Within the six months since I boarded my flight house from Spain to the USA, my thoughts has swirled with reflections on my expertise strolling the Camino de Santiago. After I first arrived house, I puzzled if the 500-mile, 33-day pilgrimage would immediate a significant epiphany or spur an enormous life change after I returned to my life in Los Angeles, California.
Would I lace up my sneakers and go for a protracted stroll each morning? Would I keep in contact with fellow pilgrims I met in France and Spain? Or would I return to my life and act like nothing had ever occurred?
Since returning, I’ve answered these questions and gained additional perception into the teachings the journey has meant for me and for a lot of others who’ve walked the Camino de Santiago.
What’s The Camino de Santiago?
Earlier than we begin, let’s speak somewhat about The Camino de Santiago. Also called the Means of St. James, it’s a community of pilgrimage routes resulting in the shrine of the apostle Saint James the Nice within the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, Spain.
This historic pilgrimage, which dates again to the Center Ages, attracts hundreds of pilgrims from all over the world every year. Historically undertaken for spiritual causes, fashionable pilgrims additionally stroll the Camino for non secular development, journey, and cultural exploration. The routes range in size and problem, with the most well-liked being the Camino Francés, which begins in St. Jean Pied de Port in France and spans roughly 500 miles (800 kilometers).
Jen Pellerito shares right here classes discovered by strolling this historic route, and now that we have now learn it, we’re extra decided to sort out this unbelievable pilgrimage in 2025! If you’re planning your Camino de Santiago hike, learn Jen’s put up about The place to Keep on the Camino de Santiago
Time strikes slower whenever you’re strolling
Whenever you stroll the Camino, you may cowl a distance of 5 to twenty miles per day, which takes wherever from 5 to eight hours. It’s a stark distinction to routine life at house, the place we will drive, fly, or practice our method round.
Whenever you stroll, you journey at a slower tempo. The results of actually shifting slower contributed to a way of getting extra time on my fingers.
I felt like I may see the passage of time. I seen the the solar fell at completely different occasions of day, how the climate patterns modified, and the way the flowers bloomed as the times handed.
I discovered that nothing ever stays the identical. My each day routine continued to repeat itself, but every thing on the earth continued to evolve, even by means of seemingly mundane moments.
You’ll by no means have a look at your ft the identical method once more
On the Camino, my ft took a beating. It wasn’t simply blisters that grew to become a problem — it was the impression of strolling on arduous surfaces, particularly when going downhill. Learn extra tricks to Staying Secure and Wholesome on a Mountain climbing Journey
I noticed my ft swell like they’d by no means swollen earlier than. I noticed my toes bleed from blisters that risked an infection. And ultimately, I noticed my ft heal.
I spent hours worrying, speaking, and, sure—complaining—about my ft. For the primary time, I discovered how one can take care of them.
I utilized Vaseline on my toes and heels a number of occasions a day and discovered about the perfect sort of cloth to maintain them cool and as dry as doable in high-heat situations (it’s wool, by the way in which)!
I bandaged my ft, prayed for them, and thanked them once they ultimately grew to become stronger.
Your ft can take you a lot locations, however provided that you handle them alongside the way in which.
Neighborhood and connection
5 days into strolling, I used to be sitting in my Airbnb host’s sweltering kitchen, sweating bullets. My toes have been crammed with blisters, and my host was going to pop them for me. I used to be terrified. Take a look at The right way to Pack a Journey First Assist Package
Admittedly, I’ve by no means handled blisters a lot in my lifetime. I knew nothing of how one can take care of them, deal with them, or forestall an infection. Particularly in a scenario the place I needed to maintain on strolling – with no time to relaxation.
My host, who had been a nurse in her house nation, spoke no English and little or no Spanish. She used a translation app on her telephone to assist us talk in bite-sized phrases, one line at a time.
My head swam, queasy. Would this go terribly unsuitable?
Lastly, after what felt like an hour going backwards and forwards by means of her translation app, she popped my first blister. Then the subsequent. It harm so much lower than I imagined.
I’d simply met her moments earlier than, and he or she was caring for me in my most grotesque second. It introduced in an entire new degree of vulnerability and humility.
Strolling the Camino will present you that we’re all on this, collectively.
The Camino offers
It’s not nearly foot care. Sharing meals, medication, language, and, merely, the corporate of others creates a community of care. On the Camino, assist isn’t simply accessible; it’s given.
Persons are able to look out for one another, proving that even whenever you’re strolling alone, you’re by no means actually alone.
This spirit of camaraderie and help is what makes the Camino such a singular and particular expertise. Whether or not you’re a seasoned pilgrim or a first-timer, you’ll discover that there’s at all times somebody keen to assist or share a form phrase.
As you make your method alongside the path, you’ll encounter individuals from all walks of life, every with their very own story to inform. Some are in search of non secular enlightenment, whereas others are merely on the lookout for a brand new journey.
However it doesn’t matter what brings you to the Camino, everybody shares a typical bond of kindness and compassion.
All of us stroll the identical Camino
After I assume again to my time on the Camino, I keep in mind the times after I walked slower than many different pilgrims, even these a long time older than me. However after I lastly neared the final stretch towards Santiago, I discovered my stride, I grew to become stronger, and I walked a lot sooner than I had earlier than.
Sure, some individuals nonetheless walked sooner than me—or twice so far as I did in a single day—however lastly, after weeks of strolling, the primary eight miles of the day grew to become a breeze, when it had as soon as been brutally unimaginable.
This expertise taught me that life isn’t a race. All of us progress at our personal pace, and there’s no worth in evaluating our paths to these of others. The Camino, very similar to life, is a private journey for every particular person.
Studying to maneuver in sync with others, moderately than in competitors, has introduced me peace and helped me settle for my present stage in life (my thirties) extra gracefully. It has additionally allowed me to understand my very own milestones with out measuring them up towards others’ successes.
An important factor is, we’re all united by one widespread aim — to achieve Santiago.
Attaining a aim takes time
I’ll admit it. I’m a perfectionist. After I fail, I fail arduous. I grow to be so defeated that I by no means wish to strive one thing once more.
Strolling the Camino confirmed me that objectives are completed by means of one million milestones alongside the way in which.
Sooner or later at a time, I moved additional towards my aim of reaching Santiago de Compostela. I didn’t give up when it received arduous. I didn’t hand over when it felt like I’d already failed.
Sure, I rested after I wanted to. I took the bus on the times after I fell unwell, and my ft couldn’t deal with the ache any longer.
However that’s not quitting.
The journey hammered house the concept perfection isn’t the aim. Progress is the aim.
Every step moved me ahead. Massive objectives get completed by means of small wins.
Actual power isn’t about how far you may stroll in in the future. It’s about your persistence and flexibility, irrespective of the variety of miles.
You study to take heed to your physique
I took the bus after I actually needed to. I didn’t stroll each single mile of the Camino Frances, and it disenchanted me on the time. However now, I understand that realizing your physique’s limits is an indication of power.
Recognizing when to push and when to pause is a type of knowledge.
On the Camino, I discovered how one can tune into what my physique was telling me. The occasional lengthy stretch of silence whereas strolling alone additionally helped me take heed to my ideas extra fastidiously.
Balancing ambition with self-care remains to be a problem for me. In on a regular basis life, it’s simple to miss our limits to satisfy our personal or others’ expectations. On the Camino, I discovered to worth self-awareness and the braveness it takes to honor my wants.
Grief occurs each time anybody leaves us
On the Camino, you may serendipitously find yourself strolling with the identical group of individuals. Pilgrims name this your “Camino household.” Some individuals stroll your entire method with the identical group, whereas others, for one purpose or one other, find yourself separating.
As I walked, I discovered myself weaving out and in of various teams, shortly clicking with of us I’d simply met. However when the Camino broke into two sections, and my buddies selected a unique path, I needed to say goodbye. Saying goodbye to those newfound buddies was powerful, like a mini heartbreak.
I puzzled if our paths would ever cross once more. To me, it felt not in contrast to the grief I’ve felt when somebody near me has handed away. These moments on the Camino have been stark reminders of how swiftly connections can kind and the way painfully they’ll half, echoing the bittersweet actuality of the various relationships we have now all through our lives.
However extra importantly, the separation served as a reminder to reside within the current. I grew to understand the corporate of these I used to be with, within the second. Grief is a pure a part of the human expertise.
I discovered to cherish moments of connection, even when they have been fleeting, and make peace with the inevitability of change and loss.
Embracing the Journey Forward
Considering again on my month strolling the Camino de Santiago, the explanations for my journey have grow to be a lot clearer.
It’s like wanting over your shoulder whenever you’re mountain climbing. Whenever you’re strolling, you’re immersed within the mountains, and also you solely see rocks and dust. Miles later, the total view of these mountains turns into clear.
On the time, I couldn’t grasp the total impression it could have on me. Now, wanting again, I can recognize the importance of the teachings discovered.
Distance helps you perceive the immensity of what you’ve gone by means of.
And so, the stroll continues, one step at a time.