Ah…it seems my “every mile was a joy” brag (of the Camino Santiago) just got a kick in the kilometer ass.

For walking BACKWARDS along the Camino Portuguese means that for ever 20 kilometers I walk FORWARD, I walk 6 kilometers in circles or backtracking to find the right path….(b/c the person with the blue paint bucket was a bit of daydreamer also and forgot to mark half the turns in the path.)

But alas, it is only the 3rd day of my Southbound skip, and I will quickly learn the rules of the new game. And the path is brilliantly beautiful!!! And I own it all to my sweet self…not a single other pilgrim in the peripheral. Although I do have to go through this script every 20 minutes;

“A donde vas?! Santiago esta por alla!” (“Where are you going?! Santiago is the other way!”)

“Si. Yo se. Me voy a Fatima.” (“Yes. I know. I´m going to Fatima.”)

“Y de donde vienes?” (“And from where do you come?)

“De Francia” (“From France.”)

“ANDANDO?!….de Francia?!” (“WALKING?! From France?!”)

“Y Estas sola?!” (“And you are alone?!”)

“Si. Sola.” (“Yes. Alone.”)

“Y no tienes miedo?!” (“And you aren´t afraid?!”)

“No. No tienes miedo.” (“No. I´m not afraid.”)

(Old Spanish woman/man then throws hands in air and shakes them.)

“DIOS mio. MADRE de Jesus. Esta chica ES loca!”

Well yes. I AM a bit crazy. But it isn´t necessary to alert God and Mary to this fact. They already know :).

I have no map and, in general, there exists VERY little information on the Camino Portuguese, (and nothing on a “pilgrimage to Fatima”) — so I just assumed the blue arrows on the back of the yellow ones were indicating the path for pilgrims returning from Santiago to Portugal.

Well one very happy tear was shed when I found this sign yesterday:

Dios mio! Madre de Jesus! *throws hands in the air* Did you know there are now 700 pictures in the Camino de Santiago Photo Album?! See the ocean here.

I think it´s time to start a new album…

*a gennie wink*

The “Pilgrimage to Fatima” photo album is now open.