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Santiago pilgrimage account of 1679 km
in France and Spain
I am stimulated by senior Y of the friend and the daughter,starting on the pilgrimage of nearly three months.
It is a travel nearly 1,700km to extend over France and Spain by foot.Beyond the 60 -year-old , it is the travel of the left that day .
My daughter accompanies, but it'll be another behavior near the half trave.
It's the place where English isn't understood so much, but it's a reckless pilgrimage using an immature English ability.
Every day was continuation of a stimulus and there was the language barrier, but was able to enjoy it than I thought.I was able to interchange than thought a pilgrim of each country.
Chemin is the way in French. Spanish is Camino.There are 4 main pilgrimage ways in France, and Arles way is one of them .
This route reduces the number of pilgrims , and enjoy a landscape rich in change .I may feel uneasiness on mountain path , Because there are few coming and going people The residents is very tolerant for a pilgrim.It was sometimes confused at too kind correspondence.
Via Arles way(Arles⇒ Oloron-Saint-Marie) and Piamonte way(Oloron-Saint-Marie⇒ Saint-Jean-Pied-Port).I enter Spain when I go over the mountain range of pirene .
I enter Spain when I go over the mountain range of Pyrenees.From there , it continue in French way (Saint-Jean-Pied-Port ⇒ Santiago de Compostela)of most Popyura pilgrimage way
there are a lot of pilgrims on this road . because pilgrimage road , signpost , accommodation is in place , it is possible to enjoy the pilgrimage surely.The cathedral is characteristic each.Mix of Gothic and Romanesque , spectacular stained glass , elegant frescoes , delicate facade sculpture ,you can enjoy without getting tired .
In addition , A body and a heart are healed by very large nature of Spanish.
When I arrive at the destination Santiago,to received the issue of pilgrimage certificate at the church.I attend only pilgrim's mass at a cathedral.It'll reach a climax by a ceremony of botafumeiro and it becomes a pilgrimage of the finale .
Here to finish the pilgrimage , but some of the pilgrims , including me , advanced to the Finisterra way of about 100Km(Santiago de Compostela⇒Fisterra).
This way was ordinary, but there was something which touches into my heart.
For about the last 10 days , it was to enjoy the traveling alone in Portugal , Spain and Italy .When not hesitating and striking,struggling will be , but I realized that there was a wonderful traveltrip to remain in the memory.
240km pilgrimage trip to portugues and Spanish
It will be a pilgrimage trip for the first time in nine years. This time, it is a portugues road, the distance is 240km, and there are 4 accompanying people. It is much easier physically and mentally than the last time. However, the only thing I'm worried about is getting older.
The Portugal Road is the second most popular course for Sanctuary pilgrimage. Also, the number of pilgrims has increased significantly compared to nine years ago. I'm worried that the port gal has less alcohol compared to the spine. The pilgrimage is blessed with the weather and makes for a comfortable trip. Only on the first day of departure from Port, it was chilly and a little bit rainy, but the sunny weather continued thereafter.
On the Port Gal side of the Port Gal road, there are many cobblestones and it is hard to walk. Roads and private houses, vineyards and forests, and small mountains alternate. Since there is a pilgrimage route alongside the road, I often cross the road. Yellow arrows are displayed in many places, so you can never get lost except in urban areas. It is memorable that there are many pilgrims with reverse courses indicated by blue arrows and many bicycles.
The Spain side is not as fine as the port cobblestone so it is easy to walk. The signpost is a mixture of yellow arrows and scallop arrows, and there are many indications of distance to the sanctuary. Since everyone has a mobile phone, I'm worried about the fact that I'm reporting frequently.
It was often overtaken nine years ago, but this time it is the opposite. This year the cathedral is under construction and will only be visited. There are many pilgrims, and by the time we receive pilgrimage certificate I have to wait more than 2 hours. This time it was a set of two. Last time I was able to stay in a paradox where breakfast was served free of charge. This time too, I took extra days and was able to take a leisurely sightseeing tour of Porto, Valença and Vigo.
I encountered a strange event this time. First, the bells rang at the same time in several churches in Tui for about an hour. Secondly, there was a night-time Marathon in front of the Sanctuary Cathedral. Third, in Port, a large group of students were marching with the same color of sticks and hats and traffic control of the main street.