There's a strong generational aspect to the issue of technology. We are now seeing an emerging generation of Camino pilgrims who were born into the Internet era. For them, trying to talk about a Camino (or life) without a smartphone or iPad is speaking an incomprehensible alien language.
I'm old enough to remember life without Internet and miraculous and harrowing as this may sound to some of you, I did lots of travel and backpacking with zero mobile communication and little more than an old school compass back in the day, and survived to tell about it! That's why I knew I didn't really need it for my Camino, although I did bring my iPhone for primarily camera purposes.
I'm not anti-technology, but I do think too much of anything is simply too much. I felt sorry for the pilgrims I saw walking while their heads were buried in their technology, seeming to miss the whole point of being on this wonderful trek. And at the albergue or hostal or bar, the biggest preoccupation of some seemed to be recharging their device so they can stay on line the better part of the day and evening, to the exclusion of all other fellow beings.
For me, Internet/mobile communication has always been paradoxical. It brings the global community together like never before, but the physical act of using the technology is necessarily a solitary act; one needs isolate oneself behind a machine in order to achieve that global community. We lose key social connections and cues (body language, eye contact, the art of conversation) via this mode of communication, especially if it becomes a dependency.
Very well said! I'm of that generation as well. I still do plenty of backcountry hiking where, even in 2013, there are no signals and no point in lugging a phone along anyway. Left to my own devices (pun intended), and I have so far survived to tell the stories. And I walked my first Caminos way back when "unplugged" was the norm.
A few more thoughts.....
There are varying degrees of unpluggedness (yes, I declare that to now be a word
).
Different people will define that in their own ways.
But I think the point of this thread, at its best, is to motivate us to each examine what we
believe/
feel/
think/
fear is "necessary".
I don't believe it is all that controversial (or smug) to discuss how technology
can separate us from each other and interfere with our experience of the Now.
Personally - I believe it is a good idea, given that it is such a cheap & easy option these days, to bring a small "throwaway" phone along - turned off, but accessible - for emergency purposes. I always carry a small digital snapshot camera so my beloved and I can bore our loved ones to pieces with long, drawn-out "slide shows" when we return. I'm sure we will also occasionally use an internet cafe to check in with said loved ones, though I expect we'll get a Camino specific new email so I won't be tempted to look at other accounts.
I know I won't text, "soundtrack" my walk with music/headphones, blog every step, read any forums, instagram any meals, facebook my every location, or tweet my every thought.
None of that is much challenge for me, since I'm not attached to that stuff (or do it at all) in real life.
My "binkie" however, is that I'm a news/politics junkie. So eschewing newpapers, TV(in bars) and web news sites when I'm emailing home will be my particular test.
A Camino focus on connection with others sans tech also gently prods my natural introversion.
Isn't the Camino a perfect opportunity to examine these things about ourselves? It's so difficult in the "real world" to function unplugged. The Camino gives us an opportunity to "fast" (in ways that are individually meaningful) and challenge ourselves in uncomfortable but profound ways. And it gives us the opportunity to connect in ways that are becoming increasingly foreign to our 21st century sensibilities.
Finally, however one decides to Walk, a certain amount of humility is a virtue. I haven't noticed
any smugness on the part of anyone in this thread who is advocating unplugging. It would not, in my humble opinion, be keeping with the spirit of the Camino to be smug or mooch-y or judgmental or hypocritical about anything, including other people's tech use, that does not directly interfere with your own experience and safety.
But, can I suggest that perhaps it is
also not in the spirit of the Camino to label people as "smug" and "moochers"? To basically say that people who didn't bring a phone (or guidebook) are just out of luck and need to find a pay phone or deal with it and take care of themselves..... well, it all just sounds kinda mean-spirited. I mean, sure, it is your
right to leave that smug, mooching peregrino in distress by the side of the road. Sure, it's their own fault that they didn't come prepared. Maybe they'll learn a lesson, eh? So, good for you. You are now the righteous one. Yay.
Sports scores? Yeah, that's pretty silly (and kinda funny). But that amusing anecdote aside, doesn't the Camino provide for us in countless, unexpected, inexplicable and lasting ways? Isn't, perhaps, a generous spirit - even for those that don't "deserve" it - something that gets "paid back" (or forward)?
