\li105\ri105 \f1 \b SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA: CATHEDRAL AND HOSTAL DE LOS REYES\par
\qj \par
\b0 Legend has it that St James the Greater,
after the evangelization of Judaea, went to Spain and stayed in Galicia for seven years. After his martyrdom, which took place in Jerusalem, his disciples brought his embalmed body back to Galicia for burial. Although with the passing of time the memory
of the place where the saint was buried has been lost, the site on which the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela is built was considered sacred as far back as the ninth century.\par
But it was from the eleventh century onward, and throughout the Middle
Ages that Santiago de Compostela became one of the most important places of pilgrimage in Europe, especially for pilgrims from France: a "Santiago de Compostela Way" was created, studded with churches, shrines, and hostels, and formed one of the most imp
ortant means of communication and of cultural and artistic exchange during the Middle Ages to the point where it is possible to speak of a genuine "\b \cf4 \ATXht175 Romanesque style\b0 \cf0 \ATXht0 of pilgrimage".\par
Built in the Romanesque style, th
e cathedral was enlarged, altered, and redecorated several times over the centuries. Its richly decorated portals, like the P≤rtico de la Gloria and the P≤rtico de las Platerφas, are splendid.\par
One of the last elements to be added to the complex was
the facade of the Obradoiro, a new and monumental entrance built of a brilliant \b \cf4 \ATXht178 baroque\cf0 \ATXht0 \b0 design by Fernando Casas y Novoa.\par
Next to the cathedral, the Hostal de los Reyes, a hostel founded by the Catholic rulers Ferd
inand and Isabella for the use of pilgrims, has now been turned into one of the most luxurious hotels in Spain. Its imposing facade is adorned with a magnificent \b \cf4 \ATXht178 Plateresque\b0 \cf0 \ATXht0 portal.\par
