Camino Quotes, Unknown Authors

dgassa · Tuesday at 12:08 AM

On my last Camino (2023) I noticed that there were lots of tourists. It reminded me of a couple of quotes that I have read since my first Camino (2015)
“A tourist demands, a pilgrim is grateful”
“Camino is a pilgrimage, not a scenic tour. No matter the scenery, weather, or roadway, a pilgrim walks it.”
Have your own quote?

J Willhaus · Tuesday at 1:29 AM

"Give what you can, Take what you need" at Grañón.

Robo · Tuesday at 2:14 AM

Not quite quotes, but 'lessons' I learned.
I came up with a few after my first Camino...........

Even small steps taken slowly will help you reach your goal
Sometimes what you expected doesn’t eventuate, but even better things happen
Giving to others is much more rewarding than receiving
Never be afraid to ask for help when you need it
Don’t judge people on first impressions
‘Stuff’ doesn’t matter that much, people do
You don’t need ‘stuff’ to be happy
If you are prepared to be open and receptive, cool things happen
Life is not meant to be a race…..
Slowing down to walk with a friend in need is far more satisfying than trying to keep up with a friend who is too fast for you
Positive things happen around you all the time….if you look out for them
Conversely, if you look for ‘crap’……it has a habit of finding you

jefferyonthecamino · Tuesday at 10:29 AM

''Pilgrims don't judge.''
- Read/seen everywhere

Pafayac · Tuesday at 11:01 AM

"You don't make the way
The way makes you."

Antonius Vaessen · Tuesday at 12:45 PM

You walk your own way, never mind what others do. If you don't want to walk a crowded "hyped" camino, choose a quieter one

dick bird · Tuesday at 12:47 PM

jefferyonthecamino said:
''Pilgrims don't judge.''
- Read/seen everywhere

I think there should be a comma after 'pilgrims'.
¨Life is just a bowl of All-Bran, you wake up in the morning and it's there¨.

olj · Tuesday at 2:14 PM

Robo said:
Not quite quotes, but 'lessons' I learned.
I came up with a few after my first Camino...........

Even small steps taken slowly will help you reach your goal

Sometimes what you expected doesn’t eventuate, but even better things happen

Giving to others is much more rewarding than receiving

Never be afraid to ask for help when you need it

Don’t judge people on first impressions

‘Stuff’ doesn’t matter that much, people do

You don’t need ‘stuff’ to be happy

If you are prepared to be open and receptive, cool things happen

Life is not meant to be a race…..

Slowing down to walk with a friend in need is far more satisfying than trying to keep up with a friend who is too fast for you

Positive things happen around you all the time….if you look out for them

Conversely, if you look for ‘crap’……it has a habit of finding you

#12 is so true! Best to “always look on the bright side of life!” (If I can quote from a great movie)

G_the_D · Tuesday at 2:56 PM

It is solved by walking.

t2andreo · Tuesday at 3:01 PM

G_the_D said:
It is solved by walking.

Solvitur ambulando!

andonius · Tuesday at 3:08 PM

A pilgrimage is a prayer made with your feet,

Telelama · Tuesday at 3:16 PM

There's a lot of great ones here!

One that my wife and I follow as we prepare for our next Camino is; "ounces equal pounds and pounds equals pain" (and then we end up carrying two paperback books around for two weeks!)

Another that I use frequently with new pilgrims is that "the Camino may not go the way you hoped, but it always goes the way it's supposed to go"

Bert45 · Tuesday at 3:29 PM

My anti-quote: "Love wins", graffiti all over the later stages of the Camino Francés.

Jeff Crawley · Tuesday at 4:05 PM

On the way to O Cebreiro. September 5th 2016.

André Walker · Tuesday at 4:10 PM

Happiness is a direction, not a point.
As in: your Camino doesn’t end in Santiago, that’s where it starts…

JerryStroebele · Tuesday at 4:18 PM

I saw this on a wall in a restaurant in Santiago: "If you walk alone, you walk faster. If you walk with others you walk farther."

A policewoman in our Camino Family said that was also posted in the Spanish National Police training academy. Buen Camino

peregrina2000 · Tuesday at 4:21 PM

Here is my favorite Camino quote, well ok it’s a passage, not just a line or two. The author is frequently referred to as unknown, but it was first printed right here on the forum, by a well-loved member who hasn’t been back for years.

See this thread

Even if you’ve read this before, I bet you can’t read it without laughing.

Tantamplin, sending lots of good wishes your way, hoping all is well. Heres the text:

so youve been back home for a year now
and missing that elusive camino feeling
and thinking of walking again
.
well theres good news
you can now achieve that same feeling from the comfort of your very own lounge suite
.
heres how:
sleep in your sleeping bag
in a different room of the house
covered by a blanket the dog sleeps on
with the worst pillow you have
or better, with your fleecy stuffed with old clothes
wash your clothes by hand in the basin using the same sliver of soap you showered with
sit outside your front gate for 4 hours, waithing for somebody to unlock the house
ask your family to shine a torch in your eyes while youre sleeping
walk to the store and buy one bun, one slice of choritzo, one slice of cheese, and one banana
order the food by pointing and sign language
strike up conversations with strangers and pretend youve known them your whole life
tell them the reason youre doing it
ask them if theyre comfortable in shoes, or if theyd have preferred boots
then follow them around for 15 minutes
go to a new restuarant and order you meal while holding the menu upside down and reading in the reflection of a mirror, in poor lighting
wear all the clothing you can, then ask the neighbour to spray you soaking wet with the garden hose
irritate your family by making loud tapping sounds with a spoon on a plate to emulate the sound of trekking poles
drink 3 litres of water
"go" in the garden
pick fruit from your neighbours tree
pop 3 painkillers with your glass of wine
take many photos of ridiculous arrow-like objects
knock on the door of your neighbour 3 doors down and ask if they have baked any fresh bread
go to the post office and post some clothing back to yourself
get dressed in the dark and put on some damp clothing
go to the local pub and ask the barman to stamp your passport

Rick of Rick and Peg · Tuesday at 4:23 PM

Don't
STOP
walking

(usually on an octangular sign).

André Walker · Tuesday at 4:23 PM

Something I heard someone say about pilgrims talking badly about other pilgrims who had their backpacks transported:
“The only time you may look down on someone is when you help them to get up.”

Elle Bieling · Tuesday at 6:43 PM

Telelama said:
Another that I use frequently with new pilgrims is that "the Camino may not go the way you hoped, but it always goes the way it's supposed to go"

Along a similar line: "The Camino doesn't give you what you want, it gives you what you need."

Tincatinker · Tuesday at 7:18 PM

“It’s not your Camino; it’s a Camino”.

There is no such thing as a free Camino

It was a woman that drove me to Camino and I forgot to thank her

The Camino does not start in Saint Jean pied de Porte

Walk; Eat; Sleep; Repeat? Sleep; Walk; Eat; Replete

Orujo is not just for breakfast

alexwalker · Tuesday at 7:43 PM

Tincatinker said:
Orujo is not just for breakfast

It is SO much more than just a breakfast drink!

Jeff Crawley · Tuesday at 7:57 PM

Tincatinker said:
“It’s not your Camino; it’s a Camino”.

There is no such thing as a free Camino

It was a woman that drove me to Camino and I forgot to thank her

The Camino does not start in Saint Jean pied de Porte

Walk; Eat; Sleep; Repeat? Sleep; Walk; Eat; Replete

Orujo is not just for breakfast

A woman drove me to drink and I didn't even have the decency to thank her.

W. C. Fields

Jeff Crawley · Tuesday at 7:58 PM

alexwalker said:
It is SO much more than just a breakfast drink!

For medicinal purposes it's hard to beat.

alexwalker · Tuesday at 8:01 PM

Jeff Crawley said:
For medicinal purposes it's hard to beat.

If I am in doubt, it will be considered a medicinal situation.

dgassa · Tuesday at 8:09 PM

Here's a couple more
Obstacles do not block the path, they are the path
and
Just because my path is different, doesn't mean I'm lost

MrGary · Tuesday at 9:47 PM

dgassa said:
On my last Camino (2023) I noticed that there were lots of tourists. It reminded me of a couple of quotes that I have read since my first Camino (2015)
“A tourist demands, a pilgrim is grateful”
“Camino is a pilgrimage, not a scenic tour. No matter the scenery, weather, or roadway, a pilgrim walks it.”
Have your own quote?

One of my favorites- "I did not walk the Camino to find myself; rather I walked it to lose the pieces that were not me."

Glenshiro · Tuesday at 11:27 PM

Everyone walks their own Camino. (Once a popular saying on this site.)

Sue127 · 2024-11-13T00:42:41+0100

My name is Sue and I'm a çamino addict....

CTLawGal · 2024-11-13T01:05:18+0100

peregrina2000 said:
well-loved member who hasn’t been back for years.

See this thread

Thanks so much for posting this! I went back to read some of his other posts (and the threads to which he was reacting), I am blown away. I'm going to go through them all, just the dozen or so I read through were great! I also saw some familiar names, people still posting after all these years. I doubt I would have found this on my own, there's so much great information here, this is a great way to find some of it using his posts as an organizing focus. Thanks again!

Camino Chrissy · 2024-11-13T01:05:42+0100

I loved a recent forum member's post that said...
"The Caminos are sort of like children. I may have different relationships with them and different preferences about them, but the bottom line is that I absolutely love them all."

trecile · 2024-11-13T01:26:29+0100

Camino Chrissy said:
I loved a recent forum member's post that said...
"The Caminos are sort of like children. I may have different relationships with them and different preferences about them, but the bottom line is that I absolutely love them all."

Here's the post by @Rita Flower that the quote was from:

Rita Flower said:
I have been reflecting on my four Caminos recently. My experience as I walked them ranged from being wonderful to being challenging - from literally loving to hating. I have had the thought that I liked one better than another - preferred one more than another
However, looking back what I find is that I love them all - I’m in love with them all regardless of their different characters and experiences and learnings. They are sort of like children. I may have different relationships with them and different preferences about them, but the bottom line is that I absolutely love them all.
So I think my conclusion is that it doesn’t matter which Camino I walk I will receive the blessings.
In choosing a Camino, I don’t think you can really get it wrong.

Juspassinthru · 2024-11-13T01:59:18+0100

dgassa said:
On my last Camino (2023) I noticed that there were lots of tourists. It reminded me of a couple of quotes that I have read since my first Camino (2015)
“A tourist demands, a pilgrim is grateful”
“Camino is a pilgrimage, not a scenic tour. No matter the scenery, weather, or roadway, a pilgrim walks it.”
Have your own quote?

I think of this often.

JabbaPapa · 2024-11-13T02:09:58+0100

dgassa said:
“A tourist demands, a pilgrim is grateful”

This is one of the older ones, and somehow translates poorly into English. Probably because "tourist" has different connotations in current English compared to the Romance languages, and never mind that it's an English-origin word.

I don't know if this one originally Spanish or French -- the French has it : Le touriste exige, le pèlerin remercie. The Spanish is exactly equivalent, so either could be a translation of the other. The French dates back to at latest the 1980s unless I'm mistaken. If I am, then 1990s.

ratherbefollowingflechas · 2024-11-13T02:46:40+0100

Endeavor to persevere! But that is my motto in general ...

AllisonMarie · 2024-11-13T03:08:23+0100

peregrina2000 said:
Here is my favorite Camino quote, well ok it’s a passage, not just a line or two. The author is frequently referred to as unknown, but it was first printed right here on the forum, by a well-loved member who hasn’t been back for years.

See this thread

Even if you’ve read this before, I bet you can’t read it without laughing.

Tantamplin, sending lots of good wishes your way, hoping all is well. Heres the text:

so youve been back home for a year now
and missing that elusive camino feeling
and thinking of walking again
.
well theres good news
you can now achieve that same feeling from the comfort of your very own lounge suite
.
heres how:
sleep in your sleeping bag
in a different room of the house
covered by a blanket the dog sleeps on
with the worst pillow you have
or better, with your fleecy stuffed with old clothes
wash your clothes by hand in the basin using the same sliver of soap you showered with
sit outside your front gate for 4 hours, waithing for somebody to unlock the house
ask your family to shine a torch in your eyes while youre sleeping
walk to the store and buy one bun, one slice of choritzo, one slice of cheese, and one banana
order the food by pointing and sign language
strike up conversations with strangers and pretend youve known them your whole life
tell them the reason youre doing it
ask them if theyre comfortable in shoes, or if theyd have preferred boots
then follow them around for 15 minutes
go to a new restuarant and order you meal while holding the menu upside down and reading in the reflection of a mirror, in poor lighting
wear all the clothing you can, then ask the neighbour to spray you soaking wet with the garden hose
irritate your family by making loud tapping sounds with a spoon on a plate to emulate the sound of trekking poles
drink 3 litres of water
"go" in the garden
pick fruit from your neighbours tree
pop 3 painkillers with your glass of wine
take many photos of ridiculous arrow-like objects
knock on the door of your neighbour 3 doors down and ask if they have baked any fresh bread
go to the post office and post some clothing back to yourself
get dressed in the dark and put on some damp clothing
go to the local pub and ask the barman to stamp your passport

Thank you for that! I have seen it before, but not for some time and it made me howl at a time when I can really use a laugh.

Philtration · 2024-11-13T06:00:36+0100

The Camino is like a breakfast of prunes. After you start walking, you are moved!

FurnessTravellers · 2024-11-13T08:46:14+0100

I have liked this quote (source unknown) since I read it:
" a tourist moves through the land, a pilgrim allows the land to move through them".

JabbaPapa · 2024-11-13T16:24:32+0100

FurnessTravellers said:
I have liked this quote (source unknown) since I read it:
" a tourist moves through the land, a pilgrim allows the land to move through them".

I like that one, including because of its beautifully archaic use of "tourist", not just in regard to the Grand Tour but also to the late 19th & early 20th Century Thomas Cook's sense of it.

LeslieC · 2024-11-13T20:29:54+0100

Bert45 said:
My anti-quote: "Love wins", graffiti all over the later stages of the Camino Francés.

'Love wine' might also work ...

efdoucette · 2024-11-14T00:23:05+0100

When I returned from my first Camino in 2011 an old Bob Dylan song bounced around in my head. It reflected my pre / post Camino mindset.
"I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now"
- My Back Pages ... Bob Dylan

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