Oh my goodness. We did it! Well let’s not get ahead of ourselves. My hiking partner has not been feeling 100% the last couple of days. There definitely is a bug circling camp because I’ve heard of a few Pilgrims that are down for the count. I’m too mean and awry to get any virus taking hold of me, but George is much nicer so they flock towards him.

Our plan was to be up and out by 8am. Well we made it at 830am and I was mighty happy with that. It wasn’t going to be a Blue Bird day today so I struggled, huffed and puffed and finally got my pack cover on. Somehow my pack cover is the wrong size. It came with the pack so it’s not like I bought the wrong size. But during the putting together of pack and cover, the wrong sized cover was placed inside my pack. Every time I need to place it over my pack, there is a lot of language that isn’t appropriate. It’s a chore beyond chores! Today was the last time this girl will struggle with her itty bitty teeny tiny pack cover!

We had fifteen miles to cover with uphill climbs. I knew it was going to be a push for my sick partner, so I wanted to give us plenty of time. We headed out and within a few minutes, we saw our first Pilgrims. Rosemary and Joe from Canada were in front of us. We talked and they asked if we saw all the flowers on the graves yesterday? I commented that I did. In fact, when I made it into town yesterday, I could smell the flowers. Each graveside had huge bouquets on them. So what’s that all about?

All Saints’ Day, is also called All Hallows’ Day, Hallowmas, or Feast of All Saints. In the Christian Church, it is a day commemorating all the saints of the church, both known and unknown, who have attained heaven. It is celebrated on November 1 in the Western Churches and on the first Sunday after Pentecost in the Eastern Churches. In Roman Catholicism, the feast is usually a holy day of obligation. Here in Spain, it is a National Holiday and families and friends pay respect to the dead by adoring their gravesides with flowers and reefs. It is quite revered by the Spanish Catholics. Each place we passed had hundreds of flowers atop of each grave. It was quite a beautiful scene to behold.

No wonder there were no cars or people on the streets this morning. We couldn’t understand where everyone was?! I had a friend Marilyn who commented on my blog. She asked why there were hardly any cars or people in my pictures? I told her I usually crop them out to make the picture look less cluttered. But today, I needed no cropping because no one was mulling around.

We walked on the highway for the first 5-6 miles. We actually could’ve followed the Portuguese Way but I was trying to take a few shortcuts so George wouldn’t have to walk so far. He wants so much to finish this out strong but doesn’t have the energy this morning.

We found a Cafe and stopped for our morning espresso. That should help. We stayed for a bit, saw a few pilgrims, rested up, then hit the trail. I moved us off the highway as it was so loud and I really wanted our final day to be something special.

Once back on the country roads, it quieted down. The trail was devoid of traffic and it was, in fact, The Camiño. We ran into the Mother & Daughter Duo from Czech-Republic. They were also attempting to do the last fifteen miles today. I think most everyone wanted to finish before the big bad wind storm showed up. The News from smarty pants “Alexa” warned of a severe wind event coming to Santiago this evening. Bring it on! We have seen it all so a wind event is nothing the Baraga’s can’t handle. Words I soon will eat!

The last ten miles were a series of mostly ups. Santiago I found, is on top of a hill. It is the highest point at 886’ on the Portuguese Coastal Route. So we started our climb. George has been doing the climbs quite well and is like the little Choo-Choo Train that could. Most of our hills were through old towns with few people. I’m not sure but being “All Saints Day” there’s a good chance everyone’s at church.

We kept seeing signs for “Pilgrims Meals”. It would be our lunch stop. Four kilometers to go, then after an hour, we had one long kilometer to the O’ Camino Restaurant. We headed a bit off the trail and landed at the best place on the Portuguese Way of the Camino.

O’ Camino is decorated so well. It has full maps on the walls with every Camino laid out. The wall next to where George and I sat was the Portuguese Way, which was the highlight of this Restaurant being that’s the route in which it resides on. I started to get so emotional seeing how far we had gone, especially for George. This has been an incredible experience for the both of us, and the longest distance that George has ever undergone. Let’s be real, this is the only long distance hike he’s ever done and to think he walked over 300 miles! That’s something I’ll never forget. Way to go George!

We had the nicest waitress. I asked her what their specialty is and she went right to the Pilgrims Meal. Galician Soup and Sea Bass. Bam, that’s exactly what I want. George decided on something he knew he couldn’t go wrong with. A Burger and Fries. The soup was the best I’ve had. Galician Soup is a Chicken Broth with Greens, typically kale and white potatoes. It was so good. I asked our gal if they had Tabasco, which no one ever offers. Oh yes, she tells me. She tells me she’s Mexican and brings three kinds of Tabasco. Bless your heart. I love this woman!

We stayed for a good hour or so but finally needed to make our way to Santiago. We were 8.5 kilometers away, with mostly ups and a little down. George and I headed back onto our route and planned to finish what we started. After four weeks and 28 days, and not a lot of time off since Porto, I was ready to see the Church.

The wind came in a bit earlier than expected and the rain was wet. I guess that’s what rain is, wet! We ran into Rosemary and Joe and walked with them into the City. At this point, we veered off to our Hotel for the evening. I was soaked to the bone, George was sick and we both wanted to get to our room, remove our packs and get some dry clothes on.

After taking a long hot bath, and both of us changing into something dry, we headed to the Cathedral. We brought our umbrellas because it was raining. Imagine that? There are so many gift shops along the way. George loves shopping and he is on the hunt for a tiled Scalloped Shell that he can put on our Mailbox back at home. I am on the hunt for Santiago de Compostela and that’s all that is on my mind right now.

We headed down a narrow street, and run into a couple of the Pilgrims that we have been walking with for the past week. We congratulate one another and continue up to the church. It’s windy and wet but that’s not going to damper my enthusiasm. At last, after walking over 300 miles we have arrived.

There’s only a handful of people here with the miserable weather but we are going to celebrate! We look for the Pilgrims Office, which we find out has closed. Tomorrow we will be back for our Compostela. We both inflate our umbrellas and run to find a Restaurant, both to eat and take cover.

Our celebratory meal includes pizza, salad and George had Chinese Rolls. I drank two glasses of Sangria and George had coffee. I think we both were exhausted and just elated to know our Pilgrimage is complete.

There will be much reflection in the days to come. We will partake in the Pilgrims Mass and ride a Bus, not walk, to Finisterre. I will finish this off for the day but there will be more of the Adventures of the Baraga’s to come. Until we meet again, continue to stretch your imagination, do what you think you cannot achieve and thank God for all he has provided!