Day 29 - Melide to Santa Irene

So, the penultimate day; Santiago de Compostela tomorrow and curiously, the busier the path, the more withdrawn I become, almost misanthropic.

I guess after more than a million steps in mostly my own company, (I’ll add it up properly later) I find all the noise and bustle of the now crowded path most intrusive, as I try to pull together thoughts from the journey.

Whilst this is not the place for an exposition of any conclusions about my life; for me, taking this time out for reflection has been invaluable. Days in your own company without the distraction of a twenty first century life allows one to consider the gap between the person I have become and the person I would like to be – a little scary!

Anyway, a cloudy day, the path and the scenery as magical as ever and another donativo this evening. My host John has a kitchen laden with bread, cheese and good red wine, perfect. He has just given us a potted history of the Camino and for those interested - Tradition holds that the remains of the apostle Saint James were discovered at Santiago in the 9th century. News of the tomb spread across medieval Europe, and by the 11th and 12th centuries the Camino had become one of Christendom’s great pilgrimages alongside Rome and Jerusalem. Kings, monks, and military orders helped develop roads, bridges, monasteries, and hospitals for pilgrims across northern Spain. Whilst the pilgrimage declined after the Reformation, it underwent a major revival in the late 20th century with many undertaking it for personal reflection as much as for religious devotion.