Destination Santiago de Compostela

I’m going on an adventure!

I am very excited to tell you about my upcoming adventure, a new chapter that will begin next month. 

In April I’m going start my pilgrimage to Santiago the Compostela in Spain. Also known as the way to St. James. 

Like a hermit crab I will strap my backpack on my back, to carry with me all that I need. From the chapel in my home town, ‘Kapelke van Genuuj’, my journey begins. I’ll walk in southern direction to leave the Netherlands behind, pass through Belgium, then cross the whole length of France to end up in Spain, where the Northern coastline will take me West, to eventually reach Santiago the Compostela. 

The Camino de Santiago has existed for over 1000 years, and dates back to the 9th Century. This is when the remains of St James the Apostle were first discovered in Northern Spain. The discovery led to the creation of a religious shrine which marks the beginning of Santiago de Compostela and the Camino (meaning path, route or way) to Santiago. Every year there are thousands of pilgrims that find their way into Santiago de Compostela by foot from across the world. 

From all over Europe there are different routes that lead to the same destination. Some routes are short, others a bit longer. And I wouldn’t be me if I would choose the easiest option. ;) 

Walking from my home town in the Netherlands to Santiago de Compostela in Spain is a distance of roughly 3000 km, which will take me somewhere between 3 and 4 months.  

Why?

I can hear you thinking it. Why would you voluntarily choose to walk for months?

Well, the easy answer would be, why not?

To wake up in the morning with the main goal of the day being to just walk, gives a person a great sense of freedom. It gives a deep connection to nature, it slows down time and brings simplicity back into life. 

A few other reasons that crossed my mind for going on this journey are; travelling in the most environmentally friendly way, exploring a large part of Europe, having time to think about things and life, to experience up close how spring unfolds and leads into summer, and not to forget, spend each day outdoors and get lots of sunshine!  

Religion is from origin the main reason why pilgrims walk the way to St. James. For me, and for plenty of other people these days, religion is not the reason for my walk. However, it’s been said that every person on their Camino goes through three stages.

Physically, mentally and spiritually

I am curious to find out how my body is going to physically handle walking for this long, how much stronger it will get along the way, and if my shoulders will ever start to love my backpack. The mental part will be to see when I will reach my breaking point and how I will deal with that when it comes. Spiritually, I am just excited to see what comes onto my path and what the Camino has to offer. “To be a free spirit with a wild heart and an open road ahead.”

How it began…

The first time I recall hearing about the Camino de Santiago was from a friend I met during my volunteering time in The Philippines in 2013. She walked from the French border to Santiago via the Camino Frances. Her pilgrimage, or Camino if you like, is what led her to the Philippines. When I heard she walked all this way, I thought this was a crazy thing to do, but it turned out that unconsciously the Camino always stayed in the back of my mind. 

During the pandemic, I started to walk a long distance hike through the Netherlands with my mom called ‘Pieterpad’. This trail runs from the most northern point of the Netherlands to the most southern tip. Along the way, one part of the route passes through my home town called Venlo. While walking this part with my mom, we came across Santiago sign posts along the way. What?? The way to st. James starts from here? From my home?

This had my mind racing and boosted my energy. Was there a route that would lead all the way from my home to Santiago de Compostela? How long would it take? And would I be able to do this? It definitely awoke my curiosity, but I first needed to complete the Pieterpad through the Netherlands, a total of 500 km which we walked in stages. 

I kept completing more parts of the Pieterpad trail, and the Santiago pull got stronger and stronger. Sometimes through a sign post along the route, other times through a book at an accommodation about someone who walked before me, but also through stories. Stories told by the hosts we stayed overnight, about people that stayed with them before that were on their way to Santiago. The idea of walking to Santiago started to grow on me. 

I’ve been back home in the Netherlands for 3 years now. 22th of March 2020 I flew home from Egypt with an emergency flight due to the worldwide pandemic. Besides the lockdown, it was my brother Dennis en Milou’s wedding that was a huge reason for me to stay home for a wee while longer. By now they’re happily married and the world is spinning some kind of normal again. So time for me to start another chapter!  

I’ve had a wonderful time at home, being close by my family, and despite covid, I am immensely grateful for the past three years. But then slowly something started to tickle in my tummy and all the fibres of my being ached to go somewhere, to go do something!

I love to be outdoors, in a natural environment, and I’ve always enjoyed going for walks. During my time overseas, living and travelling through different countries, I’ve done plenty of day walks through national parks. While in Australia and New Zealand I had ideas and dreams to go on multiple day hikes, but unfortunately never ended up doing so. Until I came back home to the Netherlands, here was the first time I went on multiple day hikes. I loved it and longed to explore it further.  

I had discovered the joy in hiking, and then by favour a route that has a different end point from where it started, because I have a thing for going someplace new. 

Call it restless or adventures. For me, it’s time for something remarkable!   

My Camino to Santiago was born. 

"What is the point of being alive if you don't at least try to do something remarkable?" - John Green -

Every time I’m about to write a new chapter in my life, this quote crosses my mind. It’s been with me since I started my journey to Australia in 2012. I received it on a card from an old colleague, together with a four-clover charm that lives in my wallet ever since. 

During summer last year my ideas about Santiago started to grow. Since then I’ve done plenty of research and drafted a plan. Over the past months I worked out details, which route to take, what gear to bring and much more. I would love to tell you more about my preparations and training in another story. 

Hope my excitement come across through these words, which got you keen to follow along and stay tuned for my next blog.