Visiting the Cathedral in Santiago

Hello, everyone. Today we paid our respects at the Cathedral. Many things have changed since the immense cleaning and refurbishment. 

The many confessionals--which were in traditional Spanish format, a sort of closet for the print to sit in with a window and kneeler for the penitent--have disappeared from the side aisles. Instead the priests have been put into the many side chapels. It is hard to figure out which ones are in use now, and it's also hard to figure out if the priest inside that chapel understands your language. Plenty of completely empty chapels had the sign "Confessions" but no one at all there, the metal grille being closed, and little or no indication of when there might be a priest there. I decided to make my Pilgrimage confession at home after our return.

The administrators have consolidated two of the other famous Rites of the pilgrimage: the visit to the relics in their casket and the hugging of the statue behind the Altar now have one shared line that snakes slowly through the Confessio and around to the stairs to the statue. This makes sense, as everyone who visited the relics was probably going to hug the statue as well. It worked out well overall, even though they "forgot" to return the kneelers that had been there in the past. There are a couple of steps at the opening, just outside the protective grille, and they're the right height for kneeling on for a quick prayer.

One of the cleaned side chapels.

This was also in that chapel. Our Lady of Le Puy en Velay?

Ponte Ulla

Hello, everyone. Today we went a little over 20 kilometers,  plus some backtracking where we took wrong turns. 

We got here the day of a Pulpofest. A bunch of folks were gathering in the old schoolhouse and having bowls of red wine, octopus chunks, white beans, and bread. It was yummy. 

This year we have been seeing some brightly colored benches.

These have been turning up in the towns along the Sanabrés route.

Made it to Cea

Hello, everyone. I almost called this post "the Camino grows with the pilgrims" as when we were working out the guesses of where to stay it was said in various places (guide books, online sites) that Cea had very little lodging. Some of the sources still say that--but we found that a new place had opened.

The green sign is the place we found to stay at. It's new, and it's lovely.

The ACDC bar downstairs from it has good food, too.

Ourense rest day

Hello, everyone.  As mentioned in the post title, we're taking a rest day in Ourense.  This is a very old city, dating back to the Roman Era. At least.

There are hot springs in the area, but the things we are more interested in are churches and museums. Today we visited the Cathedral of St. Martin. This St. Martin is the Roman soldier of Tours. He's famously depicted as sharing his warm cloak with a poor beggar in art. The Cathedral treasures a small relic of his, a bit of bone. I felt privileged to see it, as I had understood that during the French Revolution the anti religious revolutionaries in Tours had burned all of the relics of St. Martin they found in their church. Apparently this little bit had already been given away before those folks entered the picture. 

Statue of St. Martin aiding the beggar. We can see from the clothes that the artist thought of St. Martin as his own contemporary. That often happens with sacred art.

We also walked over two of the bridges on the river Miño. (Once each direction) 

This picture was taken from the old Roman Bridge. It looks to me like a suspension bridge. (The cables remind me of the Mississippi River bridge at Alton, Illinois.) 

The swooping structure is a stepped walking surface. As y'all can see in the picture,  the river was very calm and held beautiful reflections. 

The Roman bridge, taken from the Millenial Bridge.

Temperatures in this area are running cool, with dawn hitting in the low single digits C (40 ish F?) and afternoon getting up around 22 C (70ish F?) with clear, sunny skies.

We start out walking with about four layers of clothes, and gloves, then peel off as it becomes possible. 

First WiFi in days

Hello, everyone.  We've been staying at public albergues for a few days and haven't had internet available. Thus the interruption in posting.

Today we have arrived at Campobecerros, a small village in the mountains of Galicia, where the Pension Casa Nuñez has wifi.

This long lake was below our ridge top road.

The village.

Arrived at Lubian

Hello, everyone. Today was a short day, made a tiny bit shorter because the local folks in Requejo recommended that pilgrims keep to the road at least for the first half. The ground has been very wet and muddy lately and the natural trails are infested with swampy areas. We did exactly that for most of today's walk.

We ascended about 360 meters up along the left edge of a sleepy highway, went through a tunnel that has a sidewalk and electric lights--400 meters--and had our breakfast at the bar of Hotel Padornelo. Then we continued down the other side, passed through the pretty village of Aciberos, and followed an ancient (medieval? Roman?) road into Lubian. There were lovely streams, a little cream colored narcissus flower that I have never seen before, violets--a beautiful walk.

We found a very cute room at Casa Cesar: sun shining in the dormer window, a very fancy shower with many controls, and lovely decor.