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8: O Pedrouzo - Santiago

From O Pedrouzo to Compostela, the capital of the West. It is the dreamt city, the capital of the end of the world that is there at the beginning of the Way, very far, behind mountains, rivers, snow and frost it is almost at hand's reach. There are only some steps left. Work, effort, tiredness and pain are over. As a first compensation, we arrived at Monte do Gozo.

Monte del Gozo

There are no churches in this last stage and there are no traces of old hospitals. Santiago is there at the reach of our hands. The Codex of Calixtus refers to the present-day Lavacolla as Lavamentula. Before entering Compostela, pilgrims used to wash themselves in this river after such a long journey because they loved the apostle so much. This water might also symbolize the purity the sufferings of the road had given to their spirits.

Melide

Now it is the time that the pilgrim sees the whole city for the first time, the Holy City , the third of the holy cities in Christendom.

They had to climb Mons Gaudí, MONTE DEL GOZO , Monxoi -an old hill fort- to see with the joy that the name of the mountain proclaims that the end of the great road is here.

Monte do Gozo

Pilgrims prayed in this mountain in front of the tomb of the Holy Body... Tradition has it that a pilgrim died on the road and his tomb was taken to Santiago miraculously by the Apostle.

We are already in the happiest and loftiest cities in Spain according to Americ Picaud.