SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA, GALICIA, SPAIN

In the evenings, below our piso, things just come alive!!

We are located just a little left of center, up there on the skyline,
right in the middle of some of the busiest city goings-on.

Still no internet installed in our piso, so we come to the church to catch up on things at home, and to read the news every once in a while.  Let's  try to introduce you to our new city.  We live in the region of Spain called Galicia.  It is located in the far northwest corner of Spain, and has a lot of coastline, both on the western side, and on the northern.  The northern coast is called "the Coast of Death" because of how dangerous it can be for those who sail the seas.  Also, some of the storms that come off that end of the world, really pack some punch!

Santiago, is  basically in the center of the western half, but the eastern half is not as inhabited, so we are in the center.  One of the reasons that the mission president wanted us here was to be centrally located, and be able to drive to the other seven units in the district to train and to teach.  Finally, after having a time to meet with President Pack (he is a busy man!!), we met last Friday and he told us that he wants us to mainly stay here at this branch and to build it up and support it with our presence.  We are to accept callings, and to assist the missionaries in their labors.  No callings yet, but we have been going out with the sisters and doing some teaching.  We have already participated in a baptism with them!!  More on that later.

Galicia, being what it is, gets a ton of rain, especially in the winter-time, which, according to them, has already begun.  They gauge the winter according to the rainy season, which begins now, in October, and does not end until April or May, or maybe even June!!!  Not so sure about having no sun for that long. but for now, it has not been too bad.  However, when it decides to rain, it can really turn it loose.!!! A weather app that I use showed that through the six months here, from October through March, the average number of rainy days each month sits between 14 and 17 each month!!  The average rainfall during that same time period dances between 7 and 9 inches.  That is for each and every month that they call winter!!  Besides all that fun statistical stuff, it doesn't really get all that cold.  The average daily low doesn't get below about 36-40 degrees F.  Note:  that is the average.  It will occasionally freeze here, but that is not the norm. Even now, when it is a bit cool, you will see them all bundled up as they walk the streets.  They look at us, without a jacket on, or a sweater, and they really must think that we are nuts!! That is the main reason that everything here is so green. IThe humidity is also a lot higher here than it was in Madrid.  It can be a little  tough to get things to dry our from day to day, such as a bath towel. As we drive along the highways, and look over into the sides and beyond, the under growth is so thick that I don't think a person could even walk through it.  The trees are a mix of eucalyptus, chestnuts (grow  wild here), oaks and pines, and all kinds of other stuff that I don't recognize, nor do I know the names of, yet!!

We live on the 7th floor.  This was taken during one of the many
storms that will come soon.  There is a little low spot here, but
you can still see how deep the water is in this intersection!! 

Some of the cars tried to make it through, and made it okay.
One got stalled just after going through.  The traffic backed up
for quite some time and distance, til the water mains were able
to finally handle the deluge.

Our branch is not very big, YET!! When we prepare for the Sacrament, we only use one tray for the water.  (If you have never counted, there are 36).  We have yet to have to use them all.  We have come close two times, but that is about where we are right now.  There are a lot of inactive souls out there, and we hope to be able to contact some of them and see how they feel about returning, to help build up the kingdom here in Santiago.

The Elder sitting was being transferred, so they decided to take
a picture, right after Sacrament Meeting.  This is the entire group
from that particular day!!  We need to grow some!!

There used to be just one set of Elders (missionaries) here, but about a month before we came, the Mission President sent  another set (Sisters), and then we came.  The members of the branch are excited to be the recipients of some much attention, and are grateful.  They treat us very well.  Of course, having Sister Bake here, who so easily shows love and attention to people, they respond in kind.  She is learning the language of Spanish, but she already knows the language of love, and they notice.  We love working with the young missionaries! If everyone knew how great it is to be a part of their service, there would not be a shortage of senior missionaries.

In Madrid, we had lots of good places to walk, on our daily efforts to stay in shape.  Here, not so much. There is too much up and down.  You have to work pretty hard to find a long, flat place, in order to walk, or to do anything.  The major roads that connect the major cities here, which I liken to our freeways, have very few long, flat stretches, if any.  They have to follow the contours of the land, and the contours are up and down, or curvy.  But, if makes for a fun drive!!  And. . . they are, unlike our freeways, not free.  They are toll roads. You pay as you go.  I am not at all used to that, and I have to grumble a little every time a go through one of their toll booths.  The alternative to the toll roads, is to go on the back roads.  They wind through every little village and farm, and take quite a bit longer to get to the desired destination, but they, in turn, have their advantages.  The drive is more peaceful and you really get to see the countryside, which I like and enjoy, whenever we don't have to get somewhere in a hurry!

On a high spot, looking out toward the edge of the city.
You can see how dense the growth is.  This is normal for the
entire area of Galicia, not just for Santiago.

Obviously, things grow well here.  This park is just a 10-minute
walk from our piso.  These trees have been here for many, possibly
hundreds of years.  Every evening, the park fills with folks who stroll
around and just enjoy the place.  We join them often!!

Same park--different view.  This tree is a monster!!

The "queen" on her throne!!

Another view!

She allowed me to try out her spot too!!!

Grandma has a project for me when we come home!!!

Palm Trees!!!   The climate is very mild here!!

Which grandchild is this?

Beautiful things!!!

Kings, with money and peasants to do the work, could create
some awesome pieces of work!

Santiago is not one of the largest of the cities in Galicia.  They only have about 100,000 inhabitants but this city also serves as the Galician capital.  Because they build up (translate that as 'apartment' buildings), they can fit a lot of people into a lot smaller space than we do where we live in America.  In an hour or less, we can walk from one end of the main city, to the other end.  There are little parks sprinkled everywhere, and a few larger ones interspersed here and there.  We have one very large and very nice park, located just ten minutes from our piso.  We do some of our walking there.  Sometimes, we just opt to walk to the church, which, for us, is just under a half-hour, if we don't walk too hard and work up a good sweat!!  (a good sweat is okay, just not in our Sunday best!!).

This the the Catedral de Santiago (James, the Apostle)
It is undergoing some needed cleaning.  Can you tell which
part has been cleaned??

It sits on the highest point in the city, which is common for all
the cities in Spain.   This plaza is the final destination for all
the "pilgrims" who walk the Camino de Santiago.  You can see
some of them in the left-hand side of the picture, laying down.

More pilgrims.

Inside.

The central figure here is St. James (Santiago).
They performs masses for the pilgrims on a very
regular basis.  We have attended two of them.
They are very impressive.  We are allowed to go underneath
this area to view the supposed remains of Santiago.  You
are also allowed to enter behind the statue of Santiago. and to
give him a hug!!

As you exit the cathedral, various individuals try to separate
you from a few of your Euros.  This gal was worth the time
and the Euros!!

One of our discovered parks has some workout apparatuses in it.  They look like they are designed for "older" folks, meaning that they use you own body weight to give a little resistance to the workout.  We have been using them for  a couple of weeks and feel good to be able to stay in some sort of shape.  (and, as Bruce Garner would say, "Round is a shape")  We are trying to stay away from that particular one!!

Galicia is famous for its seafood.  Pulpo (octopus) is one of  the most
famous of the famous.  Yes, we have tried it already--tastes like chicken!@!
Honestly, I will eat it again.  It's not that bad.  Just looks ugly as sin.