stormelemental13

Ouch!

Well now I need to ask, how did you come to feel this way about His Imperial Majesty?

Both. I hate exercise and hiking is a way of slipping it in under the guise of exploration. I'm really curious, and have to know what's on the other side of the mountain.

For this trip though, curiosity. I'd never been to europe, never seen a real cathedral, never visited a real castle, etc. This was a travesty that needed to be rectified, and I was finally in a position to do it.

I think it did. Learning about the history of the pilgrimage and seeing the churches, artifacts, and other very tangible manifestations of someone else's faith resonated with me because of my experiences and beliefs, and gave them more meaning than their purely historical or aesthetic value.

However, the Camino is plenty awesome without that. You don't need to be religious to appreciate the beauty of the cathedral of Burgos, or enjoy all of the delicious wines along the route.

Ooo, all kinds of people. And I do mean all kinds. There was Janene, obese lady who was hiking because her boyfriend left her, she lost her job, and life generally sucked. Nice lady and fun to talk to. She was from Paris.

There were the Panzers, group of retired german guys who had a very determined walk/march from one place to the next. It was generally assumed that I was part of the group that had gotten lost.

The Scandis, a very amorphous blob of college students from Denmark, Sweden, and Norway who wandered forward in a quest for beer, sex, and enlightenment, but mostly beer.

Aussie, a retired australian who was walking from Rome to Santiago. His plan was to get there and get blind drunk for three days.

Ron Paul, an american couple wearing Ron Paul 2012 campaign hats and pins. Very spiritual, but not religious. Much fun was had metaphorically poking them with sticks and watching the politics burst forth.

There were many, many more. Overall, didn't meet anyone who was a jerk. People are generally very nice and help each other out, and they come from everywhere.

We slept in the alburgue, pilgrim hostels, every night. Ours ran 3-10 a night with 5 being the median. They are usually dorm-like, so bring earplugs and a light sleeping bag.

As for food, probably about 10€ a day. You can do it for a bit less, but most people spend way more. We didn't buy off the expensive menu when we visited cafes, and used grocery stores when we could. Not drinking also cut down our bill by a lot.