Back in September 2012, Yentl Spiteri, 24, was working at Inspire helping young adults with disabilities find work opportunities and providing them with training and social skills. That’s where she came across the opportunity for an adventure of a lifetime – El Camino De Santiago in Spain, as a fundraising activity in aid of the cause she so strongly believes in.
I came across a flyer about people’s experience on El Camino De Santiago (The Way of St James) and, though I knew very little about the trek, it sounded like a great challenge. So I spoke to three of my colleagues and we all started getting excited about the idea of living out of a backpack and travelling together. The trip was being organised by Inspire’s own fundraising team, so we decided to go for an introductory talk to find out more.
When the meeting was over, my colleagues and I gathered in the car park and screamed. We were so excited at the thought of living this adventure together that by the end of the talk we already had plans on how we would raise the money, what kind of activities we wanted to organise, and the apparel we needed to buy to survive the trip.
After two months of washing cars and selling ceramic wedding souvenirs at the Sunday market, we raised enough money to go to Spain. The experience was incredibly surprising because before we set off I didn’t think it would leave such a deep imprint on me. When I returned to Malta and unpacked my backpack, I looked at the state of my T-shirts and socks, and the whole experience hit me all over again.
The Camino has a definite start and finish, so upon completion of every single stage one feels an overwhelming sense of purpose. It’s not like you’re just wandering about. On the contrary, en route every walker feels a strong drive to get to the next stage, even though the goal is not the destination but ‘the way’.
While I did not have any life-changing expectations, and was simply looking forward to walking, meeting new people, taking a lot of photos and enjoying myself with my colleagues and friends, the trip ended up being much more than that.
I had planned to spend as much time with my colleagues as possible and to walk together singing Disney songs, but after some time, the weight of a 10kg backpack and the pain from blisters and tired knees, did not bode well for good group dynamics, so I ended up walking alone for some time. This gave me a lot of ‘me-time’; something that I strive to have in the socially immersed life we live today.
Having no internet also made it easier to connect with the environment and at one point, I felt so at one with my surroundings that I was convinced Mother Nature had been waiting for me all my life.
Normally I am not a morning person but every day the albergue’s (hostel’s) alarms used to go off at 6.30am, and all the residents who would have spent the night there would start hustling, taping their blistered feet and queuing to use the bathroom.
Soon after we’d be out in the dark, humid air having breakfast at the nearest snack bar and a few minutes later we’d be following the yellow arrows, which lead to the next albergue.
The first couple of hours of the day used to be hard, but once the sun started to sparkle across the horizon, and soft rays started to make their way through the wet trees, the scenery became so breathtaking that I soon forgot the blisters and the hardship of waking up so early.
Everywhere I looked was so picturesque that towards the end of the journey I had so much adrenalin pumping through my system and I felt so fit and healthy that in the mornings it only used to take me 10 minutes of walking before the aches went away.
A foodie might describe the Camino Trail as a sort of tapas bar crawl with very long walks in-between. The sight of a tapas bar in the middle of nowhere used to set my buds on fire. I never knew that I could eat so many empanadas but after 20km of walking, anything tastes divine. Tapas and other nibbles, which by the way are absurdly cheap, used to be accompanied by some cao con leche (hot cocoa) or by some white or red wine from the region.
Of course, after walking all day in the sun, showering is vital, but the bathing procedure took me a few days to get used to. In public albergues women of different shapes and sizes wander around the shower room stark naked having normal conversations as if they had just met each other on the Sliema front. We felt frowned upon for wearing a bathing costume in the shower, and once I even got a back slap from a middle aged Spanish woman who said “Chica, on the Camino, we shower nekked”.
One morning, back on the trail, we met Bob, a 70-year-old man from South Africa. We spent a couple of hours walking together discussing a range of subjects, from world changing political strategies to different clothes-washing and overnight-drying methods.
I can still remember his sharp accent and how his voice cracked when he mentioned his wife. He described her in a way that every woman would love to be described; he spoke of her beauty as well as her mistakes in a way that he made imperfection sound beautiful. His goal was to meet his daughter in Santiago, as well as to finish the whole journey with one pair of socks.
I would recommend this adventure to anyone who wants to experience life in its rawest form, travelling with limited resources, not being pressured by time, deadlines and social implications
The trail is not a walk in the park – the terrain varies from flat tarmac to steep muddy hills, which used to leave me breathless. There were a couple of moments when I felt very tired and hungry and when I doubted my choice of adventure. I wondered why I chose to ‘suffer’ by walking through northern Spain instead of partying in Barcelona with the rest of my friends, but at the end of the day the journey helped me get to know myself.
I questioned my purpose in life; it made me face obstacles and pain and experience extreme emotions. I can certainly say that it took me outside my comfort zone and helped me grow.
I would recommend this adventure to anyone who wants to experience life in its rawest form, travelling with limited resources, not being pressured by time, deadlines and social implications.
I would recommend going without any expectations and being open and flexible to welcome the experience as it comes to you. A pumped up playlist and good headphones for those killer slippery hills would also come in handy.
History of El Camino
El Camino de Santiago dates back over 1,000 years. In total it is an 800km trek which starts from St Jean Pied du Pord in the Pyrenees Mountains in France, and goes through the massive wine region, up to the medieval Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, which is in north-western Spain. According to legend, the remains of the apostle St James the Great are buried here.
The Way became a Unesco World Heritage site in 1985. Historically, the pilgrimage was exclusively religious but in recent years it has become a way for people to get in touch with nature, and it is a challenge often done in aid of a good cause.
Join the journey
Inspire will be leading a guided pilgrimage covering 100km of the trek to raise funds. It will depart from Saria, arriving five days later at Monet de Gozo-Santiago de Compostela. While a high degree of fitness is not a must, participants will be required to walk approximately 21 kilometres a day, carrying a backpack. An experienced tour leader will lead the group, advising members on how to prepare as soon as they sign up for the challenge. The price is €650 pp, including flights, accommodation, transfers, all taxes, guides and a donation to Inspire. There are limited spaces available. If interested contact Inspire’s fundraising team on 2189 0000 or e-mail events@inspire.org.mt.