[Gocamino] A few Holy Year stats

[Tim]

Hi Sil and all,
    This is very interesting and very confusing, because here in Saint 
Jean Pied de Port we have not seen this huge increase.  In fact, up to 
the end of June, there had been little or no increase at all.  Those 
wishing to be in Santiago for the last week in July would have had to 
leave here by the end of June.  The figures are 11,891 for 2010 and 
11,565 for up to the end of June 2009.  My own observations for the 
month of July don't make me think that there is any great increase for 
July in the offing.
    So it would appear that Northern Europe is not the source of this 
increase in numbers.  I feel sorry for those who have invested in new 
albergues in the town it must be quite heartbreaking for them.  I have 
seen no reduction in business nor any great increase but then again I 
don't welcome pilgrims specifically and many of my 'Pilgrim' clients 
tend to use me as a 'halfway house' a break for two or three days in a 
private room with it's own bath and shower facilities before setting out 
once again.
    As I say it's interesting and I await your comments.
Tim

Sil wrote:
> In the first seven months of the year 136 500 people , representing a fifty
> percent increase from the last Holy Year , collected the Compostela from the
> Pilgrim's Office.  During July they issued 42 359 Compostelas and August is
> expcted to be higher. 12 000 youth pilgrims will decend on Santiago today -
> they are being housed at Monte de Gozo, sports halls, colleges and schools
> and they will be issued Compostelas outside of the pilgrims office.
> In the first seven months of the year the Civil Protection volunteers
> attended to more than 70,000 people over eighty municipalities through which
> the Camino passes. In a thousand kilometers of roads there are deployed a
> thousand volunteers , nearly one in every kilometer .
> With an average of 330 performances each day, most of the incidents
> involving wounded or injured hikers. Fatigue , dehydration, sunburn and
> wounds are the most common reasons that lead the pilgrims to use the Civil
> Defence volunteers deployed along the Camino. While in most cases the
> situation is resolved by a first-aid care on site, on 450 occasions has also
> been necessary to move injured pilgrims to a shelter or even the nearest
> health center .
> Almost half of the care carried out on pilgrims - over 35 000 - was on the
> Portuguese Way while the other 27 000 took place in one of the
> municipalities through which flows the Galician section of the French Way .
>
>