It was the last but one leg of his 1000 km walk across Spain but it was such an intriguing place that Andrea Guzzoletti added an extra day to his journey there before moving on to Finisterre – the final day of his Camino de Santiago.
Muxía is a coastal town and municipality in the province of A Coruña in the autonomous community of Galicia in northwestern Spain. It belongs to the comarca of Finisterre. It is one of the final destinations for pilgrims on the Way of St. James after visiting the shrine of the apostle Saint James the Great in Santiago de Compostela.
This morning comes the news that the monastery at Muxia has been completely destroyed by a fire which apparently started after the building was hit by lightning.
32nd Day from Olveiroa to Muxìa and what should have been on paper only 27 kms but according to Andrea was at least 10 kms more as it took him 9 hours to complete but it was worth it in the end. The view of finally reaching the sea made him feel like a winner.
The monastery on the rocks is such a beguiling view that Andrea intends to stay for another day before moving onto the final leg of his journey – Finisterre. – full article and images here)
The church dedicated to “Nosa Senora da Barca”, the “Santuario da Virxe da Barca” was originally a pre-Christian Celtic church and sacred spot.
This part of Spain was resistant to conversion to Christianity, and was only converted in the 12th century.
The Christians built a hermitage on this location at first, and later the present church in the 17th century.
News of the destruction has gradually filtered across the internet and social networks today with many observers raising their eyebrows at the perceived irony of “lighting strikes on a religious building … on Christmas day ??