In
the Middle Ages, royalty, knights, priests,
commoners, even criminals followed the Way of St.
James. Today, pilgrims from all over the world
still travel by foot, bicycle or horseback to
Compostela. Each pilgrim has a reason for the
journey; many go to see the architecture and enjoy
the camaraderie of the experience, and others
travel for spiritual reasons.
In the summers of 1987 and 1988, Joan Myers made this thousand-year old journey, photographing both pilgrims and their route. The 500 miles were arduous, over the Pyrenees, across the hot central plains of Castile and Leon, and over the steep foggy passes of Galicia.