The Camino Cafe

Send us Fan Mail What a fun conversation I had with Pilgrim, Canadian, and Author, Brad Thomas Batten. I loved learning about how the Camino has changed since his first Camino in the late 80’s. It made me wonder if I would have been tough enough to walk without all of the current things we have like our iPhones! I was also quite taken with Brad’s journey from loss to healing after walking his firs...

Send us Fan Mail Efrén González needs no introduction to anyone probably listening to this episode. Efren is one of the most well-known and loved Camino ambassadors out there! He’s been filming Camino routes for years happily educating and entertaining us all the while. I caught up with him in Santiago as he was beginning his 3D filming project for The Camino Frances. I found him to be just as gra...

Send us Fan Mail Shoshana stopped by the Camino Cafe to discuss her new book, Cancer, Kintsugi, Camino: A Memoir. I had the chance to read several chapters before our interview and I am hooked. I really enjoyed her writing style and her take on how can use the concept of Kintsugi to help us reframe the places we feel broken. We discuss the artistic book cover which she designed and her writing pro...

Send us Fan Mail What a thrill it was to have peregrina, writer and cultural anthropologist, Beebe Bahrami, back at The Camino Cafe to discuss her newest Camino book, The Way of the Wild Goose: Three Pilgrimages Following Geese, Stars, and Hunches on the Camino de Santiago in France and Spain. During this interview, we discuss her upcoming retreat at Flores del Camino, the three pilgrimages she to...

Send us Fan Mail  T he Spirit of the Camino Live in the moment Welcome each day – its pleasures and its challenges Make others feel welcome Share Feel the spirit of those who have gone before you Imagine those who will follow you Appreciate those who walk with you today It's time for our annual update from the Board of the American Pilgrims on the Camino! In this episode you will meet the fol...

Send us Fan Mail This episode is dedicated to the hope of a cure being found for Diabetes 1. Bob has dedicated his life to showing how he has not just lived with Diabetes but has learned to thrive with it. As the Diabetes Crusader, he has walked thousands and thousands of miles to bring awareness to Diabetes 1 and 2. He lives his life in a way to demonstrate how one can manage diabetes and still d...

Send us Fan Mail I was so glad to hear about this 12 Step approach for walking the Camino. In this interview, we discuss how walking the Camino gave founders, Mark Lane-Holbert and Bob Shea, the idea to start a Camino specially designed for anyone currently in any type of 12 Step Program or anyone supporting someone in a program. We also discuss their upcoming Recovery Caminos happening this May a...

Send us Fan Mail Nagela Ampudia first came to my attention after reading her posts on the Camigas Facebook Group. Her posts were raw, real and so intriguing to me. I’ve been following her journey ever since and our schedules finally matched up for a chat.  I have such deep affection for Nagela. She’s a great storyteller, a precious pilgrim, with tremendous courage in being vulnerable and authentic...

Send us Fan Mail Follow our channel so you never miss an episode! This week we have Steve Walther back at The Camino Cafe Podcast to talk about his very recent Camino on the Portuguese Route. I’m not sure which one of us is the bigger Camino Geek! I always love talking to Steve. This interview was no exception.  Things get deep with some great insights and very funny at times. While Steve has a wo...

Send us Fan Mail When Whidbey Island Native, Andy,  reached out to me to tell me his Camino story, he had no idea that Dan Mullins had mentioned him to me months ago. As soon as I read his message learning he was bringing his 8th-grade daughter, Lily, to Spain to walk soon, I was even more intrigued. I  enjoyed our chat so much. I love that Andy has made a promise to both his daughters that once t...

Send us Fan Mail This interview with Texas-based Pilgrim, Major (Ret) Jan Rose, US Army Nursing Corps, just humbled me over and over again. What an honor it was to be able to interview Jan after she walked with “Warriors on the Way”.  I didn’t know anything about Jan’s walk or life prior to our chat. Halfway into the interview, I just wanted to pass the mic to someone like Oprah as Jan’s story fee...

Send us Fan Mail I could have spoken with US-based Pilgrim, Dr. Renee, for hours!   We discussed how her personal pilgrimage impacted her and how special it was to walk with the Pilgrims walking with Warriors on the Way©. This program is a 501(c)(3) Veterans’ organization founded by Camino Pilgrim, Father Steven Rindahl.  Dr. Renee has walked with Warriors on the Way during two pilgrimages and wil...

Send us Fan Mail Lisa was a delight to interview. She is a professional Photographer and Real Estate Broker based in the US. She has walked The Camino several times including Pilgrimages with her Son and walking backward from Muxia to Porto. Lisa has tirelessly given back to the Camino for several years as an American Pilgrim Chapter Leader for the Boston area and as a hospitalera at several donat...

Send us Fan Mail I caught up with Carlota for an update.  She's the 29-Year-old Spanish Resident currently walking a year-long,  6,000 plus km pilgrimage from Finisterre to Jerusalem.  As of this week, she's been walking for over a month now.  She's still in Spain and doing well.  In this interview, I feel there are some really heartfelt moments, some wonderful insights, and some ti...

Send us Fan Mail What fun it was to talk about the Camino with veteran Pilgrim, Dr. Guylene Gigi Tree.  Her Camino spirit is so vibrant! I would love to be one of the lucky Pilgrims she has walked with along the way. Gigi says is all about the people you walk with and meet along your journey. Her exuberance for supporting the Camino and her positive outlook on life is so uplifting.  She has writte...

Send us Fan Mail Meet G. M. T. Brosius, a US Citizen residing in Spain, a Camino Pilgrim, and the author of the recently published book, A Daily Pilgrim Devotional.  G. M. T. walked the Camino Frances.  In this interview, you will hear about his Pilgrimage and how it and the Covid lockdown inspired him to create this gift of a book for Pilgrims. You'll hear how thoughtfully he selected the qu...

Send us Fan Mail Canadian Pilgrim, Rocco Rossi, has walked The Camino thirteen times!  His first walk was to help him process the grief he felt after the untimely loss of his best friend and business partner. Rocco, while struggling to deal with this tragic loss, luckily came across a  newspaper article about The Camino at one of his lowest points.  A week or so later, he was headed to walk that f...

Send us Fan Mail It was my pleasure to sit down with U.S.-based, Anne Born, for a chat following her most recent Winter Camino this past December. Anne has walked numerous times documenting her journeys on social media with the hashtag, “littleoldladywalking”. I joked with her that in my opinion, she is anything but a “little old lady walking”. To me, she is one brave, smart, and accomplished Pilg...

Send us Fan Mail 29-Year-old Spanish Resident, Carlota Valenzuela, is currently walking a year-long,  6,000 plus km pilgrimage from Finisterre to Jerusalem.  During this discussion, I caught up with Carlota as she was walking the Camino Norte backward heading out of the Galician province. I am so intrigued by her mission, what drove her to do this pilgrimage, that she's walking a Camino in th...

Send us Fan Mail Felices Fiestas from Rabanal del Camino and The Camino Cafe! See the notes below for the names of Albergue and Cafe owners in the opening of today’s interview. I’m so happy to post this interview that is so full of hope, love, and light as we close out 2021.  Suzanne, Camino Pilgrim, social worker, teacher, and writer, offered so much wisdom about walking the Camino. What started...

Send us Fan Mail  In this conversation, we caught up with Roger, who we last spoke with when he was in Astorga in mid-August (Season 1, Episode 28). Since then, he completed his Camino, returned home to Seattle, and made a major life change. Ruth, his partner, joined us for part of this conversation as she met Roger in Sarria and they walked on together to   Santiago.  Roger’s walk did check off a...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome back, everyone! I just wanted to say a quick hello as so much has happened since our last episode with Russ in September. Big news, I walked a Camino and even bigger news,  I moved to Spain! Buen Camino!  Season 2, Episode 1 drops this Tuesday, 12/7/21.  Buen Camino! Curious to see the video versions of our interviews, click here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6VN9ze3z...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to the first episode of Season 2!  Camino Pilgrim, Sanjiva, is a doctor in Melbourne, Australia and he walked the Camino with his adult son, Shivantha. He later wrote about this journey in the Camino memoir, Strangers on the Camino. In this interview, you will hear several unique tips for walking a pilgrimage. You will also hear how the Camino transformed a Dad and Son rel...

Send us Fan Mail I really enjoyed this conversation with Molly Lord. Molly's story leading up to her going on the Camino and her experiences while walking really inspired me. We first bonded online discussing St. Mary and our interest in archetypes. Molly is in the last stages of writing her Camino Memoir. I've had a sneak peek and she is a gifted writer! Molly, when not walking, is an e...

Send us Fan Mail What a thrill it was to meet the popular bloggers of Viva Espana, Kelli and Jeff! After walking a Camino with their daughter, Kelli knew she had to move to Spain. Jeff, being a life-long adventurer, was game and they made the move. The US Ex-pats first landed in Valencia but soon moved to Galicia right on the Camino Frances! In this interview, you'll hear about their adventur...