Thought yesterday’s post was beautiful? Wait until you read about Day 3. I still can’t believe a country can be this breathtaking all the time, and that I’m living in it. I try hard every day to soak up what I can because I know a time will come where I can’t be immersed in it. Thankfully, I have this blog and some amazing stories to keep stunning views like this from ever leaving my memory.
This is me (Maddy) standing atop a 15th-century castle, but I’ll get to that later. To start the day, our group explored Santiago de Campostela, the capital of the region of Galicia and the final destination of Patron Santiago’s Christian pilgrimage. The weather was pretty gray, making for a slightly eerie walk throughout the town. The architecture, of course, was incredibly detailed and all the more beautiful with dark clouds and ringing church bells. All around us were modern-day pilgrims finishing their personal journeys. We passed lots of stands selling walking sticks with Santiago’s signature symbol.
Above is the inside of the Catedral de Santiago, where every pilgrim yearns to be and where Santiago himself is buried. When we arrived, a service was going on and we were lucky enough to explore and listen in. At one point, a few priests hoisted up a giant lantern filled with special incense and began to swing it across the church (until it almost touched the ceiling!). This is now a tradition, but used to be use to freshen up the church after all the un-showered pilgrims had entered!
The cathedral really was beautiful. For someone who is not very religious, it really was breathtaking to witness people who dedicate their lives to it. Along the walls sat mini-confessionals with priests inside, ready to listen to anyone’s problems. I enjoyed it a lot.
After the cathedral, we headed to lunch at a pulpateria, where octopus is the menu specialty. We got to try a bit, and I actually liked it! It tasted sort of life calamari. The best part was dessert–leche frito! Literally, fried milk, they came served in squares that tasted a bit like very bland flan. I loved it.
Our day ended in the town of Sanabria, a small town that is known for the castle that sits overlooking it (named Castillo del Pueblo Sanabria). We got there a little late in the evening so we were the last group to take the tour–which really meant a bunch of teenagers running around a 15th-century castle pretending they were royalty. The top photo is actually me pretending to be a princess. The photo below is what I meant when I talked about Spain’s beauty. Where in the U.S. would you get a view like this?
That’s all for now. Look out for Day 4: Salamanca!
Paz y amor,
Maddy
Two Syracuse Broads Abroad 