The Camino de Santiago officially returns from this July 1 with the opening of the Cathedral, both for visits and for worship; the International Pilgrim Reception Office, where the ‘compostela’ is issued, and the network of public shelters, all under strict security measures.
“The Camino has been alive for centuries and has resisted and will continue to resist. Nobody or anything is charging it. It’s tougher than a pandemic, as much as it has been a very hard crisis, “said Isaías Calvo, director of the Sociedad Anónima de Xestión del Plan Xacobeo, which is responsible, among other responsibilities, for the management and maintenance of the public network shelters.
Calvo is “optimistic” and considers himself to be an “opportunity” to put more “emphasis” on the national pilgrim and for the Galicians to “go out on the Camino”, taking into account that the pilgrimage has certain “attractive” factors, such as contact with nature, outdoor spaces and safe environments, without too many crowds.
Among the security measures of the shelters, Calvo first highlights the “information”, with posters available in different spaces so that both the pilgrims and the staff and the local population are clear about the protocols and security measures.
A group of pilgrims from Barcelona and Seville walk the Camino de Santiago, near Melide (Coruña), on the day the shelters officially open, after the coronavirus pandemic. / eliseo wheat (EFE)
In addition, all these establishments will have a capacity reduction of at least 50%, which in practice is usually greater, due to the need to maintain minimum distances in a place that is ultimately “a large common space.”
Upon arrival at these venues, the temperature will be measured and in all of them there will be itineraries marked on the ground to guarantee the minimum safety distance, in addition to plastic bags for backpacks and boots.
Masks and disinfectant gels will be mandatory. The common spaces will be rearranged and those that cannot be used will be previously sealed.
Another peculiarity will be the Advance reservation, something that Calvo insists that “it is not a conventional reservation or booking center”, since the Camino “is not a tourist product” and problems can always arise.
“We must respect the spirit of the pilgrimage and the values and essences of the Camino if we do not want it to become just any route,” he warns.
Daniel, of Chinese origin but living in Madrid, has been the first to arrive in Santiago today and pick up the ‘compostela’. He has come from Ponferrada and has encouraged people to do the Camino and “continue with life”, since for him it has been a “magnificent” experience.
Rafa and Silvia, from Granada, have arrived from Sarria and have said they will meet a “very lonely” road in which they have seen few establishments open to rest, although for them it has been a “very exciting” experience.
A group of eight Sevillians have also arrived from Sarria, who have stayed in hostels and private pensions: “We have hardly met people along the way. It has been a very different way from the one we did last year”says Lola, already in the cathedral.
The temple, which carried closed from March 13, a day before the declaration of the state of alarm, it has opened its doors on this day both for worship – which had not been held since December 2019 as a result of the restoration works -, as well as for visits.
The director of the Catedral Foundation, Daniel Lorenzo, assures that the reservations for these dates, both for the museum and for the Pórtico de la Gloria, have fallen a lot, so that for these months last year there were about 22,000 and this year only there are a thousand.
The entrance to the cathedral, which is free, will have a reduced capacity, since between 150 and 200 people will be able to access for visits – the maximum capacity for visits was before 700 – and only 75 people will be able to enter for worship – when before they could access between 900 and 1,100–.
According to Lorenzo “they prefer to act prudently”, so in addition to the reduced capacity, You will not be able to hug the apostle or touch the saints or the furniture. The use of masks and disinfectant gels will also be mandatory and there will be a marked itinerary for visits.
People who want to access for the worship itself will have to pick up a number that will be given in order of arrival at the door of Platerías, which will be the one that is open, although on weekends the Door of the Immaculate is also expected to open .
“One thing is a museum and another is the place of worship. We understand that the cathedral is a sanctuary, open and we want to keep that”, says Lorenzo, adding that with the number each person will have to occupy “the seat assigned to him”.
The Pilgrim’s Masses will be celebrated at 12 noon in the Chapel of the International Center for the Reception of the Pilgrim and the one at 19:30 will be the one held in the cathedral itself; while other Eucharists will be celebrated in different churches or parishes.
Lorenzo closes with the reminder that the church, in the run-up to the Holy Year of 2021, “is still under construction” and the main actions will be finished “with full guarantee” before the jubilee appointment. The previous one was in 2010.
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