Over the mountains and down the valleys to Santiago

Yes, we have arrived at our end point of Santiago de Compostela  

Before reflecting on the Camino as a whole, we would love to share photographs of the road we travelled in the last two weeks. We crossed three mountain ranges in order to enter the province of Galicia and were blessed to have clear sunny skies throughout this whole journey which gave rise to amazing views. Being mid-spring, the mountain sides were like an artist’s palette, smothered in pink, purple, violet, yellow and white flowers. Having already walked so far, we were fit and able to climb the daily 400 to 700 metres required without difficulty, and also enjoy the unfolding scenery. Walking in high country puts a different perspective on things. To be part of the remoteness, to feel the sky above and see so much of the world around, makes one feel  so very small but yet so very special in the order of creation.

Lunch at the highest point

 

 

 
 

  
 

 

Morning mist fills the valleys

 
 

 

 

What an abundance of colour, making walking such a delight

 
 

 

 

We reluctantly left the mountain tops, but then walked into a patchwork of green as we descended into the fertile agricultural valleys. Paddocks in the height of spring growth, hedges, rock walls, small gardens planted with summer crops, cows being led out to pasture – all helped make walking a delight. The villages in Galicia were different again, as one enters them through the farms and along roads covered with fresh cow dung. Having been brought up on dairy farms, it’s something we were used to, but anyone without a farming background would really notice the smells.  We bought cheese from a kitchen window, fresh from the woman’s hands and it was absolutely delicious.

 

 

 

 

Home made cheese - delicious. Now in Santiago we are also enjoying other local cheeses purchased from the markets. The goats' cheese is very good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was only in the last 3 days that we walked through more transitional country of oak and pine forests and eucalyptus plantations. Gum trees were introduced to Galicia in the 1950s. While they seem out of place to some, we loved walking through them and just regretted that they don’t have the same aromatic smell that gums have in Australia. The moist conditions in this province supports an abundance of ferns that grow along the shaded paths.

 

 

 

 

 

Gum trees on one side and oak forest on the other

Then it came to the countdown: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 days walking to go to reach Santiago. We arrived on Wednesday 14^th at 2:00 pm, and as pilgrims have been doing over centuries, walked into the square in front of the Cathedral with a mixture of emotions.... pride, humility and thankfulness mixed in with some disbelief of what we had just completed. Pilgrims who walk at least the last 100 kilometres are entitled to a certificate (written in Latin!) acknowledging their walk: we also collected a certificate of the distance walked.

The next day we attended the Pilgrims' Mass in the cathedral - this is held every day and many pilgrims attend. The seating capacity is 1,000 and all seats were taken. This also gave us the opportunity to again meet people that we had travelled with at some point in time.

 

 

 

Our "Compostela" and Certificate of distance walked

 

 

 

A well deserved beer!!

 

 

We were both ready to stop walking but at the same time we will miss the rhythm and routine of it. We are so thankful for the many blessings of our trip – safe travel, good health, good weather (sometimes cold and windy, but with very little rain), enjoyment of each other’s company, meeting a range of people ….. the list can go on. These things well outweigh some of inconveniences we experienced.

Many books have been written about the Camino, and it is not our intention to write another. However, permit us a few reflections. The Camino is unique in that it is accessible to a wide cross-section of society: people of all ages and physical abilities can walk it. We would have seen many aged 70 or above on the path, and spent a few days crossing paths with Dave from America who is vision impaired and with his ‘blind’ stick to help guide him. He was accompanied by his father. We also met Danish grandparents who were walking the last 100 km with their 10 and 8 year old grandchildren (we envied them). People can walk the Camino at very little cost or can make it a 5 star holiday, because the infrastructure on the main French Way supports all options.

People walk the Camino for various reasons and it is one’s motivation that will shape the meaning of the experience;:for some it appears to be just a long pub crawl, for others a time and distance trial, akin to a marathon or triathlon endurance challenge to see just how far they can travel day-in-day-out. For others it provides time and space in which to make an important personal or career decision. For still others, it is a deeply moving spiritual experience. Although rooted in Christianity the Camino of today is certainly not the ‘pilgrimage’ of old and we often felt that the word ‘pilgrim’ is a bit rich for the average user of today.

As for ourselves:

From Anne

When we started planning our walk it seemed a little unreal, especially the thought  of walking 1,000 kilometres. The idea of resorting to a bus or train for much of it seemed a strong probability. The crazy idea is now a reality and with that comes a great sense of achievement. I am much stronger physically and mentally that I ever thought I could be: the fears I had didn’t eventuate and if they had, I now know I would have been able to deal with them. 

Time on the Camino gave me time to just ‘be’ and there was a great freedom in not having to think about planning and visioning that had been part of my life for so long.  I learnt to love the rhythm of each day and felt great contentment with the simple routines of walking, eating, sleeping, repeated day after day.

I learnt that some things matter and many don’t. Those that don't are invariably related to possessions - either getting them or keeping them.  If there is one lesson that I would like to take with me into the 'real' world, it is this one.

To walk across a county and be so close to nature – especially in spring – opened my eyes to the world around me, and to the many references to nature in the Bible. To have time to let one's mind wander where it will -  be it the past or future -  to listen, to think of friends and family  and pray for them while walking have all been spiritual luxuries. To do the walk together with Bob has been a very special experience for us as a couple.

We know people who have walked the main route of the Camino three times or more.  There are others who start planning their next walk as soon as they finish the first. For me, the journey on this path has ended. I will always regard this time as a unique and don't regret a minute of it and would be the first to recommend it to anyone who is even remotely interested.

 

From Bob

 
These ideas commenced just one day short of our destination – Santiago – in the NW corner of Spain. In the past two months I have walked 1,000 km from Barcelona in the far east-south-east of Spain (on the Mediterranean). My muscles have been stretched, my sinews, joints and bones have endured demands never before made of them. Physically, I have not been found wanting: feet, ankles, knees and hips (all pretty important for long-distance hiking) have been equal to the task. The same for my back, shoulders and all other physical functions. The list of ills that did not befall me could be quite long! Indeed, if there’s one insight that I gained is that both on this long walk, and through life in general, most of our blessings are unnoticed – as if we are entitled to everything going nicely for us all of the time. I know that this is not an original insight, but it’s good to be reminded. There is a strong sense of achievement – that I can set myself a distant goal – and arrive! I recall similar thoughts when I completed my PhD (five years ago already).
My mind too has had the opportunity to be tested and stretched. At this point in my life I did not need to ‘find myself’, or to take time out to work through any of life’s perplexing issues. Mentally/spiritually my thoughts have roamed far and wide. I have reflected and evaluated my past (sobering) and visualised what my future may hold (a risky business). I reflected on those who gave the general shape of who I am: my parents; my siblings; the friends of my youth; the people I have met and loved. My mind progressed to those to whom I have provided with (and still contribute to) a ‘general shape’ – our five children, three sons-in-law and one daughter-in-law; our nine grandchildren. One by one I commended these and others I love to God’s blessings as they walk through their lives.  

I have welcomed my lessons in history, geography, agriculture, cultural studies, sociology and psychology that these two months have brought. My classroom has been the physical landscape, and through the interactions between ourselves, the Spanish people, and with fellow-pilgrims. I can interpret and locate all these lessons within the fabric of my previous life experiences.

Sharing it all with Anne has been important. Many times I thought to myself ‘What if I were doing this all alone?’ If that were the case, I think I would have abandoned the whole idea as ‘stupid’ and taken a bus direct to Santiago. But sharing yet another adventure with my wife has added much meaning and purpose.

One definition of ‘pilgrimage’ is: ‘a purposeful journey to a sacred place’. For me, my journey has certainly been purposeful. To a sacred place? If Santiago is sacred for me, it is only because of the pilgrim throng that has previously considered it so and undertaken the arduous trek.  I feel no necessity to pay homage at the reputed final resting place of St James, Jesus’ brother.  However, I am humbled and inspired when I realise that I have joined the millions (!) of people who have done so, both in ancient times, and all over again in recent decades.

At the end of my pilgrimage, I feel at peace with God and man.

 From both of us

We are now resting in Santiago for three days and enjoying replacing the pilgrim’s hat with the tourist’s mantle. We are ready to walk the streets gawking at new sights and to sometimes spend a few dollars on coffee and snacks we don’t need; to feel free to change our mind at whim, sometimes turning left instead of continuing straight ahead, just because we might want to.

On Sunday we will take  a train to southern Spain (where temperatures are warm at last), then a ferry ride to Morocco, and to the adventures that await us there. And then more adventures to unfold elsewhere in eastern and central Europe before the end of the year.

So for today it’s signing off on a rare and epic adventure, and anticipating the new ones that await us. We will keep the blog going and hope you will continue to share our journeys.

 

A few lines from a Pilgrim's Prayer:

"Although I may have seen all the monuments, and contemplated the best sunsets; although I may have learned a greeting in every language or tasted water from every fountain; if I have not discovered who is the author of so much free beauty and so much peace, I have arrived nowhere".

 

 

This map highlights the various Camino routes across Spain. We can't highlight our route, but we trod paths named Catalan, St Jaume, Arogones and Frances to Santiago at the far top left of the map