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'In May 2006, armed only with a small rucksack and a staff, Tony Kevin, an overweight, sedentary, 63-year-old former diplomat, set off on an eight-week trek across Spain. But this was not just a very long walk - it was a pilgrimage.
'From Granada, in the southeast, to Santiago de Compostela, in the far northwest, Tony followed the Via Mozarabe and the Via de la Plata, two of the many pilgrim trails that crisscross Spain and Portugal and that all lead to a single destination. In the Middle Ages, the cathedral city of Santiago de Compostela was Europe's most famous centre of pilgrimage, and in recent years it has enjoyed a remarkable revival; every day towards noon, hundreds of hot, tired, and dusty pilgrims stream into Santiago Cathedral for the daily Pilgrim's Mass.
'What, in our busy, materialistic 21st century, is this apparently anachronistic phenomenon all about? What drives tens of thousands of people of all nationalities and creeds to make long, exhausting walks across the cold mountains and hot tablelands of Spain, to take part finally in a mediaeval Christian liturgy of spiritual renewal and reconciliation with God?
'Walking the Camino beautifully captures the flavour of what it was like to walk the camino, and is filled with fascinating observations and anecdotes about the nature of contemporary Spain. And, unavoidably, because pilgrimage is such a deeply personal experience that has the potential to unlock the deepest recesses of hidden memory and conscience, it is also a profound personal meditation on the nature of modern life.' (Publisher's blurb)
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
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Writer Walks Off With Top Accolade
2008
single work
column
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 17 December 2008; (p. 3) -
Spanish Pilgrimages Generate Tears of Rage and Hymns of Joy
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 28-29 July 2007; (p. 5)
— Review of The Year We Seized the Day : A True Story of Friendship, Fury and Sore Feet 2007 single work autobiography ; Walking the Camino : A Modern Pilgrimage to Santiago 2007 single work autobiography -
Happy Stroll on a Well-Trodden Path
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 7-8 July 2007; (p. 33)
— Review of Walking the Camino : A Modern Pilgrimage to Santiago 2007 single work autobiography -
Journeys of Discovery
2007
single work
prose
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 30 June - 1 July 2007; (p. 21-22) Claire Scobie talks with Tony Kevin and others who have completed pilgrimages about their motivation for such journeys.
-
Happy Stroll on a Well-Trodden Path
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 7-8 July 2007; (p. 33)
— Review of Walking the Camino : A Modern Pilgrimage to Santiago 2007 single work autobiography -
Spanish Pilgrimages Generate Tears of Rage and Hymns of Joy
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 28-29 July 2007; (p. 5)
— Review of The Year We Seized the Day : A True Story of Friendship, Fury and Sore Feet 2007 single work autobiography ; Walking the Camino : A Modern Pilgrimage to Santiago 2007 single work autobiography -
Journeys of Discovery
2007
single work
prose
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 30 June - 1 July 2007; (p. 21-22) Claire Scobie talks with Tony Kevin and others who have completed pilgrimages about their motivation for such journeys. -
Writer Walks Off With Top Accolade
2008
single work
column
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 17 December 2008; (p. 3)