Pilgrims, Pilgrims

This is the next installment of Spain, the Miniseries.

I haven’t thought much about Pilgrims since I read Canterbury Tales in college. And just to clarify, I’m not talking about the kind that came to Plymouth and began the gluttony-filled Thanksgiving tradition we all know and love here in the US. I’m talking about those pilgrims driven out of religious fervor to walk hundreds and hundreds of miles to a specific holy location to worship, pray for forgiveness/healing, or the like. Well Northern Spain, apparently, has a famous and well-traveled pilgrim route that goes all the way from the Pyrenees in France to the most western region, Galicia. It ends at the great cathedral in Santiago de Compostela. The trail is marked with scallop shells and when people successfully arrive in Santiago, they celebrate by buying and eating a scallop. Then they would hang the shell from them or their stuff to show that they’ve completed the pilgrimage.

Well this route has been popular dating back all the way to…well, a long time ago. I don’t have the guide book in front of me but suffice it to say it was probably during those ages where pilgrimages were very fashionable. Back in the Middle Ages I think. Apparently, in the 1970’s this particular pilgrimage route become popular once again, especially within more Bohemian circles.

KA and I decided to stop in to see Santiago. It has a great story and I’m always a fan of seeing beautiful old things. The city was set up on an acropolis of sorts and old stone buildings with intricate carvings were everywhere. The cathedral was certainly grand. And the fact that it was a sunshiny day with deep blue skies and big puffy white clouds only made the scene more striking. What was most striking to me about the city was that there really were pilgrims everywhere! They were sprawled out in the big square in front of the cathedral. They were laughing and talking in groups, no doubt swapping stories from their adventures. Many sat with their legs (probably swollen) propped out in front of them looking up at the spires with that silly, gleeful look I’ve often seen on the faces of people at the end of marathons and other endurance tests.

KA and I are not religious and we did not in any means walk the route to Santiago (which apparently takes 5-6 weeks). We took more modern means of transportation and drove. But since our visit was at the end of the trip, and since we’d encountered and survived many adventures prior to standing underneath those imposing towers, we felt we deserved a scallop shell too.

Here are a few pictures of the cathedral and the pilgrims visiting it.

Spain, the Miniseries

On Sunday evening I got back from Spain. I’ve been there before, and I had a great time. On that trip we focused on the southern half of the country. Which meant we did all those things people generally do when they go to Spain. We walked through the Alhambra, went out in Ibiza and had tapas after a day full of Gaudi and sunshine in Barcelona. With those things checked off the list, I wanted to explore the rest of the country. I wanted to see the Northern half. Aside from San Sebastian, you hear very little about that part of the country. It was sort of a mystery. So we headed north of Madrid this time...and it was absolutely fantastic.

I’ve been thinking over the last few days a lot about specifically why it was so great. I think it’s because it really felt like an adventure. We spent most of our days exploring in our little rented Citroen C2. We had a plan but every day was full of surprise. We were forced to really understand and then live like the Spanish do. It was difficult at first but by the end, we were naturals. We encountered some small challenges (getting lost, stolen wallets, haunted places, etc.). But in the end they only made the experience richer. Each night we stayed in a historical hotel, or Parador, which meant we slept in a medieval castle, a fortress, a monastery and a couple of different manors. We went from the beaches to the snow and back again. We learned about the each of the different regions along the northern coast, and came to appreciate the relative beauty of each.

I really enjoyed southern Spain, but I fell in love with the north.

Friends had been asking this week how the trip was. It’s really hard to answer that. I can either answer it very simply by saying, “It was incredible!” Or I can go into a lot of detail—which isn’t always what people want. And when I’ve tried to give more detail, I feel like there is something serious lost in the translation. I can’t really explain how it was—you had to be there. So what I‘ve decided to do is post a little at a time, focusing on small stories from the trip. That way it is not too overwhelming for me, as the writer, or for you, as the reader. So consider this like a TV Miniseries. The next episode should be available tomorrow.

Au Revoir!

I leave for Espana tomorrow! KA and I are hitting the northern coast from the French border to the Portuguese side. We're starting in Madrid and we'll be spending Easter in San Sebastian. I once spent Easter in Italy and last year I was in the Bahamas for it. I don't really celebrate Easter, but now, doing it overseas...well, it's sort of become my thing.

So, buona pasque!

Updates

I got my apartment in B-more all lined up! YAY! That is a big weight off my shoulders. But I am still waiting on something even bigger: Financial Aid. Yuck.

In other news I spent last night with my “boyfriend”. I watched The Notebook.

And finally, I have a new addiction. Pink Berry. It's so yummy!! I want it ALL the time. Fortunately, and unfortunately, there's one only a couple miles away from my house. Fortunately, and unfortunately, I pass it whenever I get off the freeway to go home.

Up Next, Ryan Gosling!

I had a dream last night I was dating Ryan Gosling, from The Notebook. He was such a good boyfriend in my dream! I totally want to be dating him right now.

I think I dreamed we were dating for two reasons: 1) The Notebook came up last night during our book club meeting, and 2) I've been thinking about relationships a little bit lately because I met a nice boy (see boy story below). He is nice enough that I would maybe want to continue dating, but now he is acting strange. So I think my little sleeping mind pieced these two things together and created a perfect little love between myself and Ryan.

It was a nice dream, and when I woke up, part of me wanted to call this fictious boyfriend of mine. Instead I wrote this blog post. (sigh).

Here's the boy story:

I met him on St. Paddy's day. He is a friend of a friend. We had lots in common and enjoyed one another right away. He even came with me that night to my an ex-coworker's party after we left the bar. Even later that night I met a handful of his friends. We planned to go camping together and when we parted ways, we exchanged numbers. I heard from him the next day over myspace, we emailed a bit, he called me later in the week, and then we went out that Thursday night.

The date was great. He was a perfect gentleman and I had tons of fun with him. The next day we emailed a bit more to discuss the upcoming camping trip. And then.....NOTHING. That's right, NOTHING. No emails or phone calls beyond last Wednesday. WTF?? He seemed in to me. Boys are so strange.

Fortunately, I'm not TOO upset because the situation isn't ideal: no one likes long distance relationships and he may be rebounding (a 3 year relationsip just ended for him). So in the words of Charming, But Single, next!