October 7 Vigo, Spain

The Anthem of the Seas had completed crossing the Bay of Biscay very early this morning. At daybreak the temperature was 17°C, clear sky, but marine level thin mist. We went to Silk restaurant on Deck 4, across from American Icon, for a buffet breakfast. There were about 50 people in a 300 person seating area. After breakfast we ventured to the other end of the deck to the Diamond Club for a cappuccino. There is a Continental breakfast here daily. We explored the public area of decks 4 and 5 and took photos of the whimsical culinary restaurant Wonderland.

Vigo, Spain is on Central European Summer Time which is one hour ahead of Southampton. It is the only port not in the same time zone as all the other cruise ports on the itinerary, so we are staying on ship’s time for today, not local time, and announces had been made at various venues yesterday. The all aboard time was 4:30 for the 5 p.m. sail away. If people use a town clock they will just get onboard an hour too early.

We saw the pilot boat coming toward the ship while we were on the balcony. It looked like we passed fish farms as the ship slowed down to enter the Vigo harbour, where it was docked by 10 a.m. (11 a.m. local time). The temperature was 20°C.

We met in the Royal Theatre at 11:15 a.m. for the excursion to Santiago de Compostela. The bus ride was 75 minutes each way.

There were at least four busses going to Santiago de Compostela to see the Cathedral. Facemasks are required on public transport in Spain and the excursions staff was emphasizing this and providing face masks in the theatre, however even though the Guide, Contika, and the driver, Pedro, wore face masks only eight of the 34 passengers complied. Everyone seemed to secure their seat belts when asked.

There are two islands at the mouth of Vigo Bay that protect it from the Atlantic Ocean. Vigo and Santiago are located in the Galicia region of northwest Spain. As we left the port area, the road led through several 500 meter tunnels under Vigo streets above. Once we were out of the city we were on a four lane toll highway. There is a strong seafood industry. The fishing fleet harbour is not far from the cruise terminal, nor is the container port. Vigo is the fifth largest city in Spain with a population just under 300,000. The Cathedral of the region is the Cathedral Santiago de Compostela. Some retail stores have an afternoon break and work hours 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. then 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. We noticed many barge like platforms as the left the city. Contika told us that these are seafood farms growing: scallops, mussels, clams and oysters. As we crossed the bridge that spans the narrowest point of the bay, Contika told us of a naval battle in the water below in 1702. The Spanish fleet were returning from Mexico loaded with gold, when the British fleet found them and followed them to Vigo Bay. It was a British victory, most of the Spanish fleet was sunk with its cargo on board. The harbour bottom is very muddy and a lot of the gold is yet to be salvaged. Some towns in southwest England have Vigo streets as recognition of the British navy victory.

As we got to the outskirts of Vigo, Contika pointed out the small raised stone buildings in many people’s back yards. These buildings are used to store harvested vegetables and grains. The rolling hills have forests and farms. The district is a Celtic region which is shared with other countries, Scotland, the Isle of Mann, Wales, Cornwall in Britain and Brittany in France. Later we heard bagpipes playing the whole time we visited Cathedral Santiago de Compostela. The Galicia region was part of Portugal many centuries ago. The area is hilly with many farms. Soon we crossed the next bay – Ponteverda before the road curved inland.

Thousands of pilgrims travel on Saint James’ Way (the El Camino) every year. It ends at Santiago de Compostela at the cathedral. There are 30 churches within blocks of the cathedral, sometimes just meters away.

According to legend, in the cathedral, there is a tomb with the remains of James the Apostle, which was discovered in 814. James was the only one of Jesus’ disciples to visit the Iberian peninsula in his lifetime. The crypt of Saint James the Apostle lies directly beneath the Baroque style altar. The legend is that disciples of St. James wanted a safe place to lay his remains away from the Romans. After many years of searching the Mediterranean coast then along the Atlantic coast, this place was chosen being the end of known land to first century followers. It was forgotten until sometime in the 9^th century when Saint James remains were rediscovered.

“Construction on the cathedral was begun in 1075 in the reign of Alfonso VI, and sponsored by Bishop Diego Peláez. The work took place under the direction of Master Esteban on the remains of old churches built in devotion to the saint. The cathedral was built with three naves and a floor plan in a Latin cross, and had an area of about 8300 m². Its countless extensions have added numerous architectural styles to the building (Romanesque, Gothic, Baroque, Plateresque and neoclassical).

The La Gloria portico is the main entrance, and was created by Master Mateo in 1188. It features 200 figures referring to the Apocalypse, and the figure of Saint James the apostle appearing to welcome the pilgrims, supported on a column rising from the mullion. The Obradoiro façade of the cathedral is the work of Fernando de Casas y Novoa, and is considered to be one of the supreme expressions of the Spanish Baroque.”

The pilgrimage became a symbol of the Spanish Christians struggle against Islam under the Moors. Thousands of pilgrims have travelled Saint James’ Way every year on many routes but the one originating in the French Pyrenes is the most used European route and is 800 kilometres long. There is an English pilgrimage route starting in Reading going to Plymouth and going by sea to northern Spain. The ancient pilgrims followed the Milky Way as a guide. Today pilgrims can arrange to have their luggage transported from town to town and just need to carry a backpack. Within an hour’s walk from the cathedral there are yellow arrows on signs, about every five minutes, pointing the route through the city to the cathedral. As we were within a ten minute drive to the cathedral, we could see the hikers with a white shell dangling from their backpacks. The French pilgrimage route began to fall into disrepair over the centuries due to the wars, the epidemics and the natural catastrophes. Interest restarted in the late 1800s and in the past 40 years interest increased for the spiritual value, not to mention tourist and cultural reasons.

The old town of Santiago de Compostela is a UNESCO World Heritage town. There is a strong Galician culture and children are taught the local language in school as well as Spanish. Music is part of the culture. A modern concert hall called the Waves stands out on a hill.

Contika distributed audio receivers for the walking tour from the bus stop into the old town. There was a ten minute stroll to the cathedral. We passed one of the little open carriage tourist “trains”, they are similar to what we saw in Bermuda in May and rode in visiting Ajaccio in September. The first photo opportunity was the church of Saint Frances of Assisi and his statue. Next, we were in Praza do Obradoiro at the front of the cathedral. This front door is only used on July 25, when anyone can enter that church through that door. The interior of the cathedral is 12^th century. Opposite the cathedral (northwest) is the bishop’s palace, now the local police headquarters. To the northeast is the former hospital now a hostel. To the southwest is the 15^th century first university in Santiago. We continued along Rúa do Franco past Praza de Fonseca and its colourful camellia flowers. Then we turned back and walked along Rúa do Vilar where there was another plaza with a fountain at Toural. We reached the southwest corner of the cathedral, where there was an entrance to the cathedral with a small line. This was Praza das Praterias which is the oldest façade. At Quintanade de Mortos, we were at the back of the cathedral with another entrance to the church with no line. Our guide suggested for the group to use it to see the cathedral’s 12^th century interior. The exit was through the gift shop. The group had about 45 minutes free time.

It was 3 p.m. local time the temperature was 23°C, sunny and a nice breeze. We searched out an gelato store which we found where we turned from Rúa do Franco onto Rúa do Vilar, then walked back to Praza do Obradoiro to wait another ten minutes at the meeting place. At the back of the police station and down about 15 meters is the Saint Fructuoso church another centuries old church. Also from that viewpoint, Larry took a picture of the red tile roofs of the old town. The same seven people who were then minutes late for the bus departure, were five minutes late for meeting to go back to the bus. The return route retraced the highway route was took to Santiago de Compostela. The bus went through part of the old town maneuvering to return to the port. We arrived 15 minutes before 4:30 p.m. all aboard time.

The Captain’s pre-dinner announcement informed us that it will be 708 nautical miles to the next port, Madeira, Funchal, Portugal. Tomorrow will be Sea Day #2. We had dinner in the American Icon restaurant at our usual table with John and Sue. They just walked in the old town since they have been there before. As we left the protection of the bay and we were into the Atlantic Ocean, the swells increased and there was a noticeable increase in the rooling of the ship. The Production Show with the singers and dancers was called The Gift and was set in Victorian England. The sets and props were very well done, but we left after a few songs. It was not Mamma Mia quality. We went to the schooner bar to try the drink of the day. It was a mixture of sparkling wine, sweet vermouth and Campari on ice. Better than yesterday’s drink of the day, but not a drink to re-order.

By 10 p.m. Anthem had travelled southeast and was parallel to Porto, Portugal. Total distance cruised on the navigation channel was 810 nautical miles.

Total steps 13,125