We saw our first stone bridge....made me wonder if it was the one where Martin Sheen lost his backpack in the river in THE WAY. We walked in the forest most of the day, so it was nice to be out of the sun. Many of the plants look just like the ones in the forest around Delafield. Continue to see lots of beech trees. Andy read that this area has one of the largest ancient beech forests left in Europe.
We walked from 7:30 to 3 with three nice breaks...one to pick up some fruit and muffins for breakfast/lunch, one for Andy to get his morning coffee, and one for lunch in Zubiri. We bought a baquette and some good cheese at a little grocery store....simple but tasty. Ate in the city square where the water fountain was located. Most little towns have them, so we don't have to carry large quantities of water.
We stopped for the night in Larrasoana at the city run Albergue for only 6 Euro each. There was just one couple in the room with us...they were very quiet, didn't say much and did not snore. We slept much better. It was much more primitive, but adequate.
We ate a Pilgrims Plate at the only restaurant in town with about twenty other pilgrims at 7:00....that is so they can serve the general public at the same tables by 8:15 or 8:30. Was fun to eat with a man and his son from Ireland, a young gal from Norway, and a young gal from South Africa....all had very interesting stories. The gal from South Africa is walking in honor of her father who is very ill, but had always dreamed of walking the Camino. She will be home in time for his 70th birthday to tell him of all of her adventures on the Camino.
Went to bed at 10:00...door locked and lights out at 10:00....tough luck if you don't make it in time!
Just about everyone was up at 6:00, so we were out the door at 6:30 and on our way in the dark. We walked with a flashlight for about an hour before the sun came up over the mountains. We only walked 13 miles today with two stops....one for Andy's morning coffee and one to see the marvelous Cathedral in Pamplona. It was an easy walk today along the River Arga...not nearly as many hills. Pamplona has a beautiful city wall and old town area - the Camino goes through all of it. Also saw the route where the bulls run through town every July. The population is about 200,000 so it was our first big city. They had silver circles with the European sign for the Camino embedded in the sidewalks about every 10 to 15 feet so it was easy to follow. We went by a wonderful park downtown and made our way to the University to get our passport stamped. Then it was only 2 KM to the top of the hill at Cizur Memor where we are spending the night at a very nice Albergue Roncal for just 10 Euro....washing machines, modern bathrooms, and only about 6 bunks in each room. The 2 big snorers are here, but in a different building! All four places so far have had pillows and private showers....we weren't expecting either one along The Way so it is a pleasant surprise.
We arrived by noon and enjoyed a quiet afternoon in this pleasant little town. I did a load of wash in a real washing machine and then checked out the two churches in town - very different in design. The locals were very proud of their outdoor city swimming pool! The Albergue had a small pond/swimming pool for its resident turtle population. Very cute. We went out for dinner with a couple of our roommates. Rain threatened on our walk back but we didn't get caught in it.
One of the things we talked about today was how easy it was to feel superior to some of the other Pilgrims...pride is one of the things that we will be thinking about and praying about on this trip.
Some people carry a SMALL day pack, stay in a nice hotel, and have their suitcases delivered to their next hotel each day. Can they really be experiencing the Camino like WE are??? Some say they are walking all the way to Santiago....then you find out they are taking a bus through the "boring, flat cereal fields" section of the Camino. Can they really say they have walked ALL the way to Santiago?
Sad but true - both had to admit we had those thoughts!
Wednesday:
Over the river and through the woods....
and one church...13th Century Church of San Nicolas.
Thursday:
The first half of this section was a tranquil walk crisscrossing the River Arga...
The Beautiful Pamplona Cathedral from different angles.
The Town Hall on the City Square. The bulls actually run right through here.
The turtle pond at the Albergue...
12th Century Romanesque Church in Cizur Menor.
Stately on the outside and simple on the inside.
Albergue Roncal
4 comments:
Hi Andy & Nancy. For the first time, I took the time to read this blog post...now I want to keep it up. Some day we would love to do this same thing...just can't at this point in our lives, limitation on time etc. BUT we can experience it through you. I think I mentioned we were able to see a private screening of the movie with Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez there in person and on a discussion panel afterward. A friend of ours who teaches classes in Cinema plus a Nun were also on the panel. It was an amazing campus where this event was held, Mount St. Mary's College in the Brentwood area of LA. The Way is a great way to reflect on our Spiritual Journey; past, present and future at our age and stage of life.
Thanks for your note...I hope you can do
I hope y and Ken can do the Camino some time. It is quite an experience. Sooner than later tho...it really is physically challenging...tho we feel biking is the best prep for your legs! Take care. love you guys.
Loved the post on earplugs being overrated - I agree! Very interesting to hear that some folks do this via hotels and delivered luggage. Do they get the same stamps for their passports? By the way, is there a fee to register for passport? ...was wondering that. Also enjoyed this post because of your mention of pride, love to hear of the things you are thinking about and learning about. Thank you for sharing. xoxo Chris
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