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Praza de Feixoo (Santiago de C., Spain)
Cathedral (Santiago de Compostela., Spain)
Organ (Cathedral of Santiago de C. (Spain)
Paris Bar
hi there,
i and my boyfriend would like to go try a little bit of the road of Santiago this December..y would like to see santiago de compostela.would it be rare to go there since i am a muslim and he a buddist? how would they treat us ? any chance of free accomodation or food?
we will probably go first to Madrid ..but what route do you recommend to at least get the spirit of pilgrimage? Perhaps we we could go until a corunia y from there after walking a bit we can reach compostela,what do you say?
Lastly would it be freezing cold in December?
thank you
Not being religious we would not have a real clue on how you'd be treated. But must Christians are tolerant of other beliefs, just like we assume you are. So don’t be worried on that score.
There is free accommodation along the route. The sleeping spaces get taken up early in the day. It seems that sometimes the only thing a walker wants is their space to sleep free for the night! We don’t know of any free accommodation in SdC.
To get into the sprit of the pilgrimage you should really start at the French border. Some people walk from further a field and others less. The north of Spain is cold. The mountains, where the route goes over will also be very very cold, especially at night. The warmest time is obviously in the summer. But then the route and SdC is swarming with walkers so it looses something of its magic.
Hello,
Try posting on www.santiago-today.com where you can get all kinds of Pilgrim and route advice.
Good luck, Santiago is a very friendly, beautiful city so you shouldn't have any problems whatever your faith.
Best wishes
Spacehopper
Remember that in Spain we have 4 official languages: Spanish, Catalan, Vasque and Galician. Santiago is in Galicia and so you will find many people that speak "galego".
"Galego", or Galician, is a language which is quite similar to Portuguese but also to Spanish. It's a very musical and poetic language.
Vigo appears to be the crossroads of northwestern Spain as it is a transfer point on many railroad itineraries. Sadly, the train station was all I had time to see in Vigo, but stick with me, I'll tour the cathedrals, narrow streets, and sidewalk cafes next time I'm in the area. I'm told by friends I'm overdue to return. The long layover in Vigo was the most relaxation I had since leaving home the previous day. That was what made it a challenge. It was so relaxing, I was afraid to miss the final leg of my journey to Santiago de Compostela by sleeping through the arrival and departure of my train. I continued to read my Patricia Cornwell book- which has become a travel tradition, walk around (buying a key chain from Javier in Barcelona), and drink strong coffee (the highest octane they had). It was a real battle to stay awake. The train arrived on time again. Was this my lucky day or what? You would have thought that I would have fallen asleep straightaway on boarding the train. However, two things kept me awake. First, I was afraid I would miss my stop in Santiago de Compostela and wake up in El Ferol or somewhere. Second, after what seemed like an eternity as the train made the winding trip through the green hills of Northwestern Spain, I knew I was getting close to Santiago- so I was pumped in much the same way I was on the way to Disney World the first time.
Needless to say that the visit to the cathedral is compulsory for every tourist in Santiago. Even though you're not a catholic you can't miss it. The cathedral is the seed of Santiago, the referential point to start the route along this monumental city. It was built to shelter the remains of the Apostle, and it suffered several reformations. Behind the sublime front (barroque) you can see the top work of the Romanesque, the Portico da Gloria, made by the Mestre Mateo in the 12th century. In this link you can see some photos of the cathedral that I've found on the web:
http://www.manbos.com/vergalsitio.asp?Galeria=Santiago%20de%20Compostela%20-%20Catedral&IdFoto=983&Cod=1
The cathedral is surrounded by five squares: the Obradoiro, the Praterias, the Quintana, the Inmaculada and the Acibecheria; all of them magically structured to harmonize the cathedral. In the following webpage you can take a look to the different squares of santiago's old town from live webcams. Just click on the last 8 links of the province of La Coruna:
http://www.crtvg.es/ingles/CamWeb/primenucamarasflash.htm
Hope you enjoy them!!
Mid-18th c. Praza de Praterías. This ornamental façade, just over 3 metres deep and facing Puerta de Platerías (cathedral door), closes the beautiful square of which it forms part. It was built in 1758 by the architect Clemente Fernández Sarela with a purely theatre-like function: that of closing and beautifying the square.
This square opened originally as the legendary Puerta del Paradiso (door of paradise), through which the pilgrims entered the cathedral. It was replaced by a neo-classical work of Ventura Rodriguez, which is to be seen today.
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