A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino de Santiago: Camino Frances - The French Way of St. James (Camino Guides)

Book Description

Representing the most popular Christian pilgrimage anywhere in the world, this guide combines maps, photographies, and hospitality information to help travelers in their journey.

Customer Reviews:

A glitzy tourst guide for the Holiday tripper. An alternative view of this guide.......2007-08-06

This guide looks like a Tourist guide with glossy paper and plenty of, coloured eye candy, picturs and graphics. THis sort of thing I feel serves padding as it replaces real textual information. This guide looks like in format, as a cross between a commercial guide and a glossy magazine. After you have looked at them the pictures are useless.

Secondly I do not Not recommended this guide for the Ecclesiastical and religious pilgrim

I feel that the Camino is being used by Tourists as a cheap holiday. This guide will be loved by holiday trippers seeking to walk this religious path as a cheap holiday. But I do not see any priest using it on his pilgrimage.

The glossy photographs of everything destroy the surprise and the simple nature for the pilgrimage.

If you travel the camino for St James then Go for one of the religious guides which are formatted like the bible, but packed with black and white text and no eye candy.

Amongst the good church guides are The Camino Frances from the Confraternity of St James and guides approved by the catholic church sold by amazon. They have plain formatting and no pictures and are packed with information in black and white and most of them are updated by the clergy themselves reporting changes.

Great and compact.......2007-03-21

I haven't even gotten to Spain yet and I know this is going to be exactly what I need. The maps are very informative without being overwhelming. The info is just what you need to know - nothing more. It seems very thought through and is light weight which is very important when you count every ounce.

Walking the Camino.......2007-01-31

This is a practical, essential, comprehensive guide to the Camino de Santiago, with an added spiritual focus - after all, this is a Pilgrimage for most who walk it. I used it 2 years ago and after a week I dumped the competitor that I had also taken. This book covers everything you need to know in pleasant prose without hype and with a mass of data. I bought the new edition for my next journey on this magical route; it looks just as good if not better, but remember that the maps are not to scale!

Covers all you need to know about walking the Camino Frances.......2007-01-27

I bought this book because it is mentioned in the popular UK CSJ Pilgrim Guide to Spain and was also mentioned to me by another intending pilgrim. There may be better guides, but once I found this one I stopped looking. It meets my planning needs exactly.

Another caveat is that while I am an experienced trekker in Nepal and South America, I have never done an 800 km trip like the Camino Frances. So my comments will almost certainly need revision when I have completed my pilgrimage.

The book weighs 300gm and is 22cm tall x 12cm wide x 1.5cm thick. The weight is significant in the context of limiting one's load to 10 kg or less. The physical dimensions make it too big to fit easily into a pocket.

One could lighten the book by ripping out un-needed Stages and most of the planning stuff. Actually, it would have been a good idea if the publishers had allowed for this by having a binding to facilitate non-destructive page removal. Some folk, for example, may not plan to do the whole walk in one go and may need, say, only 8 Stages out of the 33 described in the guide. Why take text that you don't need if weight is at a premium?

The front pages of the book show a credit-card size map of each daily Stage (roughly 24km) to give an overview of the whole route from St Jean de Pied to Santiago. This is a nice touch for preliminary planning, but is not really necessary on the road.

Daily Walking Stages (33)

The sections on each Stage have a similar, but more detailed, full-page map. They are in "strip map" format, with the route facing the way you are walking from the start at the bottom to the destination at the top. So North does not face the top of the map in the conventional cartographic manner. The maps show routes, towns, land-marks, some accommodation, important contours, drinking fonts and walking distances. Another interesting touch is a "sun compass" on each map that shows where the sun is, to help navigation. The amount of detail is just right for use in the field, any more would be confusing.

Each Stage also has a diagram showing altitudes and the ups and downs of the stage, which is very useful when contemplating the day's walk.

Total distances are broken down into "path", "quiet road" and "main road". Adjusted distances are also given to take into account climb. As an aside, when trekking in mountainous terrain, especially at high altitude (eg Nepal), distances are totally meaningless for a trekker. Time is the only meaningful measure of travel.

A typical Stage section in the book has about 8 pages, including the full-page map. Most of the information is detailed route directions, although there is also some introductory text on "The Practical Path", "The Mystical Path" and "Personal Reflections". There are usually several credit-card size photos of accommodation and landmarks/sights. The information is very condensed, but quite readable.

Accommodation and phone numbers are included, but not in the detail of the annual UK CSJ Pilgrim Guide. There is no information on specific costs. That's where the CSJ guide shines. But is it really necessary to be so up to date?

The only very slight reservation I have about the emphasis on Stages in designing the book (any guide book, not just this one) is that it encourages/forces you to do the Stages as set out. This imposes a discipline on the journey that runs counter to the notion that a pilgrimage should be a journey of discovery, of meeting both pleasures and travails, along an unknown path to the ultimate goal of the pilgrimage. Although one can also argue the converse in that lovers of ritual and pilgrims wishing to emulate the trials of early Christian martyrs might welcome the forced discipline of a set daily route.

Planning

There is a useful bar chart showing pilgrim numbers by month. July/August look insane to me and the experience of jostling among the summer crowds must be quite unpleasant. This is borne out by comments I have read on the net. In years when July 25 falls on Sunday (not 2007), pilgrim numbers spike up into the stratosphere.

There is good information on clothing and equipment, plus sample packing checklists.

There is a section on types of accommodation and illustrative costs which is quite useful for budgeting.

There is a 4-page section on the Spanish language and useful phrases. Personally, I think some time spent on learning the local language is desirable for any trip.

There is a brief history of the Camino which is interesting, but certainly not needed on the walk.

Conclusion

Overall, this guide is excellent and very practical. It covers all the questions that have occurred to me with one exception: Nothing is said about arrangements available for sending unwanted gear ahead to, say, Santiago. In my case I will be taking other stuff to Europe for post-camino travel that I don't intend to lug around for 800km.

Apart from the practical things you need to know, there is quite a bit on spiritual (not necessarily religious) preparation to focus you on the question "why am I doing this?" I think this is important, although I personally don't think it is necessary to tie it into any formal religious dogma.

Pat Little.......2007-01-12

This Book is the best book and guide we have found for hiking the Camino de Santiago. We hiked the Camino last year and had a guide book that we did not like. It had allot of information that we did not need or was outdated.Their were other Pilgrims that had John Brierley's Guide to hiking the Camino and they would share it with us so we could see what was ahead on the Camino. We are hiking the Camino again this spring and have purchased John Brierley's book to guide us on our way. Maybe we too can help other Pilgrims that bought "the wrong book"

Pat Little NM USA
Buen Camino

Pilgrim Stories: On and Off the Road to Santiago, Journeys Along an Ancient Way in Modern Spain

Average customer rating:

Anthropology of the Camino.
Well researched and a fascinating read
Very worthwhile for a prospective Pilgrim.

Pilgrim Stories: On and Off the Road to Santiago, Journeys Along an Ancient Way in Modern Spain
Nancy Louise Frey
Manufacturer: University of California Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Spirituality | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Europe | Travel | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Nonfiction | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Religion & Spirituality | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Travel | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

The Pilgrimage Road to Santiago: The Complete Cultural Handbook
Pilgrimage to the End of the World: The Road to Santiago de Compostela
A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino de Santiago: Camino Frances - The French Way of St. James (Camino Guides)
Off the Road: A Modern-Day Walk Down the Pilgrim's Route into Spain
Walking the Camino De Santiago

ASIN: 0520217519

Book Description

Each year thousands of men and women from more than sixty countries journey by foot and bicycle across northern Spain, following the medieval pilgrimage road known as the Camino de Santiago. Their destination is Santiago de Compostela, where the remains of the apostle James are said to be buried. These modern-day pilgrims and the role of the pilgrimage in their lives are the subject of Nancy Louise Frey's fascinating book.
Unlike the religiously-oriented pilgrims who visit Marian shrines such as Lourdes, the modern Road of St. James attracts an ecumenical mix of largely well-educated, urban middle-class participants. Eschewing comfortable methods of travel, they choose physically demanding journeys, some as long as four months, in order to experience nature, enjoy cultural and historical patrimony, renew faith, or cope with personal trauma.
Frey's anthropological study focuses on the remarkable reanimation of the Road that has gained momentum since the 1980s. Her intensive fieldwork (including making the pilgrimage several times herself) provides a colorful portrayal of the pilgrimage while revealing a spectrum of hopes, discontents, and desires among its participants, many of whom feel estranged from society. The Camino's physical and mental journey offers them closer community, greater personal knowledge, and links to the past and to nature.
But what happens when pilgrims return home? Exploring this crucial question Frey finds that pilgrims often reflect deeply on their lives and some make significant changes: an artistic voice is discovered, a marriage is ended, meaningful work is found. Other pilgrims repeat the pilgrimage or join a pilgrims' association to keep their connection to the Camino alive. And some only remain pilgrims while on the road. In all, Pilgrim Stories is an exceptional prism through which to understand the desires and dissatisfactions of contemporary Western life at the end of the millennium.
"Feet are touched, discussed, massaged, [and] become signs of a journey well traveled: 'I did it all on foot!' . . . Pilgrims give feet a power and importance not recognized in daily life, as a causeway and direct channel to the road, the past, meaningful relations, nature, and the self."

Customer Reviews:

Anthropology of the Camino........2007-03-15

Be aware that this is not a practical guide to the Camino. At least, it is not a practical guide in the sense that it does not provide lists of refuges or information about places to sleep. Frey has written a book about the culture of pilgrims and the Camino and a potential reader should see it more as an anthropology text than a how-to book.

The sections of the book begin with the kind of person who begins a pilgrimage and ends with the journey home once people have completed the route. As someone who walked the Camino from Utrecht, I was entertained by her descriptions of Camino life. I found myself often nodding in recognition or agreement. I was less interested in her conclusions, I am sorry to admit. But then I was not reading the book from a scholarly perspective.

I would recommend the book for someone who would like to get a feel for the culture and experience of walking the Camino. Unfortunately, Frey is not the strongest writer and it often reads like an extended senior thesis. Three stars for the book and one star extra for the extensive bibliography.

Well researched and a fascinating read.......2000-05-21

Anyone who's walked or thought about walking Spain's greatest long distance walk, the Camino de Santiago will love this book. A young woman who walked this medieval pilgrimage route recommended this book. I began to understand her enthusiasm for this modern-day adventure--a road trip on foot through Spain's majestic lands, visiting the past and the present and meeting all sorts of fascinating people. Anthropologist Nancy Frey has managed to bring the experience to vivid life conjuring the sights, sounds, emotions, exhilarations and disappointments of modern pilgrims as they trek across Spain in search of themselves, God, happiness or whatever else may be meaningful to them. Frey follows hundreds of pilgrims during and after their walk and tackles the questions of what happens once people go home and they trace their lives back to their points of origin around the world--Brazil, Germany, UK, US and, of course, Spain. I highly recommend this book!

Very worthwhile for a prospective Pilgrim........1999-02-18

I found this book to be very helpful to me as I am in the planning stages of walking El Camino in 2000. Although I believe that too much stress is put on the spiritual and religious aspect of the walk a lot of practical information is provided as well. I was especially pleased to learn about the infrastructure which has been recently developed to assist Pilgrims. Ms. Frey has researched the subject to a great extent and puts a very positive light on this interesting subject. She has also presented numerous of the varied motives for tackling this venture.

The Village to Village Guide to The Camino Santiago (The Pilgrimage of St James)

Average customer rating:

Overpriced.
I lovedthis guide, worth every penny and more, my daughter is walking next year and she will use this guide too
A superb Guide! A famous guide For Pilgrims by Pilgrims. And for the poorer pilgrim on a budget
good for pre travel reading or supplement
Used this book to walk 800km From St Jean France to Santiago

The Village to Village Guide to The Camino Santiago (The Pilgrimage of St James)
Jaffa Raza
Manufacturer: Simon Wallenburg Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Spain | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

Walking | Hiking & Camping | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

General | Europe | Travel | Subjects | Books

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Sports | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino de Santiago: Camino Frances - The French Way of St. James (Camino Guides)
The Pilgrimage Road to Santiago: The Complete Cultural Handbook
Buen Camino
Walking the Camino De Santiago
Camino Chronicle: Walking to Santiago

ASIN: 1843560011

Book Description

Use this book to walk a medieval path off the beaten track. This Village to Village guide enables the walker to follow the 1,000 year-old pilgrimage footpath to Santiago de Compostela and to re-enact Europe's most historic journey. This guide is recommended by the Catholic Church to those making the pilgrimage to Santiago on foot. It is a detailed directional guide for the 800 km footpath in Spain. The book contains listings of budget accommodation and other practical information. In the middle ages, a network of foot paths carried pilgrims to the shrine at Santiago from every country. The roads went over the Pyrenees and into Spain, either by way of the great monastery at Roncesvalles, or via that of Santa Cristina and the Somport Pass. Santiago, far away under the mists and Atlantic skies of Galicia, all woods and water in a Celtic landscape of menhirs and lost gods, exerted an appeal that was infinitely pre Christian. The route to Santiago was a Roman trade-route. It was nicknamed by travellers la voje ladee, the Milky Way. It was the road under the stars. The pale arm of the Milky Way stretched out and pointed the way to the edge of the known world : to Cape Finisterre The vast majority of those who walk The Way of St James today, are not experienced walkers at all. Many have never done any serious walking in their lives. and many will never do anything like it again. Most long-distance footpaths avoid not only large towns but even quite small villages as well; the Way of Saint James, on the other hand, because of its historic origins and the need for shelter, deliberately seeks them out. It passes through ancient places rich in art and architectural masterpieces

Customer Reviews:

Overpriced. .......2007-09-08

I'm preparing to walk the last 110km starting next Sunday and orginally consulted three books: Walking in Spain by the Lonely Planet ($20), Walking the Camino de Santiago by Pili Pala Press ($20), and A Pilgrim's Guide to Camino de Santiago ($30). Then I came across the Village to Village Guide ($35) and, based on the reviews and price, thought that it was a must read.

So far, I'm disappointed. The information, I'm sure is accurate, but it is scance. Walking the Camino and A Pilgrim's guide had more references to lodging and meals and better route discriptions, complete with maps and walking elevations. Even the Lonely Planet's guide to all of Spain seemed to have about as much info as Village to Village.

Village to Village looks like it was prepared by loving, but inexpert hands. At the top of page 194 one of the editors hiccupped and deleted at least two villages and part of the description of Portomarin. (I don't know about the preceding 400km of the Camino leading to Portomarin.)

Because my walk will only be 5-6 days, I'll be able to take the short, pertinent excerpts from all of the books and will report when I return. For my own preparation I've relied the most on Walking the Camino de Santiago, but have regularly consulted the others.

Part of the preparation for the walk has been refining and refining what I'll be taking. Perhaps the editors of Village to Village have done the same, giving us a bare bones treatment of what we most need,ie. there are no maps because the arrows blaze the way. If that's the case, there may be virtue in having it. I'll let you know.

I lovedthis guide, worth every penny and more, my daughter is walking next year and she will use this guide too.......2007-08-24

This is my favorite guide and I have just completed my pilgrim and I tresure it - It never let me down.

This is a book packed with information not only on the history of the places you will pas as a pilgrim. But all the information you will need to make detailed planning. The book is updated frequently and all the latest changes are in this book.

The village to village guide has been around for many years frequently coming out in new editions as pilgrims and clergy themselves report changes to the pilgrimage route, this 2007 edition is case to point.

The guide has aquired a bit of a cult status as not only does it have practical information and is a directional guide but it has many stories on the monuments and places of interest along the way. There have been many changes on the route. When the guide was first published there were hardly any pilgrims walking the way of St James, now many thousands make the journey. Prices too have gone up considerably and the new edition incorporates these changes. Latin American and the poor pilgrim will appreciate the guide as it allows one to do financial planning and make up a budget. The guide also points the way to cheaper accommodation.

You will NOT find pictures coloured arrows and diagrams in this guide. It's a sober practical tome. I agree that pictures are not needed as you will be walking many miles to see these places, to stare in wonderment of the discoveries you have made. Pictures rather spoil this. Its rather like Seeing `War and Peace" at the movies interpreted by Hollywood and then reading Tolstoy's famous literary work, . Therefore I am glad there are no pictures in this book and only medieval woodcuts.

The latest 2007 edition has done away with maps as the route is now way marked with thousands of arrows very fifty yards or so. So its impossible to get lost. There is one large map where you can plan your position in the context of where you are on the route and thus able to chart your progress.

There is very useful practical advice on how the plan your journey what the weather would be like during different seasons etc.

An entire section is devoted to the equipment you must take, useful things to carry in your rucksack, a useful chapter describes how to get to the pilgrimage route by Land Sea and Air. It is so detailed that it gives the latest taxi fares and times when taxis leave from |Pamplona to Roncesvalles.

The book is built on the experiences of Pilgrims past and that is its forte. The pilgrimage for every person is different however the book outlines how others did it and their itineraries.

The book also comes with a short English Spanish phrasebook, focused on what the walker might need to say while on the walk, at the back, very useful as on the pilgrim route which is off the beaten track hardly anyone speaks English.

A superb Guide! A famous guide For Pilgrims by Pilgrims. And for the poorer pilgrim on a budget.......2007-08-15

As a veteran on the Camino for many years, I still use this guide as a favorite, although I own most of the others.
This is the oldest guide book on the Camino but it is updated every year with Pilgrims sending feedback on their journey. The 2007 edition has all the changes on the route. I have walked the route now over three times with Pilgrims from various confraternities of St James's. The problems of road works continue and no all the guides are up to date as this one. This guide is also used when we wish to plan our budget because it has all the latest prices for accommodation, useful when you consider that prices are steadily rising in Spain and it no longer is a cheap country.

The guide has hardly any pictures except about two dozen woodcuts, but one of the enjoyments of the pilgrimage is to see places that would surprise you, so seeing photographs tends to spoil it and the woodcuts do nicely. This guide is recommended by the Catholic Church so contains information for the religious pilgrim of on Holy places along the route. Its not a glossy guide like the lonely planet guide with artistic typesetting. But a guide for Pilgrims By Pilgrims.

good for pre travel reading or supplement.......2007-08-10

I purchased this book after deciding to walk the Camino and was intending on taking it on the journey as a guide. I am now planning on taking another book I've purchased - A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino de Santiago: Camino Frances - The French Way of St. James (Camino Guides) which is a better format, has more maps and relevant information.

This book has no colour images or maps and the layout needs attention. The information seems reasonably comprehensive but a better layout design, more maps, photos and consistent headings for each village would be helpful. It seems to have good general info on the villages.

If you've got room take it on the walk with another guide, if not, read it before you go.

Used this book to walk 800km From St Jean France to Santiago.......2007-04-16

I have just finished my Pilgrimage - In the five weeks I used this book to walk the track to Santiago in Spain - I grew quite fond of it - The 220 page book is ring bound and fits compactly into my rucksack.
Every village is mentioned on the 800km way with information on each village, like don't cross this field because of a bull, or this is the village of barking dogs, or in this village the Baker helps Pilgrims or visit Madam Debril in this village near the laundry who likes chatting to pilgrims -
Ninety Five villages and a guide between them - In each village the books lists places to stay and other useful information - The book will suit the budget traveler who walks the Camino because I did the walk on $10 per day, staying in the religious establishments the book mentions often for free. The book also prepares you for the Journey and details exactly what to take, like how much weight, what type of clothes, shoes, how much does food cost, how to do your laundry, dealing with bed bugs, useful Spanish phrases and so on - It also lists places worth visiting as you walk this 800km track and some interesting stories and legends around these places.
There are also things to watch out for and useful tips - The book will mention at many different points legends around the Camino - It is a very detailed book on the 800km route every fork on this path is mentioned example.. the path now climbs for two km, turn right at the church, from the top of the next mountain you will be able to see the following five villages etc..-
I took maps and three other guides with me but after reaching the city of Pamplona to reduce weight I posted the other books back to New York along with my tent and electric stove - the book had warned me not to take the tent & stove

Average customer rating:

an easy read
Vivid photos help carry the storyline on this fall pilgrimage across northern Spain
Hike the Camino de Santiago in one day

Buen Camino
Jim Clem , and Eleanor Clem
Manufacturer: Pagefree Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Essays & Travelogues | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino de Santiago: Camino Frances - The French Way of St. James (Camino Guides)
Sue Kenney's My Camino
Walk in a Relaxed Manner: Life Lessons from the Camino
Camino Chronicle: Walking to Santiago
Walking the Camino De Santiago

ASIN: 1589613422

Customer Reviews:

an easy read.......2007-06-26

I read this book in one or two days and really enjoyed it. This book is almost a nuts & bolts book - a narrative about how the author's trip turned out day by day. It's more about the hike itself, and not very much about pilgrimage, spiritual or personal. I met the author in a business meeting, so it's refreshing to actually meet someone who has done the walk - just a normal guy and his wife taking an adventure vacation.

Vivid photos help carry the storyline on this fall pilgrimage across northern Spain.......2005-08-20

I got started on this book and couldn't put it down, so read it cover to cover the day I got it. This day by day journal of the authors' hike across Spain's Camino de Santiago pilgrimage trail is a treat for armchair travelers and a resource for those about to take the same journey. For those of us who have walked this trail, this book will bring back a lot of familiar memories.

The book makes a good start with a readable Camino map. The trail goes mainly from east to west. In contrast to most maps, they have placed west at the top, making all the placenames easy to read.

The authors are hikers and this shows in their short but excellent forward on training and equipment. Low pack weight, quick drying, washable clothing and foot care are some of the highlights.

In the body of the book, each chapter covers a day on the trail. They soon get into the simplified priorities of the Camino: Food, shelter, companions. Just some phrases from some of the chapters: "body sprawled across the trail", "a little scary at first, but no problem", "tired, wet, muddy", "bread, chorizo, cheese, Ruffles potato chips", "greatest shower in the world", "ankle deep mud, soaking wet", "a couple of beers", "tomorrow is a shorter day", "we met up again in a bar", "today was one of those days", "Santiago", "in the pouring rain", "hugging each other and crying".

This is one of the few Camino journals where the authors stay mostly in small hotels, rather than the overcrowded refugios. There are some tips for this mode of travel, such as call ahead if you want to be sure of a place to stay.

For me, the photos are the strong point of this book. They tell the story well, and the composition is excellent. Unfortunately, the printing process appears to print them at newspaper quality, which really doesn't do them justice.

I recommend this book to anyone with a taste for adventure, but particularly for those thinking of going, or who have gone on the same pilgrimage.

Hike the Camino de Santiago in one day.......2005-08-08

I hiked the Buen Camino today. I say "hiked" and "today" because the authors wrote this remarkable book in such a way as to bring you in to walk the Camino with them. With a bit of your imagination, you join them on the trail. You empathize their sore muscles and feet, feel their contentment after a simple hot shower (I think we've all been there) or a wonderful meal. You will enjoy their trials and tribulations, some funny, some not so funny, and some downright ooky. There are many pictures, nicely placed at the end of each chapter so you may reflect back on what you just read. If you plan to hike the Camino, this book will introduce you to the trail, the land and towns, the weather, the people and their customs, as well as give you historical information and tips to help you along your way. Read Buen Camino, Hiking the Camino de Santiago, if you enjoy getting lost in a book of real experiences like I did today. Thank you Eleanor and Jim for such a candid and engaging book.

Following the Milky Way: A Pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago

Average customer rating:

"If we were religious, would it hurt less?"
One of the best on the Camino.
Going to Santiago...a must read!

Following the Milky Way: A Pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago
Elyn Aviva
Manufacturer: Pilgrims' Process, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Europe | Travel | Subjects | Books

Essays & Travelogues | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

The Pilgrimage Road to Santiago: The Complete Cultural Handbook
Pilgrim Stories: On and Off the Road to Santiago, Journeys Along an Ancient Way in Modern Spain
Pilgrimage to the End of the World: The Road to Santiago de Compostela
Walking the Camino De Santiago
Buen Camino

ASIN: 0971060908
Release Date: 2003-07-16

Book Description

Following the Milky Way is the story of Elyn Aviva's 500-mile-long journey on foot on the Camino de Santiago. This 1000-year-old pilgrimage road stretches from the French Pyrenees across northern Spain to Santiago de Compostela, sup-posed tomb of St. James the Apostle. It is a journey that crosses the landscape of the soul as well as the mountains and mesetas of Spain. This book is a vivid memoir of a life-changing adventure, chance encounters, unforeseen dangers, and unexpected pleasures. Spanish history, wine, food, lit-erature, art, architecture, and legend share equal time with the stories of pilgrims that Elyn meets along the way. Following the Milky Way is a fascinating his-torical document. Today, hundreds of thousands of people-including Shirley MacLaine-are going on the Camino, but Following the Milky Way describes the pilgrimage in 1982, when the Camino was nearly abandoned. This second edition includes a new introduction that explores the meaning of pilgrimage in greater detail, delves more deeply into the esoteric symbols and pre-Christian shrines that lie hidden within the Way, and provides a unique look at the changes that have occurred in the pilgrimage in recent years.

Customer Reviews:

"If we were religious, would it hurt less?".......2004-03-08

The review heading is a quote from day 10, July 18, 1982 in Elyn Aviva's fascinating tapestry of trail journal and scholarly insight. This story was first published in 1989. The 2nd edition was published in 2001. Prior to the 2nd edition, the author walked the Camino again in 1997 and again in 2000.

The Camino in 1982 was a vastly different experience from the modern Camino, and for this reason the author has left the text of the body unchanged except for some editing. She has added an 18 page Introduction to the 2nd Edition where she describes some of the changes over the last twenty years and talks about the other pre Christian pilgrimage routes that some believe evolved into the Christian Camino.

I had never read the original edition, and really enjoyed the account of Elyn and her friend Bill's journey. They had never backpacked before, and started out carrying heavy packs, wearing new boots, and throughout the book I emphasized with the experience of new backpackers, gradually becoming fit. In 1982 there were few refugios compared to today, and frequently they slept under the open sky. The trail was poorly marked, sometimes non existent compared to today. Sometimes they had to hitch. Particularly in the earlier part of the trek, the local people did not look on pilgrims with favor.

Each day gets a section in the book, with a little map showing maybe a third of the entire Camino, with a little bracket showing the distance walked for the day. The first day has a similar map of the entire route - not a map for detailed info, but a simple line with place names. Day 1 starts in St. Jean Pied de Port and the book ends with Day 47 - leaving Santiago.

Anyone who has walked the Camino will appreciate this story, and anyone about to travel the route will benefit from the history included with the day to day narrative.

Modern day walkers - read this for background, but be sure to get the Confraternity of St. James The Camino Frances guide to take with you, as well as either John Brierley's guide or Davies and Cole's guide. Also, check the forums such as GoCamino and Santiagobis and websites such as backpack45.

One of the best on the Camino........2001-08-24

Elyn Aviva has written an excellent book on walking the Camino. She includes the human interest angle as well as interesting info about the history, cultural aspects, and architecture. The fact that her walk was in 1982, before the Camino became the popular pilgrimage route it is now, is quite interesting. I consider this book to be a great addition to my growing library of books on this subject.

Going to Santiago...a must read!.......2001-07-23

This account of the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, made in 1982, before the current resurgence, contains everything you need to know about history, architecture, myth and legend along the ancient route across northern Spain and more. It is a personal account, but one chock full of customs and lore, as well as facts and individual musings on the nature of pilgrimage and what drives a pilgrim to leave home and hearth to trek 500 miles to the medieval end of the world.

Elyn tells her story with humor and pathos and ask the reader to consider just what the pilgrimage route and the symbols contained therein might really mean for today's pilgrims. It is, after all, both an inner and outer journey.

A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino Portugues: The Portuguese Way of St. James Porto to Santiago de Compostela
Average customer rating:

San Miguel Says.....

Superb -- this is all you need!

Excellent guide, colored maps, trail profiles, photos, accomodation guide

a faithful walking companion.

Best guide I've seen

A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino Portugues: The Portuguese Way of St. James Porto to Santiago de Compostela
John Brierley
Manufacturer: Findhorn Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Europe | History | Subjects | Books
Portugal | Europe | History | Subjects | Books
Spain | Europe | History | Subjects | Books
General | World | History | Subjects | Books
General | Church History | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
General | Europe | Travel | Subjects | Books
Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books
Tourist Destinations & Museums | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino Fisterra: Santiago de Compostela to Finisterre Including the Muxia Extension

A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino de Santiago: Camino Frances - The French Way of St. James (Camino Guides)

The Pilgrimage Road to Santiago: The Complete Cultural Handbook

Camino Chronicle: Walking to Santiago

Walking the Via de la Plata: The Camino de Santiago from Sevilla to Santiago de Compostela

ASIN: 1844090558

Book Description

Including practical advice and a list of accommodations for each day’s stage, this guide covers the increasingly popular Portugese Route.

Customer Reviews:

San Miguel Says............2007-06-27

Very thorough review if the Portugues Way. Will test it's accuracy next Spring.The French Way is much more frequented and pilgrim's catered for, so a good guide for this less popular walk is essential. John Brierley's work 'A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino Portugues' will be my bible for the journey.

Superb -- this is all you need!.......2006-06-20

I used this book and the similar Fisterra book for my pilgrimage in April 2006. They are both superb. I followed Brierley's suggestions pretty much to the letter. The book contains excruciating details as well as a longer and spiritual view.

I think of the book as a personal gift to each of us pilgrims. Brierley obviously loves his work and the Camino. He kept me on track, put me to bed early and awake early when it was important, encouraged me to appreciate the wonderful people and sights along the camino. He offers history lessons, lists of practicalities, maps and directions. This book is all you need!

Excellent guide, colored maps, trail profiles, photos, accomodation guide.......2006-02-08

This guide follows the format of Brierley's Camino Frances guide: very pleasing to look at: glossy paper, colored photos almost every page, multicolor maps and trail profiles, parts of text set off by shading. It has the information the walker needs, where the alburgues are, how many beds, alternate choices. There is an introductory section with introduction, overview, followed by planning and preparation information. The main body of the guide follows, organized in 11 stages where each stage corresponds to a typical day's travel. Each stage has a map and a trail profile.

The planning section is very useful - detailed equipment list, travel info, essential phrases in Spanish and Portuguese and a short history of the Camino
.
This guide also makes a serious effort to address the spiritual or inner path side of the journey. In addition to the map and profile, each stage begins with three paragraphs - the Physical Path - a narrative overview of the day's walk, the Mystic Path - to awaken you to the spiritual potential of the day's walk, and Personal Reflections - a quotation from the author's reflections. In each stage there is a page with blank lines for the walker to write in their own reflections. The mystic path, and blank reflections page didn't work for me, but that is personal preference.

For me, the colored maps, elevation profiles and photos are the strong points of the book.

The Camino facilities change from year to year, and inevitably publications will have typos and errors of fact. Do future pilgrims a favor by emailing the publication's website if you find errors in the text.

a faithful walking companion........2005-07-11

As a frequent Camino walker, I have used many guide books. This book on the Portuguese Way from Porto to Santiago is a total "must" for a succesful pilgrimage.
The maps for each stage are clear, possible detours are included.
Also for each stage, contour outlines are given and the distances are adjusted for height.
Accomodations and restaurants are listed with phone numbers .
Description of each stage is broken down to "The Pratical Path, "The Mystical Path" and "Personal Reflections" Some might be skeptical about the last two but it adds an emotional factor to the walk, something I have not yet seen in any other guide.
Photo's are plenty. over 200 photos. The author suggest not to bring a camera because the photo's you need are already in the book. It saves weight......
With all the suggestions for planning of your trip, this guide will keep you on the right track.

Best guide I've seen.......2005-06-29

The "Camino Portugues" has managed to provide the most integrated and concise travel guide that I've ever come across (and I've used plenty). It manages to provide a complete picture of this lesser known pilgrimage route with an easy to follow step by step process complete with pictures and colorful maps. It loads up on all of this practical information and somehow doesn't become sterile. It's a great read as part of your pre-travel preperation. There are even places that I'm using for additional notes (reserved as "reflections" for those that want to use it as a summary journal).

There are no other updated English guides for this Camino, and as it turns out, with this book, you don't need any. It's the complete package.

The Way of Saint James: Pyrenees-Santiago-Finisterre (Cicerone International Walking)

Average customer rating:

The Way of Saint James: Pyrenees-Santiago-Finisterre (Cicerone International Walking)
Alison Raju
Manufacturer: Cicerone Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Walking | Hiking & Camping | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

General | Europe | Travel | Subjects | Books

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Sports | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

The Way of Saint James (Chemin de Saint-Jacques de Compostelle): Le Puy to the Pyrenees: A Walker's Guide (Cicerone International Walking)
The Pilgrimage Road to Santiago: The Complete Cultural Handbook
A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino de Santiago: Camino Frances - The French Way of St. James (Camino Guides)
Walking the Camino De Santiago
Pilgrimage to the End of the World: The Road to Santiago de Compostela

ASIN: 1852843721

Via De La Plata: The Way of St. James from Seville to Santiago (Cicerone Guide)

Average customer rating:

First Impressions Great -- Follow-up to come after the Walk

Via De La Plata: The Way of St. James from Seville to Santiago (Cicerone Guide)
Alison Raju
Manufacturer: Cicerone Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Europe | Travel | Subjects | Books

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books

Spanish | Foreign Language Nonfiction | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Recreación al Aire Libre | Al Aire Libre y La Naturaleza | Libros en español | Formats | Books

General | Viajes y turismo | Libros en español | Formats | Books

Walking the Via de la Plata: The Camino de Santiago from Sevilla to Santiago de Compostela
A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino de Santiago: Camino Frances - The French Way of St. James (Camino Guides)
A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino Portugues: The Portuguese Way of St. James Porto to Santiago de Compostela
The Pilgrimage Road to Santiago: The Complete Cultural Handbook

ASIN: 1852844442

Customer Reviews:

First Impressions Great -- Follow-up to come after the Walk.......2007-03-09

Great background book on the Via de la plata, but the real litmus test for me will come after my husband walks the Via during April 2007 and verifies what is current and what is out of date.

Cicerone Guide The Way Of St James: A Cyclist's Guide : from Le Puy en Velay to Santiago de Compostela (Cicerone Guide)

Average customer rating:

Not the right book

Cicerone Guide The Way Of St James: A Cyclist's Guide : from Le Puy en Velay to Santiago de Compostela (Cicerone Guide)
John Higginson
Manufacturer: Cicerone Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Sports | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Cicerone Cycle Touring in Spain: Eight Detailed Cycle Tours (Cicerone International Walking)
A Pilgrim's Guide to the Camino de Santiago: Camino Frances - The French Way of St. James (Camino Guides)
The Pilgrimage Road to Santiago: The Complete Cultural Handbook
It's Not About the Tapas: A Spanish Adventure on Two Wheels
Cycle Europe: 20 Tours, 20 Countries

ASIN: 1852844418

Customer Reviews:

Not the right book.......2007-05-12

When you order the "cyclist's guide" Amazon sends out the "walker's guide" instead. They sent me the walker's guide twice when I ordered the cyclist's guide. The first time I received it was in my initial order and the second time was after I filed a complaint that I was sent the wrong product. They sent the same wrong book! Since I am cycling around Spain, I had no use for the walker's guide. I told them what the problem was and they said it was a system wide problem and that they don't actually have the cyclist's guide to The Way of St. James. So, if you order this book, plan on getting the walker's guide instead!

Following the Milky Way: A Pilgrimage Across Spain

Average customer rating:

Defining the term Pilgrimage

Following the Milky Way: A Pilgrimage Across Spain
Ellen O. Feinberg
Manufacturer: Iowa State Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Science | Subjects | Books

General | Europe | Travel | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 081380146X

Customer Reviews:

Defining the term Pilgrimage.......2004-05-18

This book is an in-depth exploration of the concept of pilgrimage. In order to understand the meaning of pilgrimage herself, the author sets off on one of the Western world's most famed pilgrimage routes, the 500-mile-long Camino de Santiago that stretches from the Pyrenees in France to Santiago de Compostela in Northwestern Spain. As she describes her own path, she also relates to us the history of this particular pilgrimage route. She tells us the stories of others who walked the route in the past as recorded in history or literature, and she also tells us about the people she meets herself along the way. Feinberg notes that while some people along the route may be mere tourists, motivated by the desire to travel beyond their usual surroundings, most take up the route because they have a sincere desire for a transcending spiritual experience, an experience that will transform their souls. The rituals connected to the route and sanctity of the sites along the way strongly affect the participants, so much so that many of those who start out as simple tourists eventually become true pilgrims by the time the final goal is in sight.

Feinberg's record is illustrated with maps and tourist quality black-and-white photographs. The story unfolds as a journal, with Feinberg describing daily details of finding food and lodging, dealing with bureaucracy and local yokels and well wishers, and her relationship with her traveling companion. Interspersed with these details are relevant snippets of Spanish history from early times through Franco's reign, or bits of information about Spanish literary figures and religious traditions. Mostly, though, Feinberg's mind seems to be on the pilgrimage itself, as she contemplates her actions, and asks other pilgrims to describe their motivations for her. The true meaning of her pilgrimage didn't become clear to Feinberg until some months after she had completed the walk to Santiago and returned home and had time to think about it some more and discuss it with others, off the trail.

I learned much about pilgrimages by reading this book. Before I picked the book up, I had a vague idea that the word pilgrimage had something to do with travel with a religious purpose. I was certainly familiar with the word, and knew that Muslims must take a pilgrimage to Mecca, and that there were Christian and Hindu pilgrimages as well, but I thought these were simple traditional religious requirements to travel and see a little of the world or perform a ritual in a specific location. I had very little appreciation for the level of contemplation that is undertaken by a true pilgrim, or how a true pilgrim's journey is never truly finished.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books