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There's a gift shop??? I missed that!!I'm not religious but went to mass twice while in Santiago purely to see the botafumeiro. First time, no botafumeiro so I went back 2 days later. Perhaps because the botafumeiro has become such a famous tourist attraction, it should be very clearly scheduled so that those who want to see it and not attend mass could leave mass attendees in peace.
I would have paid an entrance fee to a special session, no problem. If one considers that too mercenary then why is there an exit/entrance from within the cathedral straight out into the gift shop?! That made me uncomfortable, and I can get pretty cynical.
The Camino and the cathedral are both a devotional experience AND a very big business. Cathedral scheduling could be managed better to benefit all concerned IMHO.
I was so disgusted, I spent some money.There's a gift shop??? I missed that!!
It sells the exact same things as its other shop,across the street. If you saw that one, you didn't miss anything.There's a gift shop??? .
Burgos, Oviedo, Leon (excellent audi guide btw in Leon!), Sevilla, and even little Tui all charge admittance for visiting. But since Santiago is a pilgrimage destination I think this would be difficult. How can you tell people "thank you for coming to visit the relics and the statue, it'll be 8€ everytime you want to come in and pray"?Tourism is a fact of life, and many historic churches, as other sites, now charge entry from economic necessity. At least I have found that charges do not apply to serious worshipers...
That's terrible! I'd pay 5€, tops.Burgos, Oviedo, Leon (excellent audi guide btw in Leon!), Sevilla, and even little Tui all charge admittance for visiting. But since Santiago is a pilgrimage destination I think this would be difficult. How can you tell people "thank you for coming to visit the relics and the statue, it'll be 8€"?
In attending Evensong at Westminster, and having arrived early to get a seat and not disturb others, a group of visiting clergy arrived late and proceeded to push and shove their way through the pews to get seats. I would have assumed they would have respected the occasion.Years ago, when visiting York with my daughter and son-in-law, who lived in UK at the time, we decided to attend the Sunday morning service.
We entered Minster Cathedral and were met by an usher who semi-automatically directed us away from the body of the church to join up with the hordes of tourists who were doing an established circuit. He was quite taken aback when we said we were there to participate in the service, but quickly recovered his composure and directed us to seating. It was an inspiring service, particularly at the start when the boys' choir emerged from the crypts singing beautifully. We quickly learned to ignore the peripheral hubbub.
Tourism is a fact of life, and many historic churches, as other sites, now charge entry from economic necessity. At least I have found that charges do not apply to serious worshippers at service times, even though in places (I experienced this happening in Toledo for example) there were queues of people lined up to pay for guided tours while Mass was in progress.
De colores
Bogong
Another fact of life faced by cathedral authorities is the expensive maintenance of very large and very historic buildings, as well as the additional services necessitated by tourism (more staff, more Masses, more restrooms, more information pamphlets ...). Plus, remember that these are all still functioning parishes, which serve the neighborhood needy and the faithful, just as any parish church does. All this, usually without government tax funds (the particulars vary by location of course).Tourism is a fact of life, and many historic churches, as other sites, now charge entry from economic necessity. At least I have found that charges do not apply to serious worshippers at service times,
Many tourists in Rome are not aware that the Roman temple known as the Pantheon is an active Roman Catholic church (St Mary and the Martyrs), and has been since the 7th century. At Mass times, the doors are closed and no tourists are allowed to enter until completion of the service....At Notre Dame there are two lines, one for tourists and one for Mass attendees...
Burgos, Oviedo, Leon (excellent audi guide btw in Leon!), Sevilla, and even little Tui all charge admittance for visiting. But since Santiago is a pilgrimage destination I think this would be difficult. How can you tell people "thank you for coming to visit the relics and the statue, it'll be 8€ everytime you want to come in and pray"?
The collection bags in the Cathedral in Santiago get donations from about 10% of the attendees by my observation. Tourists seem to give more often than pilgrims, again by my observation. It may well be that those who protest the most about the charge for the botafumeiro may be the most parsimonious in their other donations.Another fact of life faced by cathedral authorities is the expensive maintenance of very large and very historic buildings, as well as the additional services necessitated by tourism
'Tis true. Some folks just ain't got no learning.Alas that ship has sailed as we have discovered in the many threads on the topic here on the Forum. And frankly, considering walkers are only a fraction of people visiting Santiago, until the security guards aren't more ... diligent ... this will not change. It is up to the Cathedral's authorities to decide how much they tolerate. We just have to endure.
In the cathedral in Lisbon I saw a man extremely distressed because while he was praying a tourist asked him to move so that he\she could take a photograph...
People may wander around, but no one is admitted after mass starts anymore. The rules are announced before the mass in Spanish and English. The bulk of the congregation is Spanish. Probably any outrage needs to be posted in a Spanish language forum. I doubt any rule violators are reading THIS forum...
They are not coming in late: they are not there to worship but observe, and see the botafumeiro swing. For that they can pop in at any time.While i was there people were being admitted.continuously after it had begun, this the reason for my orivional comment about people coming late.
Did you visit either Leon or Burgos? Burgos entry fee (as a tourist) is E7 (E6 for seniors); E5 for pilgrims (produce your passport/credential). I can't remember what I paid for Leon, might have been E3-5 (including the audio guide).That's terrible! I'd pay 5€, tops.
Hi, I was joking about the 5€. But I would certainly be willing to pay a fair price. By "very big business" I meant the whole group of Caminos and the related churches/cathedrals, and all the infrastructure businesses big and small, which altogether is undeniably a huge industry. And a wonderful one in so many ways, it supports many good people in a country which is still struggling to develop a healthy economy. Individually we visitors don't spend a fortune but collectively over time we have contributed an enormous amount to Spain's economy and I'm happy and proud to have done so while having such a wonderful experience.Did you visit either Leon or Burgos? Burgos entry fee (as a tourist) is E7 (E6 for seniors); E5 for pilgrims (produce your passport/credential). I can't remember what I paid for Leon, might have been E3-5 (including the audio guide).
As for whether the Cathedral is a place of worship or a business; well first and foremost its a place of worship and has been for 800 years. Yes it is a (small) business in that ALL the funds from the gift sh0p and those "special contributions" to swing the butafumeiro they are (as far as I have been able to determine) used to maintain the cathedral building. If you have an 800 year old building its maintenance is a major issue and very much an ongoing process. [Again as far as I can determine there is no financial support for the maintenance of the cathedral by any Spanish/Galician Government organisation, happy to be corrected here!]
If had a look at the very top of the cathedral spires and compared their current condition to the condition of the stone work near the steps, then that was what the whole facade looked like in 2013. So you can see its a major work. Hope you enjoyed both your Camino and your visit to the Cathedral! Cheers
I had a similar experience in the church at Santa Domingo where a tourist was taking photographs as people prayed, then, even worse, in the Cathedral in Barcelona there is a side chapel set aside for prayers with a prominent sign in many languages (and symbols) saying no photographs to be taken. Despite this, and whilst I was praying, a man proceeded to walk up and down in the chapel taking photographs until I remonstrated with him and took him to the sign, at which he point he apologised but by then the sought after tranquility had been shattered so I left. The impulse to use cameras everywhere, and in any situation regardless of how that activity intrudes into religious observances is a modern menace and signals a diminishing of human consciousness with regard to others. Apologies to photographers on the forum who act with sensitivity and respect and don't take pictures of people in/and places of prayer.
New world... they would ban fire in its inception.. bring in the worldI've seen this many times.
Personally, I wish they'd just collect all cameras at the door.
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