A couple who manages a hostel for pilgrims in Las Herrerías de Valcarce, in León, is looking for volunteers willing to spend at least a month in a small village of just 20 inhabitants. In exchange for collaborating in caring for the pilgrims, the garden and the daily life of the accommodation, they offer accommodation and food.
There are proposals that summarize very well part of the spirit of the Camino de Santiago.
Living in a small town.
Meet pilgrims from all over the world.
Help in a shelter.
Take care of a garden.
Share meals.
And do it on one of the most special sections of the French Way, just before the climb to O Cebreiro.
That is what Miriam and Danilo offer, a couple who run a vegetarian hostel for pilgrims in The Blacksmiths of Valcarce, within the Leonese municipality of Vega de Valcarce.
Its proposal is aimed at people who want to spend a season living there in exchange for collaborating on different tasks.
A village of just 20 inhabitants
Las Herrerías is a small town located on the French Way.
During much of the year it maintains a very small population, of around 20 inhabitants.
But when the pilgrimage season arrives, the town changes.
Every day walkers from dozens of countries pass by before facing one of the best-known climbs of the entire Camino.
From Las Herrerías the ascent towards O Cebreiro begins.
In just a few kilometers, the pilgrim leaves the valley behind and begins to gain altitude until reaching Galicia.
Therefore, although the town is small, for much of the year it is full of movement.
A project linked to hospitality
The couple works on two projects.
On the one hand, it maintains an organic garden.
On the other hand, he wants to develop a house open to pilgrims based on donations.
The idea is not simply to offer a bed.
They seek to create a space where the pilgrim can rest, talk and feel welcomed.
To maintain that project they need help.
And that's where the volunteers come in.
What tasks must be performed
The people who participate will collaborate in different aspects of the shelter's life.
Among the tasks are the cleaning and care of the facilities, the registration of pilgrims, the preparation of dinners and the maintenance of the orchard and garden.
They can also collaborate in making posters, information for walkers and updating the project's social networks.
It is not, therefore, a free vacation.
The proposal is based on an exchange.
Time and help in exchange for room and board.
Accommodation and three meals a day
Volunteers stay in a shared room inside an old stone house.
The space has bunk beds and is usually shared by two or three people.
The hosts also offer three vegetarian meals a day, prepared in a simple way and with the participation of those who are living there.
The house is located in a rural and quite isolated environment.
That's part of its appeal, but it also requires some adaptation.
There are not all the amenities of a city and the Internet connection is limited.
You have to stay at least a month
One of the important requirements is duration.
Volunteers must commit to staying a minimum of one month.
It is also required to have at least 23 years and know how to cook.
The hosts are looking for sociable, flexible people who want to live with people from different countries.
Pilgrims, volunteers, friends and family can meet at the shelter.
Coexistence is an essential part of the project.
A particularly international Way
Miriam and Danilo speak several languages: Spanish, English, German, French and Italian.
That makes a lot of sense in a place like Las Herrerías.
Pilgrims from practically all of Europe and numerous countries around the world pass through there.
For a volunteer, this experience can also become a kind of international trip without leaving the same town.
Every night you can sit down to dinner with different people.
Each conversation can bring a different story.
The climb to O Cebreiro begins there
Las Herrerías also has a privileged position within the French Way.
One of the most well-known and demanding stages begins from the town.
Until O Cebreiro, the Camino gains approximately 610 meters of elevation gain in just 7.5 kilometers.
For many pilgrims, that climb marks one of the great moments of the trip.
Before facing her, Las Herrerías becomes a place of rest.
Then the mountain begins.
A town with Jacobean history
The relationship between Las Herrerías and the Camino goes back centuries.
Its name itself recalls the old forges where iron was worked in the area.
The Italian pilgrim Domenico Laffi already described this activity in the 17th century.
There is also the Hospital neighborhood, whose name recalls the existence of an old hospital for English pilgrims documented in the 12th century.
Hospitality, therefore, is not something new in this place.
It is part of its history.
Living the Camino from the other side
Most people know the Camino from the pilgrim's point of view.
You walk.
You arrive at the hostel.
Dinner is served.
He falls asleep.
And the next day it continues.
But there is another way to live it.
That of those who receive.
That of those who prepare a room.
That of those who listen to stories.
That of those who help someone who arrives exhausted after 25 kilometers.
Spending a month as a volunteer can allow you to get to know a part of the Camino that often remains invisible.
It is not conventional tourism
The proposal makes it clear that this is not a traditional tourist experience.
Whoever arrives must collaborate.
There will be tasks.
There will be schedules.
There will be responsibilities.
But there will also be the possibility of being part of a small community directly linked to the Camino.
That balance between work, coexistence and hospitality is precisely what makes the proposal different.
A refuge in an increasingly fast world
Perhaps that is why this type of volunteering arouses so much interest.
We live surrounded by noise, screens and rush.
And suddenly the possibility of spending a month in a village of 20 inhabitants serving pilgrims appears.
Without great luxuries.
With little Internet.
With shared dinners.
With a garden.
And with hundreds of people walking towards Santiago in front of the door.
For some it may seem too isolated.
For others it may be exactly what they are looking for.
