Vertikal Schwimmen Or: The Best Job I Ever Had...

Why did we choose pilgrimage? Actually, because we wanted to travel in the best way possible, allowing us to get to know the land and the people.

Through our work, we know the desires of travelers all too well. It's mostly about going to the best restaurant in town (but only if TripAdvisor recommends it) or capturing the sights as quickly as possible with a smartphone. The true goal of traveling is increasingly being pushed into the background these days: getting to know the land, the people, and the culture.

That's why we wanted to go on this beautiful pilgrimage.

Unfortunately, we decided to cut our trip short.

We fought bravely for seven days, coming to our accommodations rain-soaked every day. The last trip really showed us that we couldn't go through with it to the end.

22.5 km in pouring rain. All our things, even in our backpack, completely soaked. Shoes too.

On this stage, we apparently looked so pitiable that an old lady in one of the mountain villages gave us food and almost started crying. Quite dramatic...

We had walked 110 km on foot, from Porto to Spain, even though it rained every day.

Enough of the complaining; on to Lisbon.

Flight rebooked, hostel reserved, train from Tui to Lisbon taken, and quickly forgetting all our troubles.

So here we are. Just ordinary tourists, but without a smartphone... In the city that we fell in love with last year.