Flying the botafumeiro at the Cathedral in Santiago

We were lucky enough to witness the botafumeiro in action on our arrival date, January 21, 2011. This was captured on my iPhone so the quality of the video is not the best but here it is. We left Santiago for Finisterre / Muxia on January 24th and returned again on the 29th and stayed until February 5th. This was the only time we were able to watch the botafumeiro in action. Just one footnote, as some might be wondering how this unique censor fits into the celebration of the mass. The catholic mass has long history of incorporating incense as a form of blessing and purification. The botafumeiro would certainly have been used in this context however it also served a more practical purpose. In times long ago (some might also say today as well) pilgrims, arriving in the Cathedral, were a bit fragrant (a little too much eau de camino). The incense in the botafumeiro was a way to help cope with that problem as well.