Camino Chronicle Australian Friends of the Camino Newsletter No 8, March 2014 Page 1 AFotC Newsletter #8 March 2014 MESSAGE FROM OUR CHAIRMAN As some of you are aware, I made a winter Camino over the recent Christmas period. This was very much a solitary journey. There were few pilgrims on the road, perhaps a dozen or so initially, increasing to about 30 by the time I got to Galicia. On my first night, at St Jean-Pied-de-Port, I shared the albergue with an Englishman, a South American, 2 Italians, 2 Koreans, as well as 6 Australians from Darwin. Along the way I continued to meet numerous Italians and many Koreans. But I also met more Australians at various points along the way, Jill (from Victoria) whom I had arranged to meet in Burgos before I left, being one. With so few pilgrims on the road I often walked for days on end without meeting anyone. With six weeks to complete the journey from St Jean to Santiago I could take my time, though my days were governed by what accommodation was avail- able. Being winter, many places were closed and often there was no choice as to where I could stay. I was blessed with a couple of weeks of mostly fine weather initially, though it was still very cold. The path was often frozen, making it easy to walk on the mud! A couple of months later and I suspect it would be a differ- ent story. Galicia though turned on the tap! Here the water just poured out of the hillsides. The paths turned to streams, and there were waterfalls coming out of the paddocks where the waterlogged soil could no longer hold the moisture. As I wandered along the way, I was struck by something that I hadn’t ever really considered before. I often reflect on how fortunate/lucky I am to be able to walk the Camino, but I have never thought of how privileged we are to walk it. It is a privilege for us to have time to walk it. The long holidays we get here in Australia, along with luxuries like long service leave for many, helping considera- bly. Due to the immense distance we do take a long time to get to our starting points wherever they may be but, as a general rule, we also take longer to walk than many people from other countries. Most people I talked to were rushing so they could walk it in 30 days or so because that was all the holidays they had. We are privileged to be able to afford the considerable cost of getting to the Camino, and above all that the people of Spain, and the other countries we walk through, allow us to do so with such freedom. These people allow us to traipse through their towns and villages, past their front door, often within touching distance, and they still have the grace to call out Buen Camino as we pass by. They feed us and provide a bed and hot water for us. Yes, we are helping them economically, and there is no doubt that the Camino has made a huge financial difference to the people who live along it, but it doesn’t take away from the fact that we are indeed privileged to have the time, money and health to be able to follow this journey in the huge numbers that do. If you are one of the fortunate and privileged ones planning to make a Camino this year, may it be all that you desire. If you, like me, have just completed a Camino, may the memo- ries of it strengthen and encourage you as you go about your daily activities. Buen Camino! Janet Leitch OAM (SA) Cover photo: See article ‘A horse Camino’ (pp.4-7) AFotC Newsletter #8 March 2014 Page 2 Photo collage: Janet’s Winter Camino: Camino Francé The River Ne ve, St Jean- Pied- de -Port s, Dec’12-Jan’13 V alca rlos gli sten ing in t he w int er s un T wo he od pa s a th fte thr r R ou on gh ce th sva e lle Heading to the top of the pass s between Valcarlos and Roncesvalles se sunri tery— onas lles m esva Ronc E Pu nter ent ing L e la ogroñ Re Page 3 o ina AFotC Newsletter #8 March 2014 On the Meseta... … an d he adin g to war ds H orni llos Anton Ruins—San monastery Ent eri ng Cas tro jer iz Parador Hostal San Marcos de Leon Chr istm as in L eon ... Burgos … and Fo nce bad on. .. to Cru z de Fer ro AFotC Newsletter #8 March 2014 Page 4 Cruz de Ferro S arri a on a r ainy mo rni ng Snow at O Cebreiro... G a li ci a —w et ! The penultimate leg into Santiago Sw ing ing Page 5 th e b ot afu me iro AFotC Newsletter #8 March 2014! PILGRIM GATHERINGS & DIARY DATES! There are several pilgrim groups now around Australia where you can get your Camino ‘fix’ and catch up with other pilgrims: past, present and future. We en- courage you to attend and also let us know of other groups. (NB: replace * with SYDNEY @ to avoid spam) ‘Pilgrims in Sydney’ is an informal support group for Camino pilgrims. All prospective and returned pilgrims are most welcome. Our group meets monthly and aims to provide a vehicle for support and planning of pilgrimages. Returned pilgrims have walked to Santiago de Compostela along many of the pilgrim routes in France, Portugal and Spain. Returned pilgrims have walked to Santiago de Compostela along many of the pilgrim routes in France, Portugal and Spain. Meetings are held at 7pm on the 1 st Wednesday (odd months) and at noon on the 1 st Saturday (even months). Dates for 2014: 7pm Wednesdays 7 May, 2 July, 3 Sep, 5 Nov. 12Noon: Saturdays 5 April, 7 June, 2 August, 4 Oct, 6 Dec. Contact: http://www.pilgrimsinsydney.org or email Julie*pilgrimsinsydney.org SUNSHINE COAST This large group meets bi-monthly, usually in a park (afternoons). The venue (weather permitting) is Cotton Tree Park, Maroochydore (opposite 2nd Avenue and follow the yellow arrows!). The gatherings start at 1pm - BYO chair, food & refreshment. Occasionally the group meets elsewhere as well. Forthcoming dates for 2014: 16 March, 18 May, 20 July, 14 Sep & 9 Nov. Contact: Llew Pointon: llewp*tpg.com.au Russell Sturgess: russellsturgess*me.com PERTH The WA Camino group meets on an informal basis at Frasers Café in Kings Park, on Sundays at 9am. For future meetings, contact: Heather Patrick hpatrick*iinet.net.au Ph: (08) 94986951 MELBOURNE Two groups of Caminoites meet in Melbourne. 1. Garis Alexander garis.alexander*gmail.com convenes the original group which meets on the last Friday of each month. They enjoy dinner together at a range of different places. 2. For information on the newest group, started by Joanne Cashman, see the website www.meetup.com/Camino-Connections Dante defined a pilgrim as one “who travels to and from St James at Compostela” AFotC Newsletter #8 March 2014 Page 6 CANBERRA The Canberra Friends of the Camino de Santiago meets monthly at 3pm at the Spanish Australian Club of Canberra, 5 Narupai Place, Narrabundah, ACT. Future 2014 meeting dates: 19 April, 17 May, 21 June,19 July,16 Aug, 20 Sep, 18 Oct, 15 Nov, 20 Dec. Contact: canberracamino*gmail.com or Doug Fitzgerald dougfitz*mail.com ADELAIDE The SA group meets regularly at Highgate, Adelaide, in the Rosefield Uniting Church Hall, on either Saturday or Sunday afternoons. There is usually a speaker or theme, and plenty of time to catch up on Camino news. Future meetings for 2014: 5 April, 1 June, 26 July (St James’ Day meeting—evening), 14 Sept & 22 Nov. Contact Janet Leitch: magpiejl*chariot.net.au FACEBOOK PAGE A Facebook page, Australian Pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago de Compostela , has been created by Susan Morris (WA). FROM THE PILGRIMS’ OFFICE IN SANTIAGO Johnny Walker has informed us that the Pilgrims' Office is offering two new services which are bound to be popular. Certificate of Distance In addition to the traditional Compostela and Certificate of Welcome, which are still issued on a donativo basis, the Pilgrims' Office is now offering a Certificate of Distance. This new certificate has been produced in response to requests from pilgrims. It records the route which the pilgrim walked, the starting point, the amount of kilometres and the date of arrival in Santiago. The cost is 3€. New Service for Organised Groups The Pilgrims' Office is offering to prepare Compostelas and Certificates in advance for organised groups so that they can avoid waiting in the queue at the Pilgrims' Office. If anyone wishes to use this service the group leader should email the Pilgrims' Office and they will be sent a form to fill in on behalf of the pilgrims in the group. The Composte- las/Certificates will be ready for them on arrival. In addition to this the Pil- grims' Office will also issue a certifi- cate in the name of the group as a whole and will arrange to have the group welcomed by name at the be- ginning of the Pilgrims' Mass. This is a free service and donations are invited for the Compostela/Certificates. http://www.johnniewalker- santiago.blogspot.com Page 7 AFotC Newsletter #8 March 2014 UN CAMINO DE SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA A CABALLO, MAY 2013 (A ‘HORSE CAMINO) I made this, my first Camino, an act of penance and of gratitude.