Final days of Camino de Santiago
Sept 11-14, Friday to Monday
I apologize to my loyal readers I fell behind on the daily posts. Here is some info about our last 4 days of our walk.
On Friday, after our crazy 130 bed hostel (not good sleep), we set out on a relatively easy day to Palas de Reí. We still missed the quiet trails as there were so many people, but the views were still good.
Our hostel was really nice this night, curtains on the bunk beds is a real luxury. We cooked dinner and had a very early night in, as everyone was exhausted per usual. Collin dealt with new blisters. It was a nice night.
On Saturday we got a really early start, as it was a 20 mile day. Breakfast at hostel then we powered through to Arzue.
We had some nice stops at cafes but mostly walked straight through, arriving around 2 in the heat of the afternoon.
In the evening Jacob had some issues with his heart, and him and Nicole had to take a trip to a hospital to see a cardiologist. It was a very long night for them, but Jacob takes on everything his lighthearted manner and everything is ok now. They had an eventful but good experience with the Spanish healthcare system.
Even after the long night, everyone was down to keep walking on Sunday. Luckily it was a shorter day, and we made it to our final town before Santiago.
Spain takes their time off seriously. On Sunday nothing is open. Every afternoon for “siesta” everything is closed about 2-5pm. There’s been many days we arrive around 2pm and have to wait to get food, even from supermarkets.
We make fun of how American we are, wanting our dinner at 5. When many restaurants don’t even open until 7pm.
This evening Jacob and Nicole caught up on sleep, and Collin and I did some socializing with some fellow pilgrims. The hostel was decent.
Monday, we reach Santiago, the big destination. We powered through the walk and got to the church by noon.
Mixed feelings around the group. I personally felt a bit sad reaching it, as the journey has been so fun. We were ready to be done with the crowded final section, so that was a relief. And we got to catch up with loads of people we had met along the way.
As pilgrims life was so simple. We had to reach the next town, that was our work for the day. We got to walk through countryside, really enjoying the scenery. Our only concerns were of how we’ll fill our stomachs next. There’s so much beauty in the simplest parts of life. And you miss so much of that beauty when you’re rushing through life.
PThe church was pretty cool. Loads of people are pretty emotional reaching it. This trips means different things to different people. Some it’s prevailing though the stain on their bodies, some it’s for religious purposes, some it’s just for a beautiful hike with good company. I think everyone learns more about themselves in one way or another.
Santiago was a beautiful city, I wish we had another day there. As I write this we are on a bus to Portugal and will luckily have 5 more days of walking to Porto where our trips end. So we get a little bit more of our simple living still!
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