👣 Noire Pilgrim: Santiago de Compostela

Galicia is known for its rainy days… and famously for Santiago de Compostela. Rain had fallen most nights and some days for several weeks. It seems that we were walking between raindrops on the trail. My biggest concern is keeping my feet dry or drying them after they get wet. I hoped that the rain would hold up until after my pilgrimage ended but it did not. You don’t always get what you wish for!

Last albergue before Santiago

In Puenta Ulla, my camino family – Finland, France, Malaysia, and myself – discussed strategies for getting to Santiago. We had 22 kilometers to walk. The two days before, we walked 33 and 36 kilometers. I had no desire to kill myself or my feet to get to the end.

Actually this was the last town and hostel before Santiago. It was the last third of a 3-day, ninety plus kilometer push to get to the city “under the stars” – Compostela.

My Finnish peregrina had an ambitious plan to arrive in Santiago during the early morning hours so she could line up for the first service at the cathedral. Also, she wanted to see the botafumeiro – the incense ball – swing from the church rafters.

My original personal plan was to divide this last third of mileage in half for a leisurely stroll to the city.

In the end, I agreed to leave for Santiago with my new friends… in the dark… in the rain.

It would prove to be our wettest walk. There were two other days on the camino in Extremadura that featured downpours and continuous rain throughout the entire walking day. We stopped a couple of times along the way to sit and rest for a few minutes.

The forecast revealed rain all day, our last official one on the camino.

Reading the signs to Santiago

Immediately after leaving the hostel in Puente Ulla, the skies opened and released sheets of rain as we walked. It was too wet to follow the camino trail in the mountains. We chose the paved road to Santiago. Amazingly, it was not a unanimous group decision!

We half-walked, half-ran to the albergue, the Albergue Seminario Menor. Registration was not open yet so we left our backpacks in a storage locker and hurried to the cathedral.

Finally Santiago

… de Compostela.

Enjoy Every Moment

Miraculously – can I say that? – the rain stopped and the sun came out. It was both overcast and inconveniently sunny for photos in front of the cathedral. In other words, it was not a good camera day for me, the girl of the darker hue, but I did my best.

After all of the greetings and hugs in the square, we walked to the pilgrims office to get our compostelas (certificates). There were no lines. The guard directed us to go on in. We answered a few questions and presented our credentials. Shortly after, we received our compostelas (free) and distance certificates (for a small fee).

Despite our efforts, we could not enter the cathedral in the morning. A long line had already formed (where did these people come from?) and there is an even lower limit of visitors allowed in. My peregrina friend was sad but we were all together and able to uplift our sister.

Celebration and farewell

After hanging out in the square, we walked to a restaurant to have a celebratory meal – our last one together.

The meal was the perfect way to end our pilgrimage and our time together.

Refuge at Albergue Seminario Menor

When we returned to the albergue, we registered and went to the bunk room. The place was spacious and helped us cool down after all that walking on the trail. It was a nice respite for us all.

In spite of the hustle and bustle of Santiago, the hostel is a restful place. The location is about 10 minutes walking distance from Obradoiro square and the cathedral. By the way, “Finland” did attend a later service at the cathedral.

Everyone took showers, washed clothes, and made plans. In the morning we would go our separate ways. My two friends from Finland and France were continuing their walk on the camino to Muxia on the Atlantic coast. Like Fisterra, it is another point west of Santiago that pilgrims consider the true end of the camino. It is a short distance from Fisterra, which was my destination. I, however, would be taking a bus.

Santiago is the end of the caminos that converge upon it. Fisterra and Muxia are the sites of the zero distance marker which makes them the scientific end of the pilgrimage. Walking to either or both towns from Santiago is a way to calm the psyche and contemplate the future.

Breathe. Be where you are. You’ve been broken down dozens of times and put yourself back together again. Think about how remarkable that is, and how far you’ve come. You’re not the same person you were a year ago, a month ago, or even yesterday. You’re always growing… stronger!

Enjoy Every Moment

My friends and I left the hostel and literally scattered to the four corners of the earth. I stayed another day in Santiago.

This time I stayed in a hotel in the middle of Santiago on a street behind the cathedral. I walked from Seminario Menor through the streets with my backpack and stick. There were so many people: pilgrims, of course, tourists and locals. Most of the cafes, restaurants, shops, and hotels were open and busy. The cathedral was open, as were museums dedicated to Santiago and its history.

I registered at my new hotel and went back outside. I wanted to take in the essence of this place. Now that everyone I know is gone, the place feels quiet and somber even with all the activity.

The illusion of speed is the belief that it saves time. It looks simple at first sight: finish something in two hours instead of three, gain an hour. It’s an abstract calculation, though, done as if each hour of the day were like an hour on the clock, absolutely equal.

But haste and speed accelerate time, which passes more quickly, and two hours of hurry shorten a day. Every minute is torn apart by being segmented, stuffed to bursting. You can pile a mountain of things into an hour.

– Frederic Gros

It’s already becoming a blur

The plaza crowd ebbs and flows. I am more aware of my surroundings on this second day.

New pilgrims arrive. They are happy, tearful, and tired. I felt the same just the day before. Suddenly, I feel pushed aside, discarded, and not feeling like I accomplished anything. One of my peregrina friends asked me if I felt special. I said ‘no”. I did not feel special, but maybe I need to. Maybe the need was to find myself.

I found a place to eat. I sampled chocolates and Galician almond cake. A couple from England invited me to sit with them. They treated me to a tapas and asked questions about my pilgrimage.

Afterwards, I bought my bus ticket for Fisterra at the conveniently located ticket office near my hotel. Later, I made a dry run to the metro station to check the schedule and purchase my train ticket to Madrid in preparation for my return home. I did not want to get lost in the maze of streets on travel day.

____

Next time:

Fisterra on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean and the zero marker.

See you there.

Baadaye and Buen camino

Shirley J ♥️

Listen to Breathe. by The Floacist.

This and several posts this summer chronicled my pilgrimage in Spain where I walked the 1400 kilometer-long camino Mozárabe, camino Via De la Plata, and camino Sanabres to Santiago de Compostela. Read my announcement here.

My YouTube channel – Noire Pilgrim By Shirley J – features mini videos, snippets, and shorts from my pilgrimage on the camino.