[Gocamino] [saintjames] New credential requirements, (message 1)

[Robert Spenger]

No, the compostela is not a necessity. A pilgrim's credential,  
however, is required for staying in some of the albergues.

My concern at this point is what is meant by this statement:

"Commencing on January 1, 2009, the Pilgrims’ Office will only accept  
as such the credential issued by the Santiago Cathedral, which has a  
space for the seal of the authorized institution, church or Santiago  
Friends’ Association that issued it."

My current status is that I started from LePuy in May of 20007 with an  
American Pilgrims credential, but had limited time and made only as  
far as Condom. Last September I continued from Condom using the same  
credential and got as far as Hontanas where the last place on the  
credential got filled. New credentials were not available there nor  
were they available at the next stop, Itero de las Vega, where the  
hostal manager had to put his stamp one of the printed pages. He told  
me that I would be able to get a new one at Fromista which I would  
pass through on the next day. He said to check at the  tourist office.  
Fortunately, the Fromista tourist office is very easy to find. It is  
right smack in the middle of a large open plaza as you come to the  
center of the town. I walked in, showed the clerk my  filled up  
credential, and asked where I could go to get a new one. To my  
amazement, she had a supple right there. There was a  small fee for  
it, 1.2 euro as I remember. That credential had more than enough space  
to take care of the rest of the journey, even if ( as rumor had it)  
there was a requirement for two stamps a day for the last 100 km.   
(Some people were getting stamps and bars and places where they not  
only did not stay, but didn't even stop to eat or have a drink.)

I had plenty of time for that last trip, but it came to an abrupt halt  
when my cartilage deficient right knee told me that it was time to  
call it quits about 3-4 km before I reached Sarria. Rather than  
continue on as a bus or train tourist, I gave it up altogether,  
rebooked my flight. and took busses to Lugo and A Coruña where I could  
get a connecting flight to Heathrow where I was booked for my flight  
to LAX.

After my return, I went back to the orthopedic surgeon and got the  
three step series of hyaluronic acid injections to the knee. It is  
still a bit dicey and I am not sure yet whether or not a completion of  
the pilgrimage is in the offing. There are only 120 km left, but so  
far I haven't tried any thing more than 8 km at a stretch around home.  
I had vague notions of trying to go for that last stretch next May. I  
had assumed that I could continue on with the credential issued in  
Fromista, but now I am not so sure. Will a credential issued by a  
tourist office be valid? I don't need that fourth compostela, but I  
certainly don't want to get turned away by some officious hospitalero  
for not having a valid credential and have go another  5-10 km on a  
flakey knee to the next town. I suppose that I could get another  
credential, but after my previous experiences, I am not sure where  
there would be one available at the places where I will be.

Bob S.



On Dec 31, 2008, at 9:48 AM, verena.ma at gmx.at wrote:
for this we don't need a compestela
or any other paper. it won't help you to
discover the Peace within

.


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