PORTUGAL TO SPAIN: SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA - THE CATHEDRAL PLAZA AND THE CAMINO DE SANTIAGO

 June 29-30, 2022

We left Porto around 9:00 AM and headed north to the Spanish border and Santiago de Compostela on the other side, a 2 1/4 to 2 1/2 hour drive.  The scenery was really stunning--hills became mountains, and forests and farmlands were dotted with homes and towns.

I made Bob stop so I could photograph the profusion of colorful wild flowers. I also liked the sign for those on the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage trail recommending the use of reflecting material: "See and be seen."

We have heard of pre-European Union days when border crossings were a hassle--but that was before we began traveling in Europe. Spain and Portugal were actually two of the original seven EU countries to create border-free travel in 1995. Though the borders had been open for 27 years, we were unsure what to expect this time because of Covid travel restrictions. After all, Portugal had been one of the last European countries to require proof of vaccination to enter the country. We were happy to drive across the border with no checkpoint in sight, both driving into Spain and returning to Portugal a few days later.

After we crossed into Spain, the Rande Bridge took us across Vigo Bay. When the bridge opened in 1981, it was the longest cable-stayed bridge with more than two lanes in the world. 

We drove straight to our hotel in Santiago de Compostela, found a parking place, and before checking in, we made our way to the grand Obradoiro Square that is the arrival point for those who have made a pilgrimage to this imposing cathedral, the reputed burial site of the apostle James the Greater.

The plaza was buzzing with a combination of sightseers (like us) and grateful, exhausted pilgrims.

How did the body of James end up in Spain? According to tradition, James was assigned by Peter to take the gospel to the Iberian peninsula. In AD 40, Mary the Mother of Jesus (who was still alive) appeared to James in a vision, summoning him back to Jerusalem. He obeyed, but maybe he shouldn't have, because he was soon arrested by Herod Agrippa and beheaded. 

Tradition holds that the body of James was transported from Jerusalem to the coast of Northern Spain, either by angels or by his disciples, and then transported to Compostela for burial. The tomb was abandoned in the 3rd century, but rediscovered in AD 814 after a hermit witnessed strange lights in the night sky. The bishop confirmed both the miracle and that the site was the burial place of St. James. 

The king at the time, Alfonso II, built a shrine on the location that is now the site of the cathedral, and the pilgrimages to the site began. In 1894, Pope Leo XIII declared the relics to truly be those of St. James, or Santiago, as he is known in Spanish.

Construction of the present cathedral was completed in 1211, with additions in the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries.

The south portal includes a fountain built in 1122 by one of the architect-builders of the cathedral.

I stood in the center of the huge plaza in front of the cathedral's main entrance and took this 360° video. At the edges of the square are four important buildings: the Hostel de los Reyes Católicas (now the Parador Hotel where we were staying) to the north, the Santiago de Compostela cathedral to the east, the Colexio de San Xerome (a university) to the south, and the Pazo de Raxoi (government building) to the west. The video starts and ends with our hotel.

A photo taken from one of the upper stories of the museum that is part of the cathedral gives good perspective on the size of the plaza.

I took this photo the following morning when the first rays of sunshine gave the cathedral a holy glow. That's Bob talking to his mother almost 5,000 miles away in Salt Lake City. I'm sure even the most devout pilgrims, even through the 20th century, never imagined this miracle could be possible.

And speaking of pilgrims, they are what made this place so special for us. This cathedral has been made famous by the Camino de Santiago, or "The Way of St. James," a network of roads and trails that are walked by a growing number of pilgrims each year, with a significant downturn in the Covid years of 2020 and 2021. 

Graph from the website Follow the Camino

However, as of October 16, 2022, more than 400,000 pilgrims had arrived in Santiago, eclipsing the previous record set in 2019. I will have to come back and update this number in 2023.

There are many routes, or "caminos," that lead to Santiago, but the Camino Francés, or "French way" is the most popular, and the most common starting point is Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port on the French side of the Pyrenees. From there to Santiage is about 500 miles. The second most popular route is the "Portuguese way," which starts in Lisbon (a distance of about 380 miles) or Porto (about 170 miles).

Map from here

There were many pilgrims arriving on foot (as about 93% do) when we arrived by car. When they arrive, pilgrims check in at the "International Center for the Reception of Pilgrims," where they receive the final stamp on their official pilgrimage papers, as well as a traditional certificate, or Compostela, if they qualify. Qualifications include:

     •  making the pilgrimage for religious or spiritual reasons

     •  doing at least the last 100 km on foot or horseback, or the last 200 km by bicycle

     •  stamps on your pilgrimage document that are evidence of passing through specified sites

The symbol of St. James and therefore of the pilgrimage is the scallop shell. We saw them for sale in many gift shops, either tied to the top of a walking stick (along with a gourd for water) or sold by themselves.  Scallop shells are also embedded in the roads and sidewalks to show travelers "The Way," and they are also included in the architectural details of the cathedral itself.

We bought a scallop shell to hang on our Christmas tree as a memory of a wonderful trip.

Maps of the various caminos leading the Santiago de Compostela were on display and offered for sale in many of the shops.

But the most interesting thing was the travelers themselves. A steady stream arrived all day long, some limping along and others striding in confidently.

When they got to Obradoiro Square (the cathedral plaza), all were jubilant. It was hard to walk through the plaza without either getting in the way of someone's photograph . . .

. . . or stepping on someone who was collapsed on the pavement and staring in wonder at the massive edifice in front of them. It was a different kind of reverence that was wonderful to experience.

A Ghost of Pilgrims Past was wandering the square, looking for photo ops.

It was fun to look for the scallops tied to backpacks.

These two tired pilgrims were checking into our hotel.

Future posts will include our experiences inside the cathedral itself and walking around the city, but for me, the best part of our visit was the plaza and the pilgrims. This was one of my favorite destinations of our own 2022 "pilgrimage" to Portugal and Spain.

READING AND VIEWING

Before our trip, Bob and I read a great book about "The Way," as the pilgrimage roads to Santiago de Compostela are called. 

In The Way, My Way: A Camino Memoir, Bill Bennett, an Australian movie-maker and writer, describes his pilgrimage of 500 miles beginning in France and crossing Spain. Not a hiker, not a Catholic, and not really even religious, Bennett started the walk out of curiosity. He encountered some significant challenges along the way, from getting lost and having to retrace his steps to bad weather to a serious knee injury, but he was compelled to complete the trip. His memoir discusses not only the humorous things and interesting people Bennett encountered on his journey, but also the life lessons that he learns, including what he learned about relying on intuition. Even if you never make it to this part of Spain, this is a book worth reading.

Before the trip we also watched the movie The Way, starring Martin Sheen. It tells the story of an American doctor who travels to France to collect the remains of his son, who died in a storm while walking the Camino de Santiago. The father ends up walking the camino himself (and with his son's ashes) in an attempt to understand his son, and comes away from the experience not only feeling closer to his son, but also with a better understanding of "the life we live" versus "the life we choose." The movie is filmed on the actual camino in France and Spain, and while not a cinematic masterpiece, it is a great movie to watch if you plan to visit Santiago de Compostela.  Here is a good preview of The Way:

After we returned home, I decided to read the granddaddy of all the books about the camino, The Pilgrimage by Paul Coelho.  Okay, I don't get it.  After having read another book and see the Martin Sheen movie, The Pilgrimage was a major New-Agey slog for me. I wanted the real deal, not some mystical interpretation full of magical events. I guess I wanted more story and less philosophy. But then, I'm not a huge fan of Coelho's subsequent bestseller, The Alchemist.