Info on The Camino

Long before Christianity was born, pagans were walking across northern Spain in order to purge their soul and honor Nature's cycles. This pilgrimage was considered a sacred right of passage and ended at Fisterra (''End Of The World''/''Fin de la Terre''). Pilgrims watched the sun fall into the sea in a symbolic born-again ritual. It was here at Fisterre that the pagans began the fine tradition of burning their walking clothes, a practice which is still fervently adhered to, and one in which I hope to participate!

Then, in the year 42, along came St. James (Iago in Spanish) of Jerusalem!  Despite his best efforts, he managed to convert only 9 pagans, but happened to be skilled at killing Moors (Muslims from Morocco). Given that Spain was in constant battle with the Moors at this time, St. James became the patriot saint of Spain, nicknamed 'Iago the Moorslayer'. When King Herod beheaded James, his body was smuggled from Jerusalem, thanks to a series of dubious miracles. Rumor has it that his body was brought to rest beneath the Cathedral of the city of Compostella, which was at that point renamed Santiago de Compostella in his honor. Like many things that the Church borrowed from paganism, this route (now called Camino Francés) was repackaged and revamped; the Knights' Templar was posted all along the dangerous route and churches, monasteries and hospitals were feverishly built to aid the wayward soul (and enrich the Church's coffers, no doubt). 

This brought a disproportionate amount of fame to the already-well-known pagan route. To top it off, the Roman Catholic Church vowed to absolve any surviving pilgrim of his/her sins and to fast-track their souls into Heaven. Prisoners were often sentenced to walk it as punishment, and one could even go as a 'surrogate pilgrims' to walk off their employers' sins!  In 2010, over 250,000 people walked the Camino Francés. 

The Camino Francés, from St-Jean-Pied-de-Port in France to Finisterre, is roughly 900 kms. To Santiago de Compostella, it's about 800k. You need between 4 and 5 weeks (with a few days off), and you're walking an average of 25 kms a day. I hope to walk most of those 800 kms in 30 days, which is all the time I have!