What an exciting time to be a pilgrim!!

[GaTeach]

I was walking around my town last night, trying to get those steps in, and I was thinking about how exciting it is to be a part of the resurgence of the Camino! The parallels with the Middle Ages are so vivid in my mind. This resurgence will be a tale of history one day and I was part of it!

 

[Jarrad]

Indeed! Time to go from merely 'considering' a Camino and commit! Show up with an attitude of gratitude and show some love every single day, blisters be damned.

There is no end of words spilt on the idea that the Camino was so much better in [insert favorite pilgrimage year from 800 A.D. to slightly before present]. My advice is to be grateful for what our forebears have given us, appreciate what is there today, and be thankful for what you carry with you from pilgrimages past. IMHO, if you are doing it right then you should see yourself as a pilgrim for life, even if you do not set foot on the Camino again (but I pray that you do!).

 

[DoughnutANZ]

I was walking around my town last night, trying to get those steps in, and I was thinking about how exciting it is to be a part of the resurgence of the Camino! The parallels with the Middle Ages are so vivid in my mind. This resurgence will be a tale of history one day and I was part of it!

Indeed, this is a good time to explore the northern hemisphere while it is still here.

 

[maryloufrommadison]

I love this take on it. Yes, it is sometimes crowded. But we have the privilege of being part of something that has gone on for over 1,000 years. How wonderful is that? There is not a day that goes by that I don't think about the Camino, either about the people I met, the beauty I saw, or about planning for my next Camino. I feel blessed.

 

[henrythedog]

I was walking around my town last night, trying to get those steps in, and I was thinking about how exciting it is to be a part of the resurgence of the Camino! The parallels with the Middle Ages are so vivid in my mind. This resurgence will be a tale of history one day and I was part of it!

As I get older I appreciate that the best time to go anywhere was a few years ago. Carpe donut and all that.

Parallels with the Middle Ages? Seriously? In the UK we’ve got diseases once eradicated which have resurfaced; violent deaths caused by bladed weapons are on the increase; we have overt religiously-motivated protest; money and power is increasingly concentrated in a small minority.

You may have a point.

 

[keepitsimple]

I was walking around my town last night, trying to get those steps in, and I was thinking about how exciting it is to be a part of the resurgence of the Camino! The parallels with the Middle Ages are so vivid in my mind. This resurgence will be a tale of history one day and I was part of it!

I completely agree! I'll be on my second Camino--this time on the Camino Frances--starting this August. I love the through line from centuries past to now to centuries future.... It's a rare opportunity and I can't wait!

 

[GaTeach]

I completely agree! I'll be on my second Camino--this time on the Camino Frances--starting this August. I love the through line from centuries past to now to centuries future.... It's a rare opportunity and I can't wait!

I’m on the Frances now. I was expecting it to be much crazier than it is. We are booking ahead one day and there have been a couple of times we’ve had to be creative but we’ve found solitude when we wanted it and we’ve found parties when we wanted company. Such a great experience.

 

[Bradypus]

There is no end of words spilt on the idea that the Camino was so much better in [insert favorite pilgrimage year from 800 A.D. to slightly before present]. My advice is to be grateful for what our forebears have given us, appreciate what is there today, and be thankful for what you carry with you from pilgrimages past.

I'm one of those who struggles with the scale of growth on the main Caminos. This year looks set to have 100x the numbers of my first year on a Camino. As a solitary and introvert by nature that is hard for me to adjust to and I'm not sure that those who have come to the Caminos very recently really understand how drastically the experience has changed in only a few years. But for those of us who still want a quieter experience there are other routes and quiet seasons to explore. Even the Camino Frances can be a joyous solitary experience in winter.

 

[Peregrinopaul]

I was walking around my town last night, trying to get those steps in, and I was thinking about how exciting it is to be a part of the resurgence of the Camino!

Gold star for the most optimistic thread title in recent times!