Sunday, November 18, 2012

Sunday, November 18, 2012 - Southampton, England

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2012 - SOUTHAMPTON, ENGLAND - Our ship returned to this port, arriving about 5 a.m.   I had arranged a scenic transfer with a company named International Friends for a group of 16 and after meeting on the ship we proceeded off to meet our guide and  board our bus.  The requirements for being a part of this group, besides paying the scheduled fee, was that each person had to walk off the ship, carrying their luggage.  Once the luggage was all stowed on board the bus the tour began. 

Our first stop was in the beautiful English city of Salisbury for a visit to the Salisbury Cathedral.  In 1220 the city now known as Salisbury was founded on a great meadow.  The building of the new cathedral was begun in the same year.  The main body was completed in only 38 years and is a masterpiece of early English architecture.  The 404 foot tall spire was built later and is the tallest spire in the United Kingdom.  The cathedral is built on a gravel bed with unusually shallow foundations of 18 inches upon wooden faggots.  The cathedral contains the best preserved of the four surviving copies of the Magna Carta and a large mechanical clock installed in the cathedral in 1386--the oldest surviving mechanical clock in Britain.


 Salisbury Cathedral is recognized as the inspiration for Kingsbridge Cathedral of Ken Follett's international best-seller about the building of a medieval cathedral, The Pillars of the Earth, which tells the story of the construction and the life of a "new build" cathedral in the fictional town of Kingsbridge in southwest England.





 Stores in the city of Salisbury.  Early Sunday morning; stores were all closed.


 Leaving Salisbury we drove through the countryside, passing houses with thatch roofs.  (Pictures taken through the window of the bus).





 Arriving for our second stop, Stonehenge


 














 
Leaving Stonehenge we traveled to Windsor Castle for lunch and a tour.
 
The Admission Center and Courtyard.




 Upper Ward area. (State Apartments, The Drawings Gallery, and Queen Mary's Doll's Houses




 The Round Tower.
 

 Lower Ward






 
 St. George's Chapel



 
Our tour ended about 4 p.m. and then the transfer began to hotels in the Heathrow area and hotels in London.  I think Sylvia & I were the last ones delivered to our hotel in Islip neighborhood of London.
 
Sylvia and I stayed in London for two nights, going to the theater on Monday night to see Les Miserables in the West End of London.  Our flight to Dallas-Ft. Worth departed from Heathrow airport shortly before noon on Tuesday.

Friday, November 16, 2012

Saturday, November 17, 2012 - Day at sea

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2012 - DAY AT SEA -It's one of "those" days, when we can relax, sleep a little later and begin packing all the stuff back into the suitcases, getting ready for disembarking on Saturday at Southampton, England.

Friday, November 16, 2012 - Vigo, Spain - (Santiago de Compostela)

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2012 - VIGO, SPAIN - (SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA) - Vigo, Spain, located in Galicia on an inlet of the Atlantic ocean in the province of Pontevedra is the home to one of Spain's most important fishing fleets.  (Early morning view from our balcony window).


Vigo has been a major Spanish port for centuries, ever since the great Spanish galleons returned there, loaded with treasure and riches from the New World.  Nearby is the city of Santiago de Compostela, one of the three main holy cities of Christendom during the Middle Ages.  Since then, thousands have walked the long route to St. James' tomb to experience the history, art, and architecture of the "pilgrim's road".  This city, Santiago de Compostela, is the place we chose to spend our time while in this port.  The ship arrived at the port at 7:30 a.m.  I had arranged the tour for 12 of us with Spain Day Tours and we gathered on the ship before proceeding to meet our guide/driver on the dock.  Below, our van. 

These pictures were taken from the window of the van as we traveled through the city of Vigo making our way toward the city of Santiago de Compostela.








 
 
Once in Santiago de Compostela, we parked are began our walk toward the "Old City".  Below, our first glimpse of the cathedral. Santiago de Compostela is associated with one of the major themes of medieval history. From the shores of the North Sea and the Baltic Sea thousands of pilgrims carrying the scallop shell and the pilgrim's staff for centuries walked to the Galician sanctuary along the paths of Santiago, veritable roads of faith. Around its cathedral, a masterpiece of Romanesque art, Santiago de Compostela conserves a valuable historic center worthy of one of Christianity's greatest holy cities. During the Romanesque and Baroque periods the sanctuary of Santiago exerted a decisive influence on the development of architecture and art, not only in Galicia but also in the north of the Iberian peninsula.
This is an extraordinary ensemble of distinguished monuments grouped around the tomb of St James the Greater, the destination of all the roads of Christianity's greatest pilgrimage from the 11th to the 18th century. On the "miraculously" discovered spot where the bones of the Apostle had been buried, a basilica was erected in approximately 818 A.D.


The oldest monuments date back to this period - the main body of the cathedral, consecrated in 1211, with its admirable Romanesque structure (plan in the form of a Latin cross, choir and radiating chapels, interior space magnified by the great number of galleries) and its sculpted array at the southern arm of the transept.  Building continued throughout the 12th century and drew to a triumphal close in 1188 with the erection of the Portico de la Gloria in the main façade.




And, the end portion of "the way".



 





 A mail carrier delivers to the businesses on "the way".
 
 










Below,  is the Credencial that pilgrims who walk the way carry on the Camino de Santiago  The credencial, also known as the 'pilgrim passport', is a small cardboard booklet that is stamped (where you stay) as proof that you really have walked the Camino de Santiago.. 

Our guide, who is holding the Credencial (above).




Below, Compostela door (for Carol)





 
 
 
 






 Inside the cathedral.


 This large ball (in tied & hanging position) is loose and swings from wall to the other when the incense is burned in it for high mass.




 




 
 

This the tomb of St. James (Santiago).




Outside trim of cathedral.












Below, a replica of the large incense burner that hangs in the cathedral.
 All roads lead to (and from) the cathedral.




 A few blocks away we visit the markets.


 








 On the street we encounter the first (for us) arrival of pilgrims completing The Way.
 




 We see more arriving...



 and, it's a joyous arrival for many...

What an accomplishment!  If our health permits, Sylvia & I would like to walk this pilgrimage in the next few years.  If you are reading this blog and aren't familiar with Santiago de Compostela, please take the time to obtain (rent or purchase) the film, "The Way" starring Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez.

I think we returned to our ship very quiet and reflective of this very moving experience...

I close this day with a look at the beauty of our Creator: