After the successful HAEi/AEDAF Camino Walk on the Camino de Santiago in northwestern Spain in May 2016 and May 2017, HAEi is organizing yet another walk.
In order to raise awareness, HAEi brings together HAE friends — patients, relatives, caregivers, doctors, nurses, and industry — for the HAEi Jakobsweg Walk 2018. Just as for the previous walks this is a mutual experience in honor of the global hae day :-) and this time the walk will take place on part of the pilgrimage route Jakobsweg Wien (The Way of St. James) through Vienna, Austria.
“Camino de Santiago, Way of St. James, and Jakobsweg are names in different languages for the same thing: A huge network of pilgrims’ ways leading to the shrine of the apostle St. James the Great in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northwestern Spain, where tradition has it that the remains of the saint are buried. Many follow its routes as a form of spiritual path or retreat for their spiritual growth. Traditionally, as with most pilgrimages, the Way of St. James began at one’s home and ended at the pilgrimage site, often following highly traveled routes through Europe. One of these traditional routes goes right through Vienna — and that is the one we will be walking for the HAEi Jakobsweg Walk 2018”, says the HAEi Communications Manager Steen Bjerre.
Pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela began around the year 950 but the ancient roads through Vienna are far older as Roman roads were already present when the pilgrimage began. One of these Roman roads connected the garrison cities Aquincum (Budapest), Brigetio (Komaron) and Carnuntum (German Altenburg) with Vindobona (Vienna). The Way of St. James, which starts in Budapest, also takes this route. Indeed, the Romans knew how to build very durable roads.
The HAEi Jakobsweg Walk takes place 16 and 17 May 2018 and the program consists of four consecutive stages. It is, however, entirely up to the participants if they want to take part in just one, more or all of the stages.
At the moment there are 146 participants from 21 countries for the HAEi Jakobsweg Walk: United States, Brazil, Argentina, Denmark, Mexico, Australia, Canada, Italy, Spain, Venezuela, United Kingdom, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, South Africa, Austria, and Switzerland.
“However, there is room for more participants. If you know of anyone going to the HAE Global Conference who would like to do the HAEi Jakobsweg Walk but haven’t signed up when registering for the conference please have them send an e-mail to gro.ieah@errejb.s”, says Steen Bjerre.
The event is also open for people who would like to join the group of pilgrims but are not going to the conference. They can register directly at https://goo.gl/FDR7uQ.
