We spent a few days in the Santiago de Campostela area. We had a campsite that overlooked the the town of Santiago (from a bit of distance).
For those not familiar, Santiago is where all the Camino trails come together as the end of different pilgrimage routes. There is one from France, one from Portugal, one from Spain (probably more than one actually). People hike these very long (or occasionally short) trails as a religious or spiritual journey, as a source of self-discovery (after all, you'd get to know yourself pretty well if you hiked here from France) or just as a source of "can I do it?" or pride of achievement. Many of the hikers really rough it, carrying a small tent and camping out. Others stay in hotels/hostels or other nicer places so they get a bed at night. Some hike up to a year, some just a few days. Some are in groups and others are alone. This journey goes to the Cathedral de Santiago de Campostela, where the apostle, St. James, famously preached and was buried. It was cool to see these hikers, many nearly limping into town, see this amazing cathedral. Their faces were filled with pride and exhaustion in most cases.
This last image is a giant incense burner that hangs in the middle of the church. It can be swung during special services or festivals. This smells really good - sort of like sandalwood and something sweet. I'm sure it was needed in the older days of having weary pilgrams show up who hadn't showered in weeks. It definitely helped when we were there and made this the best smelling church I've ever been in.
We walked around this town for several hours and saw some gorgeous sites (I'll put them under More Pics). One of the more interesting was the local farmers market. This region specializes in octopus, hams and also bulls (for steak?? - I suspect first for fighting).
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