Let's Go Europe 2011: The Student Travel Guide
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• TOURS: Ruta Romana offers tours of Roman Astorga ( €3.30. 1¾hr., Tu-Sa 11am and 5pm, Su 11am.) that leave from in front of the tourist office.
• CURRENCY EXCHANGE AND ATMS: Banco Santander is right down the street from the tourist office, Cathedral, and Palacio Episcopal. (P. Obispo Alcolea, 10 902 24 24 24 From Pl. de Eduardo de Castro follow C. de los Sitios east. Open M-F 8:30am-2:30pm.)
• INTERNET ACESS: Ciberastor offers internet access and printing. (C. Manuel Gullón, 2 987 61 80 17 www.ciberastor.com From Pl. de España, take C. Pietro de Castro 1 block. Internet access €2 per hr. Open daily 10am-2pm and 4-10pm.)
• POST OFFICE: Correos (C. Correos, 3 987 61 54 42 From Pl. de Eduardo de Castro, follow C. de los Sitios east through Pl. Obispo Alcolea, and keep straight on C. de la Cruz for 3 blocks; the post office is on the left. Open M-F 8:30am-2:30pm, Sa 9:30am-1pm.)
Emergency!
• POLICE: 092.
• MUNICIPAL POLICE: Policía Municipal (Pl. Arquitecto Gaudí, 6 987 61 60 80 From Pl. de España, head northeast on C. Ovalle 1 block, then across the street, on the right.)
• MEDICAL SERVICES: Centro de Salud (C. de Alcalde Carro Verdejo, 11 987 61 66 88 From bus station, turn right onto Av. de las Murallas, then turn right at the rotary onto C. de Alcalde Carro Verdejo.)
Getting There
By Bus
ALSA runs buses from: Bilbao ( €28.65. 6½hr., daily 10:45am.), Burgos ( €17.15. 4hr.; M-Sa 4 per day 6:35am-5:25pm, Su 3 per day 6:35am-5:25pm.), Barcelona ( €50. 11-12hr., 4 per day 8:30am-8pm.), Gijón ( €13. 2½-3hr., 3 per day 8am-6:30pm. León ( €3.30. 50min.; M-F 20 per day 6am-9:30pm, Sa 8 per day 7:30am-8:30pm, Su 6 per day 10:30am-8:30pm.), Madrid ( €21-35. 4-5hr.; M-F 10 per day 9:30am-12:30am, Sa-Su 8 per day 9:30am-12:30am.), Santiago de Compostela ( €20. 4-5hr., 5 per day 8am-11:15pm.), and Sevilla ( €36. 9½hr., daily 11:40pm.).
santiago de compostela
981
If you’ve made it to Santiago after finishing the Camino, congratulations. Kick back with some local tinto or white albariño and give those tired pilgrims’ feet a rest. If you flew here, give your stiff neck a rest and Let’s Go will keep the congratulations. Santiago de Compostela (pop. 94,000) has grown with the centuries as its colonnaded streets have swollen with pilgrims from around the world. The Cathedral, which houses the remains of the city’s namesake St. James, is the main attraction, and much of the city—from the be-crossed almond cakes to the multilingual menús—is geared toward its visitors. There’s more to the city than pilgrims, though: the nightlife buzzes with students from USC (Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, not its sunnier Californian counterpart), and every restaurant’s window is full of octupi and giant, Hershey’s-kiss-shaped cheeses. Though it’s known for its pilgrims, and it certainly embraces that identity, Santiago has its own, quirky character hiding beneath each arch of the ancient old city.
ORIENTATION
As soon as you arrive in Santiago, be sure to get a map, since the streets are very poorly marked. The main streets of the old city are Rúa do Franco, Rúa do Vilar, and Rúa Nova, which run (with some name changes, at times) from the Praza do Obradoiro and the Catedral de Santiago de Compostela, the old city’s hub, to the Praza de Galicia, which sits between the old and new parts of town. The bus station (Pr. de Camilo Díaz Baliño 981 54 24 16 Open daily 6am-10pm.) is to the northeast of the old city. To get to Pr. de Galicia, take bus # 2 or #5 (€0.90), or head right on R. de Ánxel Casal, then left at the rotary onto R. da Pastoriza. Because this area is a living IQ test, this street subsequently turns into R. dos Basquiños, then R. de Santa Clara, and finally R. de +San Roque. Next, turn left onto R. das Rodas which will turn into R. de Aller Ulloa, R. da Virxe da Cerca, R. da Ensinanza, and Fonte de Santo Antonio before reaching Pr. de Galicia. The train station (R. de Hórreo 902 24 02 02) is on the south end of the city; take bus #6 to get to Pr. de Galicia, or walk up the stairway across the parking lot from the main entrance and take R. do Hórreo uphill about 7 blocks.
ACCOMMODATIONS
HOSPEDAJE FONSECA
R. de Fonseca, 1, 2nd fl.
PENSIÓN
646 93 77 65
The modern décor of this pensión’s bright, high-ceilinged rooms contrasts with the ancient facade of the Cathedral, a literal stone’s throw away across the street. These are just about the best prices you’re going to find in the old city, and you couldn’t dream of a better location.
Take R. do Franco toward Pr. do Obradoiro, then turn right just before the Cathedral (1 block past little plaza) onto R. de Fonseca. Hospedaje Fonseca is on Rúa de Fonseca, not Praza de Fonseca or Travesa de Fonseca, which are all within 2 blocks of each other. All rooms have shared bath. Jul-Sept singles €20-22; doubles €35. Oct-Jun €15-18 per person. Reception 8:30am-11pm.
HOSTAL PAZO DE AGRA
R. da Caldeirería, 37
PENSIÓN
981 58 90 45
The rooms are not quite as palatial as the “Agra” part of the name might suggest (Agra is the Taj Mahal’s hometown), but feel free to address your subjects from your room’s balcony over the old city. Or ignore the plebes and just bask in the view. The bathrooms are private, but for singles they’re outside the room across a narrow hallway, so you’ll still need to cover up after a shower.
From Pr. de Galicia, take R. das Orfas into old city; it becomes R. da Caldeirería after 3 blocks, and the hostal is on the right after 1 more block. Private baths, but for singles are outside rooms. June-Sept singles €32; doubles €40. Oct-May singles €26; doubles €36. Reception 24hr.
AS CANCELAS
R. do 25 de Xullo, 35
CAMPING
981 58 02 66
Guests at this campsite can make the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela every day: the final 2km Camino runs just a couple blocks from the campsite toward the Cathedral, so guests can make the easiest and most brag-worthy part of the pilgrimage whenever they’d like. While As Cancelas is a campsite, it’s hardly roughing it: there’s a fancy restaurant and bar, and it’s just a couple of blocks from a 5min. bus ride to the center of town.
Bus #4 (M-F every 30min., Sa-Su every hr.) runs from R. da Senra stop just west of Pr. de Galicia to As Cancelas. Or a 2km walk from old town north on R. de San Roque to Pr. da Paz to R. de San Caetano to Pr. de España, then right onto R. das Cancelas and right onto R. de 25 de Xullo. Supermarket, cafeteria, restaurant, pool, and laundry service available. Sept-June €5 per person, under 12 €2.90; €5 per car; €5 per tent; 4-person bungalow €49, 5-person €59. July-Aug €6.40 per person, under 12 €4.70; €6.70 per car; €6.70 per tent; 4-person bungalow €80, 5-person €96. Reception 9:30am-11:30pm.
SIGHTS
CATEDRAL DE SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA AND MUSEUM
Pr. das Praterías
CHURCH, MUSEUM
981 58 11 55 www.catedraldesantiago.es
Pilgrims have arrived at this site for more than a millenia, walking here by following the well-trodden Camino de Santiago in order to gain personal fulfillment and their plenary indulgence from the Church. The Cathedral’s towers speckled with mosses, lichens, and flowers rise from the center of the city, making the enormous holy site look as though it has spent the last couple of centuries at the bottom of the nearby ocean. It has been above water the whole time, though (unless you count the frequent Galician rains), and the site has been a destination of pilgrims since the relics of James the Apostle were discovered here in the 9th century. Work on the ancient Romanesque cathedral began in 1075 and was completed in 1211, though the cloister was added during the Spanish Renaissance and most of the facades are 17th- to 18th-century Baroque. Today, pilgrims and tourists line up to embrace the jewel-encrusted statue of the Apostle and see the silver coffer that contains his remains. The botafumeiro, the massive silver-plated censer swung across the altar to disperse thick clouds of incense in the Cathedral’s most famous spectacle, is usually used during the noon service, though the schedule varies and is not made p
ublic. The Cathedral’s bells are older than the Cathedral itself, taken to Córdoba in 997 by invading Moors. Fortunately, the reconquering Christians had the last laugh when they took Córdoba in the 13th century and made their prisoners carry the bells all the way back to Santiago. The museum includes the peaceful cloister, the library (the books that line the shelves are ancient, but many of those on display are facsimiles), and the crypt. That funky smell in the crypt is caused by the humidity, not by human remains—or at least that’s the official line.
Enter Cathedral on Pr. das Praterías; the museum entrance is inside on the left. Cathedral free; museum €5, students, seniors and pilgrims €3. Cathedral open daily 7am-9pm; museum open June-Sept M-Sa 10am-2pm and 4-8pm, Su 10am-2pm; Oct-May M-Sa 10am-1:30pm and 4-6:30pm, Su 10am-1:30pm.
THE GREAT OUTDOORS
CABO FINISTERRE (CABO FISTERRA)
CAPE
For some pilgrims, walking from the Pyrenees (or beyond) to Santiago is just not enough. The route continues beyond the Cathedral and keeps going until there’s not another foot of dry land left to walk at Cape Finisterre—literally “the end of the earth,” once believed to be just that. The wind-battered cape sticks out into the Atlantic, reaching toward the New World from the infamous Costa da Morte (“Coast of Death”; Costa de la Muerte in Spanish), so called because of its jagged shores treacherous to seafarers and those made queasy by long, winding bus rides. The tiny town of Fisterra, once a trading hub at a nexus of sea routes, has narrow, winding alleys down to a lively port with restaurants lining the boardwalk and exhausted backpackers sunning themselves on the rocks.
It’s a 45min. walk uphill along the road to the faro (lighthouse) at the end of the cape the very end of the Old World. Stunning views of the town, ocean, and nearby coastline are the prize that greets those who make it to the end of the trail, and the route runs past the ruins of an 18th-century fortress near the edge of town. 45min. in the other direction from Fisterra are the town’s best beaches, though the water’s usually chilly. To get there, walk the 3mi. along the road back to Santiago or take the bus and ask the driver to stop at the beaches. A 1hr. hike inland takes you up Monte San Guillermo home to several odd rituals. Pilgrims burn their clothes, couples having trouble conceiving make love on the bed-shaped fertility rocks, and weaklings and strong men alike move boulders by rolling As Pedras Santas (the round rocks move effortlessly when pushed in the right spot).
The Albergue de Peregrinos (C. Real, 2 981 74 07 81 Open Sept-May M-F 11am-2pm and 5-10pm, Jun-Aug 1-10pm) has tourist information.
The bus stop is near the Albergue de Peregrinos, a couple of blocks uphill from the water. Buses €11.85; round-trip €21.70. Castromil/Monbus runs buses from Santiago to Fisterra. Last bus 7pm.
O CASTRO DE BAROÑA
BEACH, RUINS
An hour’s bus ride to the sea and another 30min. on a local bus down the coast takes you to O Castro de Baroña, a beautiful, out-of-the-way site that holds the ruins of a 5th-century Celtic fortress and a small but pristine crescent beach. A rocky, overgrown trail leads out to a lonely promontory sticking out into the crashing waves, with the remains of the castle close to the bluff and high above the sea. All that remain of the 1500-year-old structures are their foundations and low walls, but the site is great to explore and enjoy the views of the sea and coast. Another path goes down to a quiet beach, whose cold but calm waters are protected by the cove. Clothing is “prohibido,” but many beachgoers remain bathing-suited, and hostility toward the clothed is limited. There’s little there beyond the fort, beach, and a bar, but a 45min. walk or 5min. bus back toward Noia (to the left as you face the road from the bar) is Porto do Son, which has inexpensive restaurants and accommodations near the bus stop.
To reach O Castro, you’ll need to change buses in Noia. Castromil/Monbus runs buses from Santiago to and from Noia. (€3, round-trip €5.95). From Noia, Hefsel runs buses that stop at O Castro de Baroña (in front of Cafe-Bar O Castro) en route to Ribeira (€1.85) and return to Noia from the same stop. Check in the bar for the most up-to-date information and schedules, and take note of the last bus for each day. Be sure to tell the bus driver where you’re going, as the stop for O Castro is easy to miss. From the bus stop, follow the signs to the fortress, downhill toward the water: at the fork with the two signs, the fortress is to the right, the beach to the left.
FOOD
A TULLA
R. de Entrerrúas, 1
GALICIAN
981 58 08 89
This is definitely the sort of place you have to know about in order to find—it’s hidden down a crooked alley only a few feet wide—but those in the know just keep coming back. Pick just about anything off the handwritten menu (in Galego, of course), and it’s bound to be delicious. Combine the lentejas (lentil stew; €3.50) with chourizo á sidra (spicy sausage cooked in cider; €4.50) to create one of the most delicious dishes in existence. They also have lots of vegetarian options, and a vegetarian menú (€10).
In narrow alley between Rúa Nova and R. do Vilar, just toward Cathedral from Pr. do Toural on R. Nova, and just toward Cathedral from Municipal Tourist Office on R. do Vilar. Menú del día €12, vegetarian menú €10. Soups/vegetables €3.50-7.50. Entrees €4.50-12.50. Open June-July M-Tu 1-4pm and 8:30pm-midnight, Th-Su 1-4pm and 8:30pm-midnight; Aug-May M-W 1-4pm, Th-Sa 1-4pm and 8:30pm-midnight, Su 1-4pm.
O DEZASEIS
R. de San Pedro, 16
GALICIAN
981 56 48 80 www.dezaseis.com
If you’re willing to shell out just a few more euro, you can get a serious step up in quality. This basement restaurant has an earthy stone-and-wood feel and delicious regional cuisine at very affordable prices. The classics like tortilla española (€5.40) are superb, and if you want a dish that Santiago himself would approve of, try the vieira a galega (a huge scallop served in its own shell, like the ones that line the Camino; €4.20). If you keep the shell, clean it, paint a cross on it, and sell it to a pilgrim, and the dish will nearly pay for itself.
Take R. da Virxe da Cerca along the edge of the old city, then turn onto R. de San Pedro away from old city. Menú del día €12. Raciones €3.50-13.50. Entrees €12-14.50. Open M-Sa 2-4pm and 8pm-midnight.
OBRADOIRO
R. do Pombal, 44
CAFE, BAR
981 57 07 22
Pilgrims fill this bar and cafe for the daily €7 menú, which has huge portions and includes fresh bread and wine. With a patio for enjoying the rare but lovely Galician sun, this eatery offers one of the best-priced meals in town that isn’t a kebab.
Just across the street from the Alameda (big park next to the old city); from Pr. de Galicia, follow R. da Senra to the left as you’re facing the old city, then stay along the right side of the park down the hill. Menú del día €7. Kitchen open daily 1-4pm and 8-10pm.
NIGHTLIFE
Most of Santiago’s nightlife is in the old town scattered around the Cathedral, but the area around the Praza Roxa has a more student-oriented scene.
CASA DAS CRECHAS
Via Sacra, 3
BAR, LOUNGE, LIVE MUSIC
981 57 61 08 www.casadascrechas.com
Take a quick walk up the steps behind the Cathedral and descend into a Celtic witch’s den that provides ample seating and beer. There are frequent jazz and Galician folk performances, so call ahead or check the website for the schedule; impromptu foliadas usually pop up on Wednesday evening, but you generally just have to be there when the right group of enthusiastic musicians comes in.
From Pr. da Quintana with the Cathedral to your left, head up the stairs and to the right, then left onto Via Sacra. Open daily in summer noon-4am; in winter 4pm-3am.
MODUS VIVENDI
Pr. Feixóo, 1
BAR, LOUNGE
981 57 61 09 www.pubmodusvivendi.net
Welcome to the heart of Santiago’s bohemia. Just about everyone will drop in at some point in the evening to mingle at the packed bar or push their way through
to the more laid-back lounge. The trendy art and psychedelic lighting draw an eclectic crowd; the younger groups tend to gravitate to the back, so don’t get scared off by all those graying male ponytails in front.
From Pr. da Quintana with the Cathedral to your left, head out to the far left corner of the plaza, then left onto R. da Conga, and bear left. Beer €2. Mixed drinks €4.50-6. Open July-Sept M-W 6:30pm-3:30am, Th-Su 6:30pm-4:30am; Oct-June M-W 4:30pm-3am, Th-Su 6:30pm-4:30am.
PUB TATOOINE
R. da República Argentina, 50
CLUB, STAR WARS
Far and away the most awesomely nerdy bar in town—if not along the entire Camino. Murals of stormtroopers and Darth Vader adorn this dark basement club, where clients are encouraged to show off their Jedi mind tricks and light sabers. Here, it’s the cool kids who stand awkwardly against the wall.