March 3rd seems a lifetime ago. Within my “Thoughts” you will find it is the day I wondered if our undertaking was a trip, a vacation, a journey or a pilgrimage. I offered the following thoughts at that time:

• A Trip is any travel that takes one from point “A” to point “B” without regard to distance or purpose. It is the barest transport of a body from here to there. Purpose is irrelevant as is the quality of the experience.

• A Vacation is a departure from the routine of one’s life. It may or may not involve travel, such as a “staycation”. It evinces an intention to temporarily detour from one’s duties without shirking one’s responsibilities.

• A Journey conjures up the image of travel that is of an extended duration. “Journey” has the character of uniqueness relative to one’s prior experiences. It is self-directed, assumed as a personal responsibility, and not left into the hands of another. “Journey” can result in a redirection of one’s life and perhaps the lives of others.

Our travels these last 7 weeks certainly have qualified as a journey. We have over 5 weeks left before we again step foot in our own home. This has been a remarkable, but at times wearing experience. We correctly rejected the notion of these travels being a vacation as they have become our reality. However, for the last 4 days we have found the course of each day to be more in the hands of our Welsh friends, Huw and Nina Thomas. They have given us a brief and most welcome “departure from the routine of (our) life.” Good fortune has followed the four of us on this vacation within a journey.

Heavy rains were predicted for the entire day. However the overnight showers gave way to sunshine and pleasant temperatures as we toured Muckross House, Abbey, and the Dingle Peninsula.

There were brief showers, but they were a gift in their own right as emerald green fields were gilded before our eyes with the spectrum hues of a rainbow sky.

Vacations end and today is our last full day with our friends. In keeping with my “mantra” of always having a “next thing”, the four of us have begun to formulate a plan for their visit to us in the States. But first about the day…

Muckross House and Abbey are situated within Ireland’s first and oldest National Park. The House is a 65 room mansion that was built in 1843. In the 1860’s the family undertook a 6 year long project to prepare for a 2 day visit by Queen Victoria. The family had hopes of being conferred a title by the Queen, which unfortunately for them did not occur. The extensive decorating and furnishings that they purchased for the visit ended up bankrupting the family. The House and its 11,000 acres had to be sold to resolve the debts. Subsequent owners gifted Muckross to the Republic of Ireland which made it into its first National Park. Unfortunately, pictures within the home were not allowed. 70% of the furnishings are original to the House, including paintings, hunting trophies, and furniture. The owners beds and the bed in which the Queen slept for 2 nights are only 6 feet long. Aristocrats of the time preferred to sleep sitting up in the belief that it was healthier for them.

Within the extensive grounds of Muckross are the ruins of a Franciscan Abbey that dates to the 1440’s. It was built upon older, perhaps ancient structures, and is reputed to be the burial grounds for several chieftains of those earlier times. The Abbey was the victim in the 1500’s of Henry the VIII and his separation from the Catholic Church.

Our drive to Dingle and on the Dingle Peninsula was a feast for the eyes.

We spent the night near Tralee and will be proceeding on our last full day with Huw and Nina to Limerick.

Peace Everyone. Pete

PS. Christine, who “never” eats seafood, ate a HUGE plate of fish and chips!!

We have arrived by train in Waterford Ireland, the oldest city in Ireland and the 5th largest in the Republic with a population of approximately 54,000. It was founded as a Viking settlement in 914 and became a heavily fortified stronghold with a medieval wall surrounding the city that measured approximately 1.5 km. Reginald’s Tower, constructed in the 13th Century was once a part of those defenses and still stands today within the area known as the Viking Triangle.

Excavations in and around the old fortifications have revealed a trove of relics from the founding period. The city is proud of this heritage and presents a number of symbols of that time including an accurate reproduction of a Viking longboat, a Viking dwelling, and a remarkable 30 minute virtual reality presentation on Viking lore and history. The host of the production was an actor who took his role quite seriously.

The virtual reality glasses and headphones caused Christine, who was seated next to me in the Viking house, to “disappear” and be replaced by very real looking and acting people from the past. It was IMAX on steroids!

Our friends, Huw and Nina, arrived from Wales. It has been 11 years since we last saw them. The years melted away with the first embraces. This evening we shared dinner and hoisted a pint. We will tour the Waterford Crystal factory with them tomorrow before beginning our multi-day driving trek about Southern Ireland.

One pub here in town proudly displays license plates from each of the 50 US States, including our home State of Missouri!

Peace Everyone. Pete

I can’t resist at least serving up a brief summary of the day and giving the opportunity for you to view the pictures.

First of all the huge ugly creature in the opening photo is a monkfish (the other creature next to it is Tom). Surprisingly good to eat (the Monkfish), but really ugly!

We shared breakfast with our Swiss friends, Irene and Manuela, and then saw them off to their taxi for their return to Switzerland.

We met our Canadian friends, Tom and Nancy, at the Cathedral for the Pilgrims Mass, which included the announcement of the prior days arrivals. We were fortunate that this service included the iconic swinging of the Botafumeiro, a 175 pound silver plated incensor, one of the largest in the world. The pulley mechanism was installed in 1608 and is scheduled to be refurbished later this year.

We shared dinner with them, and were joined by our friend Kirsti from Finland. Dinner was at a wonderful Tapas restaurant recommended by our Kansas City friend Thomas Lin who walked the Camino in 2009.

The day concluded with a surprise encounter with a street Mariachi band and their brief inclusion of a “guest performer” (me) from the audience. Christine almost passed out she laughed so hard.

And link to video of the Mariachi band. https://youtu.be/4au5X3tOauQ

Here is video link of the Botafumerio. https://youtu.be/COlhM5VPM1Q

Enjoy and Peace Everyone! Pete

The day broke clear for our final steps to the Cathedral in Santiago. Viewed on a map, this was always the goal . But the destinations within each of us were many, varied, and often different than what had been “planned”.

Our hotelier provided us with a nice breakfast and heartfelt wishes for the day and the future. Irene and Manuela left early but not without departing embraces. We walked the final 12 km with our Canadian friends, Tom and Nanci, alternating between periods of conversation and the silence of contemplation. 14 days, 250 km, and approximately 420,000 steps…

The entry into the Cathedral square was familiar, and I couldn’t help but look for the faces from 2013… Kris, Maggie,Jacobien , Henk, Christine and Gaby, Roberto, Jack, Jenny…. you were among those in my thoughts and carried in my heart from that Camino. You are now joined by the 2018 members of my Camino family. Also with me in spirit were each of you who have followed our progress through my “Thoughts”, a number that passed 10,000 visits to those posts on that day.

The line of pilgrims waiting to receive their Compostela was intimidating, but the efficient Pilgrim’s Office had us in and out in 45 minutes. Somehow, the woman who greeted me at the counter was able to look into my eyes and extend her hand to me, “Congratulations and welcome, sir.” as if I were the only reason that she was there.

Certificates in hand, the four of us adjourned to a nearby cafe to toast our accomplishment. Out of the thousands of pilgrims milling about emerged some who we had met on The Way, notably Faris and Stanislaw, our friends from Germany. Absent were Ina and Reiner who returned home earlier in the day, and Kirsti, Sirkka, and Jim, who we still hope to see. We planned to meet for dinner and I to celebrate with my favorite Galicia dish, Pulpo (grilled octopus).

Today, May 4th, we will attend the Pilgrim’s Mass at the Cathedral. Perhaps they will swing the Botafumeiro. They will announce at Mass the number of Peregrinos who entered Santiago yesterday, the places that we are from, and where we started the journey as viewed on a map. Of course, the starting places within each of us were many, varied, and often found to be different than what we once believed.

Peace Everyone. Pete

PS. We fly to Dublin Ireland on Sunday and start the next chapter of this Journey. Until then I will likely take a 2 day vacation from my thoughts. Thank you for following.