BLISS, BLISTERS AND BEATIFICATION(The Ancient Pilgrimage Of the Way of St James Is Not For Wimps

The German magazine Spiegel has a great story on the Way of St. James, the old Christian pilgrimage route through Spain.. Go see Pilgrims Flock to the Way of St. James. Here is a part:
Even in autumn, hundreds of hikers with wide-brimmed hats and walking sticks still gather every day on the pilgrims' square in Roncesvalles. Everything is completely booked out at the old "refugio", a cavernous stone structure with no windows and 90 iron bunk beds. Bicycle pilgrims spend the night in a large military tent. Lights go out at 10:00 p.m. and on again at 6:00 in the morning.
There is no doubt about it: Northern Spain is host to a veritable spiritual stampede. Over 120,000 pilgrims -- a new record -- are expected this year on the Camino de Santiago, as the route is known in Spanish. The route extends over roughly 800 kilometers, past Pamplona, through the Rioja wine-growing region, and across the sweltering heat of the Castilian plateau, with its endless fields of golden wheat.
At the end of each day's stage, monks and nuns stamp the passports of the tired trekkers. Some walk barefoot, others ride on mountain bikes, while others prefer to travel by scooter or on horseback.
The ultimate destination is the region of Cape Finisterre (literally, "land's end"), where high cliffs drop precipitously into the Atlantic. A few kilometers inland lies the holy city of Santiago de Compostela. This is the home of the famous cathedral that houses a silver tomb said to contain the relics of St. James the Greater, one of Christ's first disciples.

It appears that like many traditions this one is having quite a revival. I hate to say it but as an American Catholic I was pretty ignorant of this great Catholic tradition until a few years ago. I was looking at the news on the net couple of years back and what did I see? Well I saw a short blurb and picture of President Bush's Daughter, Jenna,(with secret service agents huffing and puffing in tow) doing this old Christian pilgrimage. They were not on scooters either. Here is a article and pic of that at Bush daughter is Spanish pilgrim.