After The Compostellas

The few days after finishing our Camino were full of relaxation and exploring the Old City. We arrived on a Sunday and most everything was closed. The next day was a considered a holiday (after the festival of San Juan) so most of the shops were again closed. We spent the day wandering around eating pastries and ice cream (restaurants were pretty much the only thing open). We also spent several hours napping in the afternoon.

Because we didn't get to see the botafumerio swing on the day we arrived, we made sure to check and see when it was set to swing next. Fortunently, the Pilgrim's mass was the next scheduled swinging. We got there around 11:00 and got great seats in the cathedral. 

It was incredible to see the botafumerio swing and I was able to get a video of it swinging. (http://youtu.be/Fl30Q5UmM7o)

That evening we went from bar to bar trying different tapas. 

Abe found a bottle of Four Roses and of course he had to have a glass. Tastes just like home! 

The next day we were originally planning on going to Finisterre, however after talking to several people who had been, we decided against it. It would be 6 hours of travel time and apparently there wasn't much to do there. The people we spoke to said that they arrived and had lunch and then came back. We knew we had to be on the train for 12 hours the next day, so an additional 6 hours on a bus did not sound appealing. Instead, we took the day to purchase non pilgrim clothes and explore the cathedral more. 

We bought tickets to be lead on a tour of the cathedrals roof. It was an awesome tour and if you're ever in Santiago, be sure to do this! The tour guide told us that the only scheduled swinging of the botafumerio was on Friday at the night mass. Any other time it swings, someone has paid 300 euros to see it swing. Crazy. It made us even happier to see it the previous day!  

We also looked around the cathedral more and got to hug the apostle (This other Pilgrim activity made me want to started crying again, so overwhelming. If the tiny preist in the corner, who made sure no one took photos, wasn't there I probably would have). 

That night, we had one last celebratory dinner in Santiago to celebrate our achievement. 

Santiago was a wonderful city and it allowed us to rest and relax after our 800 KM walk.

The next day, we woke up early and were off to Barcelona. Now we are enjoying all the city has to offer and trying to cut back on our caloric intake (my metabolism still tells me to eat every few hours!). 

Post Camino Life

After 12 hours on a train yesterday....

We spent all day on the beach doing absolutely nothing today!! 

Recovering from our Camino Hangover is going to be a breeze in Barcelona. 

(My post Camino Hangover includes: waking up at 6 AM every morning, having the urge to eat 8 times a day, and having twitchy legs at bedtime if I don't walk enough during the day.)

I promise I'll do a recap of Santiago asap!! 

The Last Stamp

On Sunday, June 23 we arrived in Santiago de Compostella and spent our last official day as pilgrims.  Coming into the city was the absolute best feeling and I could not have been more excited to finish our 37 day long journey. 

That morning we woke up (with most of the albergue) at 4:50 AM. We knew we had 20 KM to do and we wanted to be sure that we arrived in the city in time for the Pilgrim Mass at noon. We also had to have time to grab our usual second breakfast and cafe con leche.  We got all of our things together and had a quick snack before rushing out the door at around 6 AM. Not many people were on the street at that hour and we ended up following a couple who seemed to know where they were going. Unfortunately, we came to a Camino marker that was pointed in the direction we had just come, and we knew we were going in the wrong direction. The couple apologized for leading us the wrong way and together we were able to backtrack and find our way back on the Camino.

Eventually we reached the point where the city met the woods and the sun had still not risen. Abe got out his headlamp (mine was buried somewhere in my bag and I couldnt find it) and we began to make our way through, what everyone is now calling, "The Black Forest". I followed Abe's footsteps and he walked slowly enough that I could see the light. I was terrified that I'd either 1. Fall in a hole 2. Trip over something OR 3. Step in a giant pile of cow poo (these are all over the trail in Galicia). 

We survived the several KM trip through the woods with no injury and finally at about 7, the sun came up and Abe put away his headlamp. We tried to take as few stops as necessary and we constantly checked the time.  Most of the walk was uphill and through forest that looked similar to what we had walked through before. 

We walked through a small town where, in Mideval times, Pilgrims would stop and bathe in the stream that runs through the city and follows the Camino. For some this may have been their first bath in weeks (imagine the smell!!). We joked that we could use a bath since we were both very sweaty from walking so quickly. 

Finally we came upon the marker that was officially 5 KM away from our final destination. It was on the top of a hill and we were able to look out over Santiago in awe. It was such an exciting feeling to be able to see our end goal. Abe suggested running the rest of the way, but I quickly shot down that idea. 

Here we are entering the city limits. After coming upon this sign, we still had to walk 30 minutes to get to the cathedral. 

At this point, we were hurring down the streets and passing Pilgrims without a backward glance. Some of the "Pilgrims" we passed had been dropped off outside the city limits and were walking the 3 KM to get to the cathedral. It was easy to distinguish the Pilgrims who had walked for days from these poser "Pilgrims". 

Finally we fot our first glimpse of the cathedral. 

As we got closer my heart began to pound and I began to feel many different emotions...elation, sadness, exhaustion, a little bit of everything. We made it to the back of the cathedral and thats when we heard the bagpipes. I had read many times about these bagpipes but never understood why Pilgrims put such an emphasis on the sound they make. As you travel down the street below, you go through an arch, and usually there is a street musician playing the bagpipes. The music really makes you feel like you've reached the heart of Galicia, and the sound totally overwhelmed me. As we rounded the bend, I saw the front of the cathedral and burst into tears. I was so glad to be done and I knew we wouldn't have to wake up and spend another day walking KM after KM. I stood there looking up, Abe hugging me, just trying to take it in. We had walked over 800 KM and we had reached the finish line. 

We attended Mass and then went to the Pilgrims office to get our last stamp in our passports and our Compostellas. 

We then left our bags in our hotel and, since we couldn't check in, we wandered around the city and ran into tons of friends! 

This is M from Australia. We lost her in Fromista after she got the Australian flu! 

The two on the left are S and S from Germany, and on the right is B from the States. (V is for Victory)

This is M from Ireland! She's the one who bought me my birthday chocolate!! 

We them met up with E, B and J and had a celebratory dinner and last ever Pilgrims meal! 

Later that night, we stumbled on a street festival. This festival was for San Juan and it involves jumping over bonfires (which we didn't do, haha). 

There we saw J (the Camino orphan) and a new friend S. 

We consumed many beers (I also discovered that beer+lemon juice is delicious) and Abe had a flaming drink that was totally disgusting. We stayed up all the way to 12:30 AM (way past our usual Pilgrim bedtime)!! All in all, it was the perfect ending to a long and hard journey. 

Now we are relaxing and eating lots of food in Santiago. Today we explored the cathedral a bit more ane I'll give you a full report in a soon to be published post! 

Buen Camino!

Second to Last Day!

Today we walked from Ribadiso to Arca (a 23 KM walk total). 

In the albergue this morning, we were met with a rude awakening from the newbies. They woke up at 5, rustled in their bags and talked loudly, and then turned on the lights promptly at 6 (all of these are faux pas to us seasoned Pilgrims). We had breakfast with E, B and J and then began walking up the hill that lead to the next city. The weather was foggy and overcast for much of the day, until the sun burned the fog away. 

We walked past a farm today where a pig and a dog were standing by the gate looking for loves. Yes, a pig. We went up to them and the pig began wagging his tail just like the dog. Hilarious. 

Todays shorter walk was full of wonderful Galician scenery! 

This part of the country is seriously georgeous and I could totally live here...if I knew more Spanish and all of my friends could come too. 

The most exciting part about today was passing the 25 KM mark. Yes, you read that correctly, less than 25 KM stands between us and Santiago! 

I was so excited that I practically ran/danced all the way into Arca (ok, I really was dancing because I was listening to my music). 

J and E made it to this marker just as we were getting there. It became a mini celebration of our giant, but not yet finished, adventure! 

We are now in our nice, calming (literally, they have spa music) albergue and we only have 20 KM to do tomorow. We are going to wake up extra early and attempt to make the Pilgrim mass at 12 (cross your fingers that they swing the giant incense burner, I'll take a video if they do!). We had a super filling supper and are going to bed with smiles on our faces. Our journey is almost complete. 

Buen Camino, from a very excited Pilgrim!! 

Palas de Rei to Ribadiso

Yesterday, we planned on walking the (almost) 27 KM to Ribadiso. After being spoiled with several shorter distance days, two 27 KM days in a row was really taking its toll on our bodies. We woke up and had a wonderful breakfast at the same bakery where my birthday cakes had come from. The people there were so nice and it was an awesome (and inexpensive) breakfast! 

We then set off, walking over land that looked pretty much the same as the days before. It alternated between lush forest and farmland. 

We pushed ourselves further than usual between second breakfast and lunch and by the time it was time to eat, I was totally starved. I had fried eggs, bacon, sausage, salad and french fries...and a bite or two of cake. My metabolism is out of control fast here, and I have to constantly eat to keep ahead of feeling hungry (or hangry as my friends back home would know me, hungry+angry). 

By the time we were back on the trail, my back had begun to hurt so bad that taking deep breaths made it worse, so my amazing boyfriend took my pack and carried it to give me a break. 

I felt instantly free as I walked along the path with no extra weight dragging me down. No wonder those pilgrims who ship ahead their bags walk so fast! I felt like I could fly! 

We walked past the 50 KM marker today. Seeing numbers this low is incredible and invigorating (especially sfter seeing 790 KM on the second day)! 

After about 1.5 KM i took back my pack and we walked the rest of the way to Ribadiso.

After along, hard day, we made it. The albergue we stayed in is one of the oldest still in existence and  it is all stone and is set right up on the riverbank. Needless to say, it had no wifi (which is why this post is late) but the atmosphere was a lot of fun! 

E, B and J were there and B even got brave enough to put his feet in the freezing cold water! 

The showers and bathrooms were in another building which made late night bathroom trips interesting,  but all in all, the day was a success and we were that much closer to our end goal! 

Buen Camino!