Blogs from Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain, Europe - page 6

Today was a day of contradictions; it was wet, really wet at times, crowded, and very uphill under trying conditions.....and I loved it. I feel like I could go on at the end of each day, treat hills as challenges to conquer, and the wet weather?, well everyone else has to deal with it too. When your body feels good I think it transfers to your overall attitude. Mind you, the body needs constant attention to stay good. I don't know how often I feel a twinge here or a pinch there, and stop for an adjustment or a stretch of some sort. I'm not going back to the painful days, I can assure you ! The day started off with a bang but that was just my head torch hitting the concrete before we even ... read more

Geo: 42.8756, -8.5444Slept in until 7:45 and after a brief breakfast of yogurt and fruit at The Way, we were on the Camino for our last 25 kilometers. We left at the same time as the only other guest, Roger, from Switzerland. Roger had already hiked 1200 kilometers from central France and planned to hike onto Finisterre. Finisterre is on the Spanish coast about a 100 kilometers beyond Santiago. First coffee and second breakfast was in Amenal, about 10 kilometers. The amazing thing was that Wendy was there. This is a woman who we hiked/matched up with during our first four days and had not seen since. We continued in the shade of chestnut and eucalyptus groves and a steady incline to Lavacolla. Here we had a coffee and banana and bumped into Lisa & Mark. ... read more

Geo: 42.8744, -8.54331We again had a good nights sleep except Sue had developed a sore throat and had to take a couple of Tylenol to get her through the night. We were up about 7:15 and on the Camino about 8:00.Sunrise wouldn't be for another 40 minutes but the city lights were all that was needed. We intended to have coffee and breakfast before leaving town but nothing was open. There was no scenery the first hour to Boente, because of a pretty thick fog. There we had breakfast and were able to catch up with Lisa from Australia and Mark from ??? The fog lifted and we were in great rolling hills through pastures and large groves of chestnuts and eucalyptus, which smelled great and offered shade throughout the day.We have befriended dozens and dozens ... read more

28 and 29 September 2016, A Day in Santiago. These two days we reserved for visiting the Cathedral and the museums of Santiago. We met Chuck and Li as they had just arrived this morning. First order of business was to obtain our compostela. We go to the Oficina do Peregrino which is in a new location from last year. Areas for pilgrims waiting for a number to flash on a screen overhead that will indicate for them to move into the office, have been established all around an inner garden. I can only imagine how the pilgrims appreciate the fresh air while they wait in the heat of summer. Most pilgrims head right for the office upon arrival and, for many, it has been awhile since the niceties of a bath and clean clothes have ... read more

As a goal oriented person, I have been fascinated for a long time by the idea of walking the eight hundred kilometer long, one thousand year old Camino Frances (French) pilgrim Way from St Jean Pied de Port in the Pyrenees of southern France to Santiago de Compostela in Galicia in northwest Spain. By mid 2015 the idea transitioned from being a fascination to becoming an obsession. As with many pilgrims contemplating this walk, certainly the movie "The Way" provided me with inspiration and enough details to make me believe that not only was the walk feasible, but it was something I had to do. As an extrovert I looked forward to bonding with complete strangers just like Martin Sheen's character Tom experienced, although with considerable resistance on his part. Sheen's character was grieving over the ... read more