Today was a wonderful day. Having completed or journey yesterday, recovered our beautiful certificates of completion, and attended the Pilgrims Mass, all we had on our agenda for the day was to change hotels. We slept in and went to breakfast at about 10 then chilled out in the apartment until noon. We walked about 15 minutes to our final Santiago hotel,dropped off our bags and went shopping for souvenirs and gifts for those who missed us. We then had an amazing Spanish lunch with all the classics. Jamón Serrano, gambas ajillo, and mejillones followed by a paella and finished with flan. We then returned to our hotel to repack and finalize plans for the return of the family to the US.

I spent my evening arranging for tomorrow’s adventure with Scott and Merci Hutchison as we plan to walk to Finisterre. This is the traditional “end of the earth” walked by pilgrims during the middle age. This is something I have never done and it will earn me my fourth Compostela or certificate of completion. There is a certain irony that I will be walking to the end of the earth while my brothers and children are flying overhead to the new world. The fact is it may be a new world for them after the experience of the Camino. It has been said that those ho have walked The Camino cannot explain it and those who have not walked it cannot understand. They return to their families a bit changed. For this I am grateful and proud.