Santiago

Hi everyone, I´m in Santiago! Arrived here at about 11.30am after walking 20 km from Pedrozo (Arca). I didn´t mean to arrive so early, planned to sleep in but a lot of people woke up really early (before 5.30am) and I couldn´t sleep so I decided to get up as well. Left with Manoela who kept going when I stop for brekky at the first bar, where I caught up with the asutralian girls Alice and Zoe. In Santiago met Cynthia the other australian woman from sydney and Joyce, a dutch girl from NZ. Anyway, got the compostella but didn´t make it to the pilgrim´s mass. Will do that another day as I have at least two more days here... Santiago is quite big and busy, quite overwhelming to say the truth... lots of people going everywhere... the catedral is massive! I just had lunch and drinks, drank too much wine actually... the australian girls wanted to have a tatoo (shell) so I went with them to the tatoo shop... the tatoo people didn´t turn up to open the shop until about 4pm so we´´re still waiting for them to have their tatoo done... so i came here to kill time... thought i could use this time to do the blog... so here i am... a bit tired, still havent´had a shower, had our packs stored at a place here for 2 euros, just got them back now... anyway, have decided to go with the australian girls to a place on the coast called la coruna or something like that... they want to go to the beach and there´´s also a festival tonight, a big beach party with bonfire and stuff... i´m going along and tomorrow i´ll either come back to santiago or go to finisterre... then i have two days booked at the little hotel/guest house campanas de san juan in santiago... need to collect my stuff at the post office eventually as well... and i accidendally left my reading glasses at the last albergue so need to call the ´mochila service´to get them back at santiago by car (coche) for about 7 euros... i´m glad they found the glasses, i called them to make sure... apart from that, everything is fine... santiago is pretty, took a few photos... i have mixed feelings about having finished the camino... a sense of acomplishment but also a sense of loss... i guess it´s all normal... funny not to have to walk tomorrow, or to wake up early after 5 weeks of walking everyday... have seen a few people that i met before but haven´t seen natasha or some of the others who i think arrived before me, maybe yesterday or ealier this morning... santiago is quite big, don´t know where everyone is... i guess i´ll meet some at the mass tomorrow or the day after... i need to do my online check in with ryanair and my other flight as well, need to find a place where i can print my boarding pass... i´m at an internet cafe right now... got here too late to try and get into skype with lucas but was able to talk to him yesterday... better go now because my friends are waiting at the tattoo shop... talk soon, bye for now, V