One of the first things that struck me as we came out of the front of the airport was how quiet it was. Last time I walked out of the doors of a foreign airport it was Kolkata and the noise is almost unbearable with horns blaring and people shouting. Here you could hear the birds and the scenery was amazing.

We met up with Martin our guide, joined the other pilgrims and boarded the bus to our hotel in Sarria. Although I dozed much of the way I was conscious that it was quite hilly and the longer we drove the further I realised we were going to be walking back. I wasn’t exactly panicking but I think the enormity of what I had signed up for began to hit me.

A quick view of our room, dump our luggage and then a stroll down the road into Sarria where Wraenna made her first purchase of the trip - a pair of pyjamas! We had a briefing with the whole team and Martin established a WhatsApp group in order to keep us informed of stopping places and to stay in touch with us all on the walk - I do wonder how the guides managed before the days of mobile phones.

A gentle stroll to a lovely restaurant for our first group meal, meet the other pilgrims and drink wine! We crashed into bed around 10.30pm having been informed we needed to be ready to leave, having breakfasted, by 8am - the first torture of the trip. It was a noisy hotel and I was glad of my earplugs but we both managed and very subdued breakfast and were ready to walk at 8am