Day 34 - O Pedrouzo to Santiago de Compostela
Last day! Today we walked about 20km into Santiago on day 34 of our Camino. Ali and Klaas came over to our place first thing so we could put our bags in their car. The plan was for all eight of us to walk to Santiago together and then they would taxi back to the car and bring everything to Santiago.
The stone marking the entrance to Santiago appeared as we turned a corner.
We then reached a beautiful little hamlet with a cafe and church on the outskirts of Lavacolla where we had coffee and cake. Mitch managed to see the end of the Welsh rugby game!
Suddenly we were at 10km to go. The extra company and chilled pace meant the day seemed to be passing easily and the good news was that Mitch's feet were standing up to the task.
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We set off in cool and cloudy weather, but it was dry so we were all in good spirits. We hadn't had breakfast so we walked to Amenal at 2.3km for breakfast. The route was very busy as expected, but there was a buzz in the air as everyone was thinking about the end!
For the last four or five days we have been walking through eucalyptus trees. The smell is fabulous and they grow to an amazing height!
With just over 5km to go we stopped outside Monte do Gozo for lunch. Soon after we restarted we saw Santiago in the distance. As with so many of the cities we have walked into over the last 34 days, the walk in seemed to take ages.
And suddenly we were there! In the square in front of the cathedral! It was quite something to reach the end, when for so long of the walk it was too far away to even be part of our consciousness.
Then time for a celebratory beer with the perfect complimentary snack of paella!
Once we were checked in to our apartments, Ali and Klaas headed back to O Pedrouzo for the car and bags and the rest of us went to pick up our compostela and distance certificate.
Out for the evening knowing we can stay up till all hours as no alarm tomorrow!!
Today's route...
Woohoo!! You’ve done it. Congratulations all. X
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful adventure and a great achievement, congratulations! Thank you for sharing your journey with all its 'ups and downs', we have really enjoyed reading your blog and following your day to day progress on this journey. Time for a rest and a few refreshments! Donna and Penny xx
ReplyDeleteWell done Mairi. The only one who managed to walk every single step and still had the energy to write her blog everyday. Thanks for all your support during the trip.
ReplyDeleteMitch xx