Second Camino Left me feeling Unfulfilled

[David Tallan]

Last June it was a week in Estella. What a jewel of a town so rich in history, all of it tied directly to the camino

Estella was home to one of the first Camino associations in Spain, and one of the first to print credenciales (I have one of their credenciales from the 80s).

 

[bprohs]

I’m finding this rather disturbing! With as much money as pilgrims contribute to the local economies one would think they would be welcomed with open arms. We are planning our first Camino from Porto along the coast this September. I’m beginning to second guess our decision to walk through Portugal. We chose this path for a number of reasons, the primary one being our ages. I’ll be 77 when we start, my wife will be 75.
I totally get that tourists get a little old. We came from a town of 7000 people that saw 4 million tourists a year, but we always tried to treat everyone the way we’d like to be treated with kindness and respect.
I’d love to hear others opinions about the Portuguese Camino’s.

I’m totally sorry I posted this! First, I have no earthy clue what pilgrims contribute to the local economy, and second I need to remember we are guests in their country. I’m sure that there are just as many, if not more people who have had a fantastic Portuguese Camino. We’ve spent quite a bit of time visiting countries all over Europe and, with few exceptions , have found people warm and inviting wherever we were. I’ve read that the Portuguese are exactly that. Portugal is one of the few countries we have not visited, and I’m excited to experience the culture and warm hospitality of the Portuguese people.

 

[Kathy F.]

The reason you do your first Camino is unique and cannot be repeated.
The reason you do your next is different.
The first is filled with trepidation, anxiety and, yes, bravery - you simply don't know if you can do it. The next however - you know you can do it. So you go into it with a different frame of mind.
That first is filled with feelings and emotions which we, in our modern world, have rarely - if ever - had to deal with. The next, well, we face challenges every day and we know we can deal with them for the most part.
I've done 3 and I know what you mean. I think I simply wasn't as amazed with myself each subsequent Camino - I KNEW I could do it.
Nevertheless, happily, planning my next one for next year.
It's like having a baby. With the first, you don't know what to expect. The second (third, fourth, . . . ) you know what to expect. And yet you delight in anticipation anyway.

 

[Bradypus]

The first is filled with trepidation, anxiety and, yes, bravery - you simply don't know if you can do it.

I don't think that was my experience of my first Camino. Excitement. Anticipation. Curiosity. No particular anxiety or trepidation about it.

 

[Hlp]

In March 2018 I took a month off work to celebrate my 50th and walked the Camino Frances from SJPdP to SdC. It was the life-changing event that is well documented in this Forum – I returned home full of joy and positivity.

Soon after returning, I planned a second Camino for 2023, after 5 years, and decided to go at Christmas because work is so quiet then and my family were happy with that – I asked this Forum about which route would have most amenities open over Christmas and the recommendation was the Portuguese. I flew to Porto on 16th December and started out the next day arriving in SdC on Christmas day.

Curiously despite looking forward to it for 5 years when I started planning it, I had a nagging doubt that it wouldn’t be like last time, but I have returned feeling very despondent as I felt none of the Camino joy.

I didn’t enjoy the walk out of sub-urban Porto so maybe not a good start and the limited open accommodation meant that I was often alone in hostels and had a few nights in hotels. I found the Portuguese rather unfriendly in comparison with the Spanish and very little pilgrim engagement, nothing like the love & camaraderie of the Frances – I felt as if I was just on a long walk. There were few other pilgrims – I only walked with one couple and a single Dutch woman. The positives was that the weather was gorgeous and much of the route was lovely passing through some historic towns.

I won’t give up – I have bought the guides for the Via del Plata, Le Puy and Via Francigena and I will go for the full month in Spring or Autumn and stay in the hostels but I would love to hear your views and wisdom on why I am so disappointed. My son warned me against “chasing the dragon” and he was quite right!

Hi, sorry to hear about your disappointment over your second pilgrimage. But do have another go. I would recommend the journey from Le Puy. Back in 2013 I walked from a small town in France in the Lot to Santiago, absolutely fantastic, in 2016 I thought I would do the rest of the route ( a bit backwards I know) this time from Le Puy to Limogne in the Lot. Having walk both in Spain and France I found the french chemin so beautiful and calm, and I was not disappointed second time round. So enjoy and buen camino. Best wishes Heidi.

 

[Bob Howard]

I know I already said the camino isn't magic. But compared to the other routes, the Camino Frances has that certain juju you don't find anywhere else. I think it's just all those centuries of pilgrims, and all that infrastructure, both physical and cultural, centered on pilgrimage. It's a pathway custom-made for personal transformation.

Yep, whether you characterize it as juju or that certain vibe, the Camino Francés is unique in that sense. Which is why when newbies are asking about routes, I am always astounded at those who would denigrate aspects of the Francés while encouraging a newbie to take a relatively obscure route. I have become a bit of a Frances defender on the Forum inasmuch as I am a relentless repeat offender--this year will be my 5th Camino Francés. But each to his own as the well-worn expression goes. But, overall, there are reasons the Francés is usually everyone's favorite experience, and not just because it was their first Camino. Whether it's the Francés' history, the charm of its villages, towns and cities, the number of Pilgrims walking at any given time, the infrastructure that allows such a plethora of accommodations and bars, or even the significance and impact of The Movie, the Francés, to me, is foundational. One can enjoy other subsequent non-Francés caminos, but the essence of what we enjoy about walking in Spain is found foremost on the Francés. If you are new to this Forum and thinking about walking a Camino, I would urge you to start with the Camino Francés. It is, to use one of my previous post's hackneyed expressions, the Mothership of Caminos.