tail end of the season.
I've learned a lot.
For one thing, I've learned (shockingly) that is it WOMEN who leave most of the nasty toilet paper and feminine product trash along the route. I just have a hard time wrapping my head around that one. I often wonder what these women would do if I squatted to take a break in THEIR front yard, leaving behind my dirty paper and menstrual pads? They'd probably be out there screaming and calling the police. But they seem to have no problems doing it in someone else's yard. It's crazy.
Myself, I'm so very grateful that I had the opportunity to walk the Camino BEFORE it became a zoo. To walk when there were days we saw no other pilgrims. Just a few short years ago, 2004, that was the case for Joe and I, and I'm SO very grateful. There was a comradery that often no longer exists. We were grateful to have a bed and a piece of bread at the end of the day. We were grateful to meet other pilgrims. We were grateful for peace and quiet and any small consideration. Nobody demanded anything.
It's different now.
And to me, it's sad.
Every year I say, "This will be my last Camino" and my children and friends laugh.
Because then after a month or two, I'm longing for the trail again...
But I, for one, will be happy when nobody else writes a book or makes a movie or a youtube video, and people find something else to challenge them, far, far away from the Camino. And it returns to its original purpose - a pilgrimage, not a cheap vacation.
I shut down my Facebook Group yesterday - the one meant to help new pilgrims plan their Camino. I put a "donativo" button on my website for a month just to see if anyone was willing to give back.
Nada.
So I decided I was willing to help PILGRIMS by sharing information freely, but if tourists wanted it, they could pay for it.
I guess I'll write a book! :::cackling::
For what it is worth.
Since finishing a career where I saw enough of life to feel the need for some space both in spiritual and more down to earth terms. Walking a Camino was suggested to me, 2015 aged 54 I had never even heard of the Camino de Santiago. Like many others I chose the Frances as I felt it was the most accessible for me and just to see how I got on. I am not religious although I was christened. I do have views on organised religion but can take quiet moments sitting in an empty church and that is where, for me, the essence of Camino can be found. To paraphrase Supertramp "it's in the quietest moment's". That is why it does not really matter why anyone starts a Camino, if you go with an open mind how can you not be altered in some positive way along the path. Act's of kindness remembered and passed on, stories told and heard, people met and views exchanged. It is all positive and reinforces our humanity irrespective of what our beliefs are or where are starting point is.
Since retiring I have walked several long distance footpaths in the UK, travelling in much the same way as I walk my Camino's. There is a difference. It may be subtle but it is significant. There is a real sense of "belonging" to a Camino, you become part of the path and the path gives back in what ever form. I see a painted yellow arrow and feel like I am amongst friends, reassured. Long distance walking on other non-Camino routes are great but lack an "X" factor. That is not to say that they are not worth walking it is just that they are an "A" to "B" route with no overtones or common bond. Maybe I am wrong but that is just my take on it.
Completing the Primitivo some months after the Frances I noticed that the final concrete post's had been well and truly covered with graffiti. Nothing meaningful or deep just an aggressive variation of "Kilroy was here". Asked I may have said that the Camino Frances has now become to many what InterRail was to my generation.
But that is the Frances. The Via de la Plata and Camino Sanabres took me nearly 7 weeks and I hardly saw anyone. On the Levante I reckon I saw 8 pilgrims up to the point I reached Zamora. In late August I will walk the Ruta de la Lana and expect I will see even less people on the path. Original experiences are therefore still available but not if you expect crowds and albergues at every stop.
Money. A cheap holiday ? The commitment and effort needed is a long way away from sitting back on a beach for a month. Surely anyone expecting that is going to be going home quite soon after starting. Some may see it as a cheap holiday but as long as they complete the Camino they will have gained something positive from the experience and hopefully pass the light on in whatever way. Does it really matter if that light is a flicker or the full beam of a lighthouse ?
I am grateful to the Camino's I have walked. For the people I have met, the places I have seen, the quiet moment's and the experiences I have had. Maybe it is a generational thing, people do change and times move on, that will be as true for the spirit and direction of Camino as for everyone else reading this.
Buen Camino,
Don.
No surprise about it being mostly women leaving TP on the Camino. Guys usually just give a little shake. There’s not very often TO at urinals from what I’ve seen.My rambling thoughts:
The Camino was originally a religious journey.
Then it became a religious/spiritual journey.
Then movies and books, and more movies and books, came out and now it is a fad.
If you ask 10 walkers why they are doing the Camino, I believe a minority will say "for spiritual reasons."
I lead small groups of 7-8 people on the Camino.
I do this to pay for my OWN long distance walking, the ONLY prescription that helps my MCS.
Many who book with me are people who either
1) cannot get 6 weeks off of work, or
2) are disabled and can't carry a backpack, or
3) do not want to sleep in crowded albergues or race for a bed.
4) haven't traveled to another country and are afraid to go walk alone
All have different reasons for walking, but a minority are Catholic and walk to have their sins forgiven.
However, I HAVE had very wonderful spiritual or religious people in my groups, and at least a few who made every Mass in every village every day.
I ask questions these days before I take people into my small group, and I do my best to educate my walkers and encourage them to be good guests while on the Camino.
I have also had a few rotten tomatoes in my groups; people who were rude to taxi drivers and elderly hotel owners; people who didn't respect the property of others; people who drank themselves into oblivion; people who were "ugly Americans" but from other countries too. It's been a mixed bag.
I've heard different opinions from hospitaleros.
Some LOVE the pilgrims and the money they bring in.
Others feel they're like destroying locusts and wish they'd all go away, especially toward the tail end of the season.
I've learned a lot.
For one thing, I've learned (shockingly) that is it WOMEN who leave most of the nasty toilet paper and feminine product trash along the route. I just have a hard time wrapping my head around that one. I often wonder what these women would do if I squatted to take a break in THEIR front yard, leaving behind my dirty paper and menstrual pads? They'd probably be out there screaming and calling the police. But they seem to have no problems doing it in someone else's yard. It's crazy.
Myself, I'm so very grateful that I had the opportunity to walk the Camino BEFORE it became a zoo. To walk when there were days we saw no other pilgrims. Just a few short years ago, 2004, that was the case for Joe and I, and I'm SO very grateful. There was a comradery that often no longer exists. We were grateful to have a bed and a piece of bread at the end of the day. We were grateful to meet other pilgrims. We were grateful for peace and quiet and any small consideration. Nobody demanded anything.
It's different now.
And to me, it's sad.
Every year I say, "This will be my last Camino" and my children and friends laugh.
Because then after a month or two, I'm longing for the trail again...
But I, for one, will be happy when nobody else writes a book or makes a movie or a youtube video, and people find something else to challenge them, far, far away from the Camino. And it returns to its original purpose - a pilgrimage, not a cheap vacation.
I shut down my Facebook Group yesterday - the one meant to help new pilgrims plan their Camino. I put a "donativo" button on my website for a month just to see if anyone was willing to give back.
Nada.
So I decided I was willing to help PILGRIMS by sharing information freely, but if tourists wanted it, they could pay for it.
I guess I'll write a book! :::cackling::
This is true the world around. Many people globally discovering best kept secrets. Not only because of films, but because of global marketing via the internet, travel sites (touting, best secret beaches...where to go on a budget, traveling solo...). Also, on the Camino, you are a member, “a pilgrim”, for which this pathway provides every service needed. It’s offered up here. The Camino provides. It takes a whole lot of fear out of the risk. Same with the guided tours to Galapagos, Nepal treks where your Sherpa does it all, rent a boat and crew for 10 day sail etc. and it’s easy and cheap to get to Spain for most people. There aren’t many places in the world that you can’t see via Nat. Geographic on instagram, and research on YouTube. It will never go back. If you have a secret place, keep it that way.The Caminos have been heavily marketed world wide for years and the efforts are starting to pay off. IMHO the era of the early adapters, the pioneers, is long past.
Thank you for your post,wonderfull.For what it is worth.
Since finishing a career where I saw enough of life to feel the need for some space both in spiritual and more down to earth terms. Walking a Camino was suggested to me, 2015 aged 54 I had never even heard of the Camino de Santiago. Like many others I chose the Frances as I felt it was the most accessible for me and just to see how I got on. I am not religious although I was christened. I do have views on organised religion but can take quiet moments sitting in an empty church and that is where, for me, the essence of Camino can be found. To paraphrase Supertramp "it's in the quietest moment's". That is why it does not really matter why anyone starts a Camino, if you go with an open mind how can you not be altered in some positive way along the path. Act's of kindness remembered and passed on, stories told and heard, people met and views exchanged. It is all positive and reinforces our humanity irrespective of what our beliefs are or where are starting point is.
Since retiring I have walked several long distance footpaths in the UK, travelling in much the same way as I walk my Camino's. There is a difference. It may be subtle but it is significant. There is a real sense of "belonging" to a Camino, you become part of the path and the path gives back in what ever form. I see a painted yellow arrow and feel like I am amongst friends, reassured. Long distance walking on other non-Camino routes are great but lack an "X" factor. That is not to say that they are not worth walking it is just that they are an "A" to "B" route with no overtones or common bond. Maybe I am wrong but that is just my take on it.
Completing the Primitivo some months after the Frances I noticed that the final concrete post's had been well and truly covered with graffiti. Nothing meaningful or deep just an aggressive variation of "Kilroy was here". Asked I may have said that the Camino Frances has now become to many what InterRail was to my generation.
But that is the Frances. The Via de la Plata and Camino Sanabres took me nearly 7 weeks and I hardly saw anyone. On the Levante I reckon I saw 8 pilgrims up to the point I reached Zamora. In late August I will walk the Ruta de la Lana and expect I will see even less people on the path. Original experiences are therefore still available but not if you expect crowds and albergues at every stop.
Money. A cheap holiday ? The commitment and effort needed is a long way away from sitting back on a beach for a month. Surely anyone expecting that is going to be going home quite soon after starting. Some may see it as a cheap holiday but as long as they complete the Camino they will have gained something positive from the experience and hopefully pass the light on in whatever way. Does it really matter if that light is a flicker or the full beam of a lighthouse ?
I am grateful to the Camino's I have walked. For the people I have met, the places I have seen, the quiet moment's and the experiences I have had. Maybe it is a generational thing, people do change and times move on, that will be as true for the spirit and direction of Camino as for everyone else reading this.
Buen Camino,
Don.
I am sorry, @phiip a tobin, and anyone else who might feel like responding: I posted this originally and it didn't quite get to the point. You can see here that I referred to Purky for a far better attempt at asking a question or sharing a reflection on the reasons people have might have for walking a camino. I do agree with you, @philip a tobin, @Don Camillo contributed a wonderful post.This is an old post. The title was confusing, or deceiving. For a far superior thread, go to @ Purky - An attempt at a secular Grand Camino Theory of Everything. There are others, one referred to above. Whatever the reasons, buen camino folks!
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