Every year we plan to travel for the Christmas Holidays. As a mother and daughter duo we love to travel during the Holidays to experience different celebrations, traditions, decorations, and especially food. Traveling for the festivities is a unique and amazing experience for families.

In 2021 our travel destination for Christmas and New Years was Spain and Portugal. However, it was a different type of Holidays because we decided to do El Camino de Santiago from Portugal, starting in Porto on the 25th of December and ending in Santiago de Compostela, Spain the 1st of January 2022.

In preparation for the trip we did a lot of research on the equipment that was needed because there is a difference between traveling during the summer than traveling during the winter. For example, during the summer your bags can travel independently; this means you can hire a company to pick up and deliver your bags from one destination to the next. Your backpack will be with you so you must be mindful of the weight and what you carry inside. It is recommended that your backpack is no more than 20lbs.

To begin our journey we began flying into Madrid. We stayed in Madrid for a total of 3 days adjusting to the time difference, as well exploring and enjoying the city. Before starting El Camino every pilgrim has to register with the catholic church so they are aware you are doing El Camino and that you are eligible for your certificate you receive when you finish in Compostela. We registered in a church in Madrid and we received a passport to collect stamps during our journey and got to choose our shell to carry either on our bag or neck.

After 3 days in Madrid we headed to Porto for 2 nights and began our journey on the 25th of December 2021. Before choosing our route we were in between the Portuguese or Leon Way. We chose the Portuguese route because it is an easier route following the coast line until you get into Galicia, since we did our trip during winter we wanted to avoid the snow in the Galician Mountains. There were a total of 7 Etapas that we did ranging in walking from 10-25 miles a day.

This trip makes us laugh because Karla thought it wouldn’t be rough because it involved only walking. However, it was a lot more tough for both of us physically and mentally.

During the time we went since it was during the Holidays in Portugal most of the shops were closed and since we couldn’t shop for snacks or extra food there were times we did not eat all day making the trip even harder for us. Luckily since it was winter and down season we did not have to book too much in advance for our albergues (hostels). One of the hardest days for us was walking 25 miles with not much to eat and when we got to our hostel they were so kind to keep the kitchen open and leave our bags at the front as we enjoyed our warm meal. That night was one of our best nights through the whole trip and very memorable. Despite our smelly clothes and crazy hair they welcomed us and fed us.

Those moments are what makes El Camino so special. Both of us were walking on our own separate journeys. Despite traveling and doing it together each journey is different and unique for each person whether it is traveling together with family or friends. Karla had a sinus infection and she’d walk ahead, and at times stopped to check on eachother. On the hardest night of those 25 miles we thought what we were doing was crazy and we were tired, but getting to the Hostel and being welcomed with warmth is something that motivated us to continue on our journey.

Our journey continued and as both of us were extremely tired we did end up taking a bus from Viana de Castelo, Portugal to Vigo, Spain. When we began our journey in Spain we went from walking up the coastline to walking through the luscious green landscape of Galicia. From going from flat plain to a mountainous plain. We have never seen such a luscious vibrant green in our life. We walked through small pueblos seeing the grandmas with their grandkids playing in the street, walking through the vineyards of Galicia, crossing bridges of rivers from one pueblo to another, and collecting stamps in our passports given to us. Galicia felt mystical, peaceful, and full of vibrant green nature.

On December 31st we celebrated the New Year in a small pueblo outside Compostela. Everybody was out on the streets with kids playing. We bought our grapes and ciders and went back to our small hostel room and celebrated the New Year with us two and the Spanish television watching all of Spain welcoming in the New Year. That morning on the 1st we packed our bags and made our way to Santiago de Compostela.

Our last day we made it to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela at night in the infamous rainy climate of Galicia. Despite arriving at night the beautiful Cathedral stood tall in its beauty. That is the biggest cathedral we both have seen in our lives. Later we

made it to airbnb washed up despite our tiredness and rested for the next day. That morning we made our way to a different building separate from the Cathedral and handed our passports with proof that we made all our stops so that they will certify us that we completed El Camino and to be able to attend the ceremony in the Cathedral.

That year was a special year because it was the Jubilee year (Holy Year) and we received a special certificate. As well, a key to note to receive your certificate you must have traveled 100km and if cycling 200km.

Exploring the city the rest of the day we then woke up the next morning to attend the ceremony of the pilgrimage held in the cathedral. Till this day it’s the most beautiful cathedral we both have seen. It is massive inside with tall skyrocket ceilings, decorations full of gold with massive pipe organs playing its music. The ceremony held a couple of guests who finished with us the same day with people from all over the world traveling from different routes. Usually there is a smell of incense during the ceremony but they held off. It was an hour long ceremony honoring us pilgrims and it was beautiful to celebrate the end of our journey. We later on explored more of the cathedral and made our way exploring the rainy galician town of Santiago.

Completing a bucket list item is such a surreal experience on its own. However, it was unique to us due to all the challenges we faced during the time doing it. We experienced hunger, rain, frustration, tiredness, but at the end a sense of relief and accomplishment. El Camino de Santiago is not just any trip but it’s a trip for you and to connect with yourself and continue your journey living day by day not worried about the destination but experiencing the journey.

To conclude our trip after El Camino we still had a week and a half in Spain. We took the train down to Madrid and then Barcelona to do some shopping and sightseeing.