Saturday, 30.Oct. Santiago

Santiago is so beautiful. I really haven’t been great about capturing it. I’ll try tomorrow.

We came in yesterday, last post showed the map and photo, but I had a period of needing to remember it was the journey not the destination – to slip into platitudes. A bit of a let down, since I couldn’t go into the cathedral – it had closed for siesta, etc. But I’ve more than rallied since. 

Here’s a series on our way on the last day. Bit of light starting as I look up through the trees at the moon:

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Behind groups (young girls group singing)

Pilgrims starting to gather in more numbers, though nothing like what would be typical at this point:

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Woods outside Santiago – this was the best entry into a large city that I’ve had so far:

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Don’t fret, after very early start 7 am with 1.5 hours in solid dark:

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The bridge over the river at the town where pilgrims had their ritual cleaning before arrival. Most for the very first time since starting – ach. 

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Really, that’s a smile, we were just getting a bit tired.

On Mt. Gozo – the final hill and the first sighting of the Iglesia de Santiago – though just a bit through the mists:

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Walking through the city of Santiago – pretty even here though not yet into medieval part:

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And Santiago and the cathedral. Hard to capture, but the video shows the square, our hotel is the first building after the cathedral. I’ll come back to that too, because it’s completely wonderful.

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Rick had a meeting so we went into our hotel, marveled at it, showered and had lunch. The cathedral had to wait until the 7:30 mass. Rick has done more masses with me than he has since he stopped going in Brooklyn Heights after not missing a Sunday in his 22 years. 

But we did get our certificates and I got an extra one that showed how far I walked:

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THEN TODAY

Up early, went to the 7:30 mass because I wanted to see the cathedral without the masses. I do love the quiet mornings, Rick took quiet time with room service coffee – we were both very happy.

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And here’s the inside of the church. Startlingly different, love the history and the adoration that is linked to the church, but will stick with the Cathedral of Leon for pure magic. This is from the 7:30 pm mass last night, the place was completely full by the time the service started, including the wings where we sat.

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This morning, clear altar:

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I’m going to write tomorrow about the cathedral and a bit of its history and St. James’ relics.
Then, very fun, Scott and Cecilia Kuhn came in from Switzerland to join us for the weekend. Our details as we walked around suddenly became much richer since Cecilia is Chilean and Scott is also fluent in Spanish. We did a tour of the back of the cathedral, the library, treasury, outside walk upstairs, art that had been collected as things shifted or needed to be preserved. I particularly liked this piece. Now immediately recognized St. Ann with Mary and child, and then looked at the sign and I was right!

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And here’s the last Botafumeiro, also called the great censer, in the library now to keep it safe, 60k of silver plated brass, from mid 1800’s. The current one is an exact replica, but not real silver. The Botafumeiro was used in the Middle Ages to purify the relics venerated during the service, but it also evidently helped with the profound smell of 100’s of unwashed pilgrims post walking for 100’s of miles. It holds a large amount of incense and as it swings, the incense puffs out in giant clouds of fragrant smoke. 

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I had so wanted to see it in action. I knew that if someone paid $300/$400 (numbers change) it would be used in a service. But this is also a holiday, All Saints. It was definitely going to be used on Monday at 11:40 in conjunction with the festival mass. I could do this if I could get in to the service, but Rick would be walking alone and I’d be walking late. Then Cecilia, bless her, got into conversation with the man keeping watch over the library as they talked about the old Botafumeiro. He told her they were going to do this at the 12N service. Oh boy!! So psyched. 

It was a serious mass. After the last two masses, many more priests and one of them was a Cardinal? Archbishop? Bishop? We think it was a cardinal. Wonderful face, red cap, mitre hat, fancy robes, serious group. Oh boy, it might really happen. Sue had told me to sit on the wing – the cross – of the pews because of how the Botafumeiro swung. The Cardinal gave a homily, this was more than the standard Peregrino mass. I caught some and then Cecilia told us a brief summary. About humility, being kind and generous to others. Don’t put God on airplane mode. She said he really was wonderful and I loved his presence as he gave the talk. The communion happened, which they have down given that there must have been 1000+ People there, standing room only. 

And then, was it happening? Two more priests came out of the door next to us carrying chunks of smoking incense, oh boy…

We’d been told repeatedly “no phones during mass” and then as it became clear that the Botafumeiro was going to swing, we were also told to stay seated – serious injury could happen. People stayed seated, but boy the phones came out. I righteously didn’t bring mine out, though it was close, but truly when the organ boomed into song, the Botafumeiro was lowered and filled, then hoisted up and then – it started to swing. Oh my goodness, it was magic. I lost all impulse to grab the phone and just watched as it went higher and higher until it was just shy of hitting the ceiling with the organ playing a grand piece of music. Seriously. Wow, just thinking of it gives me chills. It was so so wonderful. Cecilia, bless her, was in the same state, but suddenly thought of her mom and brought out her phone, so – you get to see a bit of the Botafumeiro in its wind down swinging. 

So – a completely wonderful day. Fun lunch out, we’ll have dinner tonight here in the fancy restaurant that I’ll go to in work out clothes, basically. But most others there will be the same!