My Camino

2025-12-06

What is Camino and why did I go?

Camino de Santiago is a pilgrimage route. It’s probably the most popular trail in all of Europe — to such an extent that you can start it from anywhere. The rule is simple: you have to reach Santiago de Compostela. This is where the remains of Saint James are buried, and where all the paths end at the Plaza del Obradoiro. Some of the more famous routes include the French Way, nearly 800 km long, and the Portuguese Way with several variants. I first heard about Camino when I was in my mid-twenties. Back then I was deeply interested in everything and everyone connected to travelling the world, and on some blog I came across information about the Camino de Santiago. Even then I knew I wanted to walk this trail someday. I planned to cycle it, then to walk it, and kept putting it off until this year. First I thought about June, but I read that due to the heat in Spain it’s better to go at the end of September. In the end I went at the end of August. I had a bit more free time, a lot of things to think through, so I decided that if it was going to be hot, well, it would just be harder.

Was Camino right for me?

Camino was meant to be a test for me — a time to be alone with myself, time for reflection.

But as I was approaching the end, Camino became a reflection of life for me. An analogy for how we are born alone, then we meet different people. Some we only pass by, others we walk alongside for a while. Some are with us only for a moment, others stay longer. At the end we die alone, with the hope that we’ll meet again everyone we knew after death.

That’s exactly what Camino was for me — I started alone, met many people along the way. With some I exchanged only pleasantries, with others I walked a few kilometres, and with others a few more. I helped some, others helped me. At the end I walked alone onto the Plaza del Obradoiro, hoping that everyone I’d met along the way had also made it and that we’d see each other again.

Before Camino, I felt my life was heavily centred around home and work, that in the rush I had little opportunity to give, and that I lacked the fulfilment of doing good deeds for others. I asked the universe for those good deeds and it gave them to me on the way to Camino.

Every day on Camino was different. On the first day I was late on the trail — most people I passed were already 100 km into their journey and nearly done for the day, while I thought I was great for walking faster than everyone. And every time I thought: “Oh, that guy is older, that’s why he’s slower; oh, those are women, that’s why they walk more slowly” — literally every single time I thought that, I stumbled over something.

You could feel love — that inner kind, toward the world, toward people, toward everything. The Camino trail is breathtaking, you feel the wonders of nature. Everyone feels the same weight, the same pain, and that’s why everyone is patient and kind to one another.

You feel an enormous energy on the Plaza del Obradoiro — a positive energy. People arrive, finish their pilgrimage, everyone has achieved their goal. Everyone carries that joy inside — some express it with just a smile, others with a smile through tears, still others shout with happiness. The energy here is real!

Galicia — the Spanish region you walk through on the Portuguese Way — is original and breathtakingly beautiful, full of historical sites, old buildings and alleyways. And then there’s the seafood — this region produces mussels for all of Spain and Europe. Oysters at 2 euros. The wines of the region — all of it is simply worth tasting and seeing.

Camino means new acquaintances and friends. New passions — I developed a love for hiking and I don’t think this was my last trek. I believe I’ll walk in the mountains again and I’d like to do Camino once more.

Camino is the stories of people — everyone here walks with their own story, their own tale, their own purpose.

Which route did I take?

I chose the Portuguese Way, or rather half of it. The full route starts in Porto and is about 200 km; I started in Porto but took the train for the first 100 km, beginning my walk in Tonin, from where I walked 119 km. This route also has two versions — the second, called the Spiritual variant, leads partly along a less travelled but greener path following a river, before rejoining the main trail at the end.

Think about what you can give.

On some website (I read plenty preparing for this journey), I read that it’s worth thinking about what you have to offer other pilgrims. I didn’t have much, so when I met people — most of whom had started in Porto — I decided to give them cheerfulness and a positive mood.

How do other people approach Camino?

The people I met had different approaches to this journey — for some it was a trip through the beautiful regions of Portugal and Spain, for a few Americans I met it was a great opportunity to explore Europe. For some it was simply a challenge. For many people it was a time to breathe, a moment just for themselves, time for reflection.

Many people were doing it for the second or third time.

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