Mio el Camino de Santiago de Compostela - 1

Day 1


I reached Lourdes without hassle and with the bonus of a great weather. I decided to act on what has been on my mind for years. I am doing the Camino de Santiago. To simply put it, Camino de Santiago is the pilgrimage to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in the Galician region of Spain where the remains of St. James the apostle is said to be buried. The tradition dates back to the 8th century.


Lourdes is a small French town with lots of pilgrims, although most looked to me like the usual tourists. The streets were full of souvenir shops and restaurants. It's around noon when I checked in at my hotel which was near the sanctuary. I intended to spend 2 nights here in Lourdes to have the time to figure out my route to St. Jean Pied de Port.


After settling my stuff in my room, I walked down to the basilica of Our Lady of Lourdes. While wondering how I could get to the grotto, I realized I was actually walking towards it. I was still having second thoughts about the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. I was worrying if the route I'd be taking is safe or passable. So I sat down and prayed. I asked for a sign and after a long while, there I got it. So now I decided I ought to go. This is the 2nd time that I asked for a sign. The first time was when I was in Jerusalem a couple of weeks back. I was much more worried that time but I also received the "go" signal back then.


So this is it. I'm doing the Camino de Santiago starting from Lourdes, France. I got my credencial at the religious tourist information center in front of the basilica. Credencial is needed to have me registered as a pilgrim to Santiago de Compostela. I also received my first stamp on my credencial here, indicating that this town is my starting point. Stamps are seals uniquely designed in every place who provide them. When stamped on the credencial, it would show the name of the locale.


Coincidentally, this day happened to be my father's death anniversary so I prayed a lot today. I prayed a lot for different reasons. For different purposes.

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