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2023 Passport Chronicles
  • Salma T
  • Salma T

2023 Passport Chronicles

Embarking on an epic five-month adventure across multiple Spanish speaking lands to reset my cultural chakras! I’ll be collecting stamps, walking countless miles and creating lasting memories solo and with beloved travel companions. Læs mere
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    2. august 2023
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    Offbeat London

    4.–7. aug. 2023, England ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    Enjoyed a night out at Hackney Wick, a neighbourhood in East London that is home to former industrial spaces, with quirky cafes, craft breweries and bars along the River Lee Navigation canal.

    This evening, I met a bunch of Stefano’s friends, earned myself the title ‘queen of the south’ and danced the night away! 🪩Læs mere

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    Oh la la!

    10. august 2023, Frankrig ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    Made it to the picturesque town of Saint Jean Pied de Port in France, which will mark the start of my Camino (after a rest day of course!). It took a bus, a flight, another bus, a train and a bit of walking to get here but I’m already experiencing the kindness and wonders that this journey will bring, meeting fellow pilgrims from all over the world.

    The long warm days also fill me with joy ☀️    Læs mere

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    My Camino begins amid festive beats

    11. august 2023, Frankrig ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    I packed my backpack, picked up my pilgrim’s passport and shell and I’m finally ready to start walking! 🥾

    Glad I stayed in town for one more night as the Fêtes Patronales de Saint Jean Pied de Port are in full swing tonight and the whole town has a vibrant atmosphere! Everyone’s out on the main road enjoying the sounds of a band playing and €2 beers 🍻 🥁 🎺 🎷Læs mere

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    Camino Day 1: SJPDP to Roncesvalles

    12. august 2023, Frankrig ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    Total distance: 26km
    Step Count: 27.8k

    A very long day crossing over the Pyrenees, walking for hours in the fog and mist and surrounded by farm animals the whole way through: 🐑 🐐 🐄 🐎

    Met the loveliest people today and as soon as we crossed the border into Spain, my Spanish was put to good use.

    At midday we passed an 81 year old woman with fragile knees along the trail and by 8pm she still hadn’t made it to shelter, unlocking a couple hours of contacting emergency services and talking to the rescue team. A collective effort saw Estela back at the shelter at 10pm, a joyous moment for us all. The rescue team found her still walking on the trail and if that doesn’t speak to a person’s spirit and determination, I don’t know what does!    Læs mere

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    Camino Day 2: Roncesvalles to Zubiri

    13. august 2023, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Total Distance: 24km
    Step Count: 37.3k
    Blisters to date: 0
    Tortillas to date: 1

    Today we got woken up with chants coming from the church followed by a priest who came into the dorm area singing “good morning” and a whole other range of well wishes for the pilgrims.

    After brekkie, I set off walking with David, a 67 year old man who I’d met in the town I stayed before staring my Camino and a few other pilgrims that we’d catch up with here and there. Our day was filled with great conversations about everything!

    The trail itself started off through a beautiful lil forest and ended in one of those downhills that no one ever enjoys. Had my first and the best tortilla española to date at Espinal, and later, we stopped at another Cafe that turned out to be named after a Spanish restaurant in Venezuela that the owner had visited on many occasions when he was younger. Talking to people (especially locals) is my favourite way to experience the Camino ➡️

    Zubiri had a lovely river in which we were able to take a dip to cool down and church bells that rang every half an hour day and night! I guess you gotta take the good with the bad 🤷🏻‍♀️    Læs mere

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    Camino Day 3: Zubiri to Pamplona

    14. august 2023, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    Total distance: 24.3km
    Step Count: 41.6k
    Blisters to date: 0
    Tortillas to date: 2

    Having stayed up till 2am chatting about life with my hostel roomies (2 Aussies) meant that we were one of the last groups to head out in the morning. Temperatures started averaging 30 degrees during the day but the camino always provides!

    Half way through our walk we came across a swimming spot when passing the Puente de Iturgaiz and we were able to forget about the heat for a bit 🥵 After this, we powered through to Pamplona under the scorching sun arriving to our Albergue around 6pm… so so late!

    We stayed at the Albergue Jesus y Maria, an old church that has been refurbished and turned into a hostel for pilgrims. And after some well needed showers, we went out for pintxos: a must when in Pamplona!    Læs mere

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    Camino Day 4: Pamplona to Pte la Reina

    15. august 2023, Spanien ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    Total Distance: 26.3km
    Step Count: 42k
    Blisters: 1
    Tortillas to date: 3
    Items lost: 👚 + 🧢

    The walk to Puente La Reina was so scenic but brutally hot! The entire way to Alto del Perdon didn’t have any shade and we were melting 🥵

    At the top, we met Miguel, a man who’s done 6 full caminos and countless shorter routes. He was spreading kindness along the way and gave each one of us a pin with beads and the camino shell. He also told us that he was meant to be walking with his wife who had passed away recently. So many stories and reasons to walk 🤍

    From there, it was a very long descent with no shade all the way to Uterga. This little town had its festivities on this day and we were having the biggest laugh with a few mischievous kids lighting up firecrackers in the water fountain.

    The next town was Obaños, a really cute lil town, where we finally took a rest on a grassy patch before walking the last 50min to our stop for the day. The sun had taken a toll and we stopped at the first and nicest albergue we could find. We needed to treat ourselves a bit.    Læs mere

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    Camino Day 5: Puente la Reina to Lorca

    16. august 2023, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    Total Distance: 15.6km
    Step Count: 24k
    Blisters to date: 1
    Tortillas to date: 3

    Australia was playing today so I planned a short day to watch the game (we lost 😞).

    Going to Lorca the scenery along the Camino started to change into expansive plains. I walked alone for the first time today and it was quite beautiful leaving Puente La Reina at dawn. When I got to my Albergue, I was the only one there. However, as the day passed, more and more people started to arrive and everyone signed up for the communal dinner.

    Our hospitalero was so kind and generous. Washed everyone’s clothes for free and went above and beyond with everything. The food and the people made for a very memorable night as dinners up until this day had been quite average (maybe something about staying in small villages as opposed to the bigger stops).

    My friends Josh and Adam had popped by to say bye on their way to Estella but it was so hot they decided to stay too. There were also 2 lovely Spanish women who had met on their first day and decided to walk together to Logroño where they where both going to finish. They had the most amazing energy and we became friends instantly!

    Everyone was so touched by the hospitality in the Albergue de Lorca that we made José Ramón (the owner) a beautiful thank you card and off to sleep for a very early start the next day to try and beat the heat.    Læs mere

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    Camino Day 6: Lorca to Villamayor

    17. august 2023, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    Total Distance: 22.4km
    Step Count: 38.7k
    Blisters to date: 1
    Tortillas to date: 4

    Temperatures are averaging 35 degrees during the day by now so we started our day at 5:30am.

    I’d been waiting for a whole week to make it to Estella to experience 900 year old markets but I was slightly underwhelmed. Going through different towns and seeing the way of life in Spain is fascinating though.

    We bought some fruits, discovered dried Pomelo (so delish!) and wandered a bit in town before making our way to Villamayor de Monjardin. On the way, we stopped at the famous wine fountain in Ayegui. The climb and the heat from there were again brutal!

    Once in the Albergue, I saw a couple heads pop in and it was the Spanish women from the night before who were also staying in the same town. We made a plan to walk up to a castle up in the hill for sunset and the photos speak for themselves! You could see over 70 towns all around from the top. Such a beautiful place! Our Albergue was also incredible and learned how to make the most delicious apple chutney! 🍎    Læs mere

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    Camino Day 7: Villamayor to Torres

    18. august 2023, Spanien ⋅ ☁️ 32 °C

    Total Distance: 21km
    Step Count: 33.4k
    Blisters to date: 1
    Tortillas to date: 6
    Injuries: 1 sprained toe 🦶

    Today was an even earlier start, as the heat has become unbearable after 12pm. Josh, Adam and I smashed 12km to Los Arcos before the sun came out and after breakfast I was still undecided if I’d walk another 10 or 20km. As we were about to leave Los Arcos, Josh decided he was going to walk another 30km to Logroño (absolute madness!).

    There was a whole flock of sheep and not one bit of shade for the rest of the way so the decision was easy. It’d be another 10km to Torres del Río where all the shelters had swimming pools, a serendipitous moment.

    Adam, the Spanish women (Marijose & Alba) and I arrived around noon to “La Pata de Oca”, a ver small and cozy Albergue with a lil pool. We were welcomed by Vincenzo, a quirky and trickster hospitalero who had everyone in stitches all day long with his crazy comments and even crazier musical taste.

    We spent an amazing afternoon chillin by the pool and getting to know another group of Spanish guys staying there, speaking so much Spanish again. After dinner, one of the guys started playing the guitar and entertained the whole albergue for a couple hours. I even got serenaded 🥰

    Dinner was also an interesting experience. Adam and I had decided to share a pilgrims’ meal since we weren’t too hungry but we ended up getting a full meal each for half the price. So much food! There’s lots of generosity and abundance on the Camino. There was also a whole round of applause for me when I finished my plate, the struggle was real!

    It was difficult to go to bed early surrounded by such good vibes! And while the night did have to come to an end at some point, it wasn’t without plans to catch up in Logroño, the big city we’d reach the next day that would mark the end for all of my Spanish Camino family except for one.    Læs mere

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    Camino Day 8: Torres del Rio to Logroño

    19. august 2023, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 35 °C

    Total Distance: 17.2km
    Step Count: 27.8k
    Blisters to date: 2
    Tortillas to date: 9
    Injuries: 1 sprained toe 🦶

    Today I walked with Adam and we started moving at 5:30am to beat the heat. We walked 10km to Viana where we stopped for brekkie and ran into a few friendly faces we were likely not to see again on the trail anymore as some were finishing their Caminos and others were walking shorter days. This included Cedric, a lovely nomadic Swiss guy who always had a smile on his face and entertained us for half an hour with many thoughts on life and society.

    Once in Logroño, we met up with Marijose and Alba for a drink and a nibble (tortilla of course!) to say our goodbyes. It was very sad to say see them go but that is the Camino life. After that, Adam decided to go for a nap and I was looking for a nice cafe to sit down and journal/sketch for a bit.

    I found myself walking down these beautiful laneways full of bars (and shade!) and I bumped into the Spanish guys: Jesus, Jorge and Ramon. A few minutes into the encounter, a glass of wine made its way into my hands and by like 9:00pm I had drank 3 wines, 6 beers, some weird Scottish coffee drink and enjoyed some delicious pintxos! We went to the Bar de los Champi and another bar where I obviously had another tortilla because why not!? Ramon had to leave to catch a bus back to his hometown so there was three of us left but what a joy it was to be out and about around Logroño’s vibrant night life with locals. More importantly, a real fun bunch.

    Many drinks and wonderful conversations later demanded some food (at least for this lil gal that was one away from one too many) so we did a bit more bar hopping to get some food (another tortilla 🫣) and I was escorted to my albergue at 11:30pm.

    Jorge was the only one continuing on the Camino so we made a bet that involved buying more beers based on who’d win the Women’s World Cup the next day. We would need them to survive the heatwave!

    He was also carrying around an anti inflammatory ointment (for my strained toe) that his mother had made. I was expected to return it the next day but it has stayed with me since and helped me and a few other pilgrims along the way.

    There’s lots of kindness on the Camino 🩷    Læs mere

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    Camino Day 9: Logroño to Nájera

    20. august 2023, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 34 °C

    Total Distance: 33.4km
    Step Count: 50.5k
    Blisters to date: 1
    Tortillas to date: 10

    Waking up at 4:30am to start walking by 5:00am should’ve been harder today as I barely slept 5 hours but it was so so hot in the albergue that the idea of being outside in the “cool” morning air made it very easy to get up and go! It was like 23 degrees outside 😒

    Logroño to Nájera was a 30km day and the World Cup final would start at noon so I was on a mission to get there on time to watch the game. I thought Adam would walk with me but he didn’t get up on time.

    The first town along the way was 12.5km away. Now when people talk about the magic of the camino, I’m certain in my case it means walking hours without coffee! 😑

    After the coffee stop, an ongoing breeze made the next chunk of km very enjoyable.

    I was loving life with the breeze and listening to some music that I didn’t realise when my credit card fell out of my backpack’s side pocket. Eventually, when I finally realised, I started to walk back to look for it. That’s when I ran into Adam who had seen my card in previous days, recognised it and picked it up for me (seriously, how lucky am I?!).

    Adam and I walked together for a bit again but when he started to stop at every grapevine to eat grapes, I pushed on. The sun was gruelling and while it wasn’t a race, it was fun making it into town before Jorge who’d already proven to be way faster than me on the trail. Even then, we still only made it to the second half. The game was screening at the town square on a giant screen and everyone was there with their shirts and cheers, a wonderful atmosphere. Great to see Spain win that day!

    After the game, Jorge invited Adam and I to catch up with his dad (as his parents have a home in a village nearby where Jorge would stay the night instead of an albergue) and some of the dad’s friends at a local bar. For someone who’d missed interactions in Spanish, all of this was such a joy.

    Adam was temporarily stopping his camino later that afternoon so we accompanied him to the bus station and then went to the river for a dip. It was almost 6:00pm and still like 37 degrees!

    Jorge’s dad was still waiting for him in town so we parted ways for the day and I went to enjoy a lovely dinner which included “patatas a la Riojana”, a delicacy from the region. I could go on and on for days about how good food and wine are in Spain! 🤤    Læs mere

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    Camino Day 10: Nájera to Santo Domingo

    21. august 2023, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 33 °C

    Total Distance: 23.7km
    Step Count: 33.4k
    Blisters to date: 2
    Tortillas to date: 11

    Today was one of the most beautiful days on the Camino, at least for me. I’d heard that many people skip the section between Burgos and Leon because the trail is mostly flat and one mostly traverses the plains but if I’d skipped this, I would’ve missed out on endless fields of sunflowers!

    🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻

    I started walking before sunrise and got lost for 0.5km. Well, me and every other person that started walking in the dark. I was soon back on the road and enjoying brekkie an hour later. Jorge had caught up by then and we walked together for the rest of the day.

    We played with all the cats and dogs along the way and just as we came about the most beautiful fields, we started hearing a guy whistling to a random tune behind us. It’d come to be the most creepy encounter on the journey (hopefully to date).

    The guy came up to Jorge speaking in some foreign language messing with his backpack buckles and after one minute started doing the same with mine. We were about to lose our patience when the guy took a step back and we realised he was going to move on. We kept dabs on the guy the rest of the way to make sure we wouldn’t stay in the same place. I was so glad I wasn’t alone in this moment. We only ever saw him once more on the trail after and never again.

    In Santo Domingo de la Calzada, we spent the rest of the afternoon bar hopping and chatting with other Spanish pilgrims. It was a cute little town but the heat was unbearable so undercover was the only acceptable place to be.

    There’d been so many requests for wedding invites from everyone that had seen Jorge and I together up until that point that we ended up having a fake camino proposal/marriage at one of the bars to share with all. And having already met his dad, it seemed like the perfect next step that would ensure endless moments of laughter with everyone for days to come. 👩🏻‍❤️‍👨🏻 💍🤣    Læs mere

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    Camino Day 11: Santo Domingo to Belorado

    22. august 2023, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 33 °C

    Total Distance: 24km
    Step Count: 36.9k
    Blisters to date: 2
    Tortillas to date: 12

    There was lots of motivation to walk today as our destination would see us stay at a really nice albergue with a pool! This was the only time I agreed to make a booking but even then we made it the same day.

    I started walking around 5:15am (still in the dark) and Jorge caught up eventually (at the first coffee stop as usual). We walked together for a while playing games as we went along but then arrived to a very long stretch by the road with not one ounce of shade and over 30 degrees! Jorge turned into the roadrunner and I popped in my headphones and picked up my pace to get the last kms done as quickly as I could!

    In Belorado, we enjoyed a couple of beers with Daniel and Ana, a lovely couple from Muxía (a coastal town of Spain), waiting for the albergue to open. We spent the rest of the day between the pool, the restaurant and playing street fighter on an arcade machine. Such a relaxing day in the middle of the heatwave!

    Around the pool, I bumped into Meik, a German guy who I’d met a few days earlier at another pool, and we ended chatting for about an hour about Spanish. It was lovely to see how much he cared about learning the language to better connect with the locals throughout his camino.

    It also turned out that Meik lives in a town near Hamburg and I was invited to visit when I’m there in late September.

    In the evening, we went into town for a few more beers and nibbles. It’s incredible how at 8pm is when everyone starts to go out in Spain, even the old people and even in the smallest of villages!    Læs mere

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    Camino Day 12: Belorado to Agés

    23. august 2023, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 35 °C

    Total Distance: 26.2km
    Step Count: 33.9k
    Blisters to date: 2
    Tortillas to date: 13

    The heatwave was still in full swing so I woke up at 5:00am to start walking again. I powered through like 12km, got some breakfast and started walking again with Xenia, a girl from Russia who’d be finishing her camino the next day in Burgos. We had a great chat at the brekkie stop and over the rest of the way to Santo Domingo which was the original destination.

    Jorge and Meik had decided to walk together and caught up half way through leaving only dust behind them (as all tall people do!). The trail was nice and shady in the forest but full of annoying flies so we just powered through without any photo stops.

    We were finally chillin’ at the first bar before finding our beds for the night but the town was very small and all the cool places to stay were already booked out. We had the option of more expensive accommodation but started talking to a Croatian man who ended up convincing us into walking another 4km to the next town which had more albergues.

    We were beat from the heat but tagged along with him and another guy from Denmark, who we’d end up befriending and sharing lots of beers with over the next few days 🍻    Læs mere

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    Camino Day 13: Agés to Burgos

    24. august 2023, Spanien ⋅ ⛅ 36 °C

    Total Distance: 16km
    Step Count: 33k
    Blisters to date: 2
    Tortillas to date: 14

    Today was a perfectly fun and jam packed day on the Camino. I started off walking at dawn again, as it was cooler outside than in during this heatwave. Soon into the walk, Jorge had caught up and we stopped to enjoy un “desayuno de campeones” at Bocateria San Miguel in Cardeñuela Riopico: tortilla con morcilla, batido de frutas (como en casa) y café. An absolute feast!

    After brekkie, we kept on walking hoping to find the alternate river route into Burgos and avoid a 6km stretch through an industrial zone (epic fail!). Instead of walking that horrendous stretch, we sat at the first bar we found (next to the bus stop), had a drink and waited for the bus into town. 🫣

    First stop in Burgos was the Cathedral square where we ran into Daniel and Ana and we shared a few beers together before they caught their bus back home. A few people were finishing their walks in Burgos so there were many celebratory beers in order!

    After sorting out our beds for the night, Jorge and I indulged in a Mexican lunch and a few more drinks before paying the Cathedral a proper visit. I didn’t know where to look when I was inside, so much to see. Even my neck hurt a bit from looking up so much! This is by far the most beautiful one I’ve seen in my life and a must see when in Burgos!

    Burgos also had a few cool laneways full of bars so we indulged in some wine and pintxos and then walked around town some more. We ended up at a bar next to the municipal albergue where we came across the European crew from the night before plus a lovely 20 year old boy from Austria super keen on learning Spanish who’d become part of my camino family for the next few days.

    It wasn’t a late one as the albergue closed its doors at 10:30. I’d also been convinced to have a rest day in town as there’d be theatre in the square so I’d be seeing everyone again the next evening except for Jorge who would leave around noon to go back home 😔    Læs mere

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    Camino Day 14: Rest day in Burgos

    25. august 2023, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    Total Distance: 0km
    Step Count: 5.7k
    Blisters to date: 2
    Tortillas to date: 15

    The rest day in Burgos was nice and vey relaxing. I had lots of downtime to journal and explore the city a bit more. Burgos is so beautiful, probably the most beautiful big city along the way.

    Rest day also meant sleeping in (woohoo!) which felt so amazing and then spent the rest of the morning with Jorge until we had to go our separate ways.

    I went to a cafe or grab some lunch and ended up meeting Jenny from Australia who would stay in town for a few days to recover from blisters and we chatted about the three phases of the Camino.

    The route we’re following has three distinct regions that are meant to align with the stages of personal growth often experienced along the way: physical conditioning, emotional reflection, and spiritual awareness.

    We had just finished the physical conditioning stage and were about to start the second one. Interestingly enough, I had just finished filling the first side of my pilgrim’s passport and it was time to turn the page and start a new one, a very bittersweet moment.

    Later in the day I went to the square for the theatre only to find out there was nothing happening. This was a bit of a let down but still ended the day on a high sharing a lovely dinner with the European crew tasked with looking after me haha: my new camino family for now.    Læs mere

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    Camino Day 15: Burgos to San Bol

    26. august 2023, Spanien ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    Total Distance: 28km
    Step Count: 39.6k
    Blisters to date: 2
    Tortillas to date: 16

    After a rest day (with no theatre), I started the day with Predi and Jannich. Lukas decided to walk alone so we met him almost at the end of the day.

    The walk out of Burgos was quite lovely and we soon found ourselves in the plains, spotting the first fields of sunflowers still in bloom! 🌻🌻🌻

    The day took us through some beautiful villages, including Rabé de las Calzadas where we noticed the door of a little chapel open and decided to go in. We thought it was empty until we were greeted by Sor Modesta, the sweetest nun with the face and smile of an Angel. She welcomed us and gave us each a medallion and a blessing for our way which we wholeheartedly received. 🥰

    Many sunflower fields later and with a scorching sun, we arrived to Albergue Arroyo de San Bol, a little oasis like 1km off the trail in the middle of nowhere. It was only 5 of us staying there, luckily all familiar faces (and most importantly… no snorers!).

    We got to enjoy a communal dinner with delicious Cuban rice with chicken made by the Cuban hospitaleros who left at 8pm and asked the last one of us to lock the door in the morning! We had the whole place to ourselves and we all agreed it was the best meal to date! I slept till 8:30am, absolute bliss. 😅    Læs mere

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