Day 9 - Caldas De Reis to Iria Flavia

Incredibly faithful day!

After the wonderful dinner last night, but before bed last night we received some more foot help from some angels who are Scouts from Portugal. This thread and the thankfulness continues.

We managed to get up at 5:00 am so we could leave by 6:00 am, which we did. We had about 20 km to go today and we wanted to be finished early. Mission accomplished! And that includes spending some extra time with our Pilgrim Scouts and our friends from Ireland.

Funny side note, his wife was having trouble with blisters and had been wearing a hiking shoe or tennis shoe. He has worn sandals the whole Camino. After hearing about my successful (ongoing) recovery, she ditched the shoes and got a pair of sandals. She said she never felt better. I told her she did not have to admit her husband was right. Instead of not completing the Camino, we are all four well on our way to finishing today or tomorrow - 3 with sandals.

Also, the insurance purchased, GeoBlue, through BCBS has come in very handy and well worth the price. I’ve called their Telemed three times and spoke to one doctor in Singapore and two in the UK. The third was able to prescribe antibiotics and email it to me. I took it to the farmacia and they filled it immediately. No three hour wait. Kathleen says I’ve spent more money at the farmacia than anywhere else.

All in all it was another wonderful day on the Camino walking briskly, but sometimes very quietly. I took a lot of time to empty my mind and just enjoy the moment. It was wonderful.

We had no real plans once we got to the Albergue Cruces de Iria. After a high carb Pilgrim lunch and beer we came back to the Albergue for the hostelria’s discussion about Iria Flavia and it’s place in Christianity’s history. Even with the heavy Castilian Spanish accent we learned a lot about St. James and Christianity. After listening, rather than eat dinner and go to bed, we decided to go to the places he talked about and experience them ourselves.

The first place was on the Iglasia de Santa Maria a Major de Iria Flavia where the legend is that is where the bones of St. James were found after he was beheaded and brought to Iria Flavia. He was brought to Iria Flavia because this is where he did his evangelism. He was brought here in the first century on a boat. The church was built in the 8th Century. There are also a number of PRE- Roman sarcophagi located there. Very interesting and moving experience.

Next we went to an area called Santiaguino do Monte. We decided to take a taxi. It was all uphill including the 130 steps (The way of the Cross). This is the site of an early Christian church dating to the 3rd Century, and the location where St. James preached. On our way down the hill, walking, we stopped and received a Certificate that we had visited the location where St. James’ bones were brought from the Albergue Municipal. You only get the Certificate if you have your stamp on your Pilgrim’s Passport that you had been to the Iglasia mentioned above. We also stopped for a beer and called it dinner.

Finally, we visited the Church of Santiago do Padron. There is a stone behind the alter which is considered to be where the Apostle’s boat was moored when it was returned to Iria Flavia.
The church was originally built in the 10th Century and remodeled, thankfully, in the 12th and 15th Centuries. Incredibly while we were looking at a glass coffin, a woman walked up to me and in Spanish told me several times that Christ had been in that coffin. She said it like she believed it with her whole heart. She also told me Christ’s body was in another glass coffin on another wall. I questioned her to make sure I had heard her correctly and she confirmed it every time.

So, what started out as just another day of walking ended up preparing us for completing our Camino. It was amazing and all part of God’s plan, not mine.

One more “just another day of walking” and then our final entry into Santiago the next day, Thursday, where I feel more ready than ever to accept what has unfolded the past two weeks on this Camino.

BUEN CAMINO!

12.9 miles/ 37,000 stepsRead more