Santiago de Compestela, Spain: Hiking the Camino de Santiago (The Way of St. James) is an incredible experience. There are more than a dozen official caminos, all ending in this ancient, bustling city filled with plazas, shops, restaurants, and lively venues of music and art. Arriving pilgrims congregate at the Praza de Obradoiro where the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela is located. The Cathedral houses the remains of Saint James, who became associated with various miracles leading to pilgrimage routes that developed in the first century. The Pilgrim Office is located nearby where pilgrims (i.e. hikers) obtain their compostelas — the official document that notes the pilgrim walked at least the last 100 km. There is an additional document for those who walked further. The most popular camino, the Camino Frances, is 800 km (500 miles) and spans the entire country of Spain.
Charlie and I have walked the Camino Frances in its entirety twice — once in 2016 during his sabbatical as a pastor and the second one in 2023 following our retirement from a shared pastorate. Both times were amazing, hard, spiritually uplifting, and deeply nourishing. We are getting ready to hike the Camino del Norte and the Camino Primitivo next! This blog, Travelin’ Pieces, is where we will note our travels. Please join us!
Photos by Charles Geiser along the Camino Frances, Spain
