Pilgrims, Pontevedre and St James

SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA--The drive from Portugal north yesterday into Spain is quite mountainous with ocean and fjord views from time to time. Very pretty countryside, unlike much of Spain that is so arid. We stopped for a quick tour and lunch in Pontevedre just over the border. We learned about the architecture and history of the town, noting that it has many covered porches along the sidewalks. They were built to give refuge from the rainy days, which we gather are many, though the weather has been perfect for us. We introduced friends Carl and Bonnie to two dishes they had never had before, local octopus and mussels. Coupled with a small glass of home made coffee liqueur, and two plates of grilled pimientos de padron, the lunch was a big success. 

Regrettably, the dinner of tapas at the hotel in Santiago that evening duplicated the dishes we had had for lunch, adding some steak with frites, a salad and some small tunafish sandwiches. At our table the octopus and the tunafish were not hits. The white wine, though, from the Ribiero region was very good, though the Mencia red was ordinary. 

The hotel, the Hostal dos Reis Católicos, is a parador, a five star run by the state in a historic old building, a hospital from the Middle Ages that was turned into a hotel about 65 years ago. It has huge rooms with heavy furniture, magnificent courtyards and a beautiful site right on the main praza (Galician for plaza) and at the door is the magnificent cathedral of Santiago. 

The city is built on the idea that St. James the Greater’s body was found here about 800 CE, and at this site the cathedral was built. It has been a goal of pilgrims for hundreds of years who walk 500 miles from Roncesvalles, France, to Santiago de Compostela and receive an indulgence wiping away all sins if they walked for at least 60 miles or biked for at least 120! The cathedral is magnificent, even for jaded cathedral visitors like us. Though not as grand as Sevilla in Andalusia, it is equally as golden and awe-inspiring.  St James symbol is a shell, seen all over the city.

Galician Piper

  

Joaquin, very good guide

The high altar

Galicia was founded by Celts and there is often the wafting sound of bagpipes in the air.  Further it has its own language, similar to Portuguese, but not a dialect of Portuguese.