Husa Ciudad de Compostela Santiago de Compostela

... have been gathering for centuries to visit the tomb of St James. The Cathedral itself was magnificent, and the surrounding buildings where also very impressive. Shopping in the narrow flag stoned streets was a delight. We stayed at were given refreshments in a former hospital dating from around 1513 which is a listed building and is now a first class hotel. It was all very grand.

... wildest part was at teh end of Mass when a 6 ft incensor is lowered from high above the altar. It is set on fire and incense thrown on it, then 5 or 6 men start yanking on pulleys that make that baby swing way up into the air. I tried to get some photos of it, but without flash most are a bit "shakey", but you'll get the idea. The next was the tour of the palace and the cathedral roof. Mass was going on down stairs and the<br>organ ...

... the city which contains all the old buildings and churches is pedestrianised and huddles round the grand cathedral. The Cathedral is vast and very ornate. The guide books say that is best seen in the rain so that all the lichens and mosses are highlighted. The weather duly obliged!<br><br>The car has decided to have a sick day and has gone to the Ford dealer to recuperate! We collect it tonight and move on to Portugal in the morning.

... does the paying, and we couldn't have been more clear that we were expecting friends). We enter this club and find that he has reserved a VIP table in the corner with a velvet rope and all. A waiter comes and asks for our orders, and once we realize that this guy is paying for all our drinks, we order and sit there talking and drinking. I get one of the other girls to ask him his name, which turns out to be Doglas (DOE-glass). We sit there talking amongst ourselves ...

... were actually wearing the shell. It was traditional for pilgrims to put the shell either around their neck or on their pack to identify themselves as a religious pilgrim, so I was intrigued by how few people seemed to have done the pilgrimage for purely religious reasons. Our guide told us that now, the pilgrimage is just at common among outdoor enthusiasts as it is among religious Catholics. <br><br>Since the cathedral was filling up for mass, we left to walk to the Parque ...

... popular song in Galicia. After that they &#8211; once again &#8211; started with Badlands. And although I love the song, and I can hardly imagine a show without it being played, a different, more surprising, opener would&#8217;ve been nice for a change; it&#8217;s been 3 out of 3 this tour for me. I do like the fist pumping though ;-). The next day my shoulder is a bit sore and I just have to laugh. A man almost twice my age rocks for over three ...

... that she herself decided to complete the walk. I decided that I wanted to head back to the cathedral later in the day to get pictures as I was too involved in the mass to consider multi-tasking. What I discovered, was that the evening mass was a much bigger deal and included the choir and all of the priests performing mass together, led by the archbishop. All I could think about was Grammy and ...

... a social centre which supports people without homes; people without papers; arrested activists; the occupation of houses (which is not really happening here in Santiago, because the police is pretty brutal); they organise variability of workshops and have a free radiosender ¨Kalimera¨ (which provides alternative information); a workinggroup on the position of mexican women and every wednesday there is a diner ¨Xantar Popular¨ (info: http ...

... everyone who made my 2 week trip turn into the best 5 weeks of my life. Thanks also to everyone who read this, I hope we have made it entertaining. I know I am excited to hear about the rest of Cris's adventures. Cris, thanks again man...time of my life. We'll do it again sometime. Adios everyone, Adam --------------------------------------- --------------------------------------- --------- Alright back to Cris´s evening. Adam I will miss ya too ...

... out a modern water treatment plant. Up the hill on a minor road we pass what has to be a piggery, then descend back to the river through heavily pruned oak and chestnut trees. Very nice walking, look down on fishermen on the river, walk through farm complexes, down into the river flats, across the river, past a new, very flash house next to a very ugly shed, possibly temporary residence. Pass a weird sign relating to fish, get away from the river up a hill, then ...