Tuesday, December 21, 2021

Camino de Santiago 20 to Finnesterre... To the End of THE World

Camino de Santiago 20 to Finnesterre... To The End of THE World

Original post: Camino de Santiago 20 to Finnesterre... To the End of the World  

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ROF= Ring of Fire Odyssey  

MEF-H = Marine Expeditionary Force- Hargus 

CdS = Camino de Santiago journey            

Tuesday September 24, 2019         

CdS 20  to Finnesterre... ... 


The Camino de Santiago....I've hiked/ backpacked 130 miles from Ponferrada to Santiago; a feat of its own. I made it!!! I shouldn't even be here... and lived to be here!

I'm in Santiago. been to a pilgrims mass in The iglesia de San Francisco.  

now... how can I not go to Fisterra/ Finnesterre... To THE END OF THE WORLD!

Fisterra is the Galician/ Spanish name of the city/town on the Iberian peninsula.   


On this odyssey, on the journey during a lifetime... backpacking across northern Spain on The Camino de Santiago... The Way of ST James... The route Apostle James took after Jesus was crucified ... and the Apostles set out on their journey... a few reflections on The Camino experience.

James is described as one of the first disciples to join Jesus. This was the same path James walked on his pilgrimage to Santiago and is known as the patron Saint of Spain, his remains are interred in Santiago de Compostela in Galacia. This journey became an important rite of passage for all true believers.
The peninsula with lighthouse at the end is Cape Finnesterre, the westernmost point on the Iberian/ Spanish peninsula believed to be "The end of the world" in roman times comes from Latin FINIS TERRAE meaning "Lands End".  


if you are a masochist you can hike the rest of the 60 miles from Santiago, plan on several more days to hike to the peninsula of Finnesterre.

2,000 years ago... when the earth was flat by general consensus... Finesterre was the end. The end of the Camino... The End of The World! 

Shipping lanes from the Mediterranean to the Uk for trade had marked and had designated as a major point in the route.
Passed by the seaside town of Fisterra.

Then on to Finnesterre, the peninsula.
On out to the peninsula was on the mountain ridge. 
Some overcast on the day with some fog. 
These pilgrim posts were in most villages along the Camino.

Come to the end... tourist store. and bathrooms. Pit stop. 
On down to the lighthouse.  


Trail to the right... climb up and take in the Atlantic ocean.  



on down to the left trail... on down to the rocks and the end of the peninsula... The literal End of The World! 



many winding paths down.  We're 200' below the lighthouse... still 300' above the sea and it's a difficult path to get down to the actual water. 

Zero Km marker... The end of The Camino de Santiago!
Many artifacts placed here, rock towers placed by many pilgrims, shoes left at the end of the world. A fire from pilgrims burning their clothes. This is the place for your final offering. I left rocks, stones brought from back home, symbolizing my past burdens of life... of my past mistakes, of my past life... and left them here at the end of the world as my offering to leave these past burdens of life and go on. 

I threw a coin to the sea to symbolize giving my wealth away, my down payment for future giving, to divest money, a worthless commodity as a sacrifice on a journey through time. 

This was quite an experience. This Camino hike cannot be explained in a few short blog posts.

Thank you for the abundant blessings. I did not waste this time of life!

PS, When it comes to studying Western Civ You can keep your Austrian Hapsburgs, The Ottoman empire- Constantinople/ Istanbul, The Fertile Crescent, The Roman Empire - Augustus, Christianity, Democracy, Law, The Crusades, Alaxander The Great, Florence - The Medici's coming out of the Dark ages into the Middle ages and The Renaissance, Michelangelo, Music and Literature, Copernicus, Magellan, Columbus, Genoa- Columbus, Magellan, Dutch traders, Greece... Athens, The Greek city states, the Hellenistic world and the Byzantine empire, The Norse/ The Vikings, The Goths, Napoleon, The Huns, Italy- The Franks, The Lombards, The political alliances of Lucca Italy,... Corinth, Carthage, The Phonecians, Acaba, Sumaria, Babalyon, Mecca, Armenian Christians, Russian orthodox, Ashkenazi Jewish, Druids in Brittan and Gaul, Hadrians Wall, Irish Celtic Christianity, Scottish Picts tribe, Polish Slavic and Baltic tribes,... 

... All that... then you go to the iberian peninsula... Aragon, The Moors in the South- Grenada- Alhambra, Barcelona, Valencia, Madrid, Gibraltar, Leon, Castile, Santiago, Finisterre-  To The End of THE WORLD,

... You want to study Western Civ; you go to Spain!

Homer fought in war for 10 years and it then took more 10 years of Odyssey to get back home. You get started on a journey,... on a path that takes you through the wonder of the world/ time... That's what you live for. Take the path and see it; one day you'll get back home. You can rest then.  
******
PPS: This is an add-on... It's early April now and the CV19 virus has shut down the world. Today Spain is the 2nd most infected country in the world with over 150k cases, and over 15k deaths. I say a prayer for ALL of the wonderful people of Spain. Yo amore Espana~ and am with you fighting and recovering this virus Soon. Hold Fast! Uncle Hargus

You never drink twice from the same stream. 

Just because you wander doesn't mean you're lost. 

Uncle Hargus: Last of the Independents  

Have Bear,    
          Will Travel 

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