SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA
ABOUT SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA
Santiago de Compostela, or more commonly known as simply Santiago, is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia and is located in the northwesternmost province of Galicia, A Coruña. The city is famous for the Camino de Santiago, or The Way of Saint James, which is explained in the Galicia Ocio Guide will be explained below, and much of its history and origin proceeds from this pilgrimage. This pilgrimage site marked an important step in the battle that the Spanish Catholic Monarchs were fighting against the Moors, who destroyed the city in the 10th Century, and the old town that you will soon see upon arrival was rebuilt by the Catholic Monarchs during that same century. This part of the city is characterized by small winding streets and a high volume of historic sites, especially those near the Cathedral. The Housing Guide offers information on living in the old town, or zona vieja, and the Ocio Guide Sights section below will guide you around the area.
The city is also home to the University of Santiago de Compostela, one of the oldest universities in the world that is still in use today, established in 1495. The University was declared a patrimonio histórico by the Spanish government, and can be visited. The history of the city of Santiago de Compostela is similar to that of Galicia as a whole, in that its legal and sovereign status had constantly been shifting. The city has been raided multiple times, by Romans, Visigoths, Arabs, and even Napoleon’s troops. Today, the city finds itself in a thriving and diversifying economy, balancing its long history with innovation and modernity, and greeting hundreds of thousands of pilgrims every year.
Check out this reflection from Emily Sun, 2019-2020 Fulbright TA in Santiago de Compostela:
TRANSPORTATION IN SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA
To get around Santiago, walking is almost always your best bet. Unless you’re going somewhere particularly distant from the center of town, you can get to pretty much any part of the city in 30 minutes or less. Some people do bike around Santiago, but, because it’s a rainy and hilly city, biking is usually not very convenient. For longer trips, or for when it’s pouring, there is an excellent local bus network that goes to all parts of the city and its afueras. The bus costs 1 euro per ride, but a transit pass, or bono, is also available. The Abanca bus card is very helpful; it’s around 2 euros to buy, then you just have to top it up, and it gives you a nice discount on every local bus. You do not have to bank with Abanca to be able to purchase and use this card. You can also download the Bus Santiago app, which gives transit information for the bus network in real time.
If you’re looking to get out of town, the train station, located in the new zone, or zona nueva, connects to Vigo to the south, and A Coruña to the north, with several local and high-speed trains a day. To travel by high-speed train to the rest of Spain, you have to take a local train first to Ourense, which connects to the Alvia (the second-fastest Spanish train) lines. The airport of Santiago has frequent flights to Madrid and Barcelona, as well as flights to a variety of European cities. In the summer there are even more flights and even more destinations available. If your flight is too early in the morning or gets in too late at night, you will often have to take a taxi to the Santiago airport. It’s a flat rate of 21 euros, but some people choose to go to a popular taxi spot a bit early and see if anyone else is waiting for a taxi to split the cost. In order to get to the airport from the city, there is an airport shuttle bus that leaves every 20-30 minutes, with stops at the Praza de Galicia, the train station, and the bus station. A one-way trip costs €3 or 86 cents if you have the Abanca bus card, and a roundtrip ticket costs €5.10. The ride takes about 40 minutes from the Praza de Galicia and about 25 minutes from the bus station. The airport shuttle runs every half hour from 6 am to 1 am. The local bus C6 also goes to the airport and makes multiple stops throughout the city, but might be a little slower. It costs 1 euro! The bus station, newly opened right next to the train station, offers bus links to most of the cities and towns in Galicia, as well as long-distance buses traveling to destinations in Spain and Portugal. You’ll find Santiago de Compostela is incredibly well connected, to Galicia, Spain and beyond! BlaBla Car is also great and often faster / more direct.
DAILY LIFE IN SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA
Generally, in Galicia, the main supermarkets are Gadis, Froiz, and Día, with locations in various parts of town. Gadis is the most recommended out of the three by a past university lecturer. This lecturer especially liked this particular store “because they identify local products with a little scallop shell symbol, so you know you’re buying something fresh and supporting the local economy.” The new town, or zona nueva (see the Housing Guide), has the largest supermarkets and the largest selection of stores to choose from.
If you are interested in taking Spanish or Galician, check out the Escuela Oficial de Idiomas de Santiago. Two 2018-2019 grantees also enjoyed taking Spanish classes at The Lorca Institute (one specifically recommends the instructor Lucia) but warn that they don’t separate by level. Another grantee took private Galician classes at Eurolingua (Rúa de Santiago de Chile, 13) and paid 10 euros per class. There are also free Galician and Spanish conversation groups offered through the public library.