At 1200 each day there is a mass in the cathedral of Santiago dedicated to the pilgrims. I missed the mass yesterday as I did the last 20km in and went right to the pilgrim office to get my certificate of completion and find a hotel for the night. The mass as you can imagine is a major production. I was planning to meet with Kathy, a cousin of a friend after mass on Sunday so I assumed that one mass would be enough.

Rising after a great night’s sleep between sheets with no one else in the room was a treat. Having a leisurely breakfast was another. It is a rainy day here in Santiago today and I have to feel for those pilgrims who are just arriving. I got to the cathedral about 1040 in the pouring rain and there was a huge crowd waiting to get in. As we all stood in the rain waiting for the doors to open, I heard a voice say, “Can I get a hug”?  I turned and saw that it was that wonderful New Zealand girl who I have written about but I have not seen in days. She had just completed the walk and thought she would attend the mass right away. Another great hug and another finish of an emotional day. 

It is said that everyone cries at least once on the Camino. Not me, I said. The mass had all all the usual pomp but when they rose the giant incense burner and the organ began to play, I could feel the emotions welling up involuntarily and (sorry Gordy) tears filled my eyes. 

I then met Kathy for a beer and we talked all about our mutual friend Tom Lujan. I assume his ears were burning. 

Tomorrow I am off to Madrid and hopefully I can see Titi Fernandez   If not, I am heading home on the first flight I can get on. I am slowly leaving the Camino behind 

About a million and a half steps after walking out of the municipal albergue in St Jean, today I walked into the Pilgrim office in Santiago de Compostella to receive my final stamp in my pilgrim’s credential and my Compostella. A very nice document but the rewards for this journey cannot be framed. Once I had the paperwork done my next thought like most pilgrims is to find a bed for the night. It turns out that arriving into a major tourist city on a weekend is not such a good idea. The first six hotels I tried were booked solid. I finally found a hotel, checked in, showered, and put on my cleanest cloths and set out to find food. Not difficult here. 

Once I had eaten, I returned to the hotel as the flood of emotions started to hit me along with the realization of aches and pains I was forced to deny for the past month. It will take some time to work out the soreness in my shoulders, back, and legs and to heal the blisters. The knee I twisted in the mountains on day one will require more attention than just rest and I ache for the comfort of my own home and the company of my life companion who has helped to make all this possible. 

It was all worth it. 

Thanks for your interest and attention.  

Dearest readers,

After four weeks of walking every day I am having trouble coming to grips with the fact that this all comes to an end tomorrow when I complete the 500 miles by walking the last 20km from OPedrouzo into Santiago de Compostella. There is so much left to tell you and at the same time much of it I am afraid you will not understand. I hope to continue the blog at least until I can get home to the comfort of La Despensa. 

There are many lessons of the Camino. Each must walk their own in their own way. Lesson one about life is (to seal a phrase from Nike) “Just Do It”. How many times have we heard from people their laments of things they wish they had done, careers they should have entered, or places they wish they had visited. Just start walking and you will get there. Just start taking courses and you will get that degree. Just sit down at the computer and write that book. It is about placing one foot in front of the other, at your own pace, on your own time table, and eventually you will find yourself on the verge of completing your goal or your dream. Not that easy you say. Talk to Camino pilgrims who have fallen and broken a leg but returned another year to finish. Life is not easy nor is it fair. But you must live it. 

Tomorrow all that enter the pilgrim office with me with stamps from Sarria to Santiago (100km) will be awarded the same certificate of completion.  No matter that some walked from Le Puy in France or that some never carried a pack but had it sent each night by courier. Or took taxis and buses. Some people have it easier than others in life. Stop complaining and start doing. You just might find yourself on the verge of completing a life goal before you know it.  

There is much written about the phenomenon of Camino angels. Loosely defined it is someone or something that appears and helps you along the way for some unknown reason. At first you think that is a nice legend but as the days and weeks go by and these things keep happening one starts to wonder if there is too much of this to just be the kindness of your fellow man. 

My first angel was a Lutheran priest from Finland. On day 1 of the Camino I was excited to get started and slept poorly. I awoke to go to the bathroom at 5 and there was a woman standing in the kitchen of the Albergue ready to go. She said to me that she likes to walk very early but as  a woman she did not like to walk out of town alone. Would you like to walk now?  I said yes and quickly grabbed my pack. She had walked the Camino twice before and was a huge help to me. We walked together for two days until she finished the last portion she had to walk. 

So many others:  I wrote of the young Spanish info specialists who walked with me to Lorca. The young mother who stopped her car on the street to tell me I was off the trail but where I could get back on. There was the restaurant owner who showed me where to cut 3km off the route by just staying on the traditional Camino. Then there are the people who seem to show up just as your energy and motivation are fading. Two such people in the last two days. They are always cheerful and engaging and fun to talk to which makes the km fly by. 

My nominee for angel of the Camino is Emi Gonzales Ordas. A person I met on a tour of a town in Ireland a year ago, she was kind enough to offer her email address and to show me around Leon. She took time after her job to show me Sahagun and then used her valuable day off to make sure I got to see the treasures of Leon. 

One of my many take aways from my Camino experience is that I want to be more like Emi. I wish we could all take as much pride in our country, our history, and our faith to be as  kind and giving as she. The world would be a better place.  

A most excellent day for a walk as I departed the state of Lugo and entered a Coruna. The 32 km was on rolling hills and farm roads lined with trees. It was very cool this morning especially when walking through damp fog. My walking partner again today was the Italian Claudio who has the energy not only to keep up but never missed the walnuts and chestnuts on the pathways. He is usually handing me a choice nut as I am climbing a hill and am much more interested in oxygen than food. He is also a mushroom hunter in Italy and cannot resist the occasional porcini along the side of the road. It is amazing to me that we can communicate. This is likely as it was for early pilgrims as well as they walked along in the 1300s meeting people of other languages and cultures.

We ended our walk today at 1:00PM in Melide only 52km (32mileS) outside of Santiago. Looks like I will likely make it into Santiago on Saterday the 3rd of Oct. Coming to grips with the fact that I just might complete this journey. Today’s picture is of km marker 71 as that was an important year for me and many fellow readers. Pic was taken at first light after over 2 hours of walking.  These km markers are all along the Camino and in La Coruna they are at each half km. 

I checked into the municipal albergue in Burgos and the person in the bunk above mine was a fun exuberant New Zealander who had a smile for everyone and would help all pilgrims.  I did not expect to see her again as she was having trouble with her achilles tendon. I departed Burgos the next morning early and I have written of the rain, wind, and mud. after I got to Hontanas and showered and did my domestic chores who comes in to the albergue other than the bright cheerful face from Burgos. We were so bappy to see a familiar face after what we bad walked thru that she gave me a big hug.

For the next 11 days our paths crossed at least once in the day. Each time I would get that big smile and a hug. I have not seen her in two days now but I will fondly remember that pilgrim bond we had.  

After surprising myself with a big push of 38km yesterday into Sarria, I hooked up with the Italian Claudio this morning early and did another 31km today. I am now in a small town likely not on the map called Gonsar only 83km from Santiago. That is just over 50 miles. I expect that I will be in Santiago this weekend. I have run out of most of the people I have known along the trail and am now making new Camino friends. The standard questions among pilgrims are, Where are you from?  Where did you start the Camino? When did you start?  With these answers one can compare  yourself to others. Today I passed people that started in Aug and I walked with a guy from Teruel who is walking 40 plus per day. He started on the 10th of Sep. 5 days after me. He plans to finish on Friday. 

It became clear to me during today’s walk why the guide book planned for only 22km for today. We were up and down around cow pastures and barns for seven hours today. Not an easy walk. The scent of cow is something I now identify with Galicia sadly. I used to think of shellfish and seafood but today’s experience and those of the past few days has changed that. 

I have written earlier of the pilgrim’s priorities when you finish your walk of the day. Today after finding a bed and a shower I washed my cloths and hung them to dry in the afternoon sun. I was stricken with the irony that one washes cloths hoping that that will smell better tomorrow but as I was hanging them to dry I noticed that the cloths line was positioned between the cows and the garbage bins of the restaurant. Not much chance those shirts will smell any better tomorrow. Stay tuned as the Camino gets shorter each day. 

So after very poor wifi yesterday and a couple of old blogs posting out of sequence, I am back on track. After a good night in a hotel in O’Cebreiro I hit the trail early and hard. Conditions were excellent as it was cool and clear until entering the valley which includes Sarria where there was cloud  cover and some cool fog. Made it into the outskirts of town and ready for another push east tomorrow. Now only 72 miles from Santiago. 

With a better wifi connection I may be able to tell about how amazing the climb was to O’Cebreiro. We started our day with the Orange sun eclipse at 0430. Then after a rest I met my Camino friends Dr and Mrs (Im) Jung at their albergue. They asked me to lead them out of town early with my headlamp. We walked along the trail under a bright full moon until coffee break where I left them and walked on with Claudio from Cuomo Italy. I was able to explain sleep apnea to him in Spanish and he understood in his Italian. There are some amazing cross language conversations that happen on the Camino. Claudio dropped me at second breakfast and he pushed on. He is a rail thin 61 year old who proudly weighs only 63 kilos. 

Today’s photo, if I can post it, is the view from the top looking down on Sarria which for some reason remains cloud covered until about 2PM.  Almost all down hill and 38km away.  

Having wifi issues in O’Cebreiro. Quick report to let all know that I am here, well, and within 100 miles of Santiago. You will have to air for the pictures.