Caught somewhere between an adventure hiker and a religious zealot lies a pilgrim. Some of us are closer to the one than to the other, some of us aspire to be both. What I have found, though, is the majority of the pilgrims I have known are simpler souls who prefer to keep their allegiance […]
Tag: hiking
How Do You Get to Oviedo?
I suppose it was meant as a test, a test of how much I really wanted to walk the Camino Primitivo; the oldest of the medieval pilgrimage roads across northern Spain. I think I passed, but maybe there’s more than a few losing elements to this story. I arrived in Madrid mid-morning on Monday, with […]
Random Tips from “Buen Camino!”
Finding your boots – once you arrive at an albergue, you will be asked to remove your boots and leave your hiking poles inside the door, not bringing them into the dormitory. I have seen the horrified look of someone who had another pilgrim mistakenly pick up her boots. It’s not something you ever want […]
Buen Camino! Tips from an American Pilgrim
New BOOK Notice! Not a guidebook, no maps, no long-winded legends or history – just lots of stories and helpful suggestions to anyone planning their first Camino or just waiting to go back. Geared toward American Pilgrims, this book is a must-have, must-read. It’s the perfect companion to your standard guidebooks, like John Brierley, the […]
A New York City Feminist on the Camino de Santiago
All told, I greeted pilgrims from all over Europe, Asia, South Africa, South America, the Middle East, Ireland and the UK, Canada, Mexico, and the US. I went back and forth among my four languages for hours each day: “Buenos días, bonjour, buon giorno, welcome to The Abbey.”
What is Breakfast Like on the Way to The Abbey?
I am spending a week volunteering at the restoration of a 12th century fortress on the Camino de Santiago just outside Pamplona in the magnificent countryside of Navarre. I greet passing pilgrims who walk by while the new owner of the property works on the project. They are on their way to Santiago de Compostela […]
Roncesvalles to Zubiri (2014)
On our way out of town, we took a few photos next to the road marker: 790 km to Santiago de Compostela. It’s kind of a rite of passage, I guess, to show the first steps taken in one’s pilgrimage. I like to tell people though, that the pilgrimage starts when you decide to go, […]
Portomarín to Palas de Rei (2010)
And then I got lost leaving Portomarín. I thought the Camino went up the hill past the church when it actually continues off to the left after you cross that bridge before you climb into town. I learned to find out where I am on the planet before moving, otherwise you move in the wrong […]
Paris to St. Jean Pied de Port (2009)
In late May of 2009, I flew to Paris with my son on a mission to explore a number of pilgrimage sites I had studied in college. We visited the Tour St. Jacques which had just recently been restored. It was more a symbolic gesture than anything substantive because we were not going to walk […]
Tumbleweed Pilgrim 