A day in the life of a pilgrim walking a Camino is a very simple one. I grew to appreciate that simplicity. It takes a few days to settle in, but it ultimately looks like this:

Wake up, walk, eat, walk, eat, walk, shower, laundry, relax, eat, sleep. Repeat.

Housekeeping reminder: this post will have pics of the portion of our walk in Spain. The pics of the portion of our walk in Portugal are in the post previous to this one, which you can view here.

Wake up

I don’t recall needing an alarm. That’s one thing about sleeping in a communal area, once everyone else is up and about, you will be up and about. People tried to be quiet, but the sounds of zippers and packing up was enough to get us up and moving. Getting dressed was first, and my oversize (2X) t-shirt was an awesome help because I could get dressed and undressed underneath it. Then we would make sure our packs had all our stuff in them, and our water was filled.

Walk

First thing when we got outside was a first morning picture, usually with the place we stayed at behind us. Most mornings we would walk a little bit, sometimes only 15 minutes, sometimes half an hour before finding our first stop of the day, for coffee and a sweet. The early mornings were generally quiet and peaceful – the world waking up around us as we found our first arrow. Generally we would find them where we left off, but sometimes it was a bit of a hunt if we had to go off the path for our albergue. Only once did we go the wrong way and that was the day we switched over to the Espiritual route. Thankfully there was a very kind biker who realized we were pilgrims and pointed us in the right direction. Everyone else went straight to stay on the Central route – toward Caldas de Reis. We would catch up with them in Padron, but instead of a two day walk, we would take three (well, two day walk and one day boat ride.)

Eat

Once the initial hit of fresh air wore off, we’d start looking for coffee/latte’s. We quickly became spoiled by how good the Americano’s and Latte’s were. Also the danish, mostly pastel de nata, which is a flaky pastry filled with yummy egg-yolk custard. The tops were caramelized, and while it wasn’t unusual for them to be cold, sometimes they were warm. All the time they were delicious! If the place we stopped at had good looking sandwiches, we would get one for later, they were usually ham and cheese.

Walk More

Once we were on the path, it was generally easy to follow the arrows. There were always the “official” ones – yellow on a blue background, but there were also larger spray painted yellow arrows too. Sometimes there were other colors, for different variants, but we followed the yellow ones. We would usually walk maybe 2 hours before stopping for lunch.

Eat

I mentioned above about getting sandwiches in the early morning for later and that’s what we did most days. We would find a spot in the shade, sometimes just a rock wall, sometimes under the portico of a church, or a gazebo in a park. We would spend maybe 20 minutes enjoying the views, if we were in the country, or watch the world go by, if we were in town. If we hadn’t bought sandwiches, we would find a little cafe to sit at and relax. Sometimes we were on our own, sometimes other pilgrims would join us.

Some of you may be wondering about bathrooms, generally called water closets in Portugal and Spain. Linda and I carried tissues and a couple of plastic zip lock baggies, just in case nature called while walking between towns. Thankfully, I never had to resort to that, but I was prepared just in case. Whenever we came upon a bodega or cafe, we would use their water closet. Sometimes we would need to make a purchase, mostly not. Only once did we have to pay to use a bathroom. We expected a spotless, well stocked facility, but no – it was not filthy, but not clean either. There was no toilet paper, but thankfully while waiting in line (yes – there was a line!) others told us so we brought napkins in with us, then threw it in the garbage since there was a sign that said “nothing but toilet paper in toilet.” YUCK.

Walk

After lunch, we walked again. Depending how much further we needed to go, we would walk straight through or maybe stop for a short break again. Afternoons, after lunch, were the hardest for me. I would feel the weight of the food, I would get tired. I never had full-on pain, but I did get sore. My already slow pace slowed down even more.

Showers/Laundry

When we finally stopped for the day, we would wait (if needed) for the albergue to open (some opened at 1pm, some as late as 3:30pm), then get ready to get a shower. Showers ranged from just a stall with a curtain to an open room with shower heads along the wall. There were rare occasions when there was a locking door on your shower, and those were usually completely co-ed.

Next up, we would do any laundry that needed to be done, and yes, that was mostly every day. As you read on the previous post, we only had limited clothing with us so lots of washing. We brought Dr Bronners liquid soap with us to do our laundry with. Most places had a washer, but sometimes we washed by hand. It was especially important to get laundry done early if there was no washer – or only a washer, since that meant our clothes had to be hung up to dry and we needed them dry to repack by morning the latest. Most places had an outdoor area to hang things, sometimes only indoor. A few times we needed to hang still damp things on the back of our packs the following day, which may not seem like a big deal, but wet clothes weigh more than dry clothes. Ask me how I know. Bill and Linda both brought paracord to hang our clothes inside on our bunks if needed, and it was left behind the first time it was used. Linda also lost 3 pairs of underwear that day, as it was hanging on the cord. Oops. Thankfully there was a market at our next destination and she was able to replace them. We each took the time to check all bunks for stuff after that. The only other thing that was left behind one day was Linda’s phone charger. Thankfully, one of the power cords Bill had worked for her phone. OH! Bill also left his puffer vest and travel size pillow case in Porto. I was the only one not to forget/lose anything.

Relax/Eat

Sometimes we would have some time to relax in between showers/laundry and going out to eat. Even if we were starving we would sometimes have to wait for places serving dinner to open. Dinner time in Portugal, Spain, and later in France were later than we were used to and restaurants serving dinner didn’t open until 7pm, or sometimes even later at 8pm. and there were lots of times we ate at a pub and had tapas, vs sitting down in a restaurant, which was fine as we didn’t care as long as the food was good. Sometimes we would have a tapas or two and then get dinner at 7pm-7:30pm when restaurants opened.

Once showers and laundry were done, we would head out for food. By this time, we were usually starving. Hikers hunger is a real thing, trust me. Sometimes we would have passed a place that looked good, sometimes we would watch where others had gathered. Depending on what the pilgrim meal was, we would order it as it was the most economical option. We (or I guess I should say I) only had a negative pilgrim meal experience once. A day or two before, I had ordered the fish pilgrim meal and it was really good. So I saw fish as an option and decided to get it. Well, the poor waiter (who spoke no English) sat my plate down in front of me and I about freaked out. On my plate was fish alright – WHOLE sardines! I mean seriously – who eats that? Well, Linda and Bill did, and I suffered through it, but YUCK! Thankfully there was plenty of potato and cabbage on my plate. I did try to eat it but the little bones were everywhere and scales! Seriously though – overall the food was very good, sometimes excellent. Linda Y ate Polvo/Pulpo (Octopus) a few times and she really enjoyed it. I tasted it, and while it wasn’t gross, I just can’t bring myself to eat it. We had really bad hamburgers one night, but also 2 or 3 very good hamburgers. We ate lots of french fries, as they were served with nearly everything. Pastries and desserts were always yummy and we did not deny ourselves any sweets.

Once we finished dinner, we would walk around a bit to see the town where we were. Each town felt a little different. Evenings were my favorite part of the day. We would sit and enjoy a glass of wine, find some gelato, watch the people go by. Sometimes there was music, sometimes just the sounds of people chatting, sometimes it was quiet. After our bellies were full, and having had a glass or two of wine, we were tired. I think it’s safe to say we had our teeth brushed and were in bed, on our way to dreamland, by 9:30 – 10pm the latest every night.

A commonly asked question about walking the Camino, like anything/anywhere else you might go, is “Would you do it again?” The answer for me personally is probably not. While there were parts of it I enjoyed, there were parts I also “tolerated” and other parts I didn’t like at all.

As a rule, I am not a walker. I don’t walk for the pleasure of it. As I’ve said before, I am a reward based hiker. Both Bill and Linda Y enjoy just walking for the sake of walking. Can I do it? Sure! Would I train harder, if I did plan to walk another Camino? Yes, I should. Would that help me to enjoy it more and struggle less? Probably.

Even though I had been warned, it still surprised me that the harder part for me was mental. I walked alone a lot. I was slow. Apparently very slow. Everyone has a natural pace and mine is ssslllooowww. What that means is Bill and Linda Y walked ahead of me most of the time. They would stop when they realized I was pretty far back and when I caught up, we would all say “Everyone ok?” and we’d begin again. We might be together for a short time, but then gradually separate. For those who know me well, it shouldn’t be shocking to learn that I don’t like being alone for long, especially if I’m struggling. For those who don’t know me – I am on the extreme extrovert side of the introvert/extrovert scale. I am an external thinker, which means sharing my experiences in the moment helps me to fully appreciate and understand my world. I’m good if I have a task that keeps my mind busy, but walking doesn’t take up a lot of brain space. I would sing to myself – mostly not out loud. I found myself thinking of people and things I hadn’t thought about in a long time, which was good and bad, ya know? It may have been better mentally if the physical side was easier, but both being hard was a challenge. All this to say while rewarding at the end, the day to day on the way wasn’t easy for me. BUT – at the end of the day – I DID IT! I’ve got to admit I was pretty proud of myself.

The mental part was probably not helped by the physical part. Honestly, I did better physically than I thought I would, but it was still hard. Especially as the day would wear on. The relief I would feel peeling off my pack and taking off my trainers at the end of the day was palpable. I never knew a shower could be so glorious, even the ones when there was a huge big room with other naked ladies all doing their thing, trying really hard not to look at one another too closely.

I should add here that I did use a taxi on three separate days. You may have noticed on my distance chart in the previous post that my distance was different than Bill and Linda’s. I also had my pack sent ahead once. The first time was the 2nd half of the day between Redondela and Pontevedra, I walked about 7.5 miles out of 12.2. That day there were two climbs and after finishing the first one, I just couldn’t face the second. It was so hard, both physically and mentally. I beat myself up pretty bad in the taxi, feeling like a failure. I may have even shed a few tears about it. But then I pulled myself up by my laces and decided that I had come to challenge myself on the walk, not hurt myself, neither mentally or physically. Kind of turned it around.

The next day Armenteira was our destination and the climb was the second half of the day. I decided to have my pack sent ahead, thinking it would make it easier. While it did help not having my pack, my knees were still sore from the day before so when we stopped in Combarra for lunch, I asked our waiter if he knew of a taxi that could drive me up to Armenteira. He told me about their neighbor that would drive people up to the monastery, which was about 2 blocks from our AirBnB that night. So, I taxied again.

Since Armenteira was near the top of the mountain, the following day meant going down. Some of you may think going down is easier, and for some of you it may be, but for me the going down is in some ways worse than going up. I decided to taxi to the bottom. While waiting for the taxi, I found a place for lunch and texted Bill and Linda the location, which was along the way for them. My taxi was late and they ended up waiting for me for about an hour, but then we enjoyed a delicious lunch before heading out to Vilanova de Arousa. Thankfully we had a reservation for that night.

I met so many people from all over. People would usually slow down and walk with me for a short while, long enough to say “hello” and “where are you from?” I was surprised at how many solo women were walking. The first one I met was from Germany. She didn’t elaborate, but she said she had many offers from family to go along, but she wanted to be alone. Another woman, Kara, young and full of life from Colorado, crossed paths with us a few times. One woman walked with her dog, an Australian Shepherd. Another woman wanted to walk alone so she wouldn’t have anyone but herself to take care of. A young 20-something solo woman joined us for dinner one night, she had just graduated college and was from (maybe) Germany.

There were also solo men, just not as many. John, who was a Brit, had me laughing almost until I cried. Another man, I forget his name, had terrible blisters and every time we saw him – over 3 or 4 days – he had his shoes off airing his poor feet.

We also met families. A couple I met, a mother and her son, were from Belgium. The mom had wanted to walk and her son agreed to join her so she wouldn’t be alone. There was a father, mother, a son, and a daughter. The kids were mid-teens. Another mom and dad were carrying a 10 month old baby girl. Yet another family was a grandmother, mom, and 11 year old daughter. There was also groups, one in particular I remember because they were all older than me and they just blew by like I was standing still, maybe 15 – 20 people. It was so discouraging because they all looked to be at least 70, but then I realized they weren’t wearing big packs, just small day packs or even just a fanny pack. I caught up to them later and they were hanging out by a van, which carried all their stuff. I’m thinking I could have walked faster/longer without nearly 15 pounds on my back.

Bill and Linda Y also met people, some I met with them, some I did not. The one I remember best was Britton, who was American. Bill had walked with him for about 45 minutes. He was younger, mid-30’s and was in-between jobs. I remember him because at our last albergue in Milladorio, he switched bunks with me. We arrived fairly early but all bottom bunks were already reserved. It was unheard of that public/municipal albergues to be reservable, but this one was. I had only climbed to the top bunk once before. When we checked in, we were given clean sheets (real sheets, not paper ones!,) so I climbed up to make the bed. When coming down, my foot missed the last step and I fell. Not too bad; I was embarrassed more than injured. Bill and Linda Y rushed to my side and I started crying. They were both peppering me with questions “are you ok?” “did you hit your head?” “does anything hurt?” and I was blubbering about how I was in over my head here and I can’t do this, blah, blah, blah. From around the corner comes Britton, and he says “I’ll trade bunks with you – I don’t mind the top.” I couldn’t even form a sentence and I hear Bill say “That would be great – thanks!” We tried to pay him for his bunk but he wouldn’t hear of it, so Bill insisted on him joining us for dinner – our treat, and thankfully he agreed.

Thinking about rain, we only got rained on for a total of about 2 hours and each time it was at the end of the day, so we didn’t get rained on for a whole day like some people do. The week before we arrived it had rained for 5 whole days in a row. I can’t imagine. Steven & Linda D got rained on several days on the Via Podiensis. Good gear matters. We were prepared for rain, having bought our previously mentioned Altrus ponchos. Bill had also ordered us gaters for our feet, and Linda made “shoe unbrella’s” for us. She basically cut up awning material into a shape that would cover the front of our shoes that was held on by holes for our laces and a slot for the gator hook that goes on your laces. I keep telling her she should get a patent and market them. They obviously wouldn’t work if you stepped in a puddle, but just to keep rain off, they worked pretty good.

The best day/night at an albergue along the way is easy. While each day had it own joys, be it people we met, a extra yummy restaurant, or fabulous views, or even just a washer AND dryer, the afternoon we arrived at Casa Fernanda was extra special. Linda Y had reserved several months ago (I think it was our first reservation) and got the “family room” with 3 twin beds and private bath. Linda D had told me about it and Linda Y read about it and we knew it was a must do. I’m not sure you will remember, but there was a huge power outage in Portugal and other areas in Europe back in late April, and that’s the day we were at Casa Fernanda. Well, in spite of no power, we were in for a treat! Fernanda, who thankfully had a gas stove/oven cooked up a storm for us! And wine! All included in our room rate. Fernanda came out to tell us dinner was ready and when we went inside, we were greeted by a candlelit table with beautiful glassware and place settings. She had each of us around the table introduce ourselves, saying our name and where we were from and who we were walking with. There were people from all over! Once dinner was over, she brought out a guitar and asked who played. A man said he did and the guitar, along with a song book, was passed down. Fueled by wine and song, it was a true Kumbaya moment. In the morning, there was breakfast, so even though we really wanted to be on our way, we stayed and ate. YUMMY! Thank you, Fernanda, for a wonderful stay!

The runner up good day would have to be the day we took the boat to Padron. Well, it isn’t exactly to Padron, but only 1.6 miles up the road to Pontecesures. The weather was perfect! Our captain told us about the “Way of Saint James” as he navigated the boat just under 17 miles up the Rio Ulla. We saw the cross markers that lined the river that lead pilgrims hundreds of years ago.

In case it isn’t obvious, the VERY BEST DAY was the day we walked into Santiago de Compostela! We woke up at the albergue and there was excitement in the air! Most people walk all the way to Santiago from Padron, but we opted to stop in Milladorio, about 4 miles from the finish so we would have a short day and arrive early verses late in the day. Rick had arrived the day before and would be waiting for us in the square in front of the Cathedral. Britton had left a bit earlier than us, promising to see us in the square.

As we got close to the square, I stopped in a cafe for our final stamp and a pastry. There was a women in front of me who turned around to leave and BAM walked right into the full-glass door. I heard her head it. I turned and she was turning around and holding her head; I could see a bump forming. I asked if she was ok and she didn’t seem to hear me. I didn’t really want to touch her but she was getting wobbly so I asked again and reached out “Are you ok?” I tried to guide her to a chair to sit, but then realized it was a high top chair and she started to go down, so I yelled for help. I grabbed her arm and she went down. Thankfully I grabbed her when I did because I was able to lower her gently or she would have wacked the back of her head too. The lady from behind the counter was there and she called for the man in the back. At this point, she was in good hands and I grabbed my credentials and left. Hope she was ok.

I just realized I didn’t tell you about the pilgrim credentials. While in Porto, we visited the Cathedral there and registered as pilgrims and were given a pilgrim passport a.k.a. credential. Each day we walked we had to get at least 2 stamps in our passport. Generally one from where you spend the night and another from where you get lunch or something during the day. It basically proves you walked. It also allows you to stay in public/municipal albergues (they did all ask for them) and order pilgrim meals at restaurants that offer them. We were told we may be asked for them, and while we had them with us, we were never asked at a restaurant.

I know I said above I would probably not do another camino, but sitting here reminiscing, remembering more the good vs the bad, maybe I would consider it. That’s a HUGE maybe.

Hope you have enjoyed this “walk” with me! Thanks for following along!

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