The day has finally come.
After months of anticipation, prayer, training walks, gear lists, and heart-deep conversations, I find myself taking the very first steps of a journey I’ve dreamed of for years: walking the Portuguese Camino from Tui to Santiago de Compostela.
Day One doesn’t begin on the trail, though. It starts in the familiar cityscape of home — with an early-morning Uber pickup at 7:15 a.m., backpacks neatly zipped, passports secure, and spirits wide open. David, my trusted travel companion for this pilgrimage, is by my side. There’s a quiet kind of joy between us — the kind that comes from knowing something sacred is beginning.
We head to Pearson International Airport, checking in for our 10:44 a.m. flight to JFK in New York. There, we’ll face a 4-hour, 15-minute layover before boarding our overnight transatlantic flight to Madrid. From Madrid, the real journey toward Tui—and the trail—will begin.
It’s ironic, really. We’ve prepared to walk long distances each day for ten days through Spain, yet our pilgrimage begins with long hours of sitting. Airport lounges. Cramped coach seating. Crowds. Waiting. More waiting.
And yet, I’m reminded: this is part of the Camino too.
Coach class isn’t exactly a luxurious way to travel — tight knees, stiff backs, and not enough leg room — but in a way, it’s fitting. The Camino invites simplicity. Discomfort is part of the formation. Even now, before the walking starts, the experience is shaping us — inviting patience, humility, presence.
We wait not just for a plane, but for something deeper to unfold.
The Portuguese Camino from Tui is often called “the spiritual variant,” and it feels right to begin with this reflective stillness. There’s a grace to this first day, even in the liminal spaces of terminals and air travel.
Tomorrow, we’ll wake up in Spain. Tomorrow, we’ll make our way to Tui. But today, we begin — not with walking, but with letting go, with trusting the journey, with embracing the unknown.
A Prayer for the Journey
O God of all our journeys,
As we begin this pilgrimage,
Give us grace in the waiting and peace in the pauses.
Bless our comings and goings,
our check-ins and boardings,
our cramped seats and long layovers.
May this time of travel
be more than movement—
may it be preparation of the heart.
Hold us in your mercy,
guide us by your Spirit,
and go before us to the road in Tui,
where our feet will walk with purpose,
our spirits open to your mystery,
and our hearts aligned with your call.
In the name of Christ, the true Way,
Amen.