Graeme Card BSc FCIPS (Retired) tells us abut his epic trip in aid of Cancer Research & urges you to donate if you can to The Rotary Club of Princes Risborough in memory of Barry Tomkins, Sharon Sullivan and Helen Harrison
Together with an old school friend, Martin, whom I have known for 55 years now, I walked the last section of the Camino Portuguese from Vigo to Santiago de Compostela.
For those of you who do not know, the Camino de Santiago is a series of walks setting off from various locations (even the UK if you are so inclined), but all converging on Santiago de Compostela in Spain.
For completing one of these walks, as long as it is longer than 100km (about 62 miles in old money) you get a Compostela (a rather nice certificate in Latin) and the option to attend the service held at the main Cathedral in Santiago each Friday.
The Camino’s roots can be traced back to a legend from the 9th century. It was believed that the remains of St. James the Apostle, one of Jesus Christ’s twelve disciples, were discovered in Northwestern Spain.
Upon hearing this revelation, King Alfonso II ordered the construction of a humble chapel to honour the apostle. Little did he know this chapel would blossom into the awe-inspiring Santiago Cathedral, the emblematic beacon for pilgrims known worldwide today.
As word spread of this sacred resting place, the Middle Ages witnessed a fervent surge in Christian pilgrims, making the arduous journey to pay their respects and seek spiritual solace.
Now I confess to not being in the least bit religious, but I am Rotarian and like to do ‘stuff’ whatever that may be, for charity, so, together with Martin we decided to raise money for Cancer Research, in my case in memory of a fellow Rotarian and in the case of Martin, in memory of his ex-wife and sister in law – both who died in their late 50s.
“I am a Rotarian and like to do ‘stuff’, whatever that may be, for charity”
We arrived in Vigo late Saturday 5th October to less than clement conditions, in fact, it was merrily chucking it down as they say. Things did not bode well. Sunday came somewhat overcast and we got into the habit of checking the weather forecast pretty much daily. Our route took us from Vigo to Redondela, then Pontevedra, Caldas de Reis, Padron, Teo and finally, Santiago. Each port of call was between 16km and 21km apart, except for the final day as we only had 11km to do, it just felt like 20km by that time.
We would spend between 4 and 5 hours walking each day, mostly uphill it seems and for the first 2 days, in very damp weather. The best part of the whole experience for me is fellow ‘Pelegrinos’ Pilgrims you meet on the walk, I have previously done the rather quiet Camino Ingles but this Camino was VERY much busier. We lost count of the nationalities we met along the way with a Cheery “Buen Camino!” as they walked by.
Each day you have to collect at least to staps for your ‘Credencial’, a sort of Pilgrims Passport, to confirm you had done the route, or so, one at start of day, one at the end, each little cafe or bar or church will have their own stamp, in some places people set up little stalls selling foods and trinkets by the pathway. The Galicians are wonderfully friendly and whilst of course some knowledge of the language goes a long way, quite a lot of the locals have a smattering of English. Our accommodation was arranged for us in advance by a company called Galliwonders, a local firm, all-female run, I cannot recommend them highly enough! Superb little two – and three-star hotels in each port of call, you can even have your luggage shipped from place to place too, which is useful in winter so you can take a change of clothing.
Whilst we only did 100km in six days, the entire Portuguese Camino starts in Porto… so you need a fair while to do the entire thing! I intend to do another Camino next year, maybe another section of the Portuguese, maybe the French Camino, whatever, it will be fun, a truly uplifting experience, even if you are not religious and you will meet some wonderful people, to cap it all you end up in Santiago which is beautiful city.
