Camino travelers (middle ages)

[pieter pannevis]

Dear friends,
Why not, perhaps the amount is somewhat less but times were quit different
then,
Life and the perception of the world were different.
The end was more or less at hand and indeed the Church promoted (for obvious
reasons) the Ways to Santiago.
Life was miserable then as earlier indicated. Even if you lived to be 30 -35
you would go to hell for certain, so..
 There was hardship if you went, but at least you did not go to hell,
There was indeed food and water and hospitalisation on the way (there it
word hospital arrives for the first time in that sense)
The more you visited the shrines of saints the surer your pathway to Heaven
would be.
To it came that it was also means of punishment and that you could buy a
poor fellow to do this Camino for you!
It was not only the rich who went. Also the very poor sometimes had to go
(and it couldn't get worse)
I can remember a quote about the monastery/hospital of St.Catharina at the
Somport pass that was saying to serve more than thousands meals a day to
pilgrims.
Remember the large aisles not only in Burgos and Santiago and Leon, but also
St Bertrand de Comminques, the Notre Dame, Vezelay to made it possible for
the pilgrims mass to be there and pass the relics without disturbing mass
(which was in Latin and to no use to the pilgrim).
Many stayed on the Camino, for better or for worse, found work, love and
death.

It may be not at all that odd
pieter