The things you see…..

Opened the front door this morning and there they were enjoying a coffee at the bar on the corner…

no speeding problems here

For those who don’t know about these pilgrims, there are dozens of trails starting from various places in europe and all finishing at the cathedral in Compostela in northern Spain. They are known as the Camino de Santiago, or the Way of Saint James.

The story is that the remains of Saint James were taken from Jerusalem to northern Spain and a cathedral was later built over their burial place. Apparently, there have been pilgrims travelling there since 812AD .

Sainte Foy la Grande is on one of these pilgrim ways and we have a hostel in Port Sainte Foy especially for them. This is the second time this year that we have seen a pilgrim with a donkey travelling through town. Some are doing the walk alone and some are in groups, all carrying their backpacks, a walking stick in hand and a scallop shell ( the symbol of the walk) on display to show their purpose. There are brass scallop shells set in the footpath showing the way through the town. We are on the route between Vezelay  Cathedral in northeastern France and Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port near the Spanish border.

showing 'the way'

Some pilgrims do a section of a route just for a few days, some travel for weeks or even months. I’ve heard of some who return every year to complete another section with the goal of eventually doing a whole route.

Hope these two are enjoying the journey.

bon voyage