Thursday, October 27, 2011

All Roads Lead to . . . . Santiago. The Santiago Connection.


Santiago Cathedral, photo by my husband

     I am visiting my nephew and his family in France. Their home is just on the edge of the small village of Moisin, about 20 minutes away from Geneva. I'm able to make this visit because I had mileage with United—miles I had to use before October 31st or lose
 
The Alps from the French side (my photo)
them.          















As it turns out, a small chapel at the top of a hill in the village of Moisin is one of the pilgrim stops for pilgrims walking to Santiago de Compostela. A road edging the village has the familiar clam shell icon that signifies St. James and the pilgrim's road. I must say, having looked at similar sign posts on roads in Galicia less than a month ago, I was quite moved by this connection.
The road (el camino) runs right through the village of Moisin, where my nephew lives. 
     I was also pleased to find out earlier this year that Martin Sheen (one of my favorite actors) has a personal link to Galicia. His father came from Galicia, near Santiago. Sheen's real name is Ramon Estevez, and he's made a movie with his director son, Emilio Estevez, called The Way. It's a fictional tale that takes place on a pilgrimage (often called El Camino de Santiago, or The Way of St. James). I am so looking forward to seeing this movie. 


     I'm not sure exactly where the French pilgrimage begins, just as I'm not quite sure where the pilgrimage in Portugal starts. Obviously there are more roads, and I'll be interested to find out how many more countries have a pilgrimage walk to Santiago. Meanwhile, tomorrow I plant to wander up the hill to the chapel where pilgrims walking this leg of the journey stop. And, who knows, one day I might actually go on the walk myself, or at least a portion of it.




13 comments:

  1. I hope you're enjoying your trip! It sounds like an interesting place. :)

    And I love James Levine.

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  2. Sounds like a beautiful trip. Beautifully written post too.

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  3. Oh wow, enjoy yourself, sounds like fun and I so love the photos.

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  4. Great photos, Elizabeth. Have a lovely trip.

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  5. Golden Eagle, it is a lovely place. I took some pictures, but forgot to bring my apparatus to download it, so I'll have to wait until my return to post them.

    Richard, thanks to mileages points earned when my husband was traveling on business and I went with him a couple of times. It's great to see my nephew and his family.

    Theresa, thanks for the nice comments.

    Tanya and Rachna, Thanks for the good wishes. I wish I had taken those photos, but I pulled them off the Internet (free pictures). They do give some idea, though, of what I was talking about.

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  6. Oh wow--what a fantastic experience! Enjoy every minute of it!

    angela @ The Bookshelf Muse

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  7. Wonderful photos and a fantastic opportunity! My bf went to German, Italy, and France to learn more stuff about his family!

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  8. Thanks, Krista, that's so nice of you. I'm home now, so I'll go pick it up.

    Thanks for the good wishes, Angela; it was just a lovely trip and a lovely visit!

    Hi, Ashley, your boyfriend's trip sounds fantastic. Does he speak any of those languages?

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  9. I guess you can tell by my last name, Fayard, that my husband's paternal side of the family is from France. While stationed overseas, it was an incredible gift to meet people previously known only through letter writing. And the beauty of Lyon! Thank you for a post that brings back good memories.

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  10. Glad you connected, Michelle. France is lovely, and I will probably blog one or two more times about the trip.

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  11. France!! How fun. Enjoy your wanderings and your pilgrimage-type walk. :)

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  12. Lovely stuff, Mitty. You've had quite a busy autumn.

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