Santiago de Compostela (continued)

With the delightfully haunting sound of the gaita still ringing in our ears, we were glad when the rain stopped and we were able to go over to the cathedral for a look inside.

Feeling generous, we assumed that it was the serene and contemplative experience of the past few weeks that made the large group of pilgrims ahead of us in the queue appear totally surprised when they were asked - no, told - to wear masks inside the cathedral. I’m somewhat ashamed to admit that neither of us was feeling particularly serene at having to wait for them to find these things (which are worn everywhere here right now).

Eventually, we made it inside. Wow. The first thing we noticed was the huge Botafumeiro, which we knew to be huge, even though it appeared to be the size of a thimble from here.

The spectacular high altar appeared all the more lavish, offset as it was by the plainer, more simple areas surrounding it.

One or two small areas were painted in rich colours and I wondered what this and other similar catherdrals must have looked like when this was the norm.

I really loved the arrangement of organ pipes above my head as I sat in the nave, trying to take it all in. The organ design was mirrored on each side with the pipes arranged horizontally. I would have loved to have heard it.

The other feature which caught my eye was this characterful figure, for whom sadly, I have no information. I liked the “real world” nature of the sculpture and the way in which the artist has not been persuaded to idealise her. I liked the painted column behind her and was sorry that I couldn’t find out more. She looked like someone I could relate to - and how often do we come across someone in a medieval church that we could say that about?

One more corner appealed to us very much indeed. The Chapel of Our Lady of the Pilar seemed to be special, rather older than other parts (though that surely was not so) Anyway, we had this rather beautiful and ancient chapel to ourselves (unlike the more popular, pilgrimage-related sites) so we sat a while and absorbed the atmosphere and the detail.

For us, that was sufficient and we made our way out through the gift shop. For all its particular associations and long history, I didn’t find the cathedral generally to be particularly atmospheric. I imagined I would get a sense of the hundreds of thousands of devout pilgrims who had walked this way to reach this sacred place. Whether it is the number of tourists (amongst which we count ourselves), the lack of music and the general hubbub inside or the way in which everybody treats these rather special places in much the same way as anywhere else, I don’t know. I can only say that, had I walked 500miles and made a personal pilgrimage, I hope that I could have found something more there.

Not only did we make it back to the hotel in the dry, we made it out to dinner too. Following recommendations from Luisa on reception, we headed out early (8pm!) for raciones - small plates of tasty things to share between us.

We had a splendid supper! Sitting at a table between three Frenchmen and a delightful couple from Denver, Colorado, we took wine recommendations from the French and food tips from the Americans and had a great evening.

A terrific end to a marvellous day.