This was the last day of my ride, and I successfully made it to Santiago de Compostela without any flat tires, broken chains or major injuries over the course of 6 days.
Despite the fact that the town I left from this morning has maybe three streets, this is what I did trying to find the correct way out. Perhaps the coffee wasn’t as strong as it seemed.
I arrived here along with several hundred pilgrims. Scenes like this along the way weren’t typical, but it did happen from time to time. A guy I bought a cold drink from told me that the crowds are much larger in the spring and fall than they are now. But even with these groups, people were very nice to me when I rang my little bell coming up behind them. “Buen Camino” they would call out to me, over and over and over again as they scampered out of the way and I left them in a cloud of dust.
And here’s the payoff, the cathedral of St. James. There were lots of people resting on the ground, heads on their backpacks or taking group pictures holding their fingers in the shape of a “V” or some other gang symbols with which I’m not familiar. Some of them have been walking for many weeks to get here. During the last six days I passed lots of people along the way changing clothes, rubbing ointment on their blistered feet, conducting animated video calls with loved ones on speaker, trying to get a good cell signal, etc. and they always seemed to be pretty chipper.
The Camino itself is a mixed bag. There are probably thousands of ways to take the “Camino” across France, Spain and Portugal, and the settings are wildly varied, from forest and oceanfront paths to village and city streets and highways. I understand the appeal of walking it, but I would be way too impatient.
Tomorrow is a free day in Santiago and then off to the rugged northwestern coast of Spain. But before I leave, do I want a commemorative statuette, shot glass, or tattoo?
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