Well, dear reader, for those of us who are “of an age,” I feel a bit as though I am about to write the Search for Spock episode of the old Star Trek movies. The reason is simple: tomorrow, I know I must write The Journey Home.

Like any good Starfleet officer—or, in my case, a slightly arthritic Anglican priest—today has been filled with a mix of anticipation and reflection. I can almost hear the swelling orchestral music in the background as we near the final scene. The boots are scuffed, the walking sticks are worn smooth in the grip, and the knees (David’s) and hips (mine) are staging a quiet protest about the working conditions. And yet—here we are—on the brink of arriving at the great Cathedral in Santiago, the earthly end-point of this pilgrimage.

It’s funny how the Camino, much like an old Star Trek film, is full of unlikely friendships, strange encounters, moments of breathtaking beauty, and at least one or two episodes you would rather not repeat (the “industrial area” being our Wrath of Khan). But every step has carried with it the quiet truth that we have been walking toward something more than a building, more than a certificate, more even than Santiago itself. We have been walking toward the heart of God.

After breakfast, we set out for the Cathedral—only about a kilometre from our hotel. Now, a kilometre is not usually something worth writing home about after weeks of walking 20-plus a day, but I will admit I felt a little like a marathoner who has reached the final lap, still trying to look graceful while every joint and tendon is screaming, “Let’s just sit down on this cobblestone and call it holy ground.”

We made our way around that magnificent edifice to the Oficina de Peregrinos, where we joined the long line of dusty and beaming travellers being officially registered as having “finished the course.” St. Paul came to mind—yes, I know, dear reader, that may surprise you. I’ve never been his most devoted fan, but when he said, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith,” I suspect he may have had a blister or two himself.

After receiving our Compostela, the plenary indulgence, and our mileage certificate (proof that this was more than just a scenic pub crawl), we made our way to the Pilgrim’s Mass. The walk had been short, but the emotion was not. Since my heart attack, my capacity to master my emotions has… well, let’s just say it’s taken early retirement. Today, the tears came freely—every time the reality of this journey met the presence of my Lord.

During the Mass, I knew every response in Spanish, but each time I opened my mouth, a lump arrived uninvited in my throat. When the celebrant raised the Sacrament, if my hips had permitted, I would have fallen to my knees in awe. Instead, I made as deep a bow as my hip joints would allow, and the tears came again. Every step of this difficult road, Jesus has walked with me. And now, here in this ancient cathedral, His presence was as clear as the sunlight through the rose window. Señor, ten piedad.

After the Mass, I went to the crypt to pray at the tomb of St. James the Less—praying for my dad, who died eleven years ago, for my sister-in-law’s father, who would have been 90 today, for friends and parishioners, and for God’s guidance in the ministry I began 33 years ago on September 1st. God has been so very good to me on this road.

Throughout the day, we kept bumping into friends we’d met along the way—Julio and Stephy from Barcelona, the Irish ladies, Claudia and Laura from Sicily, the “You’re the guy!” fellow, and more. I realised most of these connections were because of David. His habit of offering encouragement to the weary, a helping hand over a tough step, or a fist bump at the end of a stage had blessed so many. I was simply reaping the friendship harvest of David’s generosity.

The rest of the afternoon was… well, let’s call it a theological lesson in perseverance. My sister had asked me to bring her back a pilgrim’s talisman—a Jacinto de Compostela stone. The shop she recommended looked at me as if I’d just asked for a live unicorn. We tried one jewellery store after another, each one politely but firmly dismissing the idea.

Finally, deciding I needed my own souvenir, we found the oldest tattoo parlour in a city where the word “old” is not thrown around lightly. There, I received the traditional pilgrim tattoo: the cross of St. James over the scallop shell. (If I meet Paul in the next life, I’ll have something to show him.)

Our search for the stone continued with a little help from Chatty Kathy—my Google Maps voice—whose sense of direction rivals only that of a drunken goose. At one point, the GPS assured us we were “just around the corner” from our hotel, while the distance on the screen kept going up. We stopped for gelato—partly for the refreshment, partly for the therapy—and wouldn’t you know, across the street was yet another jewellery shop. This time, the woman paused, thought for a moment, and said, “Ah… Chispato stone. Not far.”

One kilometre later, we had it. The elusive pilgrim’s talisman was finally in my hand. We returned to the hotel, where David bandaged my blistered feet (merciful man that he is) before we cleaned up for supper.

I think I’ll leave you here for tonight, dear reader. Supper will be the introduction to “The Journey Home.” I can promise it will be light on orcas but full of sea creatures nonetheless.

Buen Camino, friends. I prayed for you today.

Well, my dear reader, we left Padrón before the sun was fully awake, hoping to outpace the heat. The smoke of distant wildfires lingered faintly in the air — a reminder that even in beauty there are sorrows. Our task was clear: 27 kilometres stood between us and the great city of Santiago. Having learned from yesterday’s little navigational… “creative detour,” I was meticulous about asking directions. This time I wanted no adventures that involved climbing unnecessary mountains just for the scenery.

The Dossier had already warned me we would be climbing almost 1,500 feet today. That seemed quite enough exercise for one’s spiritual formation. The first 10 kilometres passed quickly, and before long we arrived in Parada de Francos. David and I had made a pact not to take a single photo until we reached a milestone marker in the single digits. Eventually, the road curved and there it was: Km 9.976. Naturally, we had our photo taken. It turned out to be something of a social hotspot—David soon found himself conscripted as the official photographer for every pilgrim within a hundred yards.

The day became a reunion tour. We bumped into so many friends made along the way: the “You’re the guy!” fellow who greeted David as though he were an old rugby mate; our delightful young friends from Rome; the couple from Charlotte; the gentleman from Barcelona who insisted on removing David’s hat to confirm his identity by the state of his baldness; two German ladies from our earlier walk into Padrón; and the entire Irish contingent, whose laughter could be heard long before we saw them.

The heat grew fierce, and soon we adopted a spiritual discipline of “bench discernment” — every wooden plank or stone slab that looked remotely sit-able was received as a sign from the Lord to pause and rest. This worked well until David became uncharacteristically unwilling to stop at all. His focus sharpened, his pace quickened, and I realised the truth: he wanted to finish.

So I reached into my pastoral toolkit and deployed the magic words:
“David… we need to find a place where we can get a nice cold beer.”

His head lifted; he sniffed the air like a bloodhound on the trail. For a moment he was tempted by a burger joint, but then his eyes fixed on a Bar-Café up the street. We were barely a kilometre from our hotel, but the Spirit was clearly moving—so we stopped. I will testify before any court in the land that it was the finest, coldest beer I have ever tasted.

After showers and a brief resurrection of energy, we ventured out for dinner. At a place charmingly called Paris, we ordered Caldo de Mariscos and a grilled seafood platter for two. The caldo arrived first—rich, fragrant, and utterly filling. My appetite, already diminished by the heat, politely excused itself and went to bed early. David, bless him, soldiered on and consumed about 90% of the seafood platter without complaint or visible injury.

We returned to our room in the soft evening air, exhausted but content. David slipped into a seafood-induced coma, and I wasn’t far behind.

Tomorrow, dear reader, we will walk the last short distance to the Cathedral, receive our Compostela, and join the great cloud of witnesses in the Pilgrim’s Mass. It will be a day of thanksgiving—another step, and perhaps the most important, in the journey God has been walking with us all along.

Well, my dear reader, it appears I am one post short of completing the account of our pilgrimage—and there is, I assure you, a very good reason for the omission.

It began on what was meant to be a beautiful, straightforward Sunday stroll from Caldas de Reis to Padrón. The guidebook said “mostly flat,” which is the pilgrim’s equivalent of “you can’t miss it.” How hard could it be?

Stepping out of the hotel, I scanned the street for the familiar yellow arrows that mark the Camino. None were to be found. I returned to the desk and asked the lady which way to go. Without so much as lifting her eyes from her paperwork, she murmured, “A la izquierda.”

So, obediently, we went left. And left. And left some more. We went left for five kilometres, climbing steadily up what could only be described as the Spanish cousin to Mount Everest. The path was empty of pilgrims, the markers were still nowhere to be seen, and my guidebook’s promise of a flat day was beginning to feel like satire.

Then David, who has the keen eye of a man who knows when things have gone terribly wrong, stopped. He pointed across a deep valley—about two kilometres away—and said, “Don… look over there.” And there it was: the Camino. The actual Camino. Not under our feet, but far away, where it had clearly been all along, enjoying its own pleasant and sensible route without us.

We trudged into the next small town, and I approached a man who looked as though he might know where lost pilgrims should go. In my best Spanish, I asked, “Con permiso, soy perdido. ¿Dónde está el Camino Portugués?” He laughed—not unkindly—and gave directions that boiled down to: “Turn left past those two houses, cross a small bridge, stay on that road for 2.8 kilometres, then cross a big bridge, and the Camino is on your right.”

Which is to say, not only had we climbed a significant mountain entirely unnecessarily, but we would now need to backtrack about three kilometres to find the trail again.

By the time we rejoined the Camino, the day was already 92 degrees, and shade was but a fond memory. We carried on under the sun, eventually spotting a small café. By then we were just one kilometre from Padrón—but I confess, dear reader, I was nearing the limits of my endurance. A wave of heat exhaustion was setting in, and so, with a pilgrim’s humility (and a healthy respect for my own well-being), I called a taxi for that final stretch.

We arrived at a beautiful hotel with a pool that seemed to shimmer with heavenly invitation. But I, utterly spent, fell into bed at 3:00 p.m. and did not so much as glance at that pool until the next morning. Dinner passed without my attendance, and sleep became my only prayer that night.

David on the other hnd did partake of both the pool and the dinner that was on offer. HE began conversations with our fellow travellers as he usually does. He brought me a take-out meal, but I couldn’t manage to raise myself from the bed. I did over the course of my very long sleep manage to sip down a cold Coke Zero.

It was, without question, the hardest day of my Camino—physically humbling, spiritually instructive, and a perfect reminder that in both pilgrimage and the Christian life, even wrong turns can be redeemed… though they may involve a mountain you didn’t need to climb.

Dear reader, our day began in what I like to think of as the “Camino Goldilocks Zone”—up before the sun, showered, and strategically loitering at the door of the dining room so that we could be the first ones in at 7 a.m. sharp.

The server took one look at me and, with the solemn air of a man announcing a royal decree, said: “Room 207. Sin gluten.” He then followed me into the dining room carrying what can only be described as a laundry basket full of gluten-free provisions—bread, biscuits, crackers—enough to feed a small coeliac army for a week. I, being a man of simple (and rather carnivorous) tastes, ignored most of it and set to work on the chorizo, prosciutto, salami, serrano ham, and yoghurt. His efforts were largely wasted, but I appreciated the gesture nonetheless.

We left immediately after breakfast, well aware that today would be no stroll along a seaside promenade. We had at least 24 kilometres ahead of us, with two “provisional paths” (which, dear reader, is Camino-speak for “absolutely beautiful but adds extra work”) that would each tack on an extra kilometre. Memories of our industrial park adventure still fresh, we chose the scenic detours without hesitation. We had also been warned about “some significant climbing” today—ominous words for hips and knees of our vintage. What no one mentioned, however, was that this would also be the hottest day since we set foot in Spain.

The three factors combined—distance, altitude, and heat—created a day that was both deeply rewarding and rather like walking through an oven while wearing a backpack.

Still, grace came in many forms. As an extreme introvert, I rarely end a day speaking of “all the new friends I made.” But when one is travelling with David Smith, it is inevitable. People we’d met days before seemed to pop out of side streets and cafés just to say hello. Late in the morning, two very cheerful Italian women from Sicily approached. One, Claudia, looked straight at David and declared, “Whiskey!” She remembered him from the night before, attempting to find a decent Scotch in a Spanish pub. She was travelling with her friend Laura, and soon we were deep in conversation.

Laura was filming snippets for Instagram. David, ever the helpful accomplice, announced, “Don posts to Instagram every day.” She promptly asked for my handle, and within seconds was peering at her phone: “Reverend. You are priest.” And just like that, the conversation turned from whisky to faith—a far more satisfying topic, in my opinion. We crossed paths with them several times throughout the day, each meeting another gift of laughter and insight.

By late afternoon, however, our pace slowed to the speed of treacle in January. The heat was unrelenting. At one point, we stopped at a small pub beside the Way, where the sound of riotous laughter caught our attention. It turned out that many of the younger pilgrims had discovered the vineyard’s irrigation system and were joyfully running through it like children on the first day of summer. In the spirit of Christian solidarity—and possibly heatstroke—David soon joined them.

We arrived tired, hungry, and a little sun-baked, but the day had been full of prayer, companionship, and joy. On the Camino, you learn quickly that these are the true provisions for the journey.

Long before we entered the city of Caldas de Reis we encountered the sign on the highway that it was 40 km to Santiago. When we got to our hotel, the Camino Marker told us even then that we were still 46 kilometers away. Walking the camino is much different than the straight lines of highways we are used to. Perhaps that is another lesson that the Camino teaches. Life takes us on winding routes at times, and that is simply the nature of life. Just keep walking. God bless you, dear reader.

Buen Camino.

Dear reader, once again I must begin by waxing theological about the Camino, because frankly it insists on being theological whether you like it or not. This morning, hundreds of pilgrims set out from Arcade. Some were off like a shot — I suspect they were hoping to get to Santiago in time for lunch. Others, like David and me, adopted what might charitably be called a “measured” pace. We are of an age, you know. Our pace is less sprint and more polite shuffle, the sort of gait you’d adopt if walking behind royalty or carrying a very full cup of tea.

And that, I realised, is just fine. The Camino — like the walk of the baptized life — is not a race. Nowhere in the Gospels does Jesus say, “Blessed are the swift of foot, for they shall inherit the first shower at the albergue.” We are called simply to make progress, each at our own pace, and preferably without collapsing in the ditch.

We were joined this morning by Rob, the genial Welshman we’d shared dinner with last night. He walked with us for an hour before, I suspect, our pace proved spiritually edifying but physically intolerable. Off he went, striding into the distance to find someone with knees that bent at a more agreeable speed. And that, too, is a Camino truth: some companions walk with you for a lifetime, others for only a short stretch. Accept both as gifts.

Grace also has a way of appearing in many forms along the trail. Today it looked like Gopeekha from Hawaii and Marissa from New York, whose laughter could be heard half a kilometre ahead — a sound that makes the heart glad even before you see the faces. Grace was Sarah from Ireland, who, upon learning I was a priest, decided to discuss her faith with me over coffee. It was the cool breeze that found me when I was walking alone. It was the pilgrim who pressed a bag of fresh peaches into my hands at a café. On the Camino, as in life, grace comes in many disguises — and sometimes we are called to be the disguise for someone else.

But back to the day. Though our stage was a mere 13 km, those kilometres were of the “uphill both ways” variety. My arthritic hips lodged their usual formal complaint at every incline, while David’s knees began composing a letter to Amnesty International during each descent. This naturally required us to stop at every café we found — purely, you understand, for the sake of fellowship and not at all for the café con leche.

At one such stop we met Sarah from Ireland, and two pilgrims from Denmark who asked about the Chapel of St. Martha, where, they told me, priests are often pressed into service to celebrate Mass for the pilgrims. I explained that I was Anglican and therefore unlikely to be asked, which led to a brief but efficient theological summary involving ordination of women, clergy marriage, and marriage equality. Sarah, still sipping her coffee, simply said, “Well, I’m Roman Catholic, but I have to say I agree with your church on all of those.” And thus another spirited Camino conversation was born.

Later, we ran into Gopeekha and Marissa again near the day’s fork in the road. A local had told us earlier, “To the right — shorter, but all on the road through the city. To the left — one kilometre longer, but through the woods, beside a lovely stream.” Without hesitation they said, “The woods, of course.” It was clear they, too, had learned the great truth of our ill-fated industrial detour: shorter is not always better.

We are now at our beautiful hotel in Pontevedra with several hours before dinner — which in Spain, of course, is served sometime between sunset and the Second Coming. Tomorrow’s walk is mercifully flat, but stretches for 23 kilometres. Pray for us, dear reader, as we will pray for you — though perhaps at a slightly slower pace.

Prayer for the Unhurried Grace of God

Gracious God,
You have set before us a path to walk,
and You know the measure of our steps,
the strength in our legs, and the pace of our hearts.

Thank You for those who walk beside us—
whether for a few moments or many miles—
and for the laughter, kindness, and conversations
that refresh the soul as much as any rest or drink.

Teach us to welcome grace in all its forms:
a cool breeze on a steep climb,
a kind word from a fellow traveller,
or the joy of shared silence along the way.

When we grow weary,
remind us that this pilgrimage, like the life of faith,
is not a race to win, but a journey to share with You.

Bless our steps tomorrow, O Lord,
and let our walking be both prayer and praise,
until we arrive at the home You have prepared for us.

Through Christ our Companion,
Amen.

Now then, dear reader—lest you, like my sister, are under the impression that this is simply an elaborately costumed pub crawl across Spain with the occasional prayer thrown in — allow me a moment of theological reflection before returning to our regularly scheduled tales of aching joints and surprising geography.

This morning over breakfast, something quietly beautiful happened.
We sat in a dining room of ten pilgrims:
Two from Spain, two from Germany, two from France, two from Canada (yours truly and companion), and two from the United States. Ten people. Ten languages or dialects. Ten ways of expressing gratitude for strong coffee and clean socks. And yet — we were all heading in the same direction.

We may speak differently, dress differently, and disagree on whether a croissant counts as sufficient protein — but we are all walking a path, spiritually and literally, that leads us toward God.
The Camino does that. It reminds us that while we journey in many ways, we are all, at heart, pilgrims in search of grace.

Now, on to the comedy.

While gathered in that little breakfast room, our host asked where everyone was headed for the day. Eight of the pilgrims proudly proclaimed their destination: Arcade — a fine town and, as we would soon learn, a formidable one.

David and I, perhaps a bit smugly, replied: Redondela.

Our host’s face lit up with relief.

“Ah, lucky you! Only 14 km. The others? Almost 30!”

David and I chuckled into our café con leches with the quiet satisfaction of two men who had outwitted the calendar and outwalked the rest. A short day! A gentle climb! What could go wrong?

Ah yes… elevation.

It turns out that the route to Redondela involves a 500-foot climb, followed by a 500-foot descent.
Now, this may not sound like much to the sprightly, but to my arthritic hips, it felt like summiting Everest in sandals. Meanwhile, David’s knees, never ones to miss a dramatic moment, began protesting with every blessed step downhill. If my hips were singing the blues, his knees were composing a full requiem.

Eventually, we reached Redondela, sweaty but triumphant, and found shelter — a bus shelter, to be precise — where we decided to check the final distance to our hotel.

I tapped in the address, expecting directions to a quiet little inn just up the street. Instead, my phone boldly announced that our hotel was… 14 kilometres away. In Arcade.

Yes, dear reader, it turns out we had chosen the wrong town.
We had misread the itinerary, misjudged the map, and now found ourselves only halfway through what was meant to be our “short day.”

I double-checked the dossier in disbelief. Sure enough:

“To reach your hotel in Arcade, continue for 14 km. Includes moderate climb and descent.”

Well. At least it was consistent.

David, ever the realist, shook his head and said,

“So much for the record I set yesterday for the longest walk to get a beer.”

And off we went—limping, chuckling, and fuelled by the promise of another café con leche.

By the time we hobbled into Arcade, we’d earned every blister, every smile, and every seat at the table. We found our fellow pilgrims, old and new, and shared a glorious supper at a local restaurant, swapping stories, nursing sore limbs, and realizing that this accidental extension of our day had led us to a deeper kind of Camino.

As we sat to eat, we noticed a fellow at a nearby table who appeared to be alone. We invited him to join with us. A few minutes later we saw a young woman we had met on the way who was from Barcelona, along with her friend. They were also alone. We invited them to join our little team as well. As the night went on, we were gathering quite an impressive crew.

Tomorrow, we cover just 13 km. A gentle stroll, they tell us.
But if it turns into another pilgrimage-within-a-pilgrimage, I shall offer it up—perhaps with a glass of Albariño in one hand and a walking stick in the other.

And for now, dear reader, I must rest.
I am not sure if I’ll be walking tomorrow, or simply leaning forward with intent—but either way, the road continues. And so shall we.

Buen Camino.

Dear reader, when last I left you, we had just finished a light lunch at the edge of O Porriño—a modest but satisfying meal which we believed would be followed by a short 2-kilometre stroll to our hotel pickup point. Imagine our surprise, then, when the stroll turned out to be 4 kilometres, which is less “light constitutional” and more “unscheduled bonus pilgrimage.”

Still, after having walked 20 km already, what’s another four? We laughed in the face of our weariness (though it might have been more of a grimace), and took off with the enthusiasm of two middle-aged men who forgot how far a kilometre feels once your legs have filed a formal protest.

We were eventually retrieved by our driver — a cheerful man of many talents, as it turns out. Not only was he our chauffeur, but also our bartender, concierge, and informal therapist.

Upon delivering us to the Hostal Expo, he offered us the chance to revive our aching limbs with a restorative. David, in a moment of divine inspiration (or perhaps just survival instinct), suggested a Glen Rothes Scotch, noting that this might bring peace to our troubled joints, not to mention our souls.

Now, I, being of simple yet refined taste, take my whisky neat. This announcement caused great alarm in our multi-talented driver/bartender, who immediately launched into a multi-stage process that would’ve impressed any liturgist. He insisted on ice, which he froze further in the freezeralong with my glass so that it could be adequately chilled, as though preparing it for surgery. Only after the ritual chilling of the glass did he finally pour the scotch — with what can only be described as ecumenical generosity. David had requested a single. I received three, possibly four, depending on the metric system employed.

And, being a responsible pilgrim unwilling to waste sacred Scottish spirit, I drank it all. For the healing of the nations. And my hips.

Thus fortified, we retired to the garden pool, a sparkling body of water that looked inviting and, according to the young man at reception, was “very cold.” He issued this warning with the same tone one might use when mentioning an unmedicated wild animal.

But David and I, being Canadian and of indeterminate common sense, paid him no mind. No pool is too cold, we declared. And then we dove in.

What followed was not so much a swim as an experience of baptism by glacial immersion. I can say with some authority that my pool back in Kingston never reached this temperature, not even in August with the solar heating operating. But I must also say — it was glorious. We floated, we groaned, we thawed out our legs in alternating stages. We stayed in for hours. It was, quite possibly, the finest therapy I’ve ever received outside of formal confession.

Now, one does eventually need dinner. But Spain, as we are learning, dances to the rhythm of a later clock. When I asked about eating at 5:00, the receptionist looked briefly horrified and said, “In Spain, we eat at 9 or 10. The earliest… maybe… is 7:30.” Which, to a Canadian stomach that’s been begging for mercy since 5, is the moral equivalent of Lent.

At 7:30 on the dot, we arrived for dinner like children at the school bell.

I started with a French omelette, fluffy and divine, filled with cheese and ham and perhaps a little grace. Then came a veal steak with French fries — simple, hearty, and served without apology.

And then, dear reader… the Santiago Cake.

Now, I have baked Santiago Cake. I have eaten Santiago Cake. I have even shared recipes for Santiago Cake. But never — never — have I been warned not to touch the cake.

Our server appeared, solemn and ceremonial, and said, “Do not touch.” He then disappeared, and re-emerged with a bottle.

He instructed us to stab the cake repeatedly with our forks, like culinary penitents. And then, with great drama, he poured Port wine over the cake until it was a glorious sponge, transformed into the spiritual cousin of an English trifle. It was… transcendent.

So now, as I sit here with a large café con leche and a satisfied sigh, David is already in bed snoring with the resolve of a man who knows tomorrow involves only 12 kilometres and minimal hills.

I shall soon follow him into sleep, hopeful that tomorrow brings more grace, more shade, and—if the Lord is willing — another pool.

May your own evening be filled with rest, refreshment, and cake worth waiting for.

A Prayer at the End of a Long Day’s Walk

O God of the long road and the quiet rest,
Today we have walked further than we thought we could—
one step at a time, past the aches in our bodies,
and through the doubts that whispered we’d had enough.
Thank you for the strength we didn’t know we had,
for every kind face, cool breeze, and stamp along the way.

You met us in the forest trail,
in the smile of a stranger,
in the piping of an unexpected tune.
You waited for us at café tables,
in chilled pools, and in meals served with care.

For moments of laughter,
for sips of wine and slices of cake,
for every small grace that stitched this day together —
we give you thanks.

Now, as night falls and our legs grow still,
let your peace settle over us like a blanket.
Restore what is weary.
Renew what is sore.
And prepare us for the road that lies ahead.

For we walk not alone.
You are always near —
around the bend,
at the table,
within our hearts.

Amen.

Welcome back, dear reader. You now rejoin the ongoing saga of a much relieved pilgrim — a man who has survived the day he feared most with hips still attached and spirits remarkably intact.

Yes, today was the one — the 22-kilometre gauntlet, the Everest of this pilgrimage (minus the altitude and the snow, but plus the sun and suspicious industrial smells). With my arthritic hips and David’s melodramatic knees, we were both poised for what we imagined would be a cross between Chariots of Fire and an orthopaedic infomercial.

We woke early — by which I mean before the coffee had brewed itself properly, which, in Spain, is practically a violation of the Geneva Convention — and we brought our backpacks downstairs for transfer. We received our first stamp in the all-important pilgrim credential, which confirms not only our movement through time and space, but also (eventually) that we haven’t just been bar-hopping through Galicia pretending to be spiritual.

Then upstairs for breakfast, and dear friends, let me say: if heaven has a buffet, it likely resembles this one. Fresh fruits, wheels of cheese, aged meats that smelled like the Holy Spirit might have blessed them individually, thick yoghurt, orange juice squeezed by angels, and coffee that I suspect came directly from the Eternal Roast.

Suitably fortified, we set off.

A few kilometres in, a local man waved us over to what can only be described as a tiny café birthed from a garage, run by his family. There were chairs, coffee, and—you guessed it — a second stamp. We, of course, stopped. Because one does not simply pass by good coffee in Spain. Nor does one pass up a stamp when one’s knees might revolt before the next one.

A few more kilometres on, deep in a forest, we encountered a Guardia Civil car parked under the trees — its two officers standing with expressions of profound seriousness and… a stamp. One imagines their law enforcement briefing that morning:

“Men, your mission today: stand quietly among the pines and validate passports for the weary.”

Naturally, we obliged. It’s not every day you get officially endorsed by the Spanish police and the Catholic Church within the same morning.

But it was the sound just beyond that checkpoint that moved me most. From deep within the trees, like the haunting call of my ancestors, I heard… bagpipes. Yes, bagpipes, here in southern Spain. David glanced at me and quipped, “Even here, you Scots need to be piped in!” And sure enough, there was a piper in full regalia playing Scotland the Brave, looking only slightly sunburnt and entirely proud. And yes—he had a stamp too. (And a tip jar. Which is just sensible theology.)

At this point, we had stopped counting kilometres, partly because we didn’t want to know, and partly because I’d left my Apple Watch at home, which has proven to be both spiritually enlightening and wildly inconvenient.

Eventually, we came to a fork in the trail — and like all good biblical metaphors, we had a choice. To the left: the routa alternativa — 6.55 km of forested path, shady and scenic. To the right: the “Area Industrial” — 1.1 km shorter, and paved. I consulted a group of young Spanish women walking near us. “Nature,” they said wisely, “is beautiful.”

But our aging joints had already voted. Expedience won. And thus, dear reader, we entered the industrial park — a sacred labyrinth of cement, heat, and exactly zero trees.

As the sun baked us like communion wafers left on a dashboard, I said to David, “The moment we see a café, we stop.” Which would have been a fine plan — had there been any cafés. But alas, industrial parks, like vestry meetings, are designed for work, not refreshment.

Eventually, just as we were about to surrender ourselves to the pavement, we emerged, hobbling, into O Porriño, having clocked in at over 20 kilometres. And there, like a vision of the promised land, stood a restaurant offering cerveza, vino y tapas.

We sat. We sipped. We sighed.

David looked over his beer and said with deep sincerity,

“This now holds the record for the longest I’ve ever walked to get a beer.”

We still had 2 km to go to reach our hotel, but after 20, what’s another two? A cool-down lap. A postlude to the liturgy.

So I’ll leave you here, dear reader, glass in hand, sipping what may well be the tastiest glass of Albariño I’ve ever had — and preparing for the last bit of today’s journey.

There may yet be more to this story. But first: lunch. Then a nap. And maybe… a hymn of thanksgiving.

And so, dear reader, in the great tradition of pilgrims everywhere — and by that I mean those motivated primarily by caffeine — we once again set out into the afternoon sun of Tui in search of that most sacred of Spanish sacraments: a really good cup of coffee.

Fueled by an optimistic disregard for topography, we wandered down the winding streets from our venerable hotel to the edge of the Miño River, blissfully unaware that every delightful step downhill would soon become a penitential uphill return.

The riverfront, I must say, was glorious. The view of Portugal, reclining lazily on the far bank like a smug neighbour who finished their chores before lunch, was absolutely lovely. The breeze danced across the water like a hymn, and somewhere in the distance, a bell tower rang the Angelus, prompting my Canadian stomach to declare, quite unilaterally, that it was suppertime—even though in Tui, not even the flies had stirred from their siesta yet.

The streets, in fact, were so empty I began to wonder if some ancient Iberian custom forbade movement before sunset. Perhaps everyone was inside praying. Or eating. Or waiting for the weather to turn its wrath elsewhere.

In our continued wandering (or as I call it, liturgical strolling), we found a charming heladería. Naturally, I ordered a café con leche and a scoop — or three — of gelato. The young woman behind the counter nodded and began assembling this holy offering.

But then, just as I was about to indulge, she froze (pun unintended), gasped, and dashed over as if I’d just asked for pineapple on a tortilla.

“You said… celiac?” she asked.

I nodded, half a spoonful from joy.

With the solemnity of a Eucharistic minister intercepting a dubious wafer, she confiscated my gelato. Then she disappeared into the back for several minutes. When she returned, she was triumphantly bearing a new bowl of gelato — this time assembled from unopened, untainted, immaculate containers. Truly, dear friends, it is easier to keep kosher in Galicia than it is to navigate a potluck back home.

By the time we made our slow, heroic ascent back to the hotel, the bells were striking seven, and the town had begun to come alive. Locals emerged from doorways like actors entering stage left—all freshly dressed, well-rested, and suspiciously cheerful—as though the day’s heat hadn’t happened at all.

Inspired by their liveliness (and by the sudden pang of hunger triggered by the smell of garlic in the air), David and I decided to reverse the natural order of things. We had already had our postre — gelato — and now we would enjoy our supper. A backward meal for a backward hill.

The local café we selected featured a “Russian salad” as the special. Now, when one hears “salad,” one thinks perhaps of lettuce, tomatoes, a cucumber if you’re lucky. But no—this “salad” was, in fact, a majestic mound of fresh tuna, lightly supported by some modest vegetables, which seemed to have stumbled into the dish by accident. It was delicious, mysterious, and deeply unRussian.

By some continued miracle—possibly the Camino itself at work — my blood sugar remained remarkably steady, even after wine, seafood, and enthusiastic gelato consumption. No insulin needed again. I am now convinced the Camino Diet may become a spiritual discipline at home. Wine, walking, and whipped tuna—it’s practically sacramental.

Now back at the hotel, knowing that tomorrow holds the longest walk of our pilgrimage, it is time to retire. The sandals are off, the feet are up, and my soul—which has been trailing slightly behind me since Toronto—is finally catching up.

So I leave you, dear reader, with this simple prayer:

A Prayer for Letting the Soul Catch Up

Lord of the long road and the quiet evening,
Thank you for this day of simple gifts —
a breeze on the river, a quiet bell, a scoop of ice cream.
Let my heart be still long enough to notice
where You’ve been walking beside me all along.
Help my soul catch up with my feet.
And tomorrow, walk with me once more.
Amen.

You might be forgiven, dear reader, if you’ve come away from these early blog entries believing that my primary focus on this pilgrimage is not penitence, nor prayer, nor even blister prevention — but rather, the noble art of eating. I assure you this is only partly true. The rest of the time I am either thinking about food, talking about food, or walking in search of food, which is, spiritually speaking, a kind of prayer.

David and I set off this morning to explore the medieval city of Tui — a charming town which, while not particularly large, is positively overrun with ancient stones, crumbling grandeur, and the very specific type of cobblestone that exists solely to remind you that orthotics are a blessing.

We are staying at Hotel A Torre De Xudeo, a structure so old and venerable it probably remembers when pilgrims still travelled with donkeys and spiritual baggage rather than hiking poles and gluten intolerance. The grand stone staircase in the reception area could well have been climbed by Saint James himself — though judging by its incline, he probably only did it once.

This hotel, I might add, is ideally situated. By “ideally,” I mean it is so close to the Cathedral that one need only stumble down the steps (trying not to fall), take a sharp left past the Poor Clares, and you’re practically there. Speaking of the Convent of the Poor Clares, it sits just up the street — humble, closed, and silent. I assume the sisters are inside praying, baking, or quietly judging the footwear of passing tourists.

A few hundred metres further on stands the Cathedral of Santa María, a structure of such majesty that one approaches it not with footsteps but with awe. The bells — vast, noble, and likely audible from Portugal — hang overhead like iron archangels awaiting a signal. Inside, the space is cavernous and dark. The stone walls are measured in feet of thickness, presumably to keep out the cold and modernity. The windows, bless them, are charmingly small — as if the builders feared light might distract the faithful.

Despite its gloom, the cathedral’s presence commands reverence. I stood in silence for several minutes before being distracted by the entirely secular but deeply theological thought: “Is it lunch yet?”

We meandered down through the twisting medieval streets, which were charmingly uneven and very nearly ankle-threatening, until we reached the Miño River, gazing across to Portugal with the wistful air of pilgrims who are entirely aware that there’s probably a good café just over there, if only they had time to cross.

And then, naturally, it was time to eat.

Now, in this part of Tui, every other establishment is either a restaurant, a bar, or some glorious hybrid of both. We selected one with the air of quiet confidence and a promising wine list. The waiter, who clearly sized us up as men in urgent need of refreshment, brought David a beer so cold it seemed to glisten with virtue.

As for myself, I inquired about Vinho Verde, my Portuguese go-to. The waiter, not missing a beat, explained that here in Spain, the equivalent is called Vino Albariño, made with the same grape, but presumably blessed by different bishops. One sip took me back ten years to Mira, Portugal, and an unforgettable lunch with my friend Rev. Silvário, who—like this wine—was bold, sharp, and went very well with shellfish.

And shellfish, dear reader, is precisely what we ordered.

We enjoyed scallops and octopus, both cooked to perfection. I would go so far as to say that the Galician diet, heavy on seafood and wine and light on stress, may be the most effective wellness regimen I’ve yet encountered. My blood sugar levels, normally prone to dramatics, have been perfectly behaved. My insulin remains untouched in my bag, sulking quietly while I enjoy another meal it did not earn.

It may yet be that St. James was onto something. A long walk, a reverent heart, and a good lunch — with wine that tells stories and seafood that sings hymns — might just be the recipe for holiness.

Tomorrow, we walk. But today, we eat, pray, and marvel.

There is likely to be a part C today, as we are about to make a foray out to find a café on the Miño river to go and enjoy a nice espresso. I’m sure we will find many other interesting things along the way to the river. Stay tuned…