Some Info

Sat May 5 15:45:49 PDT 2001

Below you will find sites of people who have been and gave a complete a 
account, then further down some answers to questions that people who want to 
go asked. I am sorry, a lot of them I did not keep because I printed them 
out, however if you ask specific questions, people will respond. 
Have fun with it. LG
www.geocities.com/friends_usa_santiago/
http://www.csj.org.uk
http://www.archicompostela.org/Peregrinos/Inglés/Peregrinsantiago.htm
http://www.helsinki.fi/~alahelma/santiago.html#camino
http://www1.shore.net/~csesto/shadows/shadowsindex.html
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/pilgrim/index.html

Subj:   packing list for men-  for a manDate:   4/19/01 9:19:11 AM Central 
Daylight Time
From:   FRMHANLEYaAOL.COM (Michael Hanley)

here is my pack list - Passports, actual and camino credencial"passport"
two credit cards for ATMS (VISA)
cash
Light sleeping bag
Vvery good boots
wide brim sun hat
long pants, that become shorts
socks
light jacket
ar muff for cold morning walks
3 sets of fast-drying underwear
karate slippers with plastic bottoms
A very light long-sleeved jacket, Rain pants
Swimsuit!  (thinking about this one)
swiss army knife
headlamp
walking stick, Leki
camera
books (3)
small recorder and tapes
journal
extra shoestrings
washcloth, camping towel and a drain stopper
shampoo camp suds
sunglasses
handkerchief
toothbrush, No comb as I am getting my head cut really short on Friday!
sunscreen
Lip balm
wristwatch
a medical kit including
Q tips, emergency meds, Compeed, Vaseline,
document copies
guide book
ziplock baggies--the big size
a phrase book
weight? I am at 20 pounds without food and water.
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Subj:         Re: two stamps per day required now

Re two stamps. I realize the information I have is a surprise to everyone, 
including me. What can I say? It's in front of me in black and white. Last 
summer I also only got one stamp per day. I am simply telling you what I have 
in writing in English from the Oficina de Acogida al Peregrino, SAMI 
Catedral, Santiago. IT SAYS IN BOLDFACE: "It is necesary to get AT LEAST TWO 
STAMPS PER DAY." It sounds like they have changed the rules. Please verify it 
if you want to. The fax is 981.566030; the email looks as if it is 
oficina.peregrinosaalfaexpress.net (the email on the letter, as opposed to
the accompanying sheet in English, is oficina.peregrinosaplanalfa.es).
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Subj:         Re: Ruta de la Plata
Date:   5/3/01 9:08:33 AM Central Daylight Time
From:   BlaroliaAOL.COM (Rosina Lila)

Oi Fernando,
The Silver Route commences in Sevilla and it is 200 kms. longer than the 
French Way. The information that appears on the pilgrim's credential shows 
that there are 29 towns between Sevilla and Astorga with albergues, and they 
all are within walking distance of one another, except for the section 
between Valdelacasa and Salamanca which is 58 kms. and between Benavente and 
la Baneza which is 43 kms. There is a pedestrian street in Sevilla, calle 
Sierpes; about the middle of it there is a religious book store; the store 
has a section on Santiago with maps and all types on information on the Ruta 
de la Plata.  The books are in Spanish but, from what I've seen, this 
presents no impediment to a Brazilian , (the reverse, though, does not appear 
to be true). Close to the Cathedral in Sevilla, on the avenue leading to a 
huge fountain, there is a rather large information center where you can also 
obtain all sorts of information on the Silver Route.
Salamanca is one of the oldest and more famous university cities in Europe; 
it is very beautiful, and Gallego, (quasi-Portuguese), is widely spoken 
there. I know a couple of pilgrims who walked the Silver Route and they just 
loved it. They found it to be quite different from the French route in 
landscape, customs, architecture, and even food, and did not at all mind the 
extra 200 kms.
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Hi Richard,  
Welcome. I am a 51 year old woman, about to walk the Camino for the first 
time. I too will be walking May/June, so I've been paying attention for that 
time period. Basically, we will be walking during "the most beautiful time of 
the year". It will be spring in Northern Spain, we can expect some rain, then 
a lot of nice fair days. Also, missing the crowds, and heat of July/Aug. 
However, near the end of June, it can be in the 80's in the day.
Bring a hat with a brim so you don't burn your ears. Most agree that a 
walking stick is a good idea, (I had a concern about lighting on the meseta, 
so I'm leaving my aluminum walking stick behind). Keep your pack weight down, 
you won't need much and most things are available along the way. Your ATM 
card (4 number PIN)
should get you by fairly well; travelers checks are a drag. I can't seem to 
remember what else this moment, but ask specific questions and folks are real 
nice about answering them.
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Subj: Re: How and where do I obtain a pilgrim credential?
You can obtain a credential from the Friends of Santiago Assn., send an 
e-mail to Linda 
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Subj:   Re: Bars (?)  -  Date:  3/30/01 9:52:59 PM Central Standard Time
El Cowboy is a small bar in a hamlet with "weird" stuff. The hamlet is called 
El Ganso and they try to attract pilgrims with very expensive drinks. Kas 
lemon is great!
El Tope is a very large posada, where pilgrims get a free snack and drink and 
after a long days walk ( and the more drinks..the more the merrier) stay 
there long...and so the initial free drink and snack is purse wringer after 
all. Bit the atmosphere is good (due to the alcohol ?) As Alwyas 
El Tope is in Cacabelos on the right hand side just when you enter the town. 
Luxury with lots of wood and a shop to get "things" You made you final steps 
when you leave the road at the gasoline station (cooled drinks outside) cross 
a small hill, see the garbage still fuming on your left and walk through 
vineyards over a chalk road with lots of dust as a car goes by.....
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Subj:   Re: stricter rules -  Date: 3/30/01 10:16:24 PM Central Standard Time
Thanks for your kind words. Yes, I am the Ellen Feinberg who wrote _Following 
the Milky Way_ (1989, ISU Press). The book is out of print, but I have 
decided (it sounds trite to say because of popular demand, but a few people 
HAVE asked!) to reissue it myself, with an expanded introduction that talks 
about pilgrimage, changes in the Camino in the last 20 years, and the "other" 
esoteric/pre-Christian Caminos, geese, Black Madonnas, and what they might be 
about. I think the book will be out in a few months; we'll probably 
distribute via ourselves and Amazon.com.
Buen Camino on your journeys with your grown children--I hope to walk part of 
the Camino this summer with my 30-year-old son, Jesse. In Following the Milky 
Way I wrote that I hoped someday to walk the Camino with him--well, I hope 
that day has almost come! You're right: getting to know each other is about 
as spiritual as it gets!
Blessings, Elyn Aviva
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Subj:   Camino cybercafes  -  Date: 3/31/01 12:47:32 PM Central Standard Time
I have had a couple of requests for lists of cybercafes and sent out the one 
URL that I had on hand, i.e.: 
http://www.cybercafes.com/country.asp?selectcountry=Spain
Later I ran across an old listing in my files that should be much better, in 
that it is specific to the Camino Frances:
http://www.intercom.es/mediaint/santiago/cibercafes.htm
I am sending this to four different groups, so please don't feel annoyed if 
you get several duplicate messages.
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