I thoroughly enjoy meeting fellow walkers. Because walking a Camino takes time, many of the walkers are older and retired. Yet, since the Portuguese Camino has several nice, shorter stretches, some of the walkes are younger who can take a week or two to walk the coastal Camino.

One nineteen-year old is Emily from Hamburg. Coming from different directions, we meet at a Redondela stop-light. When somebody is carrying a backpack and a Camino sign is there, then it is a good guess that they are walking the Camino! After saying hi, she says that “I hope today isn’t as hard as yesterday.” Yesterday was her first day, almost 18 miles and a couple of blisters on her first day. Ouch! Like her French father and her German mother, she loves the outdoors. Relaxing. Renewing. Of course, she does have one bad vice she admits, “I smoke.” She supported herself by working at an office administering to the elderly covid vaccinations. Despite her parents’ caution, “They kept saying, wait another year or two” and despite her being anxious as a young solo woman hiker, she has begun the Camino. As I could tell that she hasn’t really talked to anybody, I ask her why she is walking. “I’ve got some things to work out and to prove to myself.” Some is physical. “I was a cheerleader in school; I got dropped and broke my tailbone. I got Covid-19 and that kept me from concentrating.” Some is emotional. “I see a counselor who helps me be more self-aware.” Why is she walking? She wants to gain more self-confidence.

Another young man in his mid-twenties is Sven, a young German fellow with a Scandinavian name. Walking past a full café, I notice four younger folks enjoying a mid-morning coffee. Within a mile, he begins to walk by me. Glancing at him, I notice not only that he is he very tall and long-legged, but also that he walks with a limp. We fall in together. He is currently jobless. He has grown up in Bavaria, but doesn’t like Munich “too touristy.” While he was studying in San Diego, he met some fellow Germans whose hometown is Cologne. When his student visa expired, he returned to Germany and moved to Cologne. Unfortunately, no luck finding a job, especially his dream job. His dream job is to work in Human Resources helping those German companies who provide internships for younger folks. Why was he walking? Basically, he needs to cope better while he looks for a job. In Cologne, he obsesses about not having a job. He needs a break. While he still thinks daily about finding a future job, he also needs to be in a space where he is thinking about something other than finding a job.

I also meet two young Portuguese women Francesca and Marianna. Both work in Lisbon although they are from other parts of the country. No problems finding employment. In fact, their company so appreciated their work during Covid that the two were given extra days of vacation. They are enjoying those days and enjoying a few days walking. Talking about Covid, Francesca’s grandmother fell and broke her wrist. If she had gone to a public hospital, then she might have contracted Covid. Instead, she went to a private hospital where there were more restrictions in place for everybody’s safety. Why were they walking? Simply to enjoy a break from their work!

People walk for different reasons. Working through health issues. Sorting through various emotional issues such as self-confidence. Trying to escape the obsessive frustrations of job-seeking. Simply enjoying the beauty of Portugal. So many different reasons. So many valid reasons to walk the Camino.