Day 9 Another special day in Santiago Friday 10th
2013
View of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela from the Park
de Almeda
Friday was a fantastic day. It was the first day in eight we
had not begun by packing our gear. We had a ‘lie in’ and arrived down to the
hotel restaurant for a lazy breakfast at 8.30. I renamed the excellent hotel
receptionist Marta, calling her –‘Santa Marta, de siempre aqui’ – ‘Saint
Martha, always here’ - in acknowledgement of her being present in the hotel day
and night, or so it seemed. She gave us the name and addresses of better, less
expensive restaurants away from the tourist trap trail of yesterday.
Mel from Manchester
And me.
I could not attend the annual Frontline Defenders awards ceremony which coincided with
the Camino so I decided instead to wear their tee shirt. A number of pilgrims
decided to look up the cause on the web on their return. Mel from Manchester
took a more direct approach and produced a generous donation of sterling which
is somewhere in the bottom of my rucksack. As soon as I unpack, I will send it
into Charlie Lansom in Frontline in Blackrock. He will get bigger donations
this year, I hope, but few more travelled.
Botafumeiro – the giant incense burner in the Cathedral of
Santiago – at the Mass for Priests
Phil and I were greeted by Brian and Barry as they emerged
from the 12.00 noon Pilgrims Mass. They had witnessed the star event in
Santiago, the lighting of the giant thurible which we had expected yesterday at
our own Pilgrims Mass. Being Ascension Thursday we expected fireworks,
literally, but got none.
But we were in for a surprise. Today was the feast of St.
John of Avila, better known to us as St. John of the Cross who is the patron
saint of priests, in Spain at least. We decided to attend the 1.00pm Mass and
were treated to two bishops and somewhere between one and two hundred priests,
and wonderful singing. Happy memories of my days in the Monastery flooded back
to the echoes of Gregorian chant. As the Botafumeiro flew over our heads we
just hoped the lad on the rope wasn’t having a bad day.
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