Pilgrim’s Progress is complete

Today we had Kathryn and Tessa (aka Mike and Mike) with us as we headed out on the final day of our pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela.

Following yesterdays heavy thunderstorm the skies were pretty overcast this morning as we walked into town to have our breakfast in the misnamed Gourmet Arca. The pilgrims breakfast was basic but at least the coffee was good.

O Pedrouzo is a small village that has been built up for the Camino de Santiago and, for most walkers, is the last stop before Santiago. The parish church we saw yesterday has a famous scallop-shaped altar and is a reconstruction of the original chapel that burned down at the end of the 19th century, when Spain was at war with Cuba and the devotees went from O Pedrouzo to Compostela to pray for the victory of their country.

We walked out of town and straight into a forest section of the walk, as has been the case for a lot of the last couple of days. A few hills, some cheeky, and we emerged from the trees so see the sky still overcast, but clearing, and a nice spash of colour with two cows grazing in a field of wild flowers.

We walked for a while around the perimeter of Santiago airport and through the village of San Paio and paid a brief visit to the Capella de Santa Lucia, a 17th century hermitage, for our final stamp before Santiago. There were many examples of the Spanish barns (sheds), some were quite ornate with crosses and other decorations on top.

Coming close to the end now of our epic journey, we walked alongside a babbling stream and a few eucalyptus plantations for a while until we got our first sight of Santiago in the distance. From there it was really a walk into a city and along the pavements (sidewalks!) until we reached the square in front of the cathedral and the famous stone with a carved scallop shell. We had expected a lot more “pilgrims” on the walk today, for some reason this didn’t occur.

Expecting to have to join a long queue to receive our Compestela and certificate of distance we were pleasantly surprised to be “in and out” in less than 10 minutes. Of course a successful walk, and a quick certificate process, warranted an ice cream.

As we are finished walking now, tomorrow is a rest day in Santiago and tomorrows blog will have all the pictures of the cathedral,inside and out, and other interesting places.