Day 72: Because Together…

Porque juntos somos imparables.

Spanish for, ”Because together, we are unstoppable.”

Today we are going to let you in on a secret of ours. Years ago Laurie and I faced a crisis together. After we weathered it, we started saying, ”Because together, we are unstoppable,” and then translated it into Spanish as in the quote above. There’s also a bit of choreographed actions when we say it, but we’ll spare you that.

Today was a Porque juntos… day. Ten weeks and two days, over 1000 miles, and four pairs of hiking shoes later, we walked into Santiago de Compostela, Spain. “Juntos” or together is not just us. It is our Lord, friends, family, and many others who helped us reach this point.

We met many people on this journey who made it memorable. Some we shared time with for only an hour or two. Others, it was days. We’ve made friendships we believe will last. We’ve also enjoyed sharing this pilgrimage with friends, family, and other readers and hope you have enjoyed it as well.

It was an incredible experience that won’t be repeated. Frankly, 1000 miles and 72 days is a one and done thing.

We have about just over two weeks here in Spain before we return home. Our daily posts are over but we will do periodic updates when we have something of interest.

Our Walk Today

We started our walk shortly before 6:00 AM in the dark. We had just over six miles and wanted to reach Santiago early in the morning and enjoy breakfast there. We walked with our friend, Max, whom we met several weeks back. He endured injury to get back on the trail and finish with us. We celebrated with breakfast at the Parador with Bob, another friend we’ve been traveling with recently.

This year is unique in that the ”Saint James Gate” was open and we were able to enter through it. It is open only during years in which the Feast of Saint James falls on a Sunday. Because of COVID, the holy year last year was extended a year by the Pope. It is quite unique. Read more about it at this link.

You’ll note that Laurie’s Relive video wanders quite a bit once we reach Santiago. Breakfast, picking up our compostela (completion certificate), English language mass, lunch, and other activities before check-in at our hotel are captured in the route.