We left the Douro Valley and headed northwest - about a 3 hour drive - to Santiago de Compostela. This is the home to the Cathedral of Santiago, where "pilgrims" from all over Europe (and the world) hike to, using various old routes across Spain. The most well known of these is the Frances route, starting just inside France and traveling more than 500 miles across northern Spain.

But the Camino de Santiago (or The Way of Saint James) includes many routes that pilgrims take to arrive at the shrine of St. James the Apostle in Santiago de Compostela. It is said that his remains are buried in the cathedral here. The first chapel was built around 814 AD, followed by a church around 900 AD. The cathedral was built beginning around 1075 AD.

Our hotel was in a good location, just outside the old city with an easy 10 minute walk to the cathedral and the heart of town. After we arrived we took a walk and were amazed to see all the “Pilgrims” walking into the city. It seemed it was a big weekend for an annual event where youth from all over time their journeys to arrive at about the same time. The routes come from France, Portugal and other parts of Spain, and it was estimated some 10,000 youth (high school to college) were taking part.

The cathedral was beautiful to visit, and we of course saw the tomb of St. James, but there were also many other sights and smaller churches to see in this city. The local Mercado (Farmers Market) was wonderful. An old network of maybe six buildings - each with different types of items - seafood in one area, fresh meats in another, cheese/dairy, etc.

From Santiago, we drove to Santillana del Mar which is near Santander on the northern coast of Spain (about 5 hours from Santiago). We really had no idea what to expect, but found ourselves inside the old walled city. Driving in, I almost turned around - it was old stone (one lane) streets - but trust in my GPS and we made it just fine.

Our hotel was wonderful - the Hotel Casa del Marques - right in the center of this town. They had their own parking area which made it easy (once you understood the route) to come and go. And a nice, quiet garden to enjoy in the evenings. The town is said to be the city of three lies - 1) there is no Saint 2) it is not flat (llana) 3) it is not by the sea (del Mar). However the town is in a great location to visit other nearby towns that are on the sea, and when you are not exploring this town there is plenty to do elsewhere.

We visited Comillas which was about 12 miles to the west. The main attraction here (for us anyway) was to see the El Capricho - designed and build by Antoni Gaudi in 1883-1885. It is a beautiful house with tiles of sunflowers all around. The town center was also nearby which had many streets and shops to explore.

On another day we visited the small town of Suances which was 6 miles east of Santillana del Mar. With many beaches and surfing classes, you could tell this is a popular getaway for the summer holidays in Spain and even for people from France and the UK. The town here was nothing much, but you could hike to various beaches and see for miles down the coastline.

This was a fun area to visit. You definitely need a car, but driving here is no problem at all (as long as you have a good GPS telling you how to get places). I'm sure there are many other towns to explore, and if you have time, the drive up into the mountains is supposed to be incredible as well.

That's it for now - please make sure to take a look at the rest of the pictures in the photo album and take a look at other videos.

Next stop - Rioja wine country!

Take care,

Tim & Eileen