Bull fight

[Jason Young]

I totally agreed with the cultural bit, I am a lecturer in Sustainable
Tourism (Ecotourism), and as I walked along the Camino I could see the signs
of tourism growth and the potential for further development. I witnessed
firsthand the sociocultural, economic, environmental impacts of tourism. The
affects increasing numbers of  "pilgrims" me included; were having on the
local communities and the natural environment. Tourism is like fire; it can
cook your food or burn your house down! Mass tourism has been given many new
labels, labels that tend to be used rather loosely by unscrupulous tour
operators and tourist organisations as a way of marketing their products.
The term Pilgrimage is just one of them! So how do you make a distinction
between a pilgrim and a tourist?

Foreign tourist. Any person visiting a country (other than that which he or
she usually resides) for a period of at least 24 hours.

Excursionist. Persons travelling for pleasure for a period of no less than
24 hours

Visitor. Any person visiting a country (other than that in which he has his
usual place of residence) for any other reason other than following an
occupation remunerated from within the country visited (i.e. this includes
people travelling for pleasure, business, educational or religious purposes
etc, as well as excursionists).

Domestic tourist.  A person who travels away from home fro a distance of at
least 50 miles (one way) for business, pleasure, personal affairs or any
other purpose except to commute to work, whether he stays overnight or
returns the sane day (USA definition).

The common factor running through these definitions is that a tourist
travels away from home for a variety of reasons!

This is very controversial I know, but it's very interesting! Spain is a
tourist destination and the Camino is a geographical resource with a lot of
magnetism, fantastic weather, rich history, colourful culture, wonderful
wildlife, attractive rural landscapes, picturesque villages, mouth-watering
foods and spectacular architecture, and what's more it's cheap to walk the
mystical path, which adds to its appeal!

Nobody should be denied the right to make the pilgrimage whatever his or her
motivation, but it's in the interest of every one of us to help preserve it!

Ultreya - Jason

Jason Young from England
e-mail: garranosabtopenworld.com