Coincidentally, this story about new work on the route from Coimbra to Fatima just came up today...apologies for the somewhat odd phrasing; this is Google Translate from the Portuguese:
The original story is here, in this online newspaper for the MedioTejo (central Tagus area)
http://www.mediotejo.net/ourem-reitor-do-santuario-de-fatima-destaca-simbolismo-da-rota-carmelita/
"Keadline: Ourem: Rector of the Sanctuary of Fatima highlights "symbolism" of the Carmelite Route
The rector of the Sanctuary of Fátima, Carlos Cabecinhas, today highlighted the "symbolism" of the Carmelite Route, which departs from where Sister Lúcia lived in Coimbra.
"This route of the Carmelites has been worked and studied for some time. Obviously, it is particularly symbolic, since part of the home of Sister Lucy - the most important of the Fatima seers - to reach the Sanctuary of Fatima and marks the effort that has been made to point out what the pilgrims' paths are to Fatima. In the specific case, it has this special symbolism, "he told Lusa news agency Carlos Cabecinhas, on the fringes of the Theological-Pastoral Symposium, which began today and which debates until Sunday" Fatima Today: which roads? ".
For the rector of the Sanctuary of Fatima, there has been an effort to "mark the paths of Fatima" over the last few years.
"I recall the contribution of the National Cultural Center, which marked a number of routes and which began to be consecrated precisely with this set of routes, duly structured and signed, with the conditions for pilgrims to reach the Shrine of Fatima," he recalled .
The Carmelite Route is based on a route mostly made by Nature and away from national roads: "It seeks to avoid what are the major roads."
"It marks precisely an effort that has been made to create conditions of security for the pilgrims, who are on their way to Fatima. Pilgrimage is a living phenomenon and, therefore, it is necessary to create conditions according to what are the paths sought with the pilgrims themselves, "he stressed.
The Carmelite Route connects the Carmel (odd translation; I think they mean Carmelite Convent)
of Santa Teresa, a space in Coimbra where Sister Lúcia, Fatima lived, in a route of 111 kilometers mostly made by nature and away from national roads.
The project, which had an investment of 200 thousand euros, goes through the counties of Coimbra, Condeixa-a-Nova, Penela, Ansião, Alvaiázere and Ourém, combining spirituality with an invitation to discover the region's natural, cultural and landscape heritage .
About the symposium, Carlos Cabecinhas hopes that, after the three days of discussion, a "mature, profound and multidisciplinary reflection on this living phenomenon of pilgrimage will emerge."
"Often we realize that [the pilgrimage] is a marginal phenomenon, but it is a profoundly alive and in Fatima we feel it as such. So what I hope will come out is a reflection that helps us to look at the phenomenon of pilgrimage with other eyes and try to perceive it better to better respond to the desires of those who visit us, "added the Rector.
During the opening session, Cardinal António Marto, Bishop of Leiria-Fatima, stated that the "pilgrimage to Fatima has singular peculiarities that are imprinted by the content of the message in its mystical and prophetic dimension, by some characteristic symbolic aspects."
For example, "the image of the Pilgrim Virgin has already given 16 rounds to the world and has covered 645,000 kilometers, which is significant."
"It's a phenomenon. It is not something marketing, it is a natural phenomenon, it happens by itself and it has become a true icon of what the pilgrimage is, "Marto emphasized.
To Lusa, Carlos Cabecinhas stressed that "Fatima is undoubtedly a phenomenon and, in the Portuguese context, has unique characteristics that forces it to have unique answers to the enormous demand of pilgrims arriving in the most diverse forms."
"José Tolentino Mendonça said that the dividing line between the tourist and the pilgrim is very tenuous and we in Fatima see it every day. It is not easy to say: this is a pilgrim and he is a tourist, because often the pilgrim assumes the tourist attitude and the tourist assumes the attitude of a pilgrim participating in the celebrations of the Sanctuary itself."
I like the last part; "the dividing line between the tourist and the pilgrim is very tenuous...etc."