Something I've been wanting to share

Starting in 2007, I started walking parts of the Camino Frances in Spain. Although it's now considered part of the Christian pilgrimage to the shrine of St. James, what is now called the "Camino Frances" was known to exist in pre-Christian times, perhaps pre-dating the Celts. It seems that from the time humans arrived in Europe, there has been a "push" or "compelling" for people to walk this path, stopping not just in what is now Santiago, but to a place called Finesterre (end of the world). The height of the pilgrimage movement ended around the 1300-1400s, although the Camino Frances (& the other traditional routes) have experienced a "rebirth" since the 1980s.

Many people today, from all nations & all beliefs (or none), tell the Pilgrim's Office that they've felt a "calling" to walk the Camino. All are welcome on the Camino. Some pilgrims expect & have life-altering experiences on the Camino. Me & many others? It's much more subtle. There's so much, that I'm including links so if you want to see part of what I experienced, you can.

Thanks for letting me share this with y'all. :) I hope you enjoy the blog & the videos. :)

see my blog here: http://www.750pints.blogspot.com/ & youtube vids here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agD9nAn_c_I & http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kqfAtN05P44


dg

ever since I read The Pilgrimage by Paulo Coelho. It was truly inspirational to read, and it sounds like it was for you in real life, too! I loved reading your blog; you are a really good writer, DG. I don't know that I'll ever get to do it myself, but I really appreciate knowing someone who has and who can share that with us.

:hi:

I've got answers. :rofl:

I will admit that I had to slam Coelho's book shut...it just grated on my nerves quite a bit & Shirley Maclaine's is waaaaaaay out there for me, too. But many people are drawn to the Camino by those books, so who am I to tell someone "no, don't read that." :) Especially since I was drawn to the Camino by reading a travel magazine article in the early '90s. :rofl: Felt like a gong or huge church bell ringing & resonating throughout my body.

My own pet theory (& I have absolutely no way to prove this mind you) is that the Camino--especially the Frances--has been traveled by so many people with the same intentions for so long (over 1000 years in the Christian era alone; who knows for how long before that?), that if it wasn't an original ley line, it's become one (or many--there are so many "Caminos" now since people are digging back through their records to find more ways to Santiago; except for the Camino Portuguese & perhaps the Camino Ingles, they all intersect the Frances at some point). A frequent thing to tell each other is that with each step, you pick up part of what all the others before you have left behind, & you leave a bit of yourself behind for someone else to pick up. Perhaps this explains why along the Camino, "ask & ye shall receive" works much more quickly than it does anywhere else (in my experience & others I've heard too).

Fun trivia fact: The Wife of Bath is one of the more famous fictional characters who made the pilgrimage to Santiago, indicating that the pilgrimage was a popular & established one in Chaucer's time.

dg

people over time. I read that book so many years ago that I don't remember much about it (and maybe there were parts that sort of grated on me as well) except it seemed so cool to be walking the same path as people from ancient times had walked. Also, coincidentally, I read the book while on a trip to France with my daughter, and on the plane trip home, ran into a woman from home I knew slightly, and we got into a conversation about how she was going to walk the Camino that summer. All of that almost magical synchronicity made me think there was something really meaningful for me in the idea of walking the Camino...but of course, I haven't.

I have lots of questions but I feel I should read more of your blog first, since you may have answered them there.

:hi:

what grated me about Coelho's book is that he put in all these meditations to do for seven days, but then at the start of the next chapter, he'd be on the 7th day of a meditation, only to have his guide stop him & get all pissed off because he was doing something wrong. That just seemed irresponsible, to me. And I did try one of those meditations & liked it.

I was attracted to the Camino for the same reason, to walk the same path as people from ancient times (although the bridge at Cirauqui is a bit more "authenticly" Roman than necessary lol). Here's the funny part: one of my ancestors had a scallop shell (sign of St. James) on his coat of arms. You could only put that on your coat of arms if you had walked the Camino (!!!) so it was really amazing for me to walk through some of these ancient villages knowing that he saw the same things that I did almost 500 years later. More recently, iow, last week, I discovered that another ancestor's death was recorded in the parish of St. James Garlicheathe (sp?) in London, which for English pilgrims, was the traditional starting point for those heading off to the Camino in medieval times.

I would encourage you to consider walking at least part of the Camino. If you want the "compostela," you have to walk the last 100 kms, starting at Sarria. It's interesting that they give out the compostela for those saying they have "spiritual" or "religious" reasons for walking the camino, but they don't ask what religion or faith you follow. If you don't want the compostela, but want to get the feeling of walking where ancients have walked, through cities, towns, & villages still on their medieval footprint, I can help you there too. :) There's no requirement that you do the whole thing in one fell swoop, or that you have to start at one particular point (St. Jean being the traditional modern starting point for many pilgrims). There's not even a firm definition of the "whole thing" because more & more countries east of France are uncovering their own trails that linked up to the Camino. It's no longer rare to hear of someone walking from their homes in Germany, Denmark, or Croatia.

Fun fact: the traditional start for Irish pilgrims is St. James Gate in Dublin. Right across the street from the Guinness brewery. Check out the Guiness label. :)

forgot to add my first blog on this subject, on my walks in 2007: http://kellyonthecaminofrances.blogspot.com/search?updated-min=2007-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&updated-max=2008-01-01T00%3A00%3A00-08%3A00&max-results=34

dg

And then had to stop. But I'll be back to finish reading.

Thank you for sharing. It's fascinating.

;)

thanks for taking the time to read it & I'm glad you're enjoying it. :)

dg

this subject just came up on the Camino message board that I frequent (btw, it's a very good source of all kinds of information & as you can see, all are welcome--although there might be a cranky Catholic on there from time to time... ;) )

http://www.caminodesantiago.me/board/el-camino-frances/topic10962.html#p69373

dg

Very nice! And the choice of music. Yes, I enjoyed taking a peak at your adventure.

The song for the first video fits me & fit my way of doing the Camino in more ways that one. Most people take the Route Napoleon from St. Jean to Roncesvalles, stopping over at a small albergue in Orisson. But Orisson was full when I was going that way, so I had to go the "old" way through Valcarlos.

Talk about taking the long way..... ;)

dg

When I see the priests in St. Peter's doing midnight mass, and one of the priests is carrying the censer, I call it "the flaming purse".

I'm so tacky. :rofl:

I love to go in Catholic churches and admire the artwork.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kfvmu58gkLE

The person who shot this was seated in about the same area I was when I saw the thing fly.

This one would not be mistaken for a flaming purse. :rofl:

dg

and it's so stunningly beautiful it brings tears to my eyes.

Thanks for sharing.

:hi:

Glad you liked my pics! :hi:

dg