Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
I woke this morning to sunshine again, but today was extremely windy. I packed up everything and put it in a long hallway where other pilgrims who were taking the later bus left their packs, and off I went. I headed back to the point passing the little church I had passed so many times now, which was always locked, and got a pleasant surprise. The door was wide open.
I peeked my head in and found a man cleaning the church. I asked (pantomimed) if it was ok that I come in, and if I could also take pictures. I was pleased to find that he spoke some English. He smiled, dropped his cleaning supplies, and was happy to show me around and give me some history. The church was so small, but so striking. The caretaker stopped to show me a drawing on the wall depicting the church at the point - it had a major fire on Christmas day the year before (now I understand the scaffolding!) Since the fire, mass was being held in this church until the repair work is completed. He had such pride in his church, the history, and his town. I am so lucky to have passed by when I did.
So, yesterday when I went to the point, I saw the "sail rock". This is a beautiful rock formation that looks like a sail, and is said to be the spot where St James saw the Virgin Mary appear to him in a stone boat guided by angels. My guidebook says that if you pass under the rock 9 times, it heals you (specifically back/arthritis/joint pain). It was very busy by the rock yesterday, but I made sure to walk (back and forth) under the front eave of the rock for my 9 times. Hmm. Nothing. Then, late yesterday afternoon I heard a lot of noise coming from the rock area as I headed to the point. There was a large group of women with tambourines, drums, and bells all singing and dancing in some type of celebration at sail rock. Usually, this area was so secluded and quiet. I captured some video of there shouting and yelling. I also noticed that they were getting on their backs and sliding all of the way under the rock and through the opening at the bottom, getting back up, and going through again. OH! So THAT's what they mean by passing UNDER the rock! I made a mental note to go back tomorrow (with less folks) and do it properly (when in Rome...)
Flash forward to this morning, and I am the ONLY person in the area. Perfect. I began the ritual. Being claustrophobic, the first time took a lot of talking to myself - assuring myself that the rock had stood on those teeny tiny pieces for hundreds (thousands?) of years, and it was not going to tip over this morning, and I was not going to be crushed in a freak accident (I could hear it, "woman walks 250 miles unscathed only to be crushed to death by boulder - additionally, she was carrying no id (Bubba was at Albergue) so we have no idea who she is/was"). Yeah, I know... but the first time did take a few minutes. The second time was easier... and then I was on a roll! On about the 7th time, I noticed a very nice (clean, dressed nice = non-pilgrim) couple looking at the rock and watching me. It seems they read the same guidebook and were here to give it a shot. They were from England, and I told them I only had 2 more to go. They look relieved that they weren't the only crazy ones doing this, and offered to take my picture. I finished my 9 times, took pictures of them on their first pass, and then made my way back up the hill.
So, I failed to mention that the night before I twisted my knee (slightly) on the way back up after sunset, and it was really hurting that morning. I had a noticeable limp on my way down to sail rock, and it made it difficult to get back out on the bottom each time. With all of the excitement of making it to 9, combined with meeting the folks from England, I had forgotten all about it. As I made my way up the hill, toward the top I noticed I barely had a limp at all. By the time I got to Santiago that afternoon, it was completely fine. Was it the rock? You just never know.
I headed back to the Albergue, and was glad to see Angel there - it wouldn't have been the same leaving without saying goodbye. I'm not sure he understood, but I told him how much me meant to me at the end of a long journey, and said that Muxia was one of the most beautiful places in the world and I thanked him for sharing his Albergue and his town with me. We hugged each other and I motioned to take a selfie with him (wish I would have taken another, as this photo does not capture his happy personality and smile!)
The bus pulled up and over 50 of us got on board. The bus ride was loud and joyous - everyone on the bus was telling stories of their journeys to their neighbors, laughing, and sharing pictures. It was like we were all at a family reunion. I met some great ladies from Minneapolis and from Wyoming who I hope to see again some day. Once in Santiago, I walked towards the cathedral with the ladies from Minneapolis who were so funny together. They were a great team and reminded me other great comedy teams like Laverne & Shirley, Felix & Oscar or Bert & Ernie. When we got to the city limits, they stopped to look for a hotel, and I kept on to the Cathedral.
The first time I found the Cathedral about a week ago, I happened upon it down a back alley entrance area, and never really got the whole picture. This route took me through a wonderful part of town, through a huge tunnel where there were live musicians, and ended in huge square surrounded by shorter buildings, and at the one side of the square a VERY impressive St James Cathedral view. This experience was completely different from before, and was much more dramatic and appropriate for the end of a journey.
I sat down on the square for a bit while others walked by just looking at the Cathedral. While it was under construction (lots of scaffolds), it was still magnificent in it's size (which I hadn't noticed from the other angle). To go inside, I would need to check Bubba again, so decided to find a place to stay first, as I didn't have a reservation in Santiago until tomorrow night (the only one I made). What I didn't realize is that the town was PACKED, and I had read the Albergue fills up very early, so I began my search for a room. On about my 10th try, the receptionist said, yes, I have one room left, but it is very small. I said, I'll take it!
She gave me a key and pointed towards the stairs. I worked my way up, and up, and up (you get the idea) to the top floor and found my room number. It was at the end of the hall, and there was a large beam you had to duck under to get to my door. The door had a charming 45 degree angle cut in the upper right side (should have been my first clue). I opened the door, took a look inside, and began to giggle. Ok, well she DID say small. First, the room was really just a glorified storage closet with a twin bed and small desk/chair. There were no windows. It was also, how do I put this, horizontally challenged. I'm all of 5'5", maybe 5'6" in my hiking boots. When I walked into the room about 2 feet, Bubba scraped the ceiling beam. I took Bubba off, ducked down, and headed further into my room (think Willy Wonka where the room gets smaller and smaller as you go in).
It was then I noticed the skylight window in the ceiling on the short end of the room. In an effort to not panic with claustrophobia, I ran (ok, moved 1 step) to open it. What an amazing surprise. My miniature little room had a 5 star view that looked over the square, and the church bells were just next door and were magnificent to listen to. The best part is, I could just stand flat footed and peek out to see everything from there!
I met my friend Catalina that night for dinner and told her about my room. We decided we had to stop there after dinner for her to see it (as I'm not quite sure she believed me). After we both caught our breath at the top of the stairs, I took her in. She is taller than me, and had to hunch over everywhere but where the skylight window was open. As she was admiring the view, the bells went off. She looked over at me (hunched next to her as only one person fit comfortably in skylight) and started laughing. With the church bells ringing, no windows, and me all hunched over, she said I reminded her of Quasimodo. I looked back at her, all tall and head poking through the roof and said she reminded me of Alice in Wonderland when she ate the cake that made her "big". We both laughed so hard I think I may have peed my pants a little.
We went out for dessert and then I headed back to my room. I switched on the lights, and POP!, everything went dark, I had blown a fuse that affected my room and the hallway. With no front desk personnel to help and no phone in my room to call anyone, I had to rely on the ambient church lights shining through the skylight to find my bed. And fell asleep dreaming that I was Rapunzel......
- comments