My Camino Adventure! by Anne Shipley

A few years ago, I   ran into local legend Anne Shipley on the beach and she told me that she was going to walk the Camino to Santiago.  The camino is a is a network of pilgrims' ways or pilgrimages leading to the shrine of the apostle Saint James the Great in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northwestern Spain and is a walk I have always wanted to do!  The symbol for the pilgrims and the route is the scallop shell.  So when we knew Anne was walking the path, we made a special scalop shell bracelet for her to wear on her adventure, and this is how that story continues...!

"The first time I walked the Camino Francais from St Jean Pied du Port to Santiago de Compostela was in 2017.

Before I left Cornwall you gave me a colourful bracelet with a silver scallop, many people admired it.

I started the walk with two other people, unfortunately my friend Kate had to go home after a week and the other lady was only walking for ten days. I decided to carry on as I was enjoying it so much.

One lovely place that I stayed in near Burgos, the owner really liked the bracelet that I was wearing. I decided if I walked the Camino again I would bring her one.

The walk took me six weeks I had an amazing time and I loved every minute of it, meeting people from all over the world.

I decided to walk the Camino again In September 2018, you were kind enough to give me six bracelets. As I met different people on my walk, I gave them away and everybody loved them.

I went back to the same place that I stayed at the year before where the owner admired my first bracelet. She actually remembered me and the bracelet, amazing if you think how many different people they meet through the year. I gave her one of the six brackets you gave me, she was delighted.

In 2019 I walked the same Camino once again starting in September. This time you gave me ten bracelets. I gave them away to people I met on my journey, who I felt really needed something special. “ To spread the love” you said.
Alison from Florida got the first bracelet. I met her waiting outside a place where I was going to stay. She had a very heavy rucksack, which is a common mistake people make on the walk. I advised her to get rid of many things in her rucksack to keep the weight down.

When I only had one bracelet left, I met Sandra from Melbourne. I had become friends with her the year before and didn’t know she was doing the Camino again, so it came as a real surprise. I found out it was her 60th birthday in a few days time.
 We had a lovely meal with a few other fellow walkers and I gave her the last bracelet, she loved it!

We continued the walk together. It took me nearly two months this time.

Watch this space, I may do it again!!