Camino Norte: Day 29 (End)

June 1st, 2017

St Irene to Santiago de Compostella 

Km walked: 23

Km total: 817

Today we walked into Santiago and made our way to the Cathedral of St. James. We arrived at 11:30 and were among hundreds of other pilgrims and tourists visiting the church. It was a happy place: people smiling, hugging, taking their finish photos in front of the Cathedral, and sitting on the stone road gazing up at the building they had waited a month to set eyes upon, reflecting on their journey and trying to figure out what it had meant.

The Cathedral was mostly impressive, if not for the ugly scaffolding on the very front, part of a restoration project that has been ongoing for several years now. Green meshing covers the scaffolding and droops downward, blocking almost the entire front side. Someone told me that most of the restoration is stone washing- but it looked like they were doing a lot more.

I couldn’t have been more excited and relieved to make it to the steps on the Cathedral and look at it myself. Not because I was particularly overjoyed to have completed the Camino Del Norte, but because it was over. It was finally over. And no longer did I have to walk on roads, listen to cars pass me, and of course, the biggest one, stay in another Alburgue again in my entire life.

I look back on these last 29 days wondering what it meant, just like every other pilgrim. But unlike most, I can’t help but feel let down. I am certainly in the minority. There is a reason why nearly 200,000 people a year complete the pilgrimage, but I really don’t know what that reason is, and find it hard to understand the allure. I am not a religious person, so this was not a spiritual quest by any means, and I feel like many people that walk the route do so for that purpose. There are quite a bit of cultural and historical buildings of significance on the route, and that sort of thing was indeed very interesting, but there isn’t s a lot of it. Most of the day is spent walking through farms and small villages on hard pavement or stone. And if you were studying cattle or sheep raising, you could probably write a whole book about it upon completion of the Norte.

The problem with the Norte is that there is too much blandness between interesting parts. The parts that shine the most are the bits and pieces of the route that go by the coast. The Atlantic coastline in northern Spain is really spectacular, offering an assortment of wonderful beaches, cliffs and bluffs, and some really fantastic cities like San Sebastián and Bilbao. But these things are but a tiny part of the trail.

Indeed, the best part is from Irun to Bilboa. And as a consolidated hike, I would definitely recommend spending a week walking the Camino between these two cities.

I don’t want to sound like I am undermining the accomplishment of walking the Camino. It is a long way to walk, and people that complete it should feel proud of what they did. I saw a lot of older people on the route; individuals in their 60s and 70s, and it always filled me with joy seeing them out there walking.

But…I can’t help but feel that the Camino is an over commercialized mess. It is a tourist business first and hiking trail second- especially on the Frances. It’s hard not to notice it. I suppose it’s good for the small (and big) communities on the route, and Spain in general- I’m sure it certainly brings in quite a bit of revenue, but it gives me a weird feeling. If you have ever been to Gatlinburg, Tennessee, at the door step of the Smokey Mountains, you know what this feeling is: hordes of people, eating the same things, seeing the same attractions, visiting the same Ripley’s Believe it or Not, buying trinkets of Smokey the Bear, buying magnets of a mountain scene with their name on it, driving their car up to the highest peak in the park, etc. Its enough to make you want to hide in a cave.

For some people this is what the Camino is. I suppose they thrive off being in a large community- perhaps it makes them feel like they are a part of something bigger than themselves.

I am definitely more of an introverted person, and these are often the types of situations I try to avoid. If you are outgoing and enjoy meeting new people, you will probably think of the Camino in a far different capacity.

Quietness is something that cannot be overvalued. And the Camino offers little of it. Maybe that is my biggest issue. Or, perhaps more simply, the issue is me.

After we had checked into the hotel, we grabbed some dinner in the center of town. We saw the Galicia Orchestra setting up outside of the Cathedral for an evening show, and after dinner sat on the steps and listened to them play. The music was beautiful and filled the small courtyard. The air was cooling and a breeze traveled through the crowd, many of them pilgrims enjoying their accomplishment on the steps of the Cathedral, watching the conductor move his baton and hands, bringing to life the tuba and clarinet and flute. The drum and triangle. The French horn. Breathing wonder into the crowd and into the city of Santiago de Compostela; giving a sound to something that is otherwise absent of it.

The Camino is something I can certainly learn from. There is always something to be gained from any long walk, and things to reflect on afterward that don’t become clear until sometimes weeks, months or even years later.

And despite everything, I am happy I walked the Camino. I am happy I shared this experience with my wife, and I am happy that it is over.

I’ll try not to dwell too much on this trip. Or any trip for that matter. It is a dangerous thing to remain stuck in the past. And It is never as exciting as thinking about what new things wait just up ahead.