Walking the Camino de Santiago

I did the camino 3 years ago and it was amazing! I absolutley loved it and I hope one day I get to do it again!

That movie was so inspiring and I hope one day to walk it. And that's coming from an atheist!

I started the walk in a small quaint town called St Jean Pied de Port, France and then I walked over the Pyreneese into Roncesvalles, Spain all the way to Santiago de Compestella. The walk took me approximately 5-6 weeks to do and I was walking between 20kms - 30kms per day. The year I did the walk was 2010 - it was a holy year or jubilee year and I think that happens every 11 years, so prices were a bit higher. In saying that it is relatively cheap. Maybe 3-10 euros for a overnight stay in a refugio/alburgue (hostel), 7 euros for a pilgrims meal (but you'll soon get stick of pasta and you'll be heading to the local supermarket to cook your own meals) Also depends where you are staying...In Basque region things were a bit cheaper. In Rioja the accom was more expensive, but the red wine was amazing! Nothing can prepare you for the mental and physical pain...but you'd be suprised that some of the fittest people didn't last, and the overweight and older ones made it to the end! Doing it with your partner/spouse is good, but you also see the ugliest side of each other...so if you can handle that go for it! Also, something to remember is that although it is traditionally a religious pilgrimmage, a lot of people do the walk for other reasons. I did it because I wanted to prove something to myself and I accomplished that Buy yourself a good pair of shoes, carry a small backpack and just do it. You are living frugally, you are carrying all your worldy possessions on your back and you soon realise what is and isn't important. I loved doing the camino, but it is tough...there were many times where I was sat on the side of the road crying because I didn't believe in myself or crying because I was in so much pain. And then when you get to Santiago, you realise the camino doesn't stop there. Your life is the camino! Buon Camino (Have a good journey) my friend!

I'm planning on doing the last 100 km the fall-- just for a taste of it. Hope to do the whole thing sometime too!

@BecsB

This was so beautifully written! I have had my sights on doing the Camino for about a year now...I can't seem to shake how much desire I have to attempt it. I'm starting to save to leave from Texas and I want to do the whole thing...not just a piece of it. I want to get the whole experience while I'm there, why not right??
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your experience. This has made me want to go even more and experience the joy of proving to myself that I can. I am a little nervous though about being a girl...I don't have many friends that make a whole lot of money that would probably be able to go so I might be going alone. Is the Camino a safe place for a single female American traveler or should I desperately attempt to find a friend to go with me?

Thanks so much!! (=

@BecsB

This was so beautifully written! I have had my sights on doing the Camino for about a year now...I can't seem to shake how much desire I have to attempt it. I'm starting to save to leave from Texas and I want to do the whole thing...not just a piece of it. I want to get the whole experience while I'm there, why not right??
Thank you so much for taking the time to share your experience. This has made me want to go even more and experience the joy of proving to myself that I can. I am a little nervous though about being a girl...I don't have many friends that make a whole lot of money that would probably be able to go so I might be going alone. Is the Camino a safe place for a single female American traveler or should I desperately attempt to find a friend to go with me?

Thanks so much!! (=

I'm not au fait with posting responses, i'm still quite new here...sorry if it's not right! It's very, very safe on the camino. I met lots of women walking solo. People who start the walk alone don't usually continue solo...it's incredibly easy to meet people along the way and walk with them. The people you meet with come and go as you walk (just like real life!), so it's a joyful occasion when you bump into an old walking companion weeks later. As a solo female walker you may get a lot of male attention...especially from European men, who love the ladies. I was walking with my boyfriend and it didn't stop the Spanish men from hitting on me, even when I explained to them that the man walking beside me was my boyfriend! They will try it on, probably because they've had success with female pilgrims before! A sad fact is that sometimes possessions will be stolen at the hostels you stay at...it never happened to me, but I heard about from others. If I can give a recommendation don't do the camino during the height of summer...it will be too hot, and accom is scarce, it's on a first come first served basis. Pilgrims who walk will always be given first priority, then it's cyclists, then horse riders and then final priority are the auto-pilgrims who get on tour buses and walk parts of the camino. Walking pilgrims and refugio proprieters always turn up their noses at auto-pilgrims...there's a bit of a hierachy. Start Planning

Definitely on my bucket list!! And I loved the movie "The Way"

I just realised, the photo on my ticker is my feet on the Camino! It must be admitted there was a certain amount of pain involved, especially as I was carrying 20kg of extra body weight.