I have just returned from my Sarria to Santiago walk with my friend S, who is a first timer and wanted to take this opportunity to experience the Camino and also get a Compostela in the Year of Mercy. We initially planned on walking the Ingles, but changed to the Frances due to the expected … More Camino 16: Day One – Sarria to Mercadoiro
I was recently reminded of my first typical camino breakfast, which was in albergue Orisson: white bread for toasting, butter and preserves/jams. Café con leche, of course. Orange juice. We could also buy a bocadillo – more white bread, and lots of it, so sharp it will cut your mouth inside and out – with … More Top pilgrim tip: The tostada
The PCB is a serious, dreaded and yet sometimes oddly cherished pilgrim affliction with no known cure. It tends to hit people who have walked one or a combination of caminos in Spain for anything between a week and several months. The severity of the condition does not seem to increase with the time spent … More Post Camino Blues
I guess lots of pilgrims have playlists with them, whether it’s on music players, in their mobile phones or just in their heads. The Radio You is more or less constantly broadcasting, I find, and some tracks are repeated more often than others. I thought I’d actually make a camino playlist this year, dedicated to … More Tentative playlist
I thought I’d heap some praise on some forgotten, undervalued or misunderstood Camino fixtures and features – let me start with the top bunk. People either hate it or don’t love it. Most try to avoid it. It sometimes has no ladder, if it has one it tends to be uncomfortable or even ill devised for … More Top pilgrim tip: The top bunk
When people say they want to ‘walk the camino’ they tend to mean the Camino Francés or The French Way, so called because it comes from France. The favourite starting point these days seems to be the small French hamlet of Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, right by the border. It involves starting your first day with a very … More Choose your Camino
Do you need a guide book to walk the camino? Short answer: No. You don’t actually need one. But you might want one, even if you leave it at home when the time comes to pack up your camino kit and leave. Guidebooks are great for planning. You can read the cultural and historical info … More Guidebooks
I have met and walked with so many great people since I started feeling the urge to take time out from everyday life and go walking instead of going on a typical beach holiday. On my Long Walk in 2012 I wrote the names of all of them on a Buen Camino page at the … More Buen Camino!
I have made my mind up – this September I am going back for a bit of a Camino top-up, to lose some stress and a few pounds (money and otherwise) and to store up some sunshine and zen before winter sets in. My trusty Aura 35 has developed a nasty creak and has gone … More September Top-up
Somewhere Slowly 