Camino de Santiago (Spain)

Camino de Santiago (Spain)
A Journey of a Life Time

04.06.2008 - 27.06.2008
View Pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela (Spain) on IsleHopper's travel map.

My wife and myself are leaving today for Barcelona on our pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in the province of Coruña (North Spain). From Barcelona we will travel by train to Pamplona and after a day's rest will walk to Roncesvalles (France) and take the pilgrims' route known as Camino Frances.

It is our aim to walk a distance of at least 200 kms, weather permitting. We are very excited about our journey and have read about and talked to people who have done the same journey. Every body tells us that this will be an unforgettable experience of our life.

We have traveled in Spain but never on foot, although we lived in Malaga for twenty years and for two years were living in Seville (Sevilla) and always talked about doing this pilgrimage, some how we never did it.

Every year there is a festival in honor of Virgin del Rocio in the province of Huelva but we never went there either. This festival is one of the biggest and most popular where more than one million people converge. Devotees from all over Spain and specially from Andalusia take part in the festivities.

The festival lasts for three days and is full of emotional devotion, religious ardor in a festive atmosphere. The visitors have a chance of enjoying the wine and typical Andalusian Tapas, listen to Flaminco and others songs in praise of the Virgin del Rocio. People come on horse back, in bullock carts and on foot, bearing the summer heat. The distance from Huelva to the Church of the virgin del Rocio is about eleven kms, and after the three days' ceremony, a typical country banquet of food (Comida Compestre) is offered to the visitors. It is an unforgeable experience.

Posted by IsleHopper 03.06.2008