I told everyone to enjoy sleeping in on our day in Santiago de Compostela.

Eat breakfast whenever you like.

We’ll meet up later for the noon pilgrims’ mass, if you want. 

Also feel free to just get lost in the beautiful streets of Santiago.

COMPOSTELAS

Then I woke up early and concerned about everyone having enough time to get their Compostelas.

Compostela actually translates field of stars.

Because St James remains were reportedly found in a field under the stars, which guided his disciples to his remains.

But the Compostela is also the official certificate you get for walking the Camino.

The process to get the certificate has become a bit complicated due to COVID, so I hopped out of bed and ran down to the pilgrim’s office to see what was up.

I had already read that I needed to fill out a form online, so I did that and sent it to everyone else to fill out.

The office was just beginning to open and many pilgrims were already lined up, so I got in line and discovered that you were lining up to show one QR code but then you lined up to get a piece of paper with a number and another QR code. The second QR code took you to a website that showed you what number was currently being served, so you could leave and come back when they got close to your number.

My number was pretty high, so I walked back to meet anyone else who was up for breakfast and to encourage them to go ahead and start heading down to the office to get a number. Of course, I was not permitted to get extra numbers. Otherwise I would have taken numbers for our entire group.

So what started out as a fairly leisurely morning turned into me shooing everyone down to the office because I wanted everyone to go home with the certificates that they had earned.

At the office, they have a courtyard where you can wait for your number to come up and then when it gets close, you are permitted to go get in a socially distanced line inside.

When your number is called, you go into the office, present your number and your pilgrim’s passport, and retrieve your Compostela.

Because we sort of trickled into the office at different times, our numbers were fairly spread out. So when I finished getting my certificate I headed to one of my favorite spots in Santiago, the square in front of the cathedral.

CATHEDRAL SQUARE

I was actually headed to the cathedral in order to save everyone seats for the noon mass, but it turned out that it was already full before I had even left the pilgrims’ office, so there was no need to hurry. We would be attending the 7:30pm mass.

I was a little disappointed because I’ve heard that the botofumeiro, the giant gold censor that spreads incense throughout the cathedral during mass, would be more likely to swing during the noon mass. It’s actually totally unpredictable because it doesn’t swing at every mass. It’s used on holidays and special days and then on other days it’s arranged by different groups. So you never really know if it’s going to be in use.

But 7:30 it was. Which was also ok. We would have the day to wander. Everyone could do whatever they liked and then we could meet later for mass.

Since the day had opened up, I decided to find a seat in a cafe on the square.

There are several cafes on the main square and though you might pay a bit more for your coffee or your drink, it’s worth it for the views. I could people-watch all day from a corner of the cathedral square, and that’s exactly what I did.

The other gals came by and joined me one by one, after they received their certificates.

Similar to the garden back in Ligonde, the ladies came and went. And each time someone arrived we added another drink to the table.

We started with coffees and then moved to beers as the sun crawled higher and hit more of the square.

I gave directions for some shopping and then saw people’s purchases when they came back by.

I sat and watched people arrive from the walk, while having chats with whoever sat down at the table.

After a couple of hours, Mary Polly arrived. She was the last to get her number at the pilgrims’ office, so her number wouldn’t be coming up for a while. She had plenty of time before she would be called up so we went to find some gelato.

Eat gelato often is one of my favorite European travel mantras.

And I have followed this mantra with my kids on many trips.

Somehow it always makes them smile, no matter how old they are.

Then we caught up with a few other of our ladies. Most folks were doing a bit of souvenir shopping.

My mom and I both got new dresses in Santiago, which was fun.

Others were shopping for kids and grandkids and nieces and nephews. Laura even mailed a few postcards home.

Several of us stopped for a late lunch in one of the many seafood restaurants. We ordered lots of little plates to share and enjoyed a rest from walking around the town.

After lunch, I went to find a park I had seen on my map. I had not been to it on my last visit to Santiago, so I wanted to check it out. Janine came with me and we wandered around watching ducks and children play.

(I am always trying to find the green spaces in a city.)

We found a bench to sit on and enjoyed the afternoon shadows until it was time to wander back to the hotel and get ready for mass.

I had not been back to my room since I had woken up that morning worried about the Compostela so I was ready to get a shower and change into my new dress.

PILGRIMS’ MASS

We all went early to get in line for mass because so few people can attend with the COVID regulations. Even after we got in, we couldn’t find seats together, but had to spread out in chairs that were in the back of a row.

It was so different from how I remembered. The last time I went to mass in Santiago, it was standing room only. The whole church was packed to the gills with people lined along walls and leaning against pillars.

But of course it’s a different time now with the pandemic. Fortunately for anyone who was not able to get inside for mass, there was a large party going on in the square. A band was playing and dancers were performing. It was a beautiful evening and whole place felt full of joy, inside and out.

Of course, the vibe was a bit more subdued inside the cathedral. And since we’d lined up so early to get in, we had a while to wait in our seats before it began.

But eventually the music started and mass began.

We listened to the blessings being said over us even though we couldn’t understand them.

I went back and forth between trying to make out what was being said and closing my eyes and just taking breaths.

Then my mind started to wander.

I started to think how it was all a bit anti-climatic, this moment at the end of the journey.

Our rest day had been a bit of hustle and bustle, with some pausing in-between. But that is what the days of walking the Camino are like as well. Only less hustle. Just wandering step by step.

Towards the end of the service, I actually found myself wondering if we had really even needed to get certificates and attend mass.

Surely the walk had been enough.

The time together on the trail was what we came for.

And then all of a sudden a group of monks gathered around the ropes that pull the golden censor.

They lit incense and pulled the cords together.

And the botofumeiro swung.

As the smell of the incense filled the cathedral,  I took back all my thinking about not needing to come to mass.

I don’t know why, but it is a weirdly special moment to sit under the swinging incense. The experience illicited both laughter and tears from our party.

Somehow it felt like the completion. Maybe the blessing is more tangible when you experience it through multiple senses.

Every one of us will remember it always.

As we walked out of mass and up to the restaurant where we would have our last dinner together, the sun was setting and the sky was a glorious mess of colors.

Of course, the beauty and the blessing went on and on.

We ate dinner together and my sweet sister-in-law had our server put birthday candles on a piece of blueberry pie for me to blow out.

Then the group gave me a precious birthday journal in which they had each written sweet notes.

And they had bought me the painting that had made me cry just a couple of days before.

Such gifts. I had no words.

Now that painting is hanging in my home, reminding me multiple times a day of what an amazing adventure we had together.

PS. I am already planning to return to Europe next year! So if reading about the Camino is making you wish you could hop the next flight, sign up here for updates about when and where I’m going next.

The post Camino de Santiago Day 8: Santiago de Compostela appeared first on Alison Chino.

Sixth Day of Walking the Last 100 km to Santiago

20 kilometers

12.5 miles

Elevation:  378.78 meters up +   422.35 meters down

After a strangely wonderful night of sleep and a wonderful breakfast in town,

we gathered on the sidewalk for Laura and I to do our readings for our final day of walking.

Mine was from Carl Jung:

My pilgrim’s progress has been to climb down a thousand ladders

until I could finally reach out a hand of friendship

to the little clod of earth that I am. 

And this was my prayer for each of us. That we could befriend our true selves, who we truly are.

Laura read from Jeremiah 6:16, a verse that is widely accepted to be especially for pilgrimages:

Stand at the crossroads and look,

and ask for the ancient paths

where the good way lies,

and walk in it,

and find rest for your souls. 

Buen Camino, dear friends.

And with that we were off.

I had asked that we try to stick together on this day, or at least wait for each other before we entered Santiago.

So we took our time.

I think we all were reluctant for the walk to end, so we didn’t mind stopping often.

Sometimes we were stopping to wait until we were all together again and other times we just stopped because maybe this was the last tree or flower or church you might see on your Way.

I was giving thanks all day long for our walk, and for our group of women.

Throughout the pandemic, it has seemed like life (and especially travel) wouldn’t ever be normal again.

But these steps on this journey helped me to see that even though everything has changed,

there will still be a Camino.

There will still be walking.

There will still be travel and laughter and fun.

Even if it looks different, we can move through the world again.

I remembered that there is a lot of road walking on the final day into Santiago, but there are still forest paths too.

There is still beauty.

And of course, there are still cafes.

Because you are counting down to zero on this day, several of the cafes are named by their distance in kilometers from Santiago.

It seemed to me like the numbers decreased so quickly!

We got our first glimpses of Santiago before noon.

There it was in the distance, our destination.

I remembered some of the exact spots from my last walk, and when I reached this church, I went inside to pause in gratitude for each kilometer that each person had walked.

Some of these women had consented to come only because they knew they could take a taxi if their legs refused to carry them any further. They had even expected to need a taxi, but not one of them had taken one. They had walked every step of the way.

It seemed like just a minute ago, we were on our first day of walking and standing in front of the 100 km marker.

Yoshiko and Janine had actually missed the marker and they went back to get a photo in front of it, adding a few kilometers to their count for the first day. It was one of those moments that at the time seemed almost silly, like a waste of time, but that was only because it was the first day.

Because actually, no moment on the Camino is wasted time.

Yoshiko is my husband’s sister, and therefore a sister to me. She and her friend Janine have traveled all over the world together. They used to live just a few minutes from one another but now they live in separate cities and had not seen each other for a while. They had, like so many of us, planned to meet up again on this trip in 2020, so their reunion was all the sweeter because of the delay.

Having them along was such a treat. I’ve heard about Janine for ages, but never had the chance to spend time with her until this trip. And I always welcome the chance to see Yoshiko. Both of them are super independent travelers, so they would search out and find shops, cafes and food ahead of us, texting the rest of us to come join them for whatever treasure they had found. Often Yoshiko would text those of us in the back a picture of a menu in case we wanted her to go ahead and order something for us. And we often took her up on her kind offer.

Now we were stopping just 10 km away from the end.

Over 90 km stretched out behind us.

Onward we went.

And soon we reached Mount Gozo, the park that overlooks Santiago.

The last stop.

We circled the park instead of heading straight on ahead.

I wanted everyone to walk past the statues of the pilgrims who were joyfully looking towards Santiago.

So we made the circle up to the pilgrims and paused until everyone reached this mountaintop.

And then, of course, we made one last stop.

We had some lunch and snacks in a large cafe and park area at Mount Gozo that looked brand new.

There were many shopfronts that were still empty, as I think the space had been built for the Holy Year.

Before the pandemic, the numbers that were expected for the 2021 Holy Year were outrageous. More pilgrims than ever before.

But now this area looked like an Olympic Village after the Olympics have already finished.

The pope has declared that 2022 will also be a Holy Year so that people have a chance to re-schedule their Holy Year walks.

(Traditionally a Holy Year happens when St James Day falls on a Sunday.)

So maybe next year this village will be packed full of pilgrims celebrating their final day of walking.

Buoyed by our refreshments, we moved quickly together through our final kilometers into Santiago.

We were overjoyed to reach the signpost at the edge of town.

Now we only had to follow the arrows a little while longer.

We stayed right together as we walked the streets of Santiago.

We could see the spires of the cathedral almost the whole way.

Our happy little parade of nine made its way.

You never know what will meet you in the cathedral square, especially during a pandemic.

My first time in Santiago, I heard bagpipes.

But I have heard tales of parades and bands and all sorts of music being the welcome on your final stretch of the Camino.

We were still a little ways from the cathedral when I heard bagpipes playing, so I was grateful that there would be some kind of musical welcome at the end.

Almost every pilgrim finds themselves welling up with emotion as the cathedral comes into view.

Whether you have walked 100km or 1000km, you have completed a Camino when you arrive.

So tears were already flowing by the time we reached the bagpipe player.

Words can’t really describe the moment you reach the cathedral of St James.

It’s so massive that you can’t fit it in a photo.

Nor will a photo quite capture the stretch of the large square of pilgrims arriving.

But they were all around.

Some folks were sitting down with their backpacks just taking it all in.

Others were lining up to go inside the church.

We took a moment to hug one another and take a few photos.

Then we went inside briefly.

While wandering around the church, we realized how tired we all were, so we made our way to our hotel next.

It was time for a rest.

That night we ate a beautiful celebration dinner at Restaurant Carretas.

It was recommended to us by the host of our hotel for its seafood.

We had scallops and paella and salads and bread and wine and all kinds of beautiful things.

We laughed around the table and recounted our favorite moments of the journey to Santiago.

And then we headed back to the hotel to rest (and to take our COVID tests so we could fly home).

On the way back to the hotel, we walked through the square in front of the cathedral once more.

The spires were lit up against the night sky, and there was a band playing music in a corner of the square.

What a beautiful sight

at the end of a beautiful day

on a beautiful journey

in a beautiful world.

PS. I am already planning to return to the Camino next year! So if reading about the Camino is making you wish you could hop the next flight, sign up here for updates about when and where I’m going next. Or feel free to shoot me a message via the contact form on my about page to let me know you are interested in walking the Camino.

The post Camino de Santiago Day 7: O Pedrouzo to Santiago de Compostela appeared first on Alison Chino.

Fifth Day of Walking the Last 100 km to Santiago

19.5 kilometers

12 miles

Elevation:  382.12 meters up +   473.69 meters down

Earth is crammed with heaven,

And every common bush afire with God,

But only she who sees

takes off her shoes.

-Elizabeth Barrett Browning

I read this one simple stanza to our group as our starting prayer in the lobby of our hotel in Arzua before setting out.

Watching this group over the last several days, I had more than enough proof that each one of these ladies was indeed “she who sees.”

I had seen the photos they took in our shared photo album.

I saw them notice little details (spirals, logos, signposts) and big sweeping views.

The Camino is indeed “crammed with heaven” and it had commanded our full attention.

Some days you wake up inexplicably pregnant with tears.

Like you know they are coming at some point and you can’t put your finger on why.

This was one of those days.

I was just a bit weepy.

Maybe it was that I was getting close to Santiago after having been on the Camino for over three weeks.

Maybe it was out of a growing love and appreciation for this beautiful group of women.

Maybe I wasn’t ready for it to end.

Or maybe I was tired.

Who knows?

But somehow I walked with more reverence and awe on this day.

Everything felt connected.

Every step of the way overwhelmed me, mostly with amazement.

Sue Monk Kidd wrote that she first started going on retreat in order “to brush against the deep, intoxicating mysteries.”

Yes.

I feel this all the way to my bones.

It’s part of why I keep going back to the Camino.

When so many have walked these same steps in order to brush against the mystery,

you can’t help but encounter it yourself.

Somehow the grass was more green. The sky more blue.

The countryside was lovelier, and yet also it was the same.

When we stopped at a church,

I sat on a rock wall outside and watched people going in and out, lighting candles, saying prayers.

Touching the mystery.

We made a stop at an enchanting little cafe and shop.

We weren’t hungry yet as we’d had such a gorgeous breakfast at our hotel that morning, but a few gals got coffee and the rest of us went in to use the bathroom.

I came around the corner of the shop to a bookshelf and spotted a painting that made me gasp. Then I looked all around and scattered among the books and journals and cards, there were more paintings: sketches of pilgrim symbols, pilgrims on the Camino and pilgrims arriving in Santiago. Behind the counter, there were pastries and homemade cheeses and all kinds of treasures. A few more ladies found things they had to have, shirts and pins.

Tears had filled my eyes from the simple, sweet beauty of this well-appointed little shop and the art that adorned its shelves and walls.

I walked outside to wait for everyone and to just be with all my feelings.

I consented to the fact that I was just going to be emotional on this day.

I rode the roller coaster, looking around at the little courtyard.

And then up at the fig tree above me.

I was lost in my own reverie for a while, but I joined the others for photos when we all spotted beautiful horses just above the trail.

I had been carrying a small wooden cross from my aunt that I left at a makeshift shrine we passed in the woods.

And then soon afterwards, we passed the shrine to pilgrims’ beer, a place I remembered from 2015,

but there were tons more bottles now. They were everywhere, covering every possible surface.

It was still too early for a beer but Liz and I split one anyway.

I met Liz this past May when I was in Minneapolis visiting my sister-in-law and her family.

Liz is a colleague of theirs and we ended up sitting around and chatting one afternoon following their office workout session.

Somewhere in our conversation, I mentioned to her that I was walking the Camino.

And my sister-in-law was going with us as well.

Later she emailed me and told me she wanted to join us, and I was so grateful she did.

Her presence was a gift to our party in so many ways.

Liz began each day on the trail with an hour of silence. She let us know ahead of time that she was going to be quiet for the first hour of each day, so that we wouldn’t all be awkwardly trying to talk to her.

When she was ready, she naturally joined the conversation mid-morning each day.

I loved how she created this beautiful rhythm for herself, showing us all that we can choose to create what we want.

We labeled our bottle and Liz added it to the shrine before we set off again.

The others had gotten ahead of us, but we were catching up to them.

We followed the path through the woods and under chestnut trees.

Chestnuts were already falling on the ground, and many of their bright green casings were popping open from being trampled.

Underneath the layers, there were brown chestnuts.

I tucked a couple in my pocket. Memories of this day where all the world felt held together as ONE.

Memories of the mystery.

We caught up to everyone else when they stopped for a bite to eat. They were sitting behind a restaurant in another gorgeous courtyard, with a little pond and lily pads. There was a statue of St James and a large patch of grass. The place was calling for a blanket and a picnic. I found a spot in the sun to take it all in while folks found what they wanted to eat and drink.

Everyone had small snacks because we were still planning to stop a few kilometers further at a place that we heard had the “best tortilla on the Camino.”

So we made our way there next.

I think we still had 3 or 4 kilometers left but we went ahead and ordered our “end of the day” celebration beers with the tortilla.

We sat at a gorgeous outdoor stone table while we rested and laughed.

When the tortilla came, we sliced it into pie pieces and devoured it. And we agreed. It was the best tortilla on the Camino.

(I’m determined to figure out how to make it.)

At the end of our stop at O Ceadoiro, we struggled to get going again.

The afternoon sun was a little hotter than it had been on the other days, and we still had a little ways to cover.

But we left our happy table of empty plates and cups behind and pushed on forward.

Just the next step. And then the next one.

Before we reached the end of the day we came upon this marker and I remembered that when I was here walking the Camino in 2015, we had all woken up one morning to the sad news that one of our fellow pilgrims had been hit by a car on a busy road crossing.

In that same spot, a marker now serves as a reminder.

You always walk among us.

It was nearly 5pm when we finally reached O Pedrouzo, and our hostel at the far edge of town.

Our rooms felt rather dingy after the hotel in Arzua, and we had several of us in each room.

While everyone rested and showered, I left to go find a dinner reservation, but first I found a bench outside and looked up at the sky.

I took several deep breaths and let the emotions of the day be released. I cried the tears I’d been carrying around and also laughed at some of the absurd moments of the day.

I could not believe we would be reaching Santiago the next day.

Isn’t it wild how no matter how long we plan or anticipate a thing, 

eventually it arrives and passes? 

All too soon, we would be some of the pilgrims who have left a bit of themselves behind on the Camino.

Maybe someone else will feel our presence as they walk their Camino.

For probably an hour, I stared up at the sky from my spot on a bench.

Then I sat up, dusted myself off and went and found the beer garden where we would have our last pilgrim dinner before our arrival in Santiago.

PS. I am already planning to return to the Camino in 2022! So if reading about the Camino is making you wish you could hop the next flight, sign up here for updates about when and where I’m going next. Or feel free to shoot me a message via the contact form on my about page to let me know you are interested in walking the Camino.

The post Camino de Santiago Day 6: Arzua to O Pedrouzo appeared first on Alison Chino.

Fourth Day of Walking the Last 100 km to Santiago

14 kilometers

9 miles

Elevation:  301,54 meters up +   370.47 meters down

I woke up feeling so refreshed on this day! It must have been the swim in our albergue pool that did it!

We walked back up the street to have breakfast where we had eaten yummy ice cream the night before.

Everything was delicious. We had our usual fresh squeezed orange juice and cafe con leche, but also we had churros and pancakes and fresh tortilla de patatas.

We filled up for our relatively easy day of walking.

It was another beautiful day, and we walked up from breakfast to the town square in Melide where I read out loud a quote from one of my favorite Richard Rohr books (Falling Upward) to start the day:

Setting out is always a leap of faith,

a risk, in the deepest sense of the term, 

and yet, an adventure too.

The familiar and the habitual are so falsely reassuring,

and most of us make our homes there permanently.

The new is always by definition, unfamiliar and untested,

so God, life, destiny, suffering, 

have to give us a push, usually a big one,

or we will not go.

Someone has to make clear to us that homes are not meant to be lived in,

but only to be moved out from.

I congratulated this beautiful group of friends on getting out into the world to experience the unfamiliar.

On leaving home and comforts.

We were halfway through our walk, so some of the excitement could be wearing off.

And yet we still had a lot of unknowns in front of us to face.

Unknown foods and unfamiliar pillows.

New shower heads to figure out every day and more imminently,

many more miles to walk.

And so, onward.

We walked out of Melide and back into the forest.

Even with a few treated blisters and morning aches, folks were in good spirits.

We stopped in a church in our first village, and then carried on walking and talking down the trail.

Greeting the other pilgrims and the cows and cats and dogs.

We walked a mile or so with an extended family of hikers from the Midwest, listening to their stories of the Camino.

Two of them (sisters) had walked all the way from the beginning, and the rest had joined them for the last 100 kilometers.

On this day, my mom also decided to officially retire a pair of shoes that were bothering her. She had brought two pairs with her, so she could alternate. But this pair gave her a blister the day she wore them, so she thanked them for a lot of great miles and left them on a mile maker.

You often see shoes left on mile markers or even hanging on trees along the Camino.

We only had one or two hills on this day, so we played the Rocky Theme Song out loud on our phones to push to the top of them.

And then we stopped at a bar to celebrate once we crested all the hills. This bar had special coffees that included sweet layers and I believe we ordered up several of them among our group. Plus smoothies and sandwiches and cakes.

I felt like this day went by so quickly. It was another gorgeous day, with lots to see.

The day before I had been dragging a bit by the end of the day, but from Melide to Arzua, I felt like I could have walked twice as far.

I think it was partly just because of how beautiful the day was. The sun was out but it wasn’t hot. It was just one of those perfect days that you never want to end.

We reached the sweet village of Ribadiso in the early afternoon.

We took our time coming over the bridge and into the village.

We only had 2.5 km left to go, so we stopped in Ribadiso at the Milpes bar for beers and a soak in a foot fountain!

The views over the countryside from Milpes are so stunning. We stayed here and rested for a long time before getting up and heading on into town.

Mary Polly, who had gone on ahead, texted us from town and said that where we were staying was gorgeous, so everyone got excited to get to the hotel.

Since it was just over halfway through the week and we had a little more time (and energy) this afternoon, several of the gals wanted to do some laundry.

So into Arzua we went.

We walked through town and down some cute side streets before finding our hotel.

And truly, I think it is the nicest hotel on the whole Camino…

1930 Boutique Hotel.

I had found it online and booked it as a treat for our halfway point, and it did not disappoint.

Everything about it was beautiful.

It is sort of 1930s Paris themed. We all went to see each other’s rooms and explored the terrace in the back and the dining room on the top floor.

We ended up being able to book both dinner and breakfast here, which was a huge treat.

Everyone loved not having to walk to and from dinner at the end of the day.

Plus! Another cold salt water pool! Only two of us jumped in on this day, but it was a gorgeous place to sit around all afternoon for those of us not doing laundry.

Some ladies went shopping and others just rested in their rooms.

Before dinner, we went to mass around the corner, which was a treat. All in Spanish, we only caught bits and pieces, but it was a beautiful service and we were sprinkled with a pilgrim’s blessing at the end.

At dinner, it seemed like everyone was less tired than usual. Maybe it was the gorgeous day or the shorter miles.

Or maybe everyone was just getting used to walking.

I do think your body starts to adjust and get into the rhythm of walking all day.

Of course everything we ate was gorgeous. It all came out in several courses, mostly served family style.

Except we all got our own little amuse-bouche and dessert plates at the beginning and the end.

Most of it we ate too quickly to even photograph. It was a fixed menu, so it was a fun dinner where every so often, another round of surprises came out of the kitchen.

Delightful unfamiliarity.

Now it was only two more sleeps until Santiago!

Enjoy your beds, I told everyone, as they were for sure the nicest we would have.

Some folks save their nicest stay for the end in Santiago, but the hotels tend to be quite a bit more expensive there, plus there is so much to see in Santiago that I don’t want to be in my hotel very much. So it was fun to me to have such a lovely stay in Arzua.

The next morning we chatted some to the owner, who started building this hotel with his family six years ago, and then they opened 15 days before COVID shut everything down. Now that they have survived such a rough first year, I hope they will enjoy many years of welcoming pilgrims and travelers to their beautiful space.

PS. I am already planning to return to the Camino in 2022! So if reading about the Camino is making you wish you could hop the next flight, sign up here for updates about when and where I’m going next. Or feel free to shoot me a message via the contact form on my about page to let me know you are interested in walking the Camino.

The post Camino de Santiago Day 5: Melide to Arzua appeared first on Alison Chino.

Third Day of Walking the Last 100 km to Santiago

 23 kilometers

 14 miles

Elevation:  383.32 meters up +  554.53 meters down

Our sweet host from Casa Roan snapped a quick photo of us on the beginning of this day. Clearly, we weren’t quite in formation but he had places to be and things to do, so this is what we got. I kind of love that his shadow is in the picture as well. 

You can tell we are in good spirits starting off on this day, and that the day was already turning out to be beautiful!

We headed down the road in the sunshine, making our way from Ligonde to Melide.

Our mileage was up on this day from the previous one, so I kind of pushed us on without stops for the first few hours.

It was pretty easy going and the countryside views were lovely. 

By now everyone had adjusted their packs to only what they really needed or wanted to carry.

And a couple folks had even decided to try going without packs altogether.

Because we stopped so often for drinks and snacks, you could actually almost get by without carrying anything. 

Especially if you were willing to tie your jacket around your waist. 

We followed lots of green, mossy lanes throughout the morning. 

The trees provided some shade from the sun, so this day was mostly was easy walking.

Because we had stopped for the night well before Palas de Rei the previous day, we were sort of out of step with most of the other pilgrims.

So we seemed to have the trails all to ourselves. 

We reached Palas de Rei around 11, and we made a quick stop at a church.

It was Sunday, so services were letting out and the doors will still open.

My friend, Mary Ann, who is a nurse, has worked throughout the entire pandemic in hospitals. 

I was so grateful she joined us on the Camino, as we have walked some trails together in Scotland while both our husbands were at the University of Aberdeen.

You could often catch her on this trip lighting a candle in a church. She was the first of us to notice if a church was open, so we could go in and get our pilgrim’s passports stamped. And maybe pause and say a prayer or light a candle before going on our way.

After the church, we walked through a Sunday market in the town square of Palas de Rei, but then I encouraged everyone to keep moving through the town and onward because I wanted to stop at a place I had remembered from my first Camino, Casa Domingo. 

We’d had such a lovely big breakfast at Casa Roan that it was easy to get everyone to walk a little further before stopping. 

Besides, like I said, this day had very little uphill and the kilometers seemed to be easily flowing by. 

Everyone had gotten spread out but we all met back up at Casa Domingo for a good long rest around noon. 

We had the classic almond Tarta de Santiago.

And they even made fresh Spanish tortilla de patatas for us, which came out warm and delicious. 

Sometimes a rest is that much sweeter because you have waited longer for it. 

I think I enjoyed this stop every bit as much as I did in 2015, and I bought extras of their yummy cookies for the road.

We did finally move along, wanting to get to Melide at a decent hour. 

Everyone spread out on the trail through the afternoon. 

Again, the day was just gorgeous, which made some folks want to push on and keep walking.

And for others, there were too many things to stop and see for hurrying.

And that’s ok. That is the way the Camino is.

Everyone walks it at their own pace.

I was at the back with Mary Ann and a couple other gals. 

We made a stop for ice cream, and for the bathroom. 

And then we stopped again to buy some Camino necklaces from a lady that was selling them outside in a village.

And between each stop, we passed more forests and eucalyptus trees.

We saw pilgrim statues and fun seashell markers. 

I love to see where villages and homeowners have embraced the Camino by decorating with the symbols and signs of the trail.

When the Camino first came into being, it brought “the world” to these small villages. 

And with the resurgence in popularity in the last 20 years, the Camino is bringing the world to villages in Spain again. 

Old buildings are being restored and turned into hotels and albergues. 

Every time I come, more places have opened to welcome pilgrims, which is so fun to see.

The pandemic certainly created a big pause in the swell of pilgrims walking, but pilgrims are returning and though they are being cautious (masks are obligatory everywhere), hosts seem excited to be receiving pilgrims again.

We weren’t sure we were going to get to take this trip, but now here we were already on our third day of walking!

Some of the girls texted around 3pm that they had made it to the outskirts of Melide (to Furelos) and were stopping for a beer, so those of us in the back rushed on ahead to reach them.

We crossed an old medieval bridge on our way and a water fountain, but soon enough we made it to the cafe where our friends were.

It was about 3:30pm so we were just in time for round two. 

The bar overlooked the bridge and the village of Furelos, and you could see Melide in the distance. We were close!

After our drink and a rest, we walked the last couple of kilometers into town and reached our hotel for the night. 

It wasn’t exactly hot outside, but we were still excited about our hotel having a salt water pool. 

The water was freezing, but we all gathered around the pool and soaked our feet and legs in the water. 

Five of us braved the water and jumped all the way in for the benefit we knew it would be to our sore muscles. 

Then everyone ran for hot showers and naps until dinner.

Melide is a little bit bigger town than we had been in the previous nights, and some of the other Camino routes start joining this one here and in the next town ahead, so there are a few more pilgrims. 

Melide is also famous for the local specialty, Octopus or pulpa, so we found a Pulperia for dinner that night. 

Everyone at least tried a bite of the local octopus, and then we also ordered up our usual plates of peppers and meats and cheese and salads. Most of us ordered soup after our cold dip in the pool. 

After dinner, we went up the street to a cafe that had artisanal ice cream. 

It was super yummy. I can’t remember what everyone else got, but I had pistachio and it was divine.

We decided we would come back to the cafe the next morning for breakfast. Then we walked back to our rooms, ready for sleep. I think I was asleep in about five minutes on this night, my head and heart filled with the memories of another great day on the Camino.

PS. I am already planning to return to the Europe in 2022! So if reading about the Camino is making you wish you could hop the next flight, sign up here for updates about when and where I’m going next. 

The post Camino de Santiago Day 4: Ligonde to Melide appeared first on Alison Chino.

Portomarin to Ligonde

Second Day of Walking the Last 100 km to Santiago

16 kilometers

10 miles

Elevation: 434.55 meters up + 182.96 meters down

The morning was cold and misty when we walked out onto the streets. Everyone was glad for a shorter day today. We were walking from Portomarin to Ligonde, instead of the regular stage which takes you all the way to Palas de Rei. 

After yesterday’s rain, more of us had opted for pants on this day, packing shorts away in our packs for later.

We found a place in town for breakfast, a cute cafe called D’Gusta.

They served up cafe con leche and tostadas. Plus fresh squeezed orange juice, a favorite option available in almost all the cafes I visited on the Camino. 

They even had bacon and eggs on the menu.

Everything came out in stages. With so many pilgrims to serve, the cafes are super busy in the mornings but they rushed around and got all of us our breakfast. We had to split up among several tables, which was fine. During COVID, lots of folks don’t want you to move their tables around, and I was actually amazed at how often we got to eat altogether as a group on this trip. People accommodated us whenever possible, for which I was super grateful.

At other times, we split up and maybe you got a chance to sit with folks you hadn’t been with before. 

After breakfast, we walked back to the town square to begin our walk. 

Laura read us another Camino prayer before we headed out.

The Prayer to St James:

O God, who brought your servant Abraham out of the land of the Chaldeans, protecting him in
his wanderings, who guided the Hebrew people across the desert, we ask that you watch over us,
your servants, as we walk in the love of your name to Santiago de Compostela.

Be for us our companion on the walk,
Our guide at the crossroads,
Our breath in our weariness,
Our protection in danger,
Our albergue on the Camino,
Our shade in the heat,
Our light in the darkness,
Our consolation in our discouragements,
And our strength in our intentions.

So that with your guidance we may arrive safe and sound at the end of the Road and enriched
with grace and virtue we return safely to our homes filled with joy.

In the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.
Apostle Santiago, pray for us.
Santa Maria, pray for us.

Then off we went. 

Back down to the river and across a different bridge this time.

The misty clouds seemed to be hanging onto and around the river. 

We walked a little ways along the road that ran beside the river before heading up into the hills. 

The sky became more clear as we walked steadily upward, and everyone quickly warmed up.

Some folks even changed into their shorts on the side of the road. 

It was exciting to see the kilometer markers drop below 100km!

There were only a very few remarks about how much uphill we had to do throughout the morning. 

Everyone was a great sport!

And around 11:30am we stopped in the village of Gonzar for veggie pizza and roasted peppers, as well as more coffee and a few other treats.

We carried on uphill a little further, and there was an option to take a detour to see some ancient ruins, Castromaior. 

About half of our group took the detour, while everyone else carried on up the hill. 

The views from the top of the hill were lovely. 

Plus it was just so encouraging to sort of reach the top and then head back down again.

We made another stop sometime after 2pm for drinks and snacks. 

Then we only had one small hill left to climb before we dropped into the village of Ligonde. 

At Ligonde, I had arranged for us to be picked up and carried away to our lodging for the night. 

It had been a great day of walking, a bit easier than the day before, with lots of beautiful views. 

We had been over hills and through forests.

And towards the end of the day, we started to see the eucalyptus trees.

When our host drove up, we all piled into his van and he took us about ten minutes off the Camino to a magical place called Casa Roan. 

When we arrived, our driver introduced us to his lovely son, who checked us all in to their family estate. 

After we made our way to our rooms, I wandered around and found their outdoor courtyard and seating. 

I texted everyone that I had found the perfect spot to sit and have a drink in the sun.

Thankfully, the family had their own bar and restaurant, so we were served beers and sangria in the garden. 

I stayed in the garden all afternoon, right up until dinner. 

Everyone else came and went, so I had opportunities to visit with all the different ladies in our group. It was such a great group of women, and after two days of walking, we were all growing super comfortable with each other. 

At some points there were several of us outside laughing and talking together, and then sometimes it was just one other person and me. The whole afternoon was such a gift, a perfect Camino memory.

We kept chasing down our host for more drinks, and we were also in awe of the work this family was doing in order to host folks on the Camino.

In addition to driving people to and from the Camino, they were also doing all the cooking for dinner and breakfast and getting all the rooms ready, which involved washing the sheets, hanging them to dry and then ironing them before putting them on the beds. Our sheets and pillowcases were embroidered with sweet little vines and flowers. 

You could tell that an amazing amount of care had gone into turning this Casa Rural into a place to welcome visitors.

The rooms were decorated with antique furniture and most of our bathrooms had bathtubs, which everyone was excited about!

At 8pm, we headed to the dining room for our pilgrim dinner. 

Our dinner was lovely of course, cooked by mother and father, and served by the son.

He recited the menu to us, letting us know what was possible for dinner. 

We had many of the choices on offer, but my favorite was the “especial” salad with tomatoes and goat cheese. By the second course, I didn’t even need anything else. 

But of course, I ate some fish and then Mary Polly and I shared a strawberry yogurt dessert. 

After dinner, it was so lovely to be able to get up and head straight to our rooms. The moon was getting close to full. I noticed it shining between the dining room and our building. 

We were all cold, so we had our host running around collecting extra blankets for us before crawling into bed and going to sleep. 

The next morning, when I was going around to check on everyone, the sun was rising over the courtyard where I had sat so long the day before. It was going to be a gorgeous morning. No rain in sight. 

I could easily have just stayed at Casa Roan and spend another day hanging around the beautiful property, but instead I hurried everyone to breakfast, which was as wonderful as dinner the night before. 

Coffee and fresh-squeezed orange juice. Yogurt and fruit. Plates of Spanish meats and cheese. Plus fresh bread of course. 

We were well-fueled before we were taken back to the Camino for another day of walking. 

The post Camino de Santiago Day 3: Portomarin to Ligonde appeared first on Alison Chino.

Sarria to Portomarin

First Day of Walking the Last 100km of the Camino de Santiago

22 kilometers

13.5 miles

Elevation: 510.97 meters up + 580.25 meters down

After a simple breakfast of yogurt, nuts, fruit, coffee, tea and some frozen hard-boiled eggs (I had done them the night before and the fridge was a bit on the cold side), we gathered outside the apartment to begin our walk.

My mom was on this trip with two of her dear friends, Laura and Peggy. The three of them have gotten together regularly all throughout COVID with a group of their friends. There are eight of them so they call themselves the Crazy Eights. They met outside in each other’s backyards. Even in the winter, they would bundle up and get together. So in spirit, the other five ladies were with my mom and her friends, following their journey. One of their friends did a lot of research on the Camino and even painted them all pictures of the mile markers on the trail. And she sent them all traditional Camino prayers to have for their trip. So before we started out, Laura shared one of the Camino prayers with all of us:

All powerful God, you always show mercy toward those who you love and you are never far away from those who seek you.

Be with your servants on this pilgrimage and guide their way in accord with your will. 
Be a companion for them along the path, a guide at crossroads, strength in their
weariness, defense before dangers, shelter on the way, shade against the heat, light
in the darkness, a comforter in their discouragements, and firmness in their
intentions, in order that, through your guidance, they might arrive unscathed at the end of their
journey and, enriched with graces and virtues, they might return safely to their
homes, filled with salutary and lasting joy.
Through Jesus Christ Your Son, Who lives and reigns with You, in the unity of the
Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Together we say the Pilgrim’s Prayer:

St James, Apostle

Chosen among the first

You were the first to drink

The Cup of the Master

And you are the great protector of pilgrims;

Make us strong in faith

And happy in hope

On our pilgrim journey

Following the path of Christian life

An sustain us so that 

We may finally reach the glory of God the Father

Amen

And then we began.

We headed out of Sarria to Portomarin with many other pilgrims who were starting the day on the Camino.

You only have to walk the last 100 kilometers of the Camino (or bike the last 200km) in order to earn the official certificate of completion, so this stretch from Sarria is the most popular section of the Camino. Many pilgrims begin their journey here.

Over the bridge and into the woods, we went. 

Into beautiful Galicia!

It’s a hilly first day, gradual rolling hills, but still a lot of up and down.

Everyone was snapping photos, gasping at the green fields, the flowers, the old stone walls, the cows grazing and the tall trees.

There was already so much to see and take in. 

We stopped at the first old stone chapel we reached. 

The door was open, so we pulled out our pilgrim’s passports to get them stamped. 

You need two stamps a day between Sarria and Santiago to show that you have walked this section, but of course, we collect many more than two a day. 

While standing outside the church, I met a few fellow pilgrims, some who had walked from St Jean and some who began with us in Sarria. 

On this first day, everyone was finding their way, perhaps questioning themselves a bit:

Am I carrying too much in my backpack?

Do I have the right layers on? Should I have brought one more or left one behind?

How long will it take me to reach the next stop?

Will there be coffee again soon?

Should I stop here and find a bathroom or should I wait until the next village?

I knew that soon enough, everyone would work out how much they wanted to carry and how to pace themselves on the walking.

I slowed down to stay in the back and walk behind everyone, knowing that the Camino would provide each person with just exactly what they needed.

The day was cool when we started out, but quickly began to warm up, and us with it. 

It stayed overcast most of the morning with a few glimpses of sun and blue sky peeking through the clouds. 

We stopped around 11am for our first longer break at a cafe.

It was one of the first places to stop outside of Sarria, so there was a long line of pilgrims waiting for coffee and pastries, a sign that we would need to be patient at stops. 

Those who were tired went to find a seat or the bathroom while a few of us stood in line to place orders. 

After a while we arrived at the table with trays of coffees and little pastries, cakes and cookies. We all sat around visiting and trying everything. 

Those who had gotten ahead had waited for us so we were all together again.

There were more stops made for food.

You would catch up to someone and they would be sitting at a table saying, here try this empanada.

Or

Look at this fresh juice we found!

Maybe you would take a bite and keep walking or maybe you would sit down and stay awhile.

Whatever you wish. 

It’s your Way. 

Already I was delighted to see that folks were seeing and experiencing what I love so much about walking the Camino.

You separate and find each other all day long. 

There is always a place to stop and wait or stop and rest.

Or maybe you just stop because something about this particular village is calling to you.

You don’t even necessarily have to be hungry. 

And so on and on we went. 

Walking and talking.

Walking and eating.

Walking and drinking.

In between stops, the countryside beckoned us on.

So many flowers and fields to see. 

Everyone was easily learning to follow the path, to watch for the yellow arrows and sea shell markers. 

And to stop whenever they felt like it.

Rain had been predicted to start sometime in the afternoon, but it really held off most of the day.

Since it was our first day I was super grateful for the lack of rain, but I knew we were going to get into it at some point. 

It was also predicted for several more days ahead. 

But I also didn’t want to rush anyone because of coming rain, so we continued to dilly dally along the Way.

We stopped in another church, noticing how people had left behind all kinds of prayers, pictures, letters and mementos. 

And of course, I stopped to photograph my favorite signs and symbols of the Camino. 

We dug out raincoats and backpack covers and began to walk just a bit faster towards our destination.

It was the end of the day and everyone was tired, but they remained in such good spirits. 

We walked for well over an hour in the rain. Everyone’s shoes and socks got wet. 

But they kept walking.

No one even mentioned calling a taxi.

Eventually we reached Portomarin and walked over the long bridge in the wind and the rain.

I had intentionally neglected to mention that there would be a climb into the town at the end of the day.

Only one person said, Do we have to climb those steep stairs?!

But then everyone was laughing when I took their picture on the old stone steps. 

The rain subsided a bit as we reached the town and we got a quick photo with the town sign before finding our albergue for the night. 

It was a newer place with lovely private rooms. 

Everyone changed into dry clothes and wrapped up into the fluffy blankets that were on the beds. 

I went around and announced that I was headed to the square for a celebratory beer for anyone who wanted to join. 

Some folks stayed behind and napped, but several of us headed down the street.

We made it all the way here from Sarria to Portomarin! Cheers and Buen Camino to everyone!

After some beers and snacks, we all went back to the hotel to shower and get ready for dinner. 

We had a short, optional yoga session in the courtyard of our albergue just before dinner to stretch our hips a bit.

Then we headed just up the road to a restaurant for our 8pm reservation for pilgrim’s dinner. 

The pilgrim’s menu is a fixed price menu where you choose a first course, a main course and a dessert. Plus wine and after-dinner coffee of course. 

I think we managed to order all the choices on the menu between the nine of us. We had salads and classic Galician soup. We ordered chicken and beef and fish. And then we had flans and cheese cakes and yogurts for dessert. 

After an evening of eating and drinking and laughing, with full bellies and hearts, we wandered back to our rooms to fall into our cozy beds and do it all again tomorrow. 

The post Camino de Santiago Day 2: Sarria to Portomarin appeared first on Alison Chino.

As promised, I am continuing the logging of my Camino journey through this blog. I am now back at home and thoroughly enjoying re-living my Camino memories through writing about them. Since the arrival of a long-awaited group of ladies in Sarria marked the beginning of a whole different kind of walk on the Camino, I have decided to start the numbering over and call this Day 1. 

Already in Sarria, I woke up to messages from ladies at the airport. They had flown all night and were starting to land in Europe. Soon they would all be on flights to Santiago and headed my way. I knew they would all be exhausted, but I was giddy with excitement. Among the group were my mom, my daughter and my sister-in-law. Plus dear friends and dear-friends-to-be. 

I went to the store and got snacks for their arrival, and I mapped out where I would take them in Sarria. 

A shuttle met them at the Santiago airport and brought them to the door of the apartments I had rented for us. 

They all filed out of the van. There was a mix of joy, fatigue, laughter and hunger. 

We took turns going up in the tiny elevator to our apartments and then we gathered in the kitchen with local wine, cheese, bread, fruit and cured meats. 

After an hour or so, in order to keep everyone awake and try to adjust for jet lag, we headed out into the streets of Sarria. 

It was a gorgeous day. I had arrived the day before in rain and clouds, so I was so glad we had a blue sky day to welcome everyone to the Camino.

We actually walked about a mile of the Camino through town. (Getting ready for the next day!)

We passed churches and shops, and we stopped so that everyone could get a shell to tie onto their backpacks. 

After walking around Sarria for a while, we made our way to one of my favorite spots in town for pizza, salad and sangria: Matias.

We sat on the terrace and shared a little about the travel so far. Folks were a mix of nervous and tired. Some could hardly hold up their heads. 

But the food and drink from our friendly host revived everyone a little.  

It was good just to be here. To have arrived. 

After the long wait (and the previous year’s cancellation), there was amazement in this simple fact:

We’re in Spain!

And tomorrow we would begin our Camino!!

Actually we had already begun. 

After dinner, we looped a little more of the Way that runs through Sarria. 

The old medieval bridge that runs across the Celeiro River is the starting point of the Camino in Sarria.

Tomorrow we would cross this bridge like the countless number of pilgrims before us.

I pointed out the Camino marker that showed us where to go.

These markers would be all along the trail this week. It’s almost impossible to get lost on this section of the Camino as it is so well marked. 

Then we gathered on the bridge for a group photo before walking back to the apartment. 

Everyone showered to wash off the day of travel and fall into beds, hopefully to sleep until morning. 

Luggage needs to be ready in the lobby at 8am, I told everyone. 

I’ll have breakfast and coffee ready at 7. 

Then at 8:15, we walk. 

And so it begins. 

9 pairs of feet starting off on a new journey together.

The post Camino de Santiago Day 1: Arrival in Sarria appeared first on Alison Chino.

THE WAY: Summary Of Writing From Sarria to Santiago

Friends, thank you so much for walking this pilgrimage with me! It has been a joy to share the adventure with you. I’ve enjoyed writing about our time on the Camino. For me, it’s like re-living the beautiful days on the trail to write about them. I get to experience the memories all over again.

I’ve created a little index here of the writing on this blog about walking from Sarria to Santiago, so enjoy this little summary of all the writing about the Camino de Santiago:

The Snippets of The Way

Pilgrims’ Arrival

Pilgrims’ Passports

Pilgrims’ Mass

Pilgrims’ Lodging

Pilgrims’ Menu

Pilgrims or Princesses

Pilgrims’ Words

The Snapshots of The Way

Signs and Symbols

Stunning and Sublime

Seaside and Sunshine

The Stories of The Way

Live The Way

Stop Often

Make Friends

I really do hope to go back and walk some more in Spain one day!

We’ll see what the next season of walking brings!

Our journey along The Camino de Santiago was made possible by Macs Adventure, who found us the most wonderful places to sleep and made our giant suitcases magically appear in our rooms each night.

Also a huge thank you to all the folks who walk alongside me on these journeys! Walking down a trail is maybe my favorite way to spend time with a friend!

If you enjoyed this post, you might like to read more about the Camino de Santiago. Or consider subscribing to receive stories in your inbox. Or check out Humility Walk to follow more walks! (There are even some you can come along on!)

The post Chasing Daylight in June: The Way appeared first on Alison Chino.

On the Camino de Santiago, lots of folks head off to a place called Finisterre after reaching Santiago. 

There is a tradition of going to the sea to unburden yourself of your belongings.

It’s a second and more final ending to your journey.

But we really just wanted a day by the sea.

So when we met a lady on a train to Sarria who told us that A Coruna was beautiful and much easier to get to by train than Finisterre, we took her advice, bought train tickets for six euros and headed off to find the sun, the sand and the waves.

Once we reached A Coruna, it took us a little while to actually find the sea.

We ended up walking through the lovely old town of A Coruna.

When we finally found the sea, the clouds had rolled in and we were feeling some raindrops.

But we were determined to have our day on the beach.

And we had snacks. So we could be patient.

And pretty soon the sun came out!

And we had a gorgeous afternoon in the sun after all.

It was happily ever after for sure.

Our journey along The Camino de Santiago was made possible by Macs Adventure, who found us the most wonderful places to sleep and made our giant suitcases magically appear in our rooms each night. 

If you enjoyed this post, you might like to read more about the Camino de Santiago. Or consider subscribing to receive stories in your inbox.

The post Snapshots of the Way: Seaside and Sunshine appeared first on Alison Chino.