Santiago de Compostela Pilgrimage: An Unplanned Journey - Part 1 (Portuguese Coastal Route)

Youngjoo's Camino de Santiago Pilgrimage

Towards the end of my European trip,

I felt like I had to do it now.

I postponed my departure date and flew to Portugal to walk the pilgrimage route.

Usually, people who go on the pilgrimage route prepare for a long time, but...
I went without any equipment... without any information... really without anything. I just left.

My shoes were just Nike sneakers, and I didn't have any functional clothing.
I urgently went to Decathlon to buy a sleeping bag for staying at the albergues.

Upon arriving in Porto, I purchased a Pilgrim's Passport for 2 euros, officially becoming a pilgrim.
I could order the pilgrim's menu at restaurants and stay at the albergues.

It was the realization of a long-held dream, and my heart was pounding with excitement.

On the first day, without a map, I simply started walking following the yellow arrows.
Lost in the beauty and happiness of the moment, I momentarily lost my way, but a Portuguese lady gave me a ride to the nearest yellow marker in her car.
Riding in the car of a complete stranger, a Portuguese lady, I felt a strange mix of emotions.

I am completely free right now...!

I couldn't understand the Portuguese being spoken, the car was moving, and the exotic scenery was unfolding around me. At that moment,
I felt freedom.
I felt immense freedom.

Even after the first day, I got lost quite often,
But every time, the local residents guided me back to the yellow arrow markers.

I didn't have a map, but I didn't really need one. I just had to follow the yellow markers!

When I try to write about the pilgrimage route, I have so much to say that
I don't know where to start, how to continue, or where to end.
I feel overwhelmed by it all.

I want to slowly and gradually share those vast emotions and the echoes within my heart,
writing with a slow, deliberate breath.
That's all for today. Bye-bye.

(Hello, this is Youngjoo! This is the first video in my Camino de Santiago series. (Intro feel?) I made a video of myself cheering myself on every morning while walking the Camino de Santiago. It was crucial to get myself energized in the morning to walk 20-30km every day! I cheered myself on every day~ I plan to gradually upload more videos of my Camino de Santiago journey. I'm so happy to have completed one of my most fervent bucket list items! Fighting~!!!)

Written on February 27, 2018,the article.