On Monday the 13th of May 2013, Harold and I walked from Arca do Pino into Santiago de Compostella. The Brierley distance today was 20.6 kilometres. We got rooms in the Providore Hotel within easy walking distance of the Cathedral.
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After 29 days of continuous walking, I had reached the municipal boundaries of Santiago. It felt so good!
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The Cathedral in Santiago is huge, presumably to impress on ordinary people how insignificant they are in the presence of God as represented by the Cathedral. Harold and I were very pleased to have reached the Cathedral at last.
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The Camino was completely full of peregrinos on the edges of Santiago. The numbers in this photo were typical of the numbers walking into Santiago.
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Once we left Arca do Pino on 13 May, the Camino took us for a pleasant stroll through a forest
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More peregrinos walking towards Santiago.
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Street in the city of Santiago. It was such a small distance to Santiago from Arca do Pino that we got there in time for lunch.
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This was my bed in the Hotel Paradore in the Santiago Square. The bed was so soft, I had trouble getting to sleep.
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The Moon was tiny, but it too seemed to be smiling in the evening of that Monday.
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Diary Entry Made on Monday 13 May 2013 at 6:45 pm
I am writing this in my hotel room at the Paradore Hotel in Santiago. The Paradore is a luxury hotel on the square immediately opposite the cathedral in Santiago. It was originally established as a pilgrim hostel but now it serves only those who can truly afford it. Harold and I walked in off the square and Harold asked the price of a single room each. Harold speaks fluent Spanish. The lady on the desk originally wanted to charge €155.00 per person per room. Harold argued her down to €120.00 each for own separate rooms, plus breakfast thrown in as well as the room.
We had coffee and toast and left Arca at about 8:00 am. We had two further stops before reaching the cathedral square at about 1:30 pm. The Brierley distance today was 20.6 kilometres. The walking was through peaceful forest tracks until we started to climb Monte del Gozo. Monte del Gozo seemed to go up for a very long time and once we got to the top it took ages of walking across the mountain slope before we started descending to Santiago. There was glorious sunshine throughout the day.
We checked in at the Provodore at about 2:00 pm. I went for a wander with Harold at 3:00 pm after cleaning up. We got the Compostellas, had lunch and then went shopping for presents to take to Ireland tomorrow.
I can barely believe it. I walked the Camino from Saint Jean in 29 consecutive days. I will attend the Pilgrim Mass in the cathedral tomorrow.
Distance Walked Today: 20.6 kilometres.
Total Distance Walked So Far: 770.5 kilometres.
Total Distance Covered So Far: 791.7 kilometres including the 21.2 kilometres by taxi.
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Soul Song Number 35 - The River: Part II
(13 May 2013)
Today was the day it happened.
All of the Camino tributary streams joined up.
Today, every constituent of the Camino Pilgrim River flowed into Santiago Cathedral Square.
Some had walked from Saint Jean Pied de Port.
Some had walked from Roncesvalles.
Some from Pamplona.
Some from Burgos.
Some from Leon.
Some from Sarria.
Many had walked from numerous places in between.
Some didn't walk at all - preferring to cycle.
Some did very limited walking - preferring to spend much of their Camino travelling by bus.
Whatever means of travel they used to get there, they all formed part of the great River of Pilgrims.
The river that rushes to Santiago.
Today the River of Pilgrims moved through steady sunshine,
Sparkling with the knowledge that their pilgrimage had reached its sought after objective.
After such a long time spent journeying,
This anabranch of the River of Pilgrims had reached the Saint.
Just as a different anabranch of the river will reach the Saint tomorrow.
For you, it is over.
The journey is complete.
Only the necessary formalities remain.
What have you learned?
Hopefully, you are a kinder, gentler person.
It will have been worthwhile if you have learned that simple but difficult lesson.
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