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It's time to talk about the Cathedral of St James, which deserves an entire entry.
Before I begin, I wanted to let you know I have very few pictures of the inside of the cathedral. In many places there were no cameras allowed at all, and in others, no flash, so my phone did not do anything justice. I would recommend googling it if you would like to see more. It really was incredible.
When I first visited the Cathedral last week, to be honest I kind of breezed through. It seemed I rushed into the mass, stopped at a few of the highlights, and briefly saw the Apostle. I really did not spend much time, so I had no idea how immense it was, how many different areas there were, and how many different "mini" churches there were inside this enormous structure.
When I returned to Santiago yesterday, I saw a sign for a "Pilgrim Meditation" in the Cathedral at 6pm, which was just before I was to meet Catalina for dinner. Sounded perfect, as I wanted to see more of the Cathedral, and some meditation sounded great.
I worked my way in and followed signs that took me to the church within the church where the meditation was to be held. There was a priest inside, and some other folks started coming in and sitting in the pews near me - about 12-14 people total. The priest was walking around and asking what language everyone spoke... I thought, how nice - he is making small talk with everyone before we start our group meditation. But then found out that when they said "Pilgrim Meditation", they meant a tour of the Cathedral focusing it on the Pilgrim history and perspective. Sounds great, right? Well, one minor detail. The reason the priest was asking what languages we spoke was to decide what language to give the tour in. And, unfortunately, one of his languages was NOT English. When he came to me he was very polite, and asked if I spoke Spanish? nope. French? not so much. Italian? wish I did. German? neit. Latin? oh come on - really?
Once he and I established that I spoke Solamente Ingles (only English), he announced in a very loud voice to everyone else while pointing towards me, "Esta senora no habla Espanol, no habla Italiano, no habla Frances, no habla Aleman" (this lady does not speak Spanish, she doesn't speak Italian, she doesn't speak French, she does not speak German) - Hablas Solamente Ingles!! - and then kind of threw his shoulders and hands up and made a gesture like, "what's a priest to do?"
The priest finally settled on Spanish, as everyone else on the tour understood it (oh, and might I say at least one other language each - I was really feeling inept). It was bad enough the first time the priest announced my lack of language prowess; but periodically through the tour, he would look and speak right at me during something that seemed very important, then the entire crowd would look at me, too. When I had a deer in the headlights look and no response, he'd repeat (again what seemed to be unnecessarily loud) "Esta senora no habla Espanol, no habla....." well, you get the point. He went through the whole thing again.
Each time, I would look sheepish, motion that it was no problem, I was fine, and to please continue. In the beginning, I thought it might be best to leave, as I couldn't understand anything anyway - but I felt that that would be rude. About 10 minutes into the tour, I noticed security ushering all of the remaining visitors out of the building, and they were locking all of the doors (as the cleaning crew had begun their day). At that point, I was in it for the long haul. After a bit, I found myself zoning out from the tour and just soaking in everything.... each room we went through was so drastically different and amazing in either it's simplicity or ornateness. How could all of this be housed in the same structure? To be honest, I became happy with the fact that I did not know the language and was not confined to only looking at what the group was focusing on (which must have looked kinda funny as the priest would say something, and the entire group would look one direction - yet, I was sometime looking in the exact opposite direction).
I was in my own world - in awe of every nook and cranny of the rooms we visited. The details, the materials used, the artistry, the colors and tones, the purpose behind each room - it was all fascinating. It was interesting to imagine things like who completed the work in the room and what the room was used for. This part was fun, and top that off with the fact that I was one of such a small group of people in this famous cathedral - locked in - it was one of the best tours I have been on - even though I didn't understand a word.
When they let us out, I found Catalina waiting by the horse fountain. She was so concerned, as she knew I did not speak Spanish, and she arrived at the church just after the doors were locked. She actually argued with one of the guards to let her in to see me (she's feisty!), but he would not allow it. She asked me how the meditation was. I locked arms with hers and said, "I have a funny story to tell you over dinner" as we began walking down the alleyways of Santiago.
Now forward to today. My last day in Santiago. Really only 1 thing on my list to do. Spend as much time as I could in the Cathedral. This desire came mostly from my visit last night, and realizing how much more there was to see. The rest came from my needing to finish my 4 steps in the noted Pilgrim Ritual:
1. Stand before the Tree of Jesse
2. Touch your brow to that of Maestro Mateo
3. Hug the apostle (a huge silver jewel encrusted bust of St James that sits about 6 feet tall) and say what you came here to say
4. Kneel before the crypt that contains the remains of St James under the church
I completed #1 & #2 on my first visit.
I completed #4 on my tour last night, which was an amazing and a powerful experience, as you walk down under the altar where there is a shiny silver crypt in a tunnel in the wall and a kneeler in front so you can see in the wall. It was especially incredible with such a small group and not at all crowded as usual.
As you may recall, I attempted to complete #3 on my first visit, but I did not complete this step, as the Apostle "told" me to complete my trip and come back.
It was finally time for the Apostle and I to have a chat.
I started my day walking around the Cathedral and trying to see all the areas I did not see last night. The line to see the Apostle was very long, so I waited for it to die down a bit. Finally, the line was only about 15 minutes long, so I got in the queue. As I moved slowly along in the line I tried to gather my thoughts. I had SO MUCH to tell him this time! Now, not that my first communication of thanking him for getting me there without the need for a hospital stay wasn't true, and something to be very grateful for.... and appropriate given me and the situation.... however.... Where would I start this time?
After a while, I decided to start with a simple "thanks for calling". They say one is called to walk the way of St James. I'd say that's exactly what happened to me. Somehow, the movie "The Way" ended up on my doorstep, and once I watched it (and googled and found out the Camino was real and not just a movie script), I knew instantly that I needed to go. I'm not sure what a calling feels like, but it was something inside that felt like a magnet pulling me. You guys know me. I don't hike. I don't backpack. I don't do pilgrimages. I don't "wing" vacations (not knowing where I'm going, where I'm staying, etc). But from the moment I knew there was a Camino, there was never a doubt in my mind that I would go, and never a fear that I wouldn't figure it out. I'd fly into Porto, and fly back from Santiago. No plans in between whatsoever. When anyone asked me why I was going, I never had a reason other than I had to, and I was filled with excitement that grew as the date got closer. So, I guess that would qualify for a calling. And I guess I just wanted to tell him that I'm glad he called.
Before I knew it, I was heading up those worn marble stairs again. This time, I knew where the Apostle was, and was not as hesitant. I waited for the person in front of me to finish, and I ran right up, threw my arms around him, and laid my head on his shoulder. I told him I was glad he called. I told him that I got it now. I thanked him for the messages I received along the way, and began going through them one by one in my mind. Each one more amazing than the one before. It was then I realized I may have over-stayed my welcome. Someone behind me actually cleared their throat, so I stopped mid-sentence in my mind, turned my head back to look at them (while I was still hugging him), and actually said out loud to the statue - "Hold that thought, I'll be right back". I exited quickly down the stairs, and worked my way back around into the queue.
Back up the stairs.... full on hug.... head on shoulder.... "let's see, where did I leave off... oh, yes... and I also want to thank you for telling me I wasn't done before and to come back and talk to you later, and I want to thank you for "this" - that was really cool!, and "that" - I never thought of that before!", etc. All such personal and deeply moving things. This time, I was cognizant of the line and those behind me, so I stopped after a few thoughts and gave him another, "Be right back!". Down the stairs, around the line, up the stairs again. After round 5 or 6, I finally felt as if I had said all of what I needed to say, and I felt euphoric. What a ride.
Now I had done it all. It felt complete.
I spent the rest of my day saying goodbye to friends I had met along the way, and walking through town. I had a wonderful dinner at a great tapas place - can't believe it took me until the last night in Spain to find and enjoy some tapas! It was completely worth the wait.
Tomorrow starts EARLY.... so time for bed.
p.s. I added in the video from my camera of my first visit - and the swinging incense (click to view)
p.p.s. Note to self - order Rosetta Stone as soon as I get home
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