[Gocamino] Numbers.......

[hme347 at aol.com]

What relevance does the World Cup have to the Camino?  All this chauvinistic hoopla about who is the best country in the world in a sporting event by winning games with single point margins is meaningless, if not irritating.  Certainly inappropriate in a forum like this.  OK soccer fans, I'm ready for your rejoinders!  Yours faithfully, without hugs,


Howard Mendes NYC





-----Original Message-----
From: Rosina <blaroli at aol.com>
To: GOCAMINO at oakapple.net; saintjames at yahoogroups.com
Cc: acaciopaz at yahoo.com.br; bantonk at msn.com
Sent: Mon, Jul 5, 2010 4:13 pm
Subject: [Gocamino] Numbers.......



Hello you all,
Last Saturday alone the pilgrims office dispensed 1,495 compostelas, a number 
only equaled on July 25 of 2004 (the Apostle's feast day in the last Holy year).
As of June 30, 2010, the office had awarded 90,776 Compostelas, or roughly 
33,000 more than during the same period in the last Holy Year (57,998).  The 
proportion of non-Spaniard pilgrims was also larger.  Of these, German pilgrims 
are the largest group.... again.
Unless you are taking a cool rest in Saturn, Mars or some other planet, you know 
that both Germany and Spain are poised to be finalists in the contest for the 
World Cup. Santiago being in Spain, and Germans being so pilgrimage-bound, it is 
not surprising that enormous numbers of people in Spain and Germany have made 
solemn promises to walk the Camino if their country wins the coveted trophy next 
Sunday.
I haven't heard of similar promises being made by citizens of the other two 
countries still in the running: Uruguay and Holland, but being that the presence 
of citizens of the Netherlands has always been felt in the Camino, a surge of 
pilgrims from Holland wouldn't surprise me in the least if their country were to 
win the Cup.
Among recent pilgrims arriving in Santiago were twenty four-legged ones: dogs 
from an animal shelter in the canary islands; accompanied by 5o volunteers they 
walked from Astoria to publicize the plight of abandoned or mistreated pets and 
the needs of the Bando and other pet shelters. 

The Archdiocese is beginning to prepare for the Pope's visit on November 6th.  
There is an invitation for those who wish to do so to accompany the Pontiff from 
Lavacolla to the Cathedral.  I don't really understand this. His Holiness is 
supposed to spend only eight hours in Santiago, with two of them dedicated to 
officiating a solemn Mass.  But doesn't the walk from Lavacolla itself take 
quite a few hours? 
Well, I expect they'll arrange it somehow. They always do.

Hugs!

Rosina
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