Post Camino -recovery phase....

Staying in a lovely hotel for recovery phase 1. Have to say after meeting up and eating out with friends and fellow pilgrims we slept the sleep of the dead. Awoke to a lovely leisurely breakfast served in a sunny nook on the terrace and a day of light duties ahead of us.

First call was to find our new hotel and shift our gear and then onto attend the pilgrims mass at the catedral.
The botafumeiro will not swing today. Yesterday a peregrino paid five hundred euros for the ceremony but today no sign of any activity as we await the mass.The nuns are tending the flowers and the choir is rehearsing. The interior of the catedral is impressive,the high alter is a work of art and tradition has it that you climb up  the steps behind St James and hug the apostle before proceeding to the crypt and giving thanks before the casket containing the relics of the saint.
We are here to hear New Zealand read out in the pilgrim roll of honour.

We took an audio tour of the catedral after the ceremony.The catedral is Jacobean in design with  a baroque  alter design featuring St James protected by angels. The statue of St James on horseback  vanquishing the Moors  and saving Christendom is impressive. One has to respect the traditions and history of such a rich repository of devotion over centuries of worship by the faithful.
We missed out on much of this as we do not have the religious knowledge to understand all the imagery.

We were too late for the rooftop tour so we took a picnic to the park and enjoyed the sun for an hour or so before meeting up with the Portugues pilgrim group for drinks and a meal of meat! A great meal and good company in a very special place.Scott and Cha Cha,Ron and Vanessa,Mark,Oscar,Katrina,Christina and others whose names escape me spent a lovely evening together before going our separate ways. It seemed so sad to put our shared adventure to bed but the time had come and we dispersed later that night to our respective lives around the globe.

 

The highlight was the botafumeiro ceremony at the Wednesday mass. An awe inspiring  sight  I have to say. We were sitting just below the casket as it swung over our heads.