SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA

Late arrival in Santiago de Compostela. But everyone has been consistently in good spirits. Tired in the journey of the day, none of us showed a lot of interest to watch the Galician folk dancing at the Hotel Los Tilos.

Mass at the Chapel of the Pillar inside the impressive Cathedral of Saint James. Lots of relics. The biggest censer in the world is hanging atop the sanctuary. The signs and legacies of Saint James is all over the city, starting from the cathedral which houses hundreds upon hundreds of relics of saints, all the way to the streets and souvenir shops. I wonder, however, if people even really know these things as they encounter these symbols every day in their own locality, or do they become part of the general myths and legends of the culture that, for the young people, have nothing to do with who they are. Do they even know who Saint James is?

I looked forward to Santiago de Compostela. I know that this is one of the three most important pilgrimage sites back in the day, in the same caliber as Rome and Jerusalem. Many pilgrims come to this place even today, walking the path of Saint James into Santiago. Being inside the church is a fascinating experience. The space is overwhelmingly large. The mass I celebrated is at the Chapel of the Pilar.

I was not even paying attention to the local tour guide. I knew I was not going to remember any of the details of this-and-that and every information that he seem to caught up to telling us all. I just want to be here, see the place, smell the air, feel the walls and walk on the streets, encounter the people of Santiago even just a smile or a few words in Spanish. Instead of listening, I was even clicking away with my camera. Tita Wilma and I sort of became occasional pictorial teammates throughout the days. The camera syndrome is obviously a desperate attempt to immortalize the presence, the being-here-now. It does not work as the original experience, but it is a way of reminding oneself of the presence. So, I click away.

I spent most of the day hanging out and catching up with Ray Flores. We were also at the company of her friend Nancy Medeiros, who was the one who paid for his trip.

Special day in Santiago. They are celebrating the festival of Martin of Tours, which means that in the market, there are a lot of chestnuts.

Paella. We have been told many times that a trip to Spain is not complete without trying the Spanish paella. So, here in Santiago, Ray, Nancy and I scouts for the best paella we can find. It did not come easy looking for paella, especially as most of the restaurants are rather dormant during the siesta hour.

Shopping is very tempting in this city. There are plenty of quaint local shops to see. After the siesta hours, the shops begin to open again the afternoon. There is one particular shop that Ray, Nancy and I were very interested to see, so we really waited for it to open. We got some nice jackets and pants in the store.

Hot chocolate with ice cream.

Plaza Europa, a modern mall outside the old downtown of Santiago, is quite a contrast from the old shopping district. The grand square shopping mall reminded me, of course, of the malls in the Philippines. After a day of walking in cobblestone roads, to walk inside the mall is quite a breeze.

Back to Los Tilos easily by taxi, I had a dinner of pizza and soda with Nancy and Ray. We had some really good conversation.

Piano bar in the evening with the Tres Marias (Maria Lourdes, Maria Cecilia, and Lyza Marie). The timing was perfect because as we sat down, the pianist and the percussionist stared playing. The Tres Marias were all smitten by the communication taking place between the musicians. The way they looked at each other was intensely expressive, helping them to synchronize their music well.

Santiago de Compostela is a dream come true. There are so many wonderful and fascinating images and memories of simply walking around this city and soaking up to the idea of being present here. It is a place where I am reminded again that I am literally and spiritually a pilgrim. I walk this earth but once, but where I am going is where I came from. I hope that I do not lose sight of these rich things, and that I may have the spiritual eye to be able to see clearly the mysteries that are set before my very eyes.