This third day sucked.

My legs and feet began to feel the strain of walking over 50 km in just a few days for the first time in my life, especially without proper training.

Additionally, it was rainy and much colder than I had anticipated for this time of year. I found myself shivering and questioning what was happening to me, was it simply exhaustion? It wasn't until later that day, after I reached my place for the night, that I learned it had been just 3°C that morning. I had been walking in only shorts, a light sweater, and a rain cape.

Nonetheless, the path today was nice, with mostly woods and fields.

Finding some shelter from the rain and cold in a beautiful church on the way.

![](https://lazysoci.al/api/v3/image_p

Second day of the journey, the energy of the beginning is still there.

I found a cool shell! It says 1500 km, maybe if I were a bird, my guide says 1800.

The theory is that the lines on the scallop shell represent the many ways converging towards Compostela. Compostela is next to the Atlantic coast, so this seashell is common food there. Pilgrims would come back from the pilgrimage with a scallop shell attached to their bag as symbol of their accomplishment. Nowadays, many pilgrims attach this symbol on their back from the beginning. But I prefer the old way, I will only attach one to my bag once I have arrived.

So, the point of convergence should point towards Compostela, right? Well this was my minor 1800 km long pet peeve, many of the shells that indicate the way do not point towards the right direction. Zoom in on the top picture for an example.

!

I am revisiting my pictures from my long ~1800 km (1120 miles) walk from my home, in Paris, to Santiago de Compostela in the northwest corner of Spain.

At the time, I couldn't take the whole ~72 days, needed to walk the entire trip, off in one go, but I still had my French-social-system ^TM powered multiple weeks of holiday per year to use. So, I completed it in segments of ~300 km over ~12 days at ~25km/day across 5 years (with COVID in the middle).

The thing about starting from your home is that it is incredibly liberating. All you have to do is put your backpack on your shoulders, cross the threshold of your house, and boom, the adventure has started. No need to stress about booking tickets or missing a departure. You decide when and how you move. This feeling of freedom is the essence of the way for me.

At the same time, you do not feel lost ^{(it\ does\ happen\ sometimes)} nor aimless, because you have one goal, to get to Compostela, and signs to follow along the many possible

Interactive map: https://nco.ign.es/CaminoSantiago/