Walking the Camino de Santiago
May the second looms large in my life. On this day in 2013, Francine and I walked into Santiago de Compostela for the first time, at the end of our first Camino. At this point, Francine had been walking for almost two weeks, and me for more than a month. I can’t describe the joy of that day. Arrival in […]
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Today, we’re doing something a little different. Every Camino, we’ve posed at this marker. I’m not actually sure what it’s meant to signify, since we are still many kilometers from the city limits. Furthermore, I strongly suspect that due to highway construction, the marker was moved sometime between 2016 and 2018. If not, they certainly chopped down that little tree. […]
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I mentioned before the ludicrous distance markers in Galicia, well this is one of the most egregious. Of old, here stood the 100km marker. Every pilgrim had their photo taken with it. It was a rite of passage. Now, however, modern cartography, GPS, and dubious math has renamed this the 99.930km marker. Doesn’t quite have the same ring to it, […]
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With Francine asleep in the room, I set out to explore the village of Villafranca Montes de Oca. There is nothing here of particular interest except perhaps the church, which is only open on Sundays. So by noon I had returned here to the hotel “Cafeteria”, and I spent most of the afternoon drinking with a pair of little old […]
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After visiting the saint (and the chickens), and before we head out to find lunch, we pause a moment in the square and look back at the cathedral itself. In the square, we are accosted by an expatriate Englishman named Roderick. “Accosted” is perhaps too strong a word. Detained? Engaged in conversation? In any case, he had clearly been living […]
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The Cathedral square of the town of Santo Domingo de la Calzada was crowded with Confirmands and their families and godparents. We knew we wouldn’t have much time, but we ducked into the Cathedral itself to visit the saint. His story resonates pretty strongly with me. I won’t bore you with the details (that’s what Wikipedia is for), but here’s […]
» Read moreThere is nothing more frustrating than being at odds with yourself. We are staying at the hotel here in Villafranca Montes de Oca because… While it is sunny, it is also black. While there are rainbows, there is rain. And there is a windstorm coming. And I have a cold and I want to stop and take a day off. […]
» Read moreThe church bells are ringing at Santa Maria down the street. I’m in the Hostal with my foot up listening through the window to their chimes. It is not a sound you hear in the States. There are two sets of bells. The first set intones a solemn bong-bong and sounds like ones you’d here at any church […]
» Read moreSome lessons of the Camino have to be pounded into your brain. The first word of the Rule of St Benedict is “Listen”. It’s a rule I struggle to internalize. Listening has never been my strong suit. I could never wait for instructions or for people to even finish a sentence. I’m off in another direction by the time something […]
» Read moreSome lessons of the Camino have to be pounded into your brain. Listening has never been my strong suit. I could never wait for instructions or for people to even finish a sentence. I’m off in another direction by the time something I am supposed to do/hear/receive/etc comes at me. The moniker “gazelle brained” was not given to me lightly […]
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