2022 Camino Day 19 (31) Santiago

I’ve been dreading writing this post because I imagine I would want it to be quite long, and I don’t have much time before my self-imposed early bedtime. It’s hard to go to bed early in Spain, by the way. Siesta is good for the Spaniards, not the tourists.

The day started out early. I got up at 3 am and was out the door by 3:30. I got to Santiago about 4:30 am. To my surprise some bars were still going strong until 5. At that point, everyone spilled out onto the streets. There were twenty-somethings lying on their backs infront of the cathedral, thirty- somethings wishing they were the twenty-somethings and me, the forty-something, admiring the view. I had finally made it. All it took was 3 years, 500 miles of walking, and a little determination.

My hotel, The Parador, was adjacent to the cathedral. They let me check my bag at 4:30 and I was able to go out and enjoy the city sans tourists. I found the Pilgrims’ office where I would get my Compostela (certificate of completion) and my Certificate of Distance traveled. I also noted the facades of many souvenir shops as I walked in the electric moonlight.

After my rounds, I went back to the hotel. The cathedral didn’t open until 7:00 am and the Pilgrims’ Office at 9. I worked on one of the many crosswords I brought and nodded off for a while. I checked with the front desk at 6:30 and they said my room was available and actually let me check in! I dropped my bag in my room and headed for the cathedral. Promptly at 7:00, the doors opened and I was the first pilgrim/visitor of the day.

I made a beeline for the altar. It was magnificent. A legion of larger than life angels bore a canopy of several levels above them. On which, St. James on horseback and a phalanx of kings preside. It’s the most decadent, striking altar I’ve ever seen.

Under the altar is the sepulchre of St. James. I was able to be alone there with one of the Twelve Apostles for as long as I wanted. I made the most of my time and said some prayers. One I exited, I walked around the cathedral and headed back to my room.

The Parador allowed me to get my included breakfast the day I checked in instead of the next day (I’ll leave before breakfast is served). After, I headed for the Pilgrim’s Office. I was number 8 in line (even though I was in the city prior to the others in queue). They opened at 9 am and we filed in to the office. I received my Compostela and Certificate of Distance. I didn’t expect it to be such a poignant moment, but the weeks of walking and sacrifice hit hard. I got a little emotional, picked out a few trinkets, and headed for the door.

I learned of the Jubilee Year Indulgence available. You had to do four things to receive it:

• Enter the cathedral through the Holy Door.
• Say a prayer infront of the saint’s remains.
• Receive communion at mass.
• Received the sacrament of confession.

Once you completed all you were able to ask for and receive a plenary indulgence for yourself and others that have recently died. I asked for my grandparents and myself and was granted one.

I attended the 9:30 am mass in Spanish at the main cathedral and then the English mass at the Pilgrim’s Office chapel at 10:30. I think it was the first time in my life that I went to mass twice in one day.

Because I was one of the first 10 in the Pilgrim’s Office today, I got a free lunch served by my hotel. Everyday at 1 pm, the Parador feeds the first 10 pilgrims to arrive at the office. It’s a family style event at a table set for 10. About 8 showed up. Including a serial “first 10” guy. He sat on the total opposite end of the table and never spoke a word or responded to a toast or a question from any of the other 7. Afterwards, I saw him sitting infront of the square of the cathedral for several hours. He may just walk the 100 km of a Camino to get a good lunch every five days?

After, I explored the shops and did a couple tours of the cathedral – the roof and the “Door of Glory”. We weren’t supposed to take any pictures of the Door, but my camera might have malfunctioned and snapped a couple. The roof was the better of the two tours for my money. Who gets to walk on the roof and the tower of a cathedral? – In the RAIN, no less! After that, I stopped at the Tourist Office. The woman at the office was kind enough to write down all of the bus and train schedules that I would need to get to Portugal from the last point of my next walk.

I start that tomorrow. My feet are strong, but my left knee has a bit of a hitch on it. I’m going to see how much of a hitch when I start walking tomorrow. I have five days to walk and complete what should take four.

Although my official pilgrimage and Camino are complete, I have decided to walk to the sea and scatter a few rose petals from both my grandma’s and grandpa’s funerals. It’s not something I have to do, but it’s something I want to do. They have given me so much. This is the least I can do for them.

I took so many pictures today that I can’t upload them all. I’ll post the highlights and then bore you with the rest in person. Do me a favor, and feign interest for at least ten minutes?