2 I SUNDAY TRADER www.sundaylife.co.uk Sunday Life 7 June 2015

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MOST people who follow the Camino de Santiago walkit, while many others cycle. A few do it on horsebackand fewer still set out in wheelchairs with the helpof friends.

Whatever their means of getting to Santiago de Compostela,everyone has the same goal — to visit the tomb of St James.Santiago is the capital of Galicia, the bit of Spain that sits on

top of Portugal like an umbrella and gets more rain than North-ern Ireland in the spring.However, when the sun shines it’s hot to trot — or pedal or

walk.

THE four star HillgroveHotel, Leisure and Spa inMonaghan has just beenawarded winner of theBest Wedding Venue inUlster.

The award was present-ed in recognition of qual-ity and customer serviceexcellence by Mrs2Be.ie.

“Weddings are whatwe do best,” says AudriHerron, Proprietor of theHillgrove Hotel.

“We always get excel-lent comments from ourbrides and grooms andguests, so it is fantasticto be recognised with thisaward.

“Our wedding teamwork so very hard, sothis award is certainly forthem.”

And that is not all; theHillgrove Hotel has nowbeen inducted into ‘Hallof Fame’ of Five-timeCertificate of ExcellenceWinners by TripAdvisor.

Hillgroveisthebestforweddings

AWARD: The Hillgrove Hotel,Leisure and Spa in Monaghan

The 13th century cathedralin which the saint’s remainsreside in a silver sarcophagusin the crypt attracts pilgrimsof all religions and none.

POPULARPeople ‘do’ the Camino for

reasons of faith, fitness orfriendship or to raise fundsfor worthy causes.A dozen recognised routes

lead to Santiago. The threemost popular are:

H The French Way, from StJean Pied-de-Port via Pamplo-na, Logroño, Burgos and Leon(475 miles).

H The Portuguese Way,from Lisbon via Porto andPontevedra (380 miles).

H The Northern Way, fromIrun via Bilbao, Santanderand Oviedo (510 miles).

There’s also an Irish Waythat dates from the MiddleAges when pilgrims set outfrom StJames’s Gatein Dublin,which is nowpart of theGuinnessbrewery.In those

days theysailed toFerrol innorthwestGalicia andjoined the English Way (74miles).That sea voyage took a

couple of weeks, but Aer Lin-gus has regular flights from

Dublin to Santiago that takeonly a couple of hours.For walkers who don’t have

amonth to spare,the last 63miles ofthe FrenchWay areenough to earn a cer-tificate of completion.

EATINGSimply fly to San-

tiago, take the busto Sarria and walkback over the courseof three or four days,sleeping and eating

in hostels along the way.You’d think that having

completed their journey, pil-grims would be content to sitoutside the cathedral nursing

their blisters before visitingthe crypt.However, a trek up the 110

steep steps to the roof willprove rewarding, especiallyfor fans of Father Ted, becausehidden among the gargoyles isamedieval version of KickingBishop Brennan up the you-know-what.During construction, the

churchman in charge wasnotoriously slow at paying thestonemasons’ wages. So theywreaked a rascally revenge bycarving an effigy of the bishop’sbackside beneath a gutter andtook great delight in slapping iteach time they passed.It didn’t put food on their ta-

bles,

but it did put a smirk on theirfaces.Many pilgrims and

long-weekenders (Santiago is anincreasingly popular city breakdestination) time their visitto the city to coincide with aremarkable spectacle.In 1851, goldsmith Jose

Losada, whomade the saint’ssarcophagus, crafted the cathe-dral’s botafumeiro, one of theworld’s biggest incense burnersat five feet tall and weighing 12stone.Shovels are used to fill it with

six stone of burning charcoaland incense and then it’s at-tached to a rope hanging from apulley high up in the dome.

SMOKEThat’s when eight red-

robedmuscle men step for-ward and the show begins.One of them gives the

botafumeiro a push, theneach grabs a rope andpulls,setting it off in ever-increas-ing swings.When it really gets going

it travels at 45miles anhour,spewing clouds of thicksmoke and reaching aheightof 70 feet.While lush, greenGalicia

produces Spain’smost succu-lent beef and lamb, it’s for itsseafood that it’s renowned.The fishing fleet daily

offloads hake, sea bass,sole, grouper,monkfish and

sardines plus a huge selection ofshellfish, crabs and lobsters.Octopus is the region’s favour-

ite dish, and every restaurant inSantiago serves it. Try it boiled,sprinkledwith cayennepepperand olive oil.Locals say foot-weary pil-

grims catch their first whiff ofburningincenseabouttwomiles outof Santi-ago andquickentheirstep,knowingthe journey is almost over.The ritual on arrival is to visit

the tomb, collect a certificateproving you’ve completed theCamino, then change, showerand head out to dinner.Most meals are washed down

with a bottle of the locally pro-duced Ribeiro wine.It’s surprising howmany

people get too close tothe clay pot and suddenlyrealise that the whiff theycaught on the outskirts oftownwasn’t the scent ofburning incense at all — itwas the smell of singedeyebrows.Avoid naked flames

and you’ll find San-tiago is not to besniffed at.

It’s high time youmade a pilgrimage toSpain’s sensational Santiago

amonth to spare,the last 63miles ofthe FrenchWay areenough to earn a cer-tificate of completion.

ByTom Sweeney

GIANT INCENSE BURNER: The botafumeiro in the cathedral, the Abastos market in Santiago and the cheeky bishop’s backside gargoyle on the cathedral roof

WALKERS: Pilgrims on theirway to Santiago de Compostela

SPECIALITY: Octopus

JOURNEY: Pilgrim at the cathedral

PIERCE McConnell, aged 8, from Newtownabbey, helpsP&O Ferries kick off the summer season in style witha ‘Kids Go Free’ offer that will please the whole family.From today and throughout this year, children aged 15years and younger can travel free on sailings betweenLarne to Cairnryan and Troon. Visit www.POferries.com.

PLAIN SAILING FOR PIERCE

www.sundaylife.co.uk SUNDAY TRADER I 37 June 2015 Sunday Life

EXPERIENCE the magic that isthe Verona Opera this summerwith Topflight — with directflights from Belfast.

If you are a music lover, whynot indulge yourself with atrip of a lifetime to the VeronaOpera, one of the world’s most

remarkable Opera houses withTopflight. This year marks the93rd Verona Opera Festivalwhich kicks off on June 19 andruns until September 6, 2015.

The magnificent VeronaOpera takes place in the beau-tifully restored 1st Century ADRoman amphitheatre right inthe heart of Verona.

Opera ticket prices start at€78 per person for un-num-bered stone seating. So, whynot head to Lake Garda thisJune with holidays for one week

from £374pp and add someextra magic to your trip with avisit to the opera.

For more information callTopflight on 028 9752 1168 or

visit the Topflight website atwww.topflightholidays.co.uk

THIS year Lough Eske Castle, aSolis hotel and spa in Donegal, ishelping sons and daughters to treattheir dads to a Father’s Day lunchwith a difference.

On Sunday June 21 the luxuriousIrish castle is hosting a BBQ on thepatio of its Cedars Grill restaurant,overlooking the spectacular castlegrounds.

The BBQ is availablefor €39 per adult / €15for children and canbe booked by calling0035374 9725100.

Those looking for anextra special father’sday present this yearcan take advantageof the historic venue’s‘three nights for theprice of two’ offer whichincludes; 3 nights’

accommodation for two people, fullIrish breakfast every morning andfull access to the castle’s swimmingpool, fitness room and thermal suiteat Spa Solís, all for only €460. (Offeravailable for Sunday-Thursday and isbased on two sharing a room).

Check out www.solishotels.com/lougheskecastle

TREAT DADWITH CASTLE BBQGOTHEEXTRAMILES

MAGNIFICENT HISTORY: The viewfrom the roof of the SantiagoCathedral (also pictured above)

TravelFACTFILEGETTING THEREH Specialist operatorCaminoWays organisesa variety of walking andcycling holidays withaccommodation enroute and in Santiago.See www.caminoways.comH Aer Lingus operatesdirect flights from Dub-lin to Santiago de Com-postela on Tuesday,Thursday and Saturdayfrom April to October.There’s an extra flighton Wednesday in Julyand August. Check outwww.aerlingus.com

FURTHER INFORMA-TIONH Santiago TouristBoard: See www.san-tiagoturismo.com forinformation on what tosee and do in Santiagode Compostela.Spanish Tourist Board:See www.spain.infoH The Irish Society ofthe Friends of St James:The society issuespilgrims’ passports(€10) in which to collectofficial stamps alongthe Camino. A stampedpassport is neededto get a certificateof completion fromthe pilgrims’ office inSantiago. Check outwww.caminosociety.ie

VISITTHE INCREDIBLEVERONAOPERA