Spiritual Sites Norte / Vadiniense /Primitivo

[Markus Antonius]

Hi again

Does anyone have any suggestions for me on the Norte/Vadiense/Primitivo for spiritual sites?

So far my list is:

The Great Cross in Hendaye

The True Cross in Leibana

Covadonga Sanctuary

Cathedral of San Salvador in Oviedo

Santiago de Compostella (obviously)

And if time Finistere / Muxia

 

[Tia Valeria]

Sta Maria de Liebana - on the way to the monastery.
The many small churches and capillas de anima along the Norte and Primitivo.
The Camino itself, particularly where it is on the ancient route.

Sadly, for us, the Cathedral in Oviedo has lost something with its imposition of a tourist charge and no place for quiet prayer as a pilgrim, unless you pay. This may have been an error on the part of the girl at the pay desk, but she was quite firm that we should pay the reduced price if we wanted to go in at all. We had our credencials stamped and came away. The atmosphere has changed from our previous times there as personally we felt it had lost something spiritually.

Lugo Cathedral, the church in Grandas de Salime.........
If you are walking through Cangas de Onis then the church built over a dolmen is historically interesting, but only open at week-ends and it is about 2€ to enter.

 

[oursonpolaire]

I didn't have this problem with Oviedo cathedral last October.... in any case, I would also suggest the church of San Miguel de Escalada on the Vadiniense. While it is now a historic site (great sello, but admission charged), it gives a great picture of how the Mozarabic rite worked and a flavour of the Byzantine influence on that period.

 

[Anemone del Camino]

Walking out of Oviedo go through the Naranco sites and then catch up with e Camino groing through Ulle instead of walking back down.

The small church as you leave Melide, ask for explanations about the carvings etc.

The detour to the Santa Eulalia ruins, closed on Sunday though.

 

[Tia Valeria]

I didn't have this problem with Oviedo cathedral last October.... .

I think that the charging system is very new and had maybe only just started at the begining of May yhis year (2015). We had been able to go into the cathedral and as far as the Cámara Santa in previous years, only paying if going on and into the museum, which we did the first time. Now you have to pay to get in at all and were told that meant we could have the audio guide etc, but that was not what we needed as pilgrims, even at a reduced price. Had we wanted to see the museum again we would have gladly paid the full price, or if we had needed to pay for the credencial and paid for that. A rethink here is maybe needed for pilgrims who do not want to see the museum but do want to enter for spiritual reasons outside of service times, which do not maybe fit with walking times. Just our feeling, but it meant that we now regard our Camino as starting this year from Ribadeo not Oviedo.

 

[oursonpolaire]

At Oviedo, perhaps one way would be to ask the reception staff to find a priest for a pilgrim's blessing. They actually might not have thought that there was interest, so overwhelmed Spanish churches can be with tourists. Having been in the room with decision makers of various sorts over the decades, it's astonishing how many of them have no clue about what people might want or need, but would be ready to supply it, if asked.