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Day Thirteen on the Camino Primitivo, Final Steps from Lavacolla to Santiago de Compostela, 10 Kilometers (6.21 Miles)
Our day thirteen on the Camino Primitivo was our final day to experience all the emotions that seemed to present themselves to us as we walked our final steps into Santiago de Compostela.
"Man is a creature who walks in two worlds and traces upon the walls of his cave the wonders and the nightmare experiences of his spiritual pilgrimage." ~ Morris West
Yes, the above quote depicted how I felt on this day of our Camino! I felt like I was walking in two worlds.
As our minds inevitably thought about the end of our pilgrimage, and the "What next?" questions arose, our minds still tried to stay in the present, that wondrous liminal space, far separate from the "real" world!
Day Thirteen, Camino Primitivo Maps and Stats
Here is the Google interactive map for the final day thirteen on our Camino Primitivo, with only 10 kilometers left to go. Lavacolla was our starting point, just west of the airport.
There are so many services in these final kilometers. I placed accommodations on the map, along the way, but only albergues in Santiago de Compostela. If you want to divert from the albergue experience upon reaching Santiago, click here for reservations.
It is most important to have a reservation, to ensure that you have a bed, especially during high season and holidays! Many non-walking pilgrims come to this holy city and if you are walking, it would be unfortunate if you had difficulty finding a bed. Most of the private albergues will also take reservations!
The giant albergues near SdC are the Residencia De Peregrinos de San Lázaro, a municipal with 80 beds, just inside the city limits and right along the Way, the municipal Albergue de Peregrinos de Monte do Gozo, with 400 beds and the private Albergue Benvido Monte do Gozo, with hundreds of beds, both on the Monte de Gozo, about 5.0 km before town.
Here is the elevation profile for the day. We had one somewhat significant hill left to climb at the beginning of the day, of less than 100 meters (320 feet) and then, it was all downhill from there into Santiago de Compostela.
The Journey, Day Thirteen on the Camino Primitivo
Upon leaving the center of Lavacolla, along the N-634, before dawn, at around 7:30 a.m. on the southern side of town, the Way leaves the paved road and turns onto a path for a short distance. On this path, one actually crosses the Rio Sionlla, where there is an accessible spot to bathe in the river, see below.
Río Sionlla in the Pre-Dawn on Day Thirteen, Camino PrimitivoI had to take this photo, above, just for its historical significance, despite having to use a flash to see anything. I wish I had known about this spot the evening of day twelve, as I would have come here, waded in the "river" and sat for a while in prayer and contemplation.
As I told in the story of day twelve, the modern plaza and bridge in Lavacolla are nice, but I was hoping to find just a spot like this, to contemplate the significance of this river where the medieval pilgrims would bathe before entering the holy city of Santiago de Compostela.
If you are reading this before your day thirteen on the Camino Primitivo, you will have the opportunity to do so, even if you do not stop for the night in Lavacolla.
For the next four or so kilometers, I did not shoot any photos, as it was essentially dark, it looked like it was shaping up to be an overcast day, and there was not much that captured my interest.
We walked on country roads, past the Casa de Amancio, a casa rural, and the private Albergue O Fervello in the next town of Vilamaior after 1.3 kilometers on the road. I just put my head down to walk to the elevation top around the Galician TV station, CRTVG, about 1.67 kilometers later. After the TV station, you take the next left, by the Camping Peregrino San Marcus, with tent sites if you are carrying your own tent.
Below is a stretch of the long, straight and paved road after a right turn onto the road called Lagoa. This is not a very attractive area and is quite rural as you can see, with several industrial buildings along the way.
The Calle Lagoa on the Way to Monte do GozoBy about 8:20 in the morning, the sun was starting to peak out for the photo below. It is a long straight shot of about one kilometer on the Lagoa road on the way to Monte do Gozo.
With the sun up, as we approached these buildings in San Marcos, things appeared more attractive to me; an interesting metaphor.
Intersection AheadThe Way leaves the Calle Lagoa, takes a short jog before turning left here onto the Rúa de San Marcos, toward the famous Monte do Gozo, the "Mount of Joy."
There is the Hotel Akelarre in San Marcos if you wish to stay here.
As the sun was becoming stronger, I was fascinated by the light on the buildings, as the Way became less rural on day thirteen of the Camino Primitivo.
Crosswalk and SunlightRich and I talked and reflected quite a bit on our journey and its effect on us. We were at peace with our journey, and the lovely morning light added to our contentment as we walked through the hamlet of San Marcos.
It was so easy to be grateful on this day thirteen on our Camino Primitivo, with Santiago de Compostela almost within sight and the glorious break-through of the sun to warm our hearts.
Around this bend in San Marcos, below, a few meters onward is the entrance to the park of Monte do Gozo on a high hill. The entrance to the park is only about ½ kilometer after the prior turn. This famous park, in English, means the "Mount of Joy." It is said that on this hill, the pilgrims, who could see the towers of the Cathedral for the first time, would fall down in rapture.
Monte do Gozo Just Ahead on Day Thirteen, Camino PrimitivoAt the top of the Monte do Gozo hill, if you are looking for a large monument that was built to commemorate the visit by Pope John Paul II in August of 1993 for World Youth Day, it has been removed! Yes, it is gone, due to its deterioration and hazard for onlookers.
Farther along, beyond the entrance and hilltop is the Chapel of San Marcos. It looked relatively new to me, but is worthy of a stop for joy and reflection. The peregrinos are signing into the register, below. You are about 5.3 kilometers from Lavacolla when you arrive here.
For some reason, I suppose insufficient research on my part, we did not know how to go to the Monument ao Peregrino, just over the hill to the south of the modern monument. This is the monument of the two pilgrims, facing the cathedral spires of Santiago de Compostela. (Click on link to see the photo). It is a full ½ kilometer off-Camino to the south of the Monumento do Monte de Gozo. Just follow the path by the chapel above, over the hill and cross the street on the other side until you come to it.
I knew that it was on this mount that one could get a first glimpse of the cathedral towers, because I had read about it. I wrongly assumed that the glimpse would be from the top of the hill, and we walked all around the top of the hill to locate the cathedral in the distance, to no avail!
In hindsight, I should have asked someone, but I just assumed that I had gotten my information wrong. If you desire to see this famous monument, and fall down in rapture at the first sight of the cathedral towers, make sure you locate it on Google maps, before leaving by the chapel on the Rúa do Gozo.
I was so disappointed to have missed the cathedral sighting on the Mount of Joy! I did include the location of the monument on the interactive, Google map above, so you, dear pilgrimage traveler will not miss it, if you chose to go.
We chose to go onward down the hill on the paved road towards Santiago de Compostela! Just after the chapel, look for the left turn to the municipal Albergue de Peregrinos de Monte do Gozo. Notice the rows and rows of albergue buildings to your left as you walk down the hill. Farther downhill, you can find the entrance to the Albergue Benvido Monte do Gozo. The Hotel Santiago Apóstol and the Gran Hotel Los Abetos are also nearby if you wish for a hotel close to the Camino but outside the city.
Onward to Santiago de Compostela on the Rúa do GozoPictured below is the final descent from the Monto do Gozo.
From the top of Monte do Gozo, the remainder of the Camino requires only about one more hour to complete the final 4.75 kilometers to the cathedral. Here is the pedestrian bridge that marks the outskirts of the city where you pick up the N-634 into town and walk on it for the next 1.5 kilometers.
Crossing the Bridge over the AP-9 into Santiago de CompostelaBy 9:00 a.m. we had arrived at the city limits, after walking through a large roundabout, marked by this sculpture and sign that says "Santiago de Compostela!"
It is just beyond the Santiago sign, at the next smaller roundabout, that the Residencia de Peregrinos de San Lázaro municipal albergue can be found, just behind the museum, to the north. Look for the signs. There is also one hotel to the north, the Hotel San Jacobo and two hotels just to the south, the Hotel OCA Puerta del Camino and the Hotel Eurostars San Lázaro. A few more steps onward is the albergue Dream in Santiago.
We actually slowed our steps as we arrived into the city, as if to savor the final moments. We certainly were filled with contentment, that our goal was in sight on this day thirteen of the Camino Primitivo. We even stopped for a sort of celebratory café con leche and croissants, just after nine, before entering the main part of the city, below. It felt appropriate.
When I researched facts for this article, I read that it was the tradition for pilgrims to walk the final steps from Monte do Gozo to the Cathedral, barefoot. I was grateful that I was unaware of this tradition, as I don't know how practical this would be on modern city streets!
On the Rúa das FontiñasThe Camino leaves the N-634 to turn left onto the Rúa das Fontiñas, shown above. There are many private albergues along this short, barely one kilometer stretch of road. In the order that you see them are the Albergue Fin de Camino, a few steps south of the Way, the Albergue Santo Santiago, the Albergue A Fonte de Compostela the Albergue Monterry, the Albergue Turístico La Credencial, the Albergue SCQ, and the Albergue Sixtos no Caminho. After crossing the N-550, the Camino picks up the Rúa dos Concheiros for the next 350 meters. You encounter even more albergues, the Albergue Santos, the Albergue La Estrella de Santiago, and the Albergue Porta Real.
When the street becomes the Rúa de San Pedro, the first glimpses of the cathedral towers come into focus, (see photo below). For us, since we missed this on Monte do Gozo, this was our first glimpse!
For my husband, Rich, who had not yet been to Santiago de Compostela, it was his moment of joy! (And for me too!) Fueled with our café con leche, we were now eager to get there, and quickened our pace!
At the end of the Rúa de San Pedro, just before entering the old city at the Porta do Camiño, or the original medieval gate, is a small plaza with park benches and this cruceiro. The Museo de Pobo Galega is just behind it.
Here is Rich getting ready to cross the Rúa das Rodas into the heart of the city and what would have been walled in medieval times, on day thirteen of our Camino Primitivo.
Here I am, below, at the famous portal into the City, the Porta do Camiño. This is where the original walls would have had a gate. We were mere steps from the cathedral.
Into the heart of the old city now, we logged our final steps on the Rúa das Casas Reais...
... which led to the north side of the Cathedral through the Praza de Inmaculada...
...down through the tunnel and finally to the main Praza do Obradoiro, for the traditional victory shot! We had made it, indeed, on day thirteen, Camino Primitivo.
Shortly after arriving on the praza, we stumbled onto Mattias. Despite his foot problems, he had made it. We contacted Glyvia, and she was also due to arrive shortly after us.
We checked into and stayed at the historic former monastery of the Hospedería de San Martín Pinario, which is well worth it, but there are many accommodations available in the city of Santiago de Compostela. We usually prefer to stay in a hotel once we arrive in Santiago, and have stayed in the Casa Celsa - Barbantes, the Pensión Pazo de Agra, the Pensión Residencia Fornos and the Airiños Aires. They are all comfortable, clean and economical. You can search for many others by clicking here for booking.com.
There are also many albergues in the city, two right along the French way just before the cathedral, the Albergue The Last Stamp and the Albergue Azabache. In addition, to the north of the cathedral there is the Blanco Albergue, and the Albergue Santiago KMO. An finally, there is the huge Albergue Seminario Menor to the south.
It may be prudent to book ahead in Santiago, especially during holidays and peak summer months.
We all gathered together for lunch, after the noon mass, at my favorite, the Casa Manolo for a nice family reunion. The food as always, was delicious.
Rich, Glyvia, Saskia, Mattias, and ElleWe heard that at the pilgrim's mass every Friday at 7:30 p.m., it was guaranteed that the botafumeiro would swing. How lucky that we had arrived on a Friday! (This has since changed. Click here for the current schedule. In addition to this schedule, you may be lucky enough to be at a mass after a large tourist group pays to see it swing).
We were able to secure seats in the section reserved for pilgrims by getting there one hour early. Make sure you bring your pilgrim's passport to prove that you are a pilgrim, if needed. We had front and center seats!
And indeed, we saw the botafumeiro swing! Click here to see more of this one-of-a-kind experience. It was an amazing wrap for our final, day thirteen on the Camino Primitivo.
Saskia, Glyvia and Rich in the Cathedral of Santiago de CompostelaReflections on Day Thirteen of our Camino Primitivo
The final steps on the Camino Primitivo truly felt like I had one foot in one world and one foot in another. The day was fraught with many emotions that we had difficulty identifying. Was it relief? Was it joy? Was it simply satisfaction that we did it, that it was over?
Rich says that for him, his primary emotion was sadness, because now we had to go back to the "to do" list and all it entailed. I felt an immediate emotional response to this for it rang so true in my own heart. Life would no longer be so simple again.
I didn't want to go back to what we could see in our future at hand, the constant business of having a thousand things to do. We hoped and wanted to get over that now, and pace things better. We wanted a world in which there was no hurry, no reason to constantly be forcing ourselves to "do" stuff.
We were hopeful that we would take this lesson home - the simplicity of the Camino, being in the moment, and the Presence of God in it all. It was so wonderful to forget everything, forget all of our concerns, forget our responsibilities and duties, and even forget the date - if only for thirteen days!
It was easy for us, and very quickly we had slipped into the present and simple way of being at the start of our Camino Primitivo and throughout all the days. We also knew too well how easy it would be to slip back into the busyness and craziness. We were feeling these emotions already, and we weren't even home.
We also reflected on the angst and difficulty of travel for the medieval pilgrims and their great hope for healing and absolution; this seeking that had gone on for centuries as they journeyed to Santiago!
Just speaking of this truth made me feel emotional because I felt the energy, the pain and the suffering they must have gone through in order to do the Camino. It must have been unbelievable. Some of them didn't make it. Some died along the way ~ or the way back.
The most amazing thing in my mind is not only did the medieval pilgrims need to get to Santiago, but they had to figure out how to get back! We modern pilgrims don't get this, as we can just hop on a bus, plane or train to get back because the goal is merely Santiago de Compostela!
Think how anticlimactic it would be for the modern pilgrim, for us to have to walk all the way back from where we started! I would be SO discouraged if I had to walk all the way back to Oviedo! Most of the medieval pilgrims came from much, much farther away than merely Oviedo.
All of this pilgrimage history is very interesting to reflect upon; to not lose sight of what has been here for so many years. Most modern pilgrims are here for their own sport and not much more. There is nothing wrong with that, but I just couldn't help reflecting on the dramatic difference between then and now!
We did also feel true joy, there is no doubt, upon our completion of the Original Way and throughout our entire day thirteen on the Camino Primitivo. We did feel real relief, also. We did feel an incredible sense of accomplishment and gratitude to God from deep within our hearts. We did feel a sense of brotherhood for all we met and a spirit of community difficult to match elsewhere.
Yet here we were on our final day and by far, the most overwhelming emotion was one of sadness that our journey was about to end. Already we were dreading going back into the "real world" and all its encumbrances. Reintegrating into life, yet keeping the Camino spirit was the real challenge.
Which of the two worlds is real? Is the pilgrimage traveler one who successfully navigates both worlds? Yes, perhaps, as with the completion of each Camino, perhaps we can see more clearly, more quickly, more easily where we fail to marry our lives with simplicity, community, luminosity, curiosity and Presence to God!
Salutation
May your day thirteen on your Camino Primitivo be filled with wonder at your many emotions! May you carry with you the hope for completion and absolution, as you need in your own life. May your final steps on your Camino be blessed as you take your lessons learned, and navigate the two worlds with Grace, Love and Presence! Ultreia!
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