Introducing Jillian Mallia, Marketing Manager at AX Hotels Qawra, who shares her journey of walking the Camino Português.

“I have always been an outdoorsy person, loving various sports as a child and well into my twenties. So, when my Dad pitched the idea to walk the Camino Português together in 2020, I immediately jumped at the opportunity. Unfortunately, COVID decided to derail our plans a little, which pushed our trip to 2022. I believe in ‘things happen for a reason’ as the end of 2021 and most of 2022 was a tough period for me in my personal life, so embarking on this journey made it all the more significant. I needed to get out of my head and challenge myself with something a bit out of my comfort zone.”

“So, Dad and I trained for a few months, took part in the local Walkathon, got all geared up and then on Friday 27^th May 2022 it was time to jet to Spain to begin our 5-day 132km trek. The Camino Português is an official route of the Camino de Santiago, and a beautiful coastal one at that. It starts from Porto (hence its name) and finishes off in Santiago. All roads lead to Santiago, as pilgrims say, no matter where you start from. And to ‘prove’ that you actually completed the minimum 100km, you need to stamp your ‘Camino Passport’ along the way. Our journey consisted of five stops; starting from the beachside Baiona, to city Vigo, townscape Pontevedra passing through quiet Redondela, the little town of Caldas de Reis, followed by the country town of Padrón, and finally, the historic town of Santiago. Each day’s trek ranged from 18km to 35km and we had to battle various terrains and weather conditions. In the 5 days we were walking, we experienced extreme sunshine, cloudy weather, pockets of rain and full-on showers. But the one motto there is in such a trek is: don’t stop; rest if you need to, but don’t give up.”

“During the trek I had to push not only physically but also mentally to get to the much-awaited finish line. I remember on Day 2, which was our longest stretch (35km), I developed a very nasty blister on my left heel halfway through the day (apart from dealing with chronic tendinitis flare ups in both ankles and knees). The pain was excruciating but I couldn’t stop. We had to keep going because we had to get to our next accommodation before sunset. I vividly remember removing my gear to head into the shower and actually seeing the blister and I burst into tears. All I could think of was, ‘How am I going to manage another 3 days of walking?’ because at that point, we had about another 80km to go! My Dad patched me up and the next day we headed out early to give us enough time to get to the next destination while also taking it a little slower because of my condition. I had to adapt my gear and my pace to the situation.”

“The next three days weren’t without their challenges (including having to walk 15km straight in pouring rain on Day 4 and getting soaked to the bone!), but they were incredibly rewarding. Arriving at Santiago was an experience in itself. You come across people you met along the way and other pilgrims walking different routes. Walking into the church square gave me an indescribable feeling – you’re surrounded by fellow pilgrims who just completed a trek just like you. Rucksacks (weighing at about 5kg) are finally off our backs, and everyone is relaxing on the ground or taking photos to commemorate the occasion. There was a sense of unspoken community to end a beautiful journey. All I can say is, this experience was challenging, beautiful, difficult, messy, eye-opening and an experience I’ll remember forever. And – I’ve never been so relieved and excited to see a church in my entire life!”

“Having to adapt in various weather conditions and taking into account my physical condition, together with pushing through physically and mentally has taught me to constantly persevere in whatever I do. And it has also taught me to take care of my mental wellbeing and to take time to rest when needed. I’ve always been an ambitious person, wanting to not only hit but exceed targets I set, and this has been a valuable lesson and life experience. As a woman in management, I approach anything that is thrown my way with courage coupled with perseverance to see projects through and conclude them with the best possible outcome. However, I’ve also learnt that if something isn’t quite going the way you imagined, it is important to take the time to regroup, brainstorm again and repropose.”

“They say life is a marathon, and you need to continue on, no matter what is thrown your way. The Camino truly taught me that – having to soldier on but also adapt conditions to improve the outcome. Keeping perseverance at the forefront and never giving up, while acknowledging and accepting when to adapt to different situations and change course to better the outcome is the key to success in my opinion.”

“As we say in the Camino Way, Buen Camino! – meaning ‘Happy Trails’ but I’ve come to interpret it as that no matter what life brings, I always remember that there is light at the end of the tunnel and to persevere to the very end.”