Walking the Camino de Santiago
Fun fact: on this day back in 2016, Francine and I arrived in Rabanal. Today’s photo, however, is a look back at the village under the rising sun as we leave, heading for points farther west. Always, we journey to the West, but it’s important that you turn, from time to time, and reflect on where you’ve been and your […]
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Francine stands in front ofthe tiny Benedictine monastery in Rabanal. Here, with four monks, you can pray Vespers, Compline, and the Mass, often on the same day. From my journal of the previous day: … we’d hoped to find a Mass at Rabanal, as we had been told of a 7PM Mass, but in the event it proved to be […]
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Early the next morning, we bid our hospitaleros at Refugio Gaucelmo farewell and prepare to head in search of an iron cross. The morning was cold, and we were only going to climb in altitude through the day. Date: 22 April 2013Place: Rabanal del Camino (Province of León, Castilla y León, Spain)Today started: Rabanal del Camino (Province of León, Castilla […]
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Although I’m not exactly certain where this video was taken, I do know that it’s somewhere on the road up to Rabanal del Camino. Featuring Francine and the wild beauty that is northern Spain. Date: 21 April 2013Place: Rabanal del Camino (Province of León, Castilla y León, Spain)Today started: Astorga (Province of León, Castilla y León, Spain)
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The routine when checking into your albergue is pretty invariable: collapse, recover, shower, laundry, exploration, dinner. Here we see pilgrims at Refugio Gaucelmo doing the “laundry” portion of the routine, certainly one of the less glamourous portions of Camino life. From left to right: Stella from Brazil, Francine, and Tara and Smith from Indiana. The sinks all being used, I […]
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We checked into Refugio Gaucelmo. This was the view from our window, across the rooftops of Rabanal del Camino towards the distant mountains. It’s absolutely sublime. It’s difficult to believe that just a few short decades ago, this village was largely an abandoned ruin. It was brought back from the brink of extinction by the revival of the Camino in […]
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Rabanal del Camino is one of the great villages of the Camino Francés. I like to call it “the Disneyland of the Camino”. The village is impossibly orderly and clean, as if the Imagineers set out to create a “typical Camino village”. There are several churches, including a small Benedictine monastery with four monks where you can pray Vespers, Compline, […]
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After a short section of road walking, the Camino leaves the road and follows a dirt and gravel path uphill through the scrubby woods. A fence at our right hand is decorated with flowers and crosses made of twigs, markers of hope left by passing pilgrims. There are dozens of these little crosses, perhaps hundreds. They continue for at least […]
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Our first GIF of the day! Francine walks the scrubby uphill trail after El Ganso. Date: 21 April 2013Place: between El Ganso and Rabanal (Province of León, Castilla y León, Spain)Today started: Astorga (Province of León, Castilla y León, Spain)
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This striking plaque, mounted to a gate in the village of El Ganso, contains three symbols: the shell of Saint James, the Cross of Christ, and the Celtic Triskelion. This latter is an ancient symbol, going back at least 6,000 years, and is sometimes associated with Celtic cultures. The oldest meanings of the symbol are obscure and contested, but by […]
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