Kids on the Camino

[allaban]

I have worked as a teacher and outdoor ed person for many years. I have been amazed by what kids can do when they are put to it. I hiked with them all over the White Mnts of VT in the US etc. I recently finished 2 weeks as the volunteer at the guesthouse in León. I saw several familie with girls and boys from about 7 to 14, walking and on bikes. And they were all fine. But there was one family from Paris doing it with two toddlers in a 3-wheeled buggy. They were staying in the guesthouse. At one point, the older of the two was screaming, running all over, attacking his father and throwing a tizzy fit. Literally, I had to leave the patio. You might say that's my problem. But does a child that young belong in an environment like a crowded Camino gueshouse? I know some other parents have done it with even yuonger. But that doesn't answer the question. What does the very young child get out of it? What energy does the parent put into caring for the baby that takes away form the Camino experience? Please don't dismiss the quesiton as the grumping of an older man. I've worked professionally with children of many ages for 40 years. But is the Camino and a crowded guesthouse the place for them?

 

[fiddletree]

I think that a toddler is too young to be on the camino, but that is just my opinion. It doesn't seem like the healthiest environment for a young child- once they grow up a bit, to the point that they can walk/bike and understand a little bit of what they are doing, I can see some value. But a toddler... the idea of that makes me uncomfortable on a number of different levels.

 

[allaban]

Dear Fiddletree, Thanks for your reply. Yeah, as I wrote, I was in the guesthouse and the sight of the two toddlers (one must have been no more than 2) just didn't sit right. The harrassed father seemed to be totally abstracted by it all. Sadly, there's no way that it could be limited on the actual Camino, but in the guesthouses? I wish it were something that the managing gourps would take a heck of a lot mroe seriously.

Allaban
Castellon
Spain