Retreat Pilgrimage with St Teresa of Ávila
“Patience Obtains All Things”
10–16 October 2026 | Toledo · Segovia · Ávila · Alba de Tormes
Led by Fr Matt Blake OCD and Fr Kelvin Ekhoegbe OCD
This page holds the story of seven days spent in the footsteps of St Teresa of Jesus, our Holy Mother and Foundress, ending in Ávila on 15 October, the Great Solemnity of her feast.
It is not a travel diary. Each entry gathers the short reflections our pilgrims shared day by day on Instagram, and lets them breathe a little longer. They were written from inside the journey, while the dust of Castile was still on our shoes.
The places are real: Toledo, where Teresa began The Interior Castle; Segovia, where St John of the Cross now rests; Ávila, the city of her birth, her long years at the Incarnation and her first foundation; Alba de Tormes, where she gave her life back to God. Yet the pilgrimage was never only about places. It was about the encounter with the Christ whom Teresa met in them, and about the question she still puts to everyone who prays: will you let Him be your friend?
Read these pages slowly. Each day ends with a link to the original reflection and a question to carry into your own prayer.
Read the diary
Days 1–2 · Toledo
Day 3 · Toledo – Segovia – Ávila
Day 4 · Ávila
Day 5 · Alba de Tormes
Day 6 · Solemnity of St Teresa
Follow our pilgrimages as they happen on Instagram @carmeliteuk, and find future journeys on Pilgrimages with the Carmelites.
Let nothing disturb you, let nothing frighten you. All things pass; God never changes.
Patience obtains all things. Whoever has God lacks nothing. God alone suffices. — St Teresa of Jesus