| Compared to
the cramped and dingy offices of the Friends, the Archdiocese is clean,
modern and efficient - a relative pleasure. A middle aged woman asks me
for my name and city of residence, declines to take my passport details
(saying she feels it intrusive to ask) and explains politely that
the city of my residence is needed only for statistical purposes. The whole
costs about 50 cents and about 3 minutes of my time.
The ease
with which you can finish this important preliminary at the Archdiocese
surprises me. I wonder whether it is simply a well kept secret
or whether people shy away from visiting religious institutions except
as tourists. That reasoning may surprise, especially in a catholic
country like Spain. But, the relationship of the Spanish people with
the church is complex and often ambivalent. Consequently, I do not
discard that explanation. Whatever the cause, the future traveler
would not be wrongly advised to start here.
As far as
the actual journey is concerned, the camino starts at home and, if home
is where the heart is, it starts there. Practically, however, it has
become the tradition to start in France in St. Jean Pied de Port or in
Roncesvalles on the Spanish side of the Pyrenees where, according to the
Song of Roland, the 11th century French epic poem, Hruodland is slain by
moors (historical fact points to the Basques) in a rear-guard action.
This is the beginning of the Camino Frances or the French Route. But, there
are other caminos: the Camino de la Plata which comes from Granada in the
South, the Camino del Norte which follows the wild northern coast of Spain
and the bay of Cantabria and the Camino Primitivo, one of the oldest, a
detour to the north from the Camino Frances that was used to evade the
moors who controlled most of Spain to the south. There is also a camino
that rises northward from Portugal.
But,
this describes only the caminos of the Iberian Peninsula. Historical maps
show that there is a spider's web of caminos that stretch across Europe
into Britain, Scandinavia and Eastern Europe that join and divide, eventually
feeding into the principal Iberian routes leading to Santiago.
Days 1-3:
Finding The Rhythm
Day 1
I drive
two hours northward from Madrid to Burgos, a town on the Spanish meseta
or mesa that is known for its constant winds, the bitter cold of its winters
and the quality of its morcilla, a type of blood sausage that is considered
the best in Spain. The meseta has similarities with the geography you
might find in the southwest of the United States, raised tables of arid,
slightly undulating land. Burgos with its sausage and spires would be completely
alien on any American mesa.
I check
into the refuge in the early afternoon and am helped by a lisping abrasive
young man. He shows me to my bunk in a large room which is shared by
both men and women, and my first question about the camino is answered.
Spain has changed since when I studied here when there was a strict segregation
of sexes. The beds are packed so tightly and there are so many backpacks
on the floor that passage is difficult. A healthy snoring rises from some
of the beds, and the air smells of mentholated cream, the kind used to
alleviate the aches of muscles and joints. A woman whose feet are being
attended to by a friend laughs at the snorers. Despite the laughter and
the noise of people shuffling about and moving their baggage, the exhausted
walkers continue sleeping contentedly and soundly.
After checking
in, I visit the 13th century cathedral for which Burgos is so well known.
It is the largest in Spain and is nothing less than spectacular. Nothing
of the grim, blackened, sooty Gothic churches I had in my childhood memories
of northern Europe. The cathedral of Burgos is resplendent, a brilliant,
creamy white, its stones the color of the rock from which they were originally
hewn, its interior and its ceilings of an extraordinary lightness and beauty.
On the way back I take the time to sit on the tree-shaded terraces and
have a coffee, and watch as the locals begin to emerge and the cafés
become busy as the afternoon heat subsides. I learn how much the sun and
the heat mark the rhythm of life in northern Spain and on the camino.
When I come
back to the refuge, I find a crew of six or seven paramedics working around
a picnic table in the courtyard. At first I fear the worst, that someone
has had a serious accident or suffered heat stroke. Then I realize that
the paramedics are only here to attend to the sore and blistering feet
of the pilgrims. They wear professional looking black uniforms trimmed
with reflective international orange and seem a bit overdressed and overly
serious for the task at hand. They appear to be enjoying the opportunity
to listen to the pilgrims who are keen on telling their stories.
Within minutes
I hear French, German, English and more languages I don't recognize.
Few of the walkers are Spanish. Apparently, some 80% of the travelers this
far out from Santiago are foreigners. The Spaniards tend to join the camino
100 kilometers before Santiago, perhaps because they are less disposed
to physical exertion and long journeys. 100 kilometers is the magic mark
since it is the minimum distance for which the church will grant the pilgrim
its indulgence and a certificate for making the pilgrimage.
Day 2
I wake up
the next morning not particularly well rested. A room with 50 or more
pilgrims is not conducive to rest unless you too are in a state of utter
exhaustion. Ear plugs are advisable for those who are sensitive to noise-even
those who are not. So is patience; there is a constant opening and shutting
of windows by those who find the room too hot at night and seek fresh air,
and those that fear the pernicious effects of drafts. I conclude that refuges
are not for the squeamish. I find an automatic instant coffee dispenser
and am relieved to find something sterile and modern that quietly fulfils
its expected function.
My first
contact with a pilgrim is with a pale, sincere-looking American woman from
Oakland who lives, coincidentally, right across the hill from where my
sister lives. As the Spanish say, el mundo es un pañuelo (the
world is as small as a handkerchief). She is in her late 20's wears
a long-sleeved shirt and a broad rimmed hat, a bit like that of St. James,
to protect her skin. She started walking in St. Jean Pied de Port and is
doing the camino in segments. This is her second year walking. Each year
she walks the distance she can in her scant 10 days of American vacation.
She then flies home, works for another year, and comes back and continues
where she left off the year before. She is at the end of this year's journey,
just 600 kilometers shy of Santiago. Another two to three years and
she expects to make it but, tomorrow she flies back to Oakland.
A clean-cut,
fit looking Spanish man in his early 50's and I get into a conversation.
He works in Casteau Belgium a small,
little-known town that is home to an incongruously large and ominously
named organization. SHAPE stands for Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers
Europe and is the headquarters of one of NATO's military commands. He is
a military man and also a fervent believer. I ask him whether the opposition
of some 90% of Spaniards to the Iraq war somehow had an impact upon his
work. He responds that leftist manipulation had influenced Spanish public
opinion but that any Spaniard with a grain of sense was for the war. Whatever
the merits or demerits of the war, his fervent conviction reflects the
attitudes of generations of Spanish military leaders who have traditionally
felt it their obligation to correct the failings of democracy.
The day
starts sharing the same footpath with the pilgrims and I have the opportunity
to observe some of their idiosyncrasies. I pass one man shielding himself
from the blazing sun with a large black umbrella, balancing, seemingly,
on a tightrope, a bit like a clown in a circus act. Many pilgrims break
the most basic rules of hiking. They walk dangling heavy items in
plastic bags in their hands, straining arms and shoulders. Others carry
weight that would strain a mule. Some wear heavy, stiff-soled boots designed
for mountain climbing and others wear flip-flops designed for the beach.
Each will clearly pay for their choice of footwear at the end of the day.
But, no one seems overly bothered by the finer aspects of hiking technique.
Everyone exchanges notes, but makes due with whatever equipment they have
brought. It is clear that for some the pain is part of a penitential act.
I get off
the camino and onto roads that are better suited for cycling and find myself
alone on the Spanish meseta. The landscape is rolling and, with the
exception of low scrub, piled stone walls and a few isolated trees, largely
featureless. There is, of course, the sun. My mind wanders. I notice a
large number of dead birds on the macadam. They remind me of a trip that
I took a few years back to the Havasupai Indian reservation in the Grand
Canyon. It seems that birds that live by scarcely used roads can be caught
unawares and are easily struck by oncoming cars. I construe this to mean
that their inexperience with life in the fast lane leads to their death
in the fast lane. Later, there is the crunch of dead crickets under my
tires. Nothing is spared, I suppose.
I continue
in search of a place to rest and have a cup of coffee, and begin to
realize that biking in Spain is not like biking in other parts of Europe
where villages are close and where one can expect to find frequent and
inviting cafés. I go many kilometers before I arrive in Castrogeriz,
(of uncertain origin but, perhaps, high castle). On the ridge
overlooking the town are the ruins of an impressive fortification that
may have had Visigoth origins. The fortress was besieged by the Moslems
during the eleventh century but also fought over by neighboring Spanish
kingdoms. I find a bar to have my coffee.
As in most
Spanish bars, the locals are watching football on television. A woman
in a wheelchair is having a coffee at the counter. She makes twitchy, uncontrolled
movements, signals to me and we begin to talk. It turns out that she has
done (walked would not be the right word) the camino five times,
each time along a different routes. Each time, it takes her over one month
to cover the 900 kilometers from her home in France. This time she plans
to continue on to Fatima in Portugal, another object of pilgrimage, where
three peasant children claimed to have had visions of the Virgin Mary.
I ask her if she has someone helping her on her journey. No, she responds,
she does it on her own. I am mystified at how this is possible. In response,
she demonstrates that she is able to stand on her legs-somewhat-by holding
onto the bar with one hand and drinking her coffee with the other.
The men
from the bar join the conversation and begin to argue about where I should
stay tonight, Frómista or Carrión de los Condes. One
advocates one village, while the other advocates the other saying that
the inhabitants of the first are unfriendly. It was founded by Jews, he
explains. The link between the character of the present day inhabitants
and the Jews challenges my imagination since I recall the Jews being absent
from Spain for at least half a millennium. Later, I check the facts and
find that in 1492, the same year that the new world is discovered, Ferdinand
and Isabella expelled the Jews after bringing their crusade against the
Moors to an end by driving them out of Granada. Yet, the men talk about
the Jews and their influence (other than in the architecture) as
if they were still in attendance, like ghosts meddling in our lives.
History
and religion are inextricably interwoven with the Spanish landscape and
the camino. Signs of the Spanish persecution of the Jews and Muslims
are alive in the names of the villages and the people. I find that Matamoros
(or kill moor) is not an uncommon family name in Spain. On the way
out of the bar I chat with some of the locals who indicate the way to a
town called Matajudios (literally, kill Jews). Despite significant
pressure (mainly from outsiders) to change the name of Matajudios
to Castrillo the inhabitants decide to retain the old name. Both the names
Castrillo and Matajudios are on the sign as I later exit the town.
On the last
leg of today's journey, I stop in a village to get water from a fountain
and to wet my shirt. A monk, dressed in a long black frock that must burn
under the midday sun sits down at a bench in the shade across from me and
reads and says nothing. He carries very little with him, just a rolled
up mat. An old man on crutches, stooped and short from childhood under-nutrition,
labors down the road. He sees me and shouts "que tengas buen camino"
which translates as "may your passage be good", or "have
a safe walk", or maybe just "happy trails". And, so I learn
the typical greeting of the pilgrim. This cheery wish is oddly motivating
coming from a man who can hardly walk himself. Villagers and pilgrims;
everyone seems to be limping here.
Day 3
"This is
nothing but cheap, low-cost tourism" says José Manuel the sacristan
of the refuge in Carrion de los Reyes. He wasn't expecting to find any
true pilgrims in this group he says as the last of the travelers sets off.
The camino, especially during the summer months when tourism is at its
height, has turned into a race from one refuge to another. People rise
at four or five in the morning, in part to escape the midday heat, but
also because they worry that there may not be enough room at the next refuge
when their day of walking ends. People compete and compare notes on how
many kilometers they walk in a day.
Absent a
complete change of plans, he suggests that I spend my next night in
Bercianos del Camino Real where he assures me I will have the true pilgrim's
experience. I go to a café for my breakfast, mull over what I have
seen to date and decide to trust the sacristan's judgment. The café
has a computer with an internet connection in the corner. As much
as limping is omnipresent on the camino, so is the internet. People are
maintaining contact, sometimes working, never entirely disconnected, never
entirely focused on or aware of what is around them.
Some kilometers
later, my legs find their rhythm and I observe the countryside as it passes.
The character of the small towns changes. Closed gas stations remind me
of parts of the American southwest. Businesses and employment must be leaving
this region too. I see a lot of Down's syndrome children and I guess that
this must have been a harsh region not too long ago. Medicine and food
must have been in short supply. What I see seems a bit out of step with
modern Europe. Buildings, originally built from clay mixed with straw,
now crumble into ruin.
After a
few hours I arrive at the refuge of Bercianos del Camino Real suggested
by the sacristan in Carrion de los Condes. Bercianos' stately name
belies a small farm village that has no more than a few dozen permanent
residents. The buildings are made of mud and straw and many have fallen
into such a state of disrepair that their complete destruction is imminent.
The refuge is quite rustic as well. As I arrive, I notice that there are
sparrows flying in and out the front door. I guess that we'll be staying
with them tonight.
I am welcomed
by a group of bright-eyed Augustinian nuns. They explain how they organize
their day and ask whether I want to participate in a communal dinner. I
agree. The evening begins with introductions from the pilgrims. It reminds
me a bit of a warm-up to a business meeting but, it works. Everyone is
now familiar with everyone else, and soon a guitar gets passed around and
people begin to sing. A bearded young man from Canada contributes some
folk songs in a thick and impenetrable Quebec accent. Some Germans sing
Beethoven's Ode to Joy and a Brazilian woman sings a song of what I imagine
to be lost love.
It is here
in Bercianos that I begin to get a feeling for what type of people go on
pilgrimage. There is an East German family from Dresden. The husband
is unemployed and has been since shortly after the reunification of Germany.
The wife maintains the family; she runs a company that provides assisted
living services to the elderly. Neither seems to miss the old times but
both find much to bemoan with their new capitalist reality.
The wife
is particularly interested in how old people are taken care of in the United
States and in Spain. She likes the treatment of the elderly here. They
are more likely to be taken care of by friends and family at home, and
those in the villages continue living much as they did when they were working
and younger. Since there is no need for cars in small towns, they walk
to the corner grocery store to purchase their necessities, and stop by
a friend's house to chat, or perhaps at the corner bar for a game of dominoes.
The very modest state pensions are usually enough to cover basic needs.
Christian,
a man in his early 50's has walked 2,400 kilometers in 75 days from his
home in Hiltenfingen Germany. In that time he has grown a red-grey
beard and lost some 40 lbs. He hardly speaks Spanish and his English, which
could have been useful, is not strong either. In the absence of conversation
and distractions, he has written the lyrics to a Gregorian chant in his
head, which he sings, with a complete lack of self-consciousness, for the
rest of us in the makeshift chapel of the refuge. The distance from his
home and the solitude of Christian's walk are clear to all even if we do
not understand German. The orange evening light backlights Christian as
he sings and it is a serene and beautiful moment.
Spain, even
if not deeply religious, is marked indelibly by its Christian heritage,
and it is difficult to separate the camino from its context, even if you
want. But, even for those who do not walk with religious intent, the
camino can offer a message. That evening it becomes clear to me that the
camino is a simple and useful metaphor for life: a linear passage where
we meet people, see places and have experiences, a passage that leads to
a finality. For those who find it difficult to imagine a final reward,
the compensation must be found on the journey. This is what believers and
non-believers alike emphasize on the camino, and it is in keeping with
the modern philosophy of living in the present and for the day.
We prepare
dinner together. The Brazilian woman and I cook the lentils. The Canadians
help with the salad. We all pitch in to make a fruit macedonia. The Brazilian
woman adds caramelized sugar, red wine and cinnamon, which gives the macedonia
a tropical touch that is welcomed by the rest of the travelers. I sit down
last at the table and Mercedez, one of the nuns, offers to fill my glass
with red wine. I accept, and offer to do the same for her. She accepts,
and I am pleased to find that neither she nor I are opposed to filling
each other's glasses probably a bit more than we should.
The dinner
table conversation turns to the question of whether it is better to do
the camino alone or in company. Two people take opposed sides of the
argument but, I get the impression that despite what appear to be irreconcilable
positions, both are lonesome travelers in need of others to help them make
some sense of this journey. Other hands help clean up after dinner, and
some hands do nothing at all. It is a wonderful harmonious evening spent
in good company.
Days 4-6:
Pushing Hard -- Perhaps Too Hard
Day 4
By the time
I wake up, just after dawn, most of the others are gone and on their way.
Christian, the singing German is dressed and packing his backpack when
he stops, puts his head in his hands and breaks down in tears. He has reached
his limit. He cannot believe that he has lost his strength so close-a mere
400 kilometers-to his goal. I try to console him, remind him that he has
done more than what most would have the courage to imagine, and suggest
that he take a rest for a day or two. As I adjust the saddle bags on my
bicycle and ready myself to leave, Christian bemoans his lack of family
at home. This is what stopped the man dead in his tracks. He had pushed
hard but, it was not his legs that failed him.
I hasten
to get on the road. The sparrows fly in and out of the front door of
the refuge in the orange morning light. This is their home and not ours.
Not even the nuns will be here in a few weeks. At the end of the season
they will give up their stewardship of the refuge and will return to their
monasteries and their routines. It is time to move on despite the wonderful
evening and the beautiful sunsets in this place. It takes me many kilometers
before I find the calm of the road again.
What a difference
a little distance makes. The refuge where I stay tonight has only four
beds to the room, a genuine luxury. I share a room with an agreeable Danish
fellow, a tree surgeon turned wood sculptor. He is in his early 50s, powerfully
built with shaggy blond hair and muscular forearms. I had observed him
making sketches in a notebook over dinner.
We are both
rather pleased with our lodging though it really is as minimal as it can
get. You begin to appreciate very simple things on the camino like
a little bit more privacy at night. We also agree that human perceptions
are relative and fickle. We can feel happy or sad depending on if we sleep
a bit better tonight, whether the day is sunny or grey, if we're well-hydrated
or hungry, or not. "What does that mean for the truth if our feelings
are so easily changed?" asks the big Dane. I say "there is no truth"
and ask the much more mundane question about what that means for an argument
with your wife. "Those arguments I would have even if I'm well fed"
he counters.
Day 5
I start
off the day with some straight stretches and some thoughts on geography.
Long straight stretches, of which there are many, especially behind Leon,
are conducive to reflection. The rhythm of the legs becomes monotonous.
It's difficult to go much faster or, for that matter, much slower. The
landscape, whether it is rows of corn, tilled land or dried scrub also
tends to be monotonous. I practice putting on a bit of Chap Stick while
pedaling, take my helmet off and put it back on and eat trail mix with
one hand. But, how often can you do that? So, I think.
The hills
are a different matter altogether. The rhythm of the legs may be the
same, but the pain in your legs and lungs keeps your mind off of anything
but the next few hundred meters and the peak, and the hope of a long descent.
There are two passes that you need to cross before entering Galicia. The
first in the Montes de Leon culminates in the Cruz de Ferro (or the iron
cross) and the second in the Monte do Fedo at the O Cebreiro. Both
passes are marked by picturesque stone villages. The descents are steep
and pure elation. With the added weight of the saddle bags, the bicycle
easily accelerates to 60 km/hour and more.
Later I
find out that more than one pilgrim has died on this descent. The elation
that I felt upon the descent evaporates when I realize how dangerous it
was and how foolhardy I had been. Like food and water, the geography too
has its magical effect on the spirit. What is the truth?
When I reach
the Cruz de Ferro, I take some pictures of the rocks which people have
carried to the top of the hill and placed in a mound. Tradition says
that the pilgrim should bring a rock from home and leave it at the Cruz
de Ferro, thus relieving himself of a burden. The pile of stones is several
meters high, though some of the stones are far too large to have been carried
there by people. Some of the smaller ones have the names of individuals
scratched into them. Other people have tacked pictures, notes and bright
colored pieces of cloth to the cross like the prayer flags you might find
in the Himalayas.
A laminated
bit of paper catches my eye among the rubble. These are pictures of
R.J., a gangly adolescent boy, and a letter from his mother. The mother
does not explain how the boy died, but she has advice for the reader on
how to love your children. The note is heart-rending. At the bottom of
her letter is an address in Reno, Nevada. I wonder what moved this person
from half way across the globe to make the journey all the way to Spain,
and I wonder if it helped to relieve her of her burden. I take down her
address and decide to write her a post card to tell her that I will heed
her advice. Perhaps it will make her feel better.
Day 6
Just after
Ponferrada I pause to get water from a fountain and overhear a priest berating
the group of young boys he is leading. They can't seem to be able to
keep up the pace; he shouldn't have to be forced to tag along behind the
slowest he says. So much for the last being first. I watch the bedraggled
bunch pick itself up and make itself on its way. The last ones are limping
badly. It would not be the last indication on this day that the church
has human frailties.
Later in
the afternoon, I climb the second mountain pass into the province of
Galicia, known for its green rolling hills, its foggy mornings and cooler
Atlantic weather. It is famous for its food, which stands out not for its
sophistication but the quality of its ingredients. This is a region that
had escaped the control and much of the cultural impact of the moors. The
mountain ranges to the east protected it from invasion and isolated it
from the rest of the Iberian Peninsula. The language here is also different,
reminiscent of the Portuguese. I stop to ask for instructions and find
that the local dialect is impenetrable to foreigner and Spaniard alike.
On the way
up to the O Cebreiro, I pass two men on bicycles who are unusual both for
their age and their enthusiasm. Later that day, we meet at the refuge
in Triacastela. They are talkative types. One is 74 years old, the other
not far behind. Far from being worn out by crossing the consecutive passes
into Galicia, they carry on a lively conversation with the other inhabitants
and make a special effort to entertain the ladies.
At dinner,
one relates his experience as an orphan being educated by Jesuit priests.
The conversation becomes hushed. He does not hold fond memories of the
time and mentions the sexual abuse suffered by others. The issue has received
considerable attention in the United States but virtually none in Spain,
and I wonder whether the problem is limited to the US. I take the lowered
voices at dinner as a confirmation of my suspicion that the problem exists
but that people simply prefer not to talk about it.
Before calling
it a day, I speak with two women from Quebec. They have been walking
for five weeks. They are obviously gay. Among the many people I met on
the camino, they were best able to articulate what the camino meant to
them. Back home in Quebec, they have a comfortable "bourgeoise"
existence that they haven't missed for a moment despite their aching bones.
They describe
how they have lost all sense of time on this journey; they cannot remember
the names of towns they have just been through, much less the ones they
will pass through in the future. They feel completely in the present, and
they feel good about it. As far as the "why" is concerened, "quelque
chose t'amene au chemin", something brings you to the camino. Something
about the camino is in you before you even start.
At night,
I am surprised that the older more fragile partner snores like a lumberjack
on steroids. No one can sleep and the other inhabitants of the refuge
start making cluck-clucking sounds to get her to quiet down but without
success. The Spaniards are direct and, aided by their colorful language,
the air soon fills with obscenities. Nothing helps, and eventually everyone
does get to sleep.
Day 7: The
Way Not To Travel
Day 7
Moncho is indignant
that people do the camino without faith. He is indignant that some kiss
the statue of St. James upon arrival in Santiago rather than hugging it
as custom demands. He says he has even seen Muslims with prayer rugs. As
he and I talk, a woman comes into the bar wearing short shorts and a bikini
top. He holds his head in disbelief.
He lists
the things that people bring that should best be left at home: video
cameras, heavy duty mountain boots, shoes for free climbing, makeup, volumes
of summer reading. He knows. He has done this six times before. But, this
year he will be cutting it short. His father is dieing of lung cancer and
he doesn't want to spend too much time away from home.
Moncho says
that the bones in the crypt of St. James have been proven to not actually
be those of the apostle. I haven't made the effort to verify but, either
way, it doesn't bother me.
Jakobo an
Italian fellow stumbles in late in the afternoon with a perfect band of
red burned across his thighs. He is in serious pain. "I come from
Sicily but I didn't think it would be so hot in Galicia". It's not
hot but, the sun is intense under the bright blue skies once the morning
mist has burned off. Jakobo was born on July 25, the day of St. James 40
years ago. He says that his christening after St. James was a coincidence,
as is the likelihood that he will arrive in Santiago on his 40th birthday
on the day of St. James. He is rather pleased with the series of coincidences.
Day 8: Coming
Into Santiago
Day 8
So much for
the trip.
As I cover
the last kilometers, I look closely at people's faces to see if I can discern
a feeling. Is it exaltation or exhaustion? No doubt; it's exhaustion and
numbness but, as we come into Santiago things change and a sense of satisfaction
and happiness begins to creep into the walkers.
Santiago,
after days of sometimes austere countryside, is overwhelming.
It is not difficult to imagine how pilgrims must have felt hundreds of
years ago after months of walking in conditions much wilder than today's.
It must have been equivalent to landing on a wonderful alien planet. There
is eye-candy everywhere. The architecture is playful, unusual or inviting
wherever you look. The spires of the cathedral look vaguely foreign to
me, a bit like the lost temples of Angkor Wat, but more likely the influence
of the Mayans or Aztecs via the conquistadors.
I walk through
the city with some of the friends I've made and find it hard to stop smiling.
Everything seems so wonderful and clear, and I begin to wonder if I am
not perhaps suffering from a very serious endorphin surge.
The last
few steps of the trip are to the pilgrims' office. There you can get
your pilgrim's license stamped and receive a certificate. As I wait in
line to get mine, I read some lines painted on the wall. The hymn to the
pilgrim ends with something to the effect that the traveler, now that he
has journeyed to Santiago and seen its marvels, can die in peace. I am
not sure if I would go so far. However, it is certain that the camino is
peculiarly conducive to unhooking from life's many extraneous distractions
and to encouraging us to live fully and simply in the present.
My friend
for whom I made these notes asks me: "What? Where's the romance?"
This is not what she had expected. She had the impression that there would
be a single's scene. If so, I didn't see it. But, there is plenty that
is romantic, and there is certainly the potential for romance. I saw people
making friends, couples walking and talking together and many moments of
harmony between people. Not quite within sight of Santiago, a couple, she
Asian, he Caucasian, walk wearily, hand in hand, wordless. Perhaps they've
had an argument but, I doubt it. I guess that they have said everything
they need to say.
The following
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