Bus tour to Finisterre

Wednesday 8 June 2016

Santiago de Compostela - bus tour to Finisterre and Muxia

After sharing breakfast with Don and Michelle, I joined Jackie, Steve and the four Busso Boys (Barry, Gary, Kevin and Ian) for a full day's bus tour to the coast. We started off at 9am and, as the bus wasn't too full, we all got window seats. Tonho, our great guide, did the commentary in both Spanish and English.

Our first stop was at the village of Ponte Maceira, where we admired the weir on the rio Tambre from the restored medieval bridge. This is part of the Camino route to the coast at Finisterre.

On the other side of the bridge we entered an old mill. It was interesting to see the force of the water as it came out from under the building.

Our next stop was at a viewpoint where there were some wind turbines. Tonho apologised that we had no view to the coast, as there was misty low cloud again today. This still made for sensational viewing, as we could see the tops of mountains poking up through the cloud.

We then headed for the coast, stopping for a morning tea break at the fishing village of Muros. The church there had a unique baptismal font with a snake coiled inside. Muros is a sizeable village with a large marina.

From Muros we travelled along the spectacular coastline, some of which had inviting beaches and others parts were rocky and dangerous looking. This area of coast is known as Costa da Morte (Coast of Death), due to the number of shipwrecks.

Looking inland there were hills with large granite outcrops. These reminded me a bit of the scenery in the Granite Belt back home, minus the sea, of course. Our next stop was at the Cascada do Ezaro/Ezaro Waterfall.

This waterfall is one of the most visited sites in the Galicia area of Spain. At the base of Mt Pindo, the falls are the only ones in Europe that flow so close to the sea.

Our trip then took us along the coast through the townships of Cee and Corcubion, finally arriving at the lighthouse at Finisterre. Originally, Kay and I planned to walk the extra 90km to Finisterre.

The name translates as the 'End of the World'. This area has a long history of pagan worship and ritual. These days, some arriving pilgrims burn an item of clothing out on the headlands. In fact, there were a couple of very smelly smouldering fires out past the lighthouse today. Fantastic views from the headland here.

We had our long break in Finisterre, this gave us time to eat some lunch and also have a short explore. The whole waterfront area was busy with cafes, but I felt that further back from the water Finisterre had lots of empty, falling-down buildings... a bit neglected-looking really.

After my lunch I went down onto the tiny beach, Praia Riveira. It was lovely and afforded excellent views out to sea.

Our final stop was at Muxia, where we visited the Santuario da Virxe da Barca. This church was damaged in a lightning strike, and fire, late in 2013, but has been rebuilt.

We went out onto the rocks and heard the legends associated with various ones. Some are said to be parts of the boat that brought the Virgin Mary to these shores. Some have healing powers and others were used to prove innocence or guilt.

I had a wonderful day, though I admit to sleeping for a fair bit of the driving sections. I felt really flat and tired today. Tomorrow I'm hoping to get to the pilgrim Mass at noon, and also do a bit of souvenir shopping.

Like the other bigger Spanish cities I've enjoyed, Santiago de Compostela is really alive. Last night as I was returning to my accommodation, I stopped to listen to an amazing opera-singing busker. He was fantastic and really entertaining. There is always someone setup in the arched walkway leading to the cathedral. The shops are all open late too.