Sigüeiro to Santiago de Compostela - June 6

And so the final push into Santiago. Just over 10 miles away, this should feel like a mere hop, skip and a jump compared to the last 2 days! Given that, we rose late(ish) and hit the road. And the road it was...the busy main road to Santiago with rush hour traffic aplenty. It was very misty, murky and noisy. After half a mile we turned away from the road onto back lanes. Although the traffic on them was negligible, they ran parallel with the main road 400m over to our left. The views would have been peaceful and serene if weren't for the omnipresent noise from the main road, and the motorway that appeared. That was how it was to be for the first few miles.




Initially we climbed. Enough to be just above most of the mist. So again, we were treated to atmospheric views as we moved in and out of the mist. Sadly the traffic noise remained.

Clearly the excitement of closing in on Santiago got the better of our bearings. So much so, we thought we must have missed two coffee stops. We walked on uphill and into the delightful shady forest. It really was quite tranquil with the trees blocking  the traffic noise, and the increasingly hot sun. 






Then all of a sudden we heard a strange squeaking  squealing  noise...not unlike the sound of a cat being  strangled (well what I imagine that might sound like). We approached with a degree of caution, then all of a sudden realised it was the sound of Galician bagpipe music. As if it were being played by the Pied Piper himself it enticed us up some steps....and lo and behold to the coffee place we thought we'd missed 40 minutes earlier. Either way, a very welcome respite. By the way Paul Cooper, before you start up; I was not lost!


Café con leche on board and some silly pictures taken (below), we were back on our way.


Looking every part the girl from Zummerzet

Next stop Manuel's bar and grill, allegedly with the first views of the magnificent cathedral spires a couple of miles away. Shortly after setting off towards Manuel's we had the unusual sight of a Policia Locale vehicle struggling up the Camino path with barely 2 inches of clearance either side of it. That prompted a conversation regarding how sad it was that elements of the criminal community prey on the Camino Pilgrims. Amongst the Camino  fraternity there is a sense of family, and a huge amount of mutual trust. A level of trust than can easily lead to dropping of the guard in terms of security; making Pilgrims relatively soft targets. A sad but salutary reminder as we headed towards the big city.


The Billy Goat under close surveillance 

After traipsing through the dull, shadeless industrial units we got to Manuel's. Firstly, there was no view. And secondly Manuel was a miserable old git! I'll be sticking to Dino's Bar and Grill... especially when the Boys Are Back In Town!.

Round the corner from  Manuel’s Meson de Misery there was a view of the Cathedral...but nothing too spectacular.


We pushed onto to the centre. Our route in from the North meets the main Camino Frances route coming in from the West about 300m from journey's end at the Cathedral. We knew that my old school mate, Paul Thomas, would be arriving today to complete his Camino Primitivo, and were hoping to meet up later on. As we turned onto the main route we heard a shout. "Hey Nodge"...... yep it was Paul. Beyond serendipity! It had been over 30 years since Cate last saw him ( both regulars at the White Hart in Headington- the infamous haunt of trainee Nurses).





We walked to the square, where it was the usual chaos of celebrating Pilgrims from all over the world. We met some of Paul's Primitivo mates, before heading to get our Credencials stamped, and the completion certificates (Compostela's).





Forty minutes later we met Paul again, and it was definitely "Beer o'clock" . And that was the afternoon gone. Meeting Paul was always a possibility,  but not a probability, nevertheless to do so at that point was spellbinding. Weird stuff happens on the Camino.




After 6 virtually rain free days of walking, the heavens opened at about 8pm, and didn't stop again for another 16 hours. Again, mystical good fortune.


The view from our room 

We walked in the rain up to nearby Parque Alameda to take in the classical Cathedral view. Our race was run. Too idle to go out for something eat (or maybe paying the price for afternoon drinking!) we got snacks from a supermarket and had a bedroom picnic to the sound of incessant bell ringing from the nearby Cathedral. 






And that was the Camino Inglés. Most of the day in Santiago tomorrow, before flying to Bilbao, and onwards to San Sebastian.


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