Day 30
Big day. Today I completed the 779.5 km / 500 miles from Saint Jean Pied de Port, France to Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
I slept in until 7, readied myself, got breakfast, and headed out. It was such a luxury to have First Coffee in the place I was staying.
And, I haven’t mentioned it thus far but every time I’ve stayed in a private room I tip the cleaning service so they can get First Coffee too. There is a certain road-grit and grime that comes with being a pilgrim and I don’t want to overlook that someone has to clean up after me. End of day I always feel a bit like Pig Pen, from the Peanuts. Just the act of taking off my socks produces a little cloud of dust. Albergues have rules to keep the grime to a minimum. Shoes are taken off in the lobby and left on a rack. Anyway, I’m grateful for the cleaners.
I know my pace is relatively slow – so it didn’t bother me when other pilgrims passed me. I enjoyed the shade and eucalyptus forests. Part of the 15 km walk this morning was around the back of the Santiago airport.
And I was delighted to see these two horses in a beautiful, walled forest. Plenty of shade and room to wander. I wished I had carrots with me for them.
The city is quite large, so you’re in it for quite a while before you see the church. But, once you see it – it’s unmistakable.
I made it to the cathedral by noon then headed to the Compostela office. I was amazed – they’ve automated everything and it was just minutes, rather than the hours it took last time. I got my certificate and the volunteer told me to go to the office in Muxia once I get there to get a supplemental certificate. I didn’t realize that was a thing.
I wandered around for a bit and found an albergue not far from the cathedral. I love that they have a door security code that changes daily – Santiago is, like any city, a magnet for opportunists.
Got settled in then went out to find lunch. I saw the most amazing Ensalada Mixta and went into that place for my meal. There’s enough to have it for dinner as well.
Pilgrim’s Mass is at 7:30 in the cathedral. Looking forward to it!
I’ll add the next portion of the trip onto this for all the grand totals once I get to Muxia – but these are the trip walking totals thus far…
Floors climbed: 292
Steps: 1,210,132
Miles: 508.1
More later…
If you’d like more information about my walk for charity:water, please follow this link. Thank you!
https://www.charitywater.org/marilyn-peterson/marilyn-s-camino-for-water