The arrival at Monte del Gozo continues to be full of meaning for the pilgrim but can hardly have the significance that it had in former times. The arrival at the top of the hill meant for the pilgrims a moment as crucial as the entrance to the cathedral and tomb of Santiago, for on seeing the city the pilgrim had, for the first time, the certainty of having reached his goal. Today the situation is partly the same, the same emotion of arrival, but the dangers and difficulties left behind are not of the same proportions and, therefore, do not allow the experience to have the same meaning.

 With some frequency tends to speak in Jacobean pilgrims scopes of tourism with some purists sneer putting values ​​pilgrim and pilgrimage. Scalpel is needed on this issue, because neither is gold that glitters all that shit we sneer. Not infrequently the sight and smell deceive us. There are tourists who are true pilgrims and pilgrims are mere assumptions backpack tourists and shelter. The quality depend on the person, not the context. No one is more or less than anyone. Could be a good topic of conversation, but I intend to now assess the presence of tourism in the world of pilgrimage.

Carrión de los Condes is one of the most outstanding villas of the beautiful Tierra de Campos, a region in the province of Palencia that many pilgrims have fallen in love with. In spite of its scarce 2,500 inhabitants, the town still retains great religious and cultural significance. The Codex Calixtino bears witness to its importance in the Middle Ages, extolling among its virtues the fact that there are no less than 12 hospitals for pilgrims. Among his most celebrated citizens stands the Marquis de Santillana. 

Foto Valdavia

Torres Del Rio is located in the western part of Navarre, about 70 kilometers from Pamplona, ​​in the region known as Tierra de Estella. To be better understood by pilgrims, be reminded that the villa is located midway between Los Arcos and Viana, dominating a high hill with Sansol.

Photo: Zarateman