The cathedral was full, and there was a really joyous atmosphere. Although the service was in Spanish, a nun with a lovely voice taught us some of the music beforehand, including some Taize chants. This meant that everyone could join in, no matter what their nationality. Also some of the prayers were spoken in German and English, well as Spanish. The general shape of the service was so similar to ours that it wasn't too difficult to tell what was going on, and there was a fantastic sense of being part of something that transcended nationality and denomination.
Although the service was conducted with great dignity, no-one tried to apply rules - some people were taking photos during the service, and tourists were free to wander around the outer aisles. At the end, they swung the great hanging censer and released clouds of incense. I could not understand everything that the priest was saying beforehand, but he mentioned photos and spectacle, so it's possible to guess the gist.
After being in so many places which either encourage tourists to the detriment of prayer, or try to maintain prayerfulness by discouraging visitors, it was wonderful to be somewhere that all were welcome, and that it was accepted that tourists could be pilgrims and pilgrims could be tourists.
The censer is visible in this picture taken from the back after the service - it is the silver thing hanging behind the big candelabra. It doesn't look very big at this distance, but it is actually pretty fearsome when it's swung. I couldn't get a good picture of it swinging because of the speed that it moved.
I don't know how many people walk the Pilgrim Way, but it must be a huge number. The city is full of folk dressed for long-distance hiking, and everywhere you go along the route there are people walking. I know from what I found out on the French side of the Pyranees that a lot of people walk the whole width of Spain. But many more just walk part of the way - to qualify as a proper pilgrim, it is necessary to walk the last 100km or cycle 200km. A few people obviously still go on horseback; we saw 4 people leading horses through the city streets - I don't know how far one has to ride to qualify, or whether the horses get a pilgrim's badge too!
