A Pilgrimage Walk from Le Puy-en-Velay to Santiago de Compostela, 2003. 5. Third week (9-15 May)
Pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, 2003 . Week 3 (9-15 May) Friday, 9 May 2003. Vaylats . [Day 15] Monastère des Filles de Jésus . A real find – a gift from heaven after our longest day yet: 33 km/20.5 mi from Cajarc. This convent is a large complex, fortified almost, in a small village. We’re in single rooms, each equipped with a washbasin! We must use our sleeping bags, but we’re accustomed to that. The convent has a spacious church with much natural light. Mass takes place in the morning, a prayer service at the end of the afternoon. Since we arrived late as well as tired, we gave the prayer service a miss. At dinner, one of the sisters delivered a brief history of their order: founded in the 1820s by a local priest to instruct and evangelize in this rural region after the disruptions of the French Revolution. Today, they also have a small presence in Ivory Coast, where they face difficulties during the current unrest. We were nine at dinner, ...