On Black Friday, I spent my afternoon doing errands around
town. I popped in to visit my friend
Gabe at About Time to have my watch battery replaced. Gabe is literally one of the nicest men I
have ever met and is a wealth of information on a variety of subjects. He spent 25+ years in the hospitality
industry and intimately knows all the Palm Beach hotels and restaurants. He is very selective, but his current
favorite place to enjoy a special evening dinner is Café Chardonnay in Palm
Beach Gardens that specializes in American cuisine and has an extensive wine
list. Another favorite is cafe de sartistes in Jupiter. We have eaten at
both and agree with him.
I asked him what he and his lovely wife had done for
Thanksgiving. They both enjoy the
outdoors and he explained that they had spent the afternoon hiking in the Hungryland Wildlife Area which connects to Riverbend Park in Jupiter. As always, one
conversation lead to another and before long I announced that one day I’d like
to walk through the South of France.
Gabe and his wife were both born in Europe and are very
familiar with the area. He asked if I
had ever seen the movie The Way which is about a man who walks the 800
kilometer pilgrimage of "The Way of St. James" which ends in Santiago
de Compostela. Although I had not, after leaving his shop I sent Polly a text
that we had to watch this movie which can be downloaded through Netflix.
Finally getting around to it, last evening after enjoying a
delicious homemade spaghetti dinner that Peter prepared and a homemade Grand Marnier Chocolate Truffle Tart from my hubby, Don-Made, we settled down with a glass
of wine for movie night.
Polly was excited, as she’d already seen the movie and noted
that we had visited the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in 2012 on our
Celebrity Cruise to Portugal, Spain and France.
It happened that I had brought with me our photo book of that cruise, as
Polly had not seen it yet and has been working on her book.
The movie was excellent and inspirational and I don’t want to
give away the story, but it is a must see.
As it turned out while in the Cathedral, we witnessed the
Mass along with the swinging of the huge Botafumeiro, the famous thurible kept
in the cathedral which burns Incense.
Polly said it represents the people’s prayers going to heaven. While there we stood in line to kiss the robe
of St. James the Great and learned the history of the Scallop shell, the symbol
of the Camino de Santiag.
We really like taking cruises when traveling. This is a perfect example of why it is
important to research your destinations prior to leaving. If I had viewed the movie prior to our trip,
I would have appreciated what I had seen much more. I don’t think I am physically capable of
walking 800k and even less capable of camping out or staying in a hostel,
especially for the months it would take to complete the walk, but I have many
friends that this might appeal to. As
the trail can also be done in bits and pieces, those who cannot take the time
all at once can still experience this memorable adventure.
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