Is it the End or the Beginning?

Two nights in Finisterre, just enough time to walk on the beach and coastal trails, check out the village, eat at my favorite cafe, and think about what it means to be a pilgrim after a long walk. And say a last goodbye and move on to new journeys. All this and our walk to the End of the World on our first day.

After the bus ride from Santiago de Compostela to Finisterre, our first walk was to the fourth floor of Pensión Cabo, up shiny marble stairs, carrying our packs, which now seem so, so heavy.

Once on Camino, always on Camino.

After a short siesta, we walked to the harbor for a sunset cruise, Recorrido Puesta de Sol. We returned from our walk yesterday to la playa for sunset, too early, so today one more try, on a boat.

We met other Pilgrims, enjoyed the ride out to find the sunset, drank vino, Orange, water, ate empanadas, shared stories and watched the fog roll in, until all that we could see was a ball of light–was that the sun? We noticed familiar shapes through the fog. Surprise! We were back in the harbor, with apologies and our euros refunded. No sunset for us tonight, but grateful that the captain kept us out of harm’s way.

Everything can look unfamiliar in a fog. We were not as far out to sea as we thought. Next time!

Saying farewell to Finisterre and to pilgrim friends reminds me how everything in life can change by adding or subtracting just one thing. Fog, a quiet night instead of a 24 hour festival like my 2016 visit, a walk on the beach I had missed, the new absence of Camino amigos, as we all return to our Post Camino lives. What else will change as we process our walk?

Last year’s spectacular skies from nearby Muxia, below.

One more sunset, one more sunrise, two more sleeps, I heard a pilgrim say. How we say goodbye, celebrate our friendships and mourn our losses. When all we have are memories, it is the heartspace that keeps our Caminos alive.

Ultreia to my Camino Amiga, Marylee, as you leave Santiago de Compostela. I am forever grateful for your friendship and your sense of direction, your built-in compass.

Thank you friends for walking with me. I still have more adventures before I return home. Lace up your boots.

Buen Camino

Irene