Backpacking Bill

This was a long slog day. There were hills ( There are always hills, whoever laid out this route never saw a hill he didn’t want to climb) and they were hard but doable.

Seemed every time we went to the Wash Machine, someone had beaten us to it. A group of French gals tried to help us out. The two of us and the three of them in Spain with no common language – that was a funny encounter.

Dinner place opened at 6:30, got there about 6:45. There were no places; told we would have to wait until 8:00. It was a late night. We ate with a new friend, Chris, from California.

Today is a relatively short day. Instead of doing layover days,we are doing short days.

Although Logroño was a great place to see, I am very pleased that we have moved on. The wine festival was fun to see but the noise at night was, for me, problematic.

Although I didn’t get a photo, it is interesting that they hose down all the streets at the beginning of the day.

Ran into a group of four guys from the Tampa, Florida area. We first encountered them on, I believe, the second day but again here in Navarrete. It turns out that they are in a Bible Study together in Florida. It’s interesting to hear what motivates people to do their Camino.

Well, it does mean something. They were erected along highways in Spain to advertise Brandy de Jerez made by the Osborne Group. They are called Osborne Bulls. They passed a law prohibiting advertising on roads (sounds like a good idea for USA) but left the Osborne Bulls. Then there was an initiative to remove the Bulls. There was such a public outcry against the initiative that the bulls remain.

In medieval times there were many hospitals along the Camino to treat the infirmed that were traveling the Camino for a miracle cure in Santiago. I can’t imagine what a medieval hospital was like. They didn’t have much but homespun remedies and prayers to offer.

Today was a relatively short day. Tomorrow is not. We are looking at 21.76 km tomorrow to get to Azofra 13.5 miles . The profile looks fairly flat but it will be a lot of miles and the temperature is projected to be 82°F. It is dry and very little shade. We will have to make sure that we drink lots of water.

Hearing Quiet

Last night was the first time that I can remember hearing silence. It seems that there is always noise: cars, airplanes, lawnmowers, leaf blowers and, in Logroño, revelers. Last night all I heard was silence. Or, maybe my hearing is going bad.

Meeting a lot of people from all over the world and many from New England, surprisingly. I am meeting more because it is so natural for Tina to reach out, she really thrives on this aspect of the Camino.

Came to the town of Viana. When Caesar Borgia was banished to Spain by the successor of Pope Alexander VI, he came here where he was killed during a siege of the city. I had an interest in the Borgias at one time, one of the few I am sure

This translates to “This is where fishermen gather and other liars”

Coming into Logroño during the wine festival was quite an unexpected delight. The Spanish know how to do a festival. One issue here is that, although we can get tapas (locally they are called pinchos) in the afternoon, the restaurants don’t open until 7:00 – 8:00 pm. By that time I am in bed

We have a great room here. The host left us some goodies.

Check out the photo of the statue below. Tina has a video that shows a blink by one of the figures. File was too big to transfer.

The party in the streets was still going when we went to bed about 9:00 pm. It was still going at midnight, the bands stopped marching in the streets sometime after that. I awoke at 5:00 am the party is still going although the singing is a bit less coherent, a lot less coherent. I am thankful for my many blessings; today I am blessed not to have the hangover some of these revelers are likely to have.

6:30 am it’s finally quiet – I spoke too soon, a bunch of guys are still singing, they must be the hard core.

Tina’s Thoughts

I’ve had a couple of people ask if I could add my perspective of our Camino.  I won’t write everyday; Bill uses his phone and it’s not easy.  I’m amazed he is disciplined enough to do that.  Not me!  But I will write on occasion. As we just finished day 9, I will say that we are both getting stronger.  Some days seem endlesss esp as the weather here is getting back into the high 80s.  The Camino Pilgrims or Perrigrinos we meet along the way are like angels sent from God.  We engage in conversation with the first question usually being ” hi:where are you from?” And then off we go.  Sometimes the conversations are quick and other times we walk along with the same people for hours.  I love hearing people’s stories and it certainly helps pass the time.  Many people we meet up with again later that day or on subsequent days and it’s like finding a long lost friend. For me, it’s like life and it’s my favorite part of the Camino. 

That’s it for today   Buen Camino

Our lodging was delightful last night. The Dutch hosts were very nice and the other guests were interesting and communicative.

Today is a relatively short day. The weather continues to be great, although it is going to be warmer as the week progresses. My observation is that Tina is really enjoying the community side of walking the Camino. We have met a number of interesting people from all over the world. We may not see someone for a day or two then see them again and compare adventures.

Tonight’s lodging is not looking as great as the past two days. We have a private room but we share a bath with the rest of the place.  Plus,  I have to go down stairs for the bathroom, I will get my steps in tonight.

Off to Logroño tomorrow. Perhaps we can catch the end of the wine festival I understand they are having.

Last night was the best sleep I’ve had yet. The Casa Nahia Country Lodge is a modern facility. Dinner was delivered, local wine is available, there is a modern laundry facility and we had a great breakfast.

I think we are finally getting into the groove. Walking distances is easier. Easier, due to fewer high climbs and it seems we are getting stronger as we go.

Tonight’s accommodations are lovely but very different from last night. Last night was very modern with Spanish hosts; tonight is an ancient house with Dutch hosts.

Local ventner lets pilgrims sample at will. We restrained ourselves to a small sample (It was in the morning). One of our fellow travelers filled half a bottle, it was gone before the next town. In my uneducated opinion, the wine was pretty good.

Our lodging is in an old house that has been turned into a guest house. It is run by a couple from the Netherlands. They offer a community dinner and breakfast.

There are surprisingly good places to stay and there are surprisingly bad places to stay. Unfortunately, last night’s accommodations fell into the latter category. The place was disappointing and weird. The huge Buddha statue should have been an indicator of weird but the resident dog, peregrinie,was nice.

Well we are out and on our way. This is going to be a short day, 12.7 km less than 8 miles.Did I say “short”? Today I learned that there are no short days.

I don’t know what was going on in this community. Some were dressed I white with red berets and red kerchiefs around their necks. One guy had a red sash around his waist.  Hesitated to take a photo seemed to me that would be intrusive. Maybe associated with Saint Fermin but this doesn’t seem to be the right day and I didn’t see any bulls to be chased by.

As questionable as last night’s accommodations were, tonight’s more than make up for it.

It is interesting to me to find myself in a large group of people who don’t speak English. We all, for the most part, try to make it work with a few common Spanish words, pointing and sign language.

Walking the Camino is hard. One starts with expectations and dreams. All that being said, you can’t get away from the fact that it is not easy. It’s a pilgrimage, it’s not supposed to be easy. We have already encountered a number of Peregrinos who had to drop out due health issues.

Last evening we had dinner with two women we had met the day before. They are from the area of my birth,  Northwest Washington State. One of them discovered that she has a back issue and will be limiting walking, maybe need to drop out. This is the second person we encountered that may be dropping out. This is a tough slog. I could not find the words to tell her that there is no shame in stopping, it’s Gods will. Anything I would have said would have sounded perhaps patronizing. We had a great dinner with great company.

This morning we leave for Puenta La Reina. That is after we get back to the place where we leave our luggage. It’s just a 7 minute walk. We had coffee at the drop off place. Met a Dutch woman who was doing ten days on the Camino; traveling alone and carrying her one year old son.

Not looking forward to the walk today. Have to walk over a high ridge, the weather is threatening and the wind is blowing hard. However, the temperature is moderate

Tina was smart. The young woman who owns the place we were staying offered to give her a ride to Pamplona. Tina took her up on the offer.

I, on the other hand, elected to do the walk. Fortunately this was not a bad day, a few hills but mostly downhill. 

Note: This may not look like the most inviting place to load water. However, the Spanish take great pride in the quality of their water. Old sources like these are plentiful and safe.

The guy stationed here during a battle must have been a target

Heck with expensive hotels in Paris or pricey ones in Saint Jean, I had my best night sleep in a Hostel with no private bathrooms bunk beds and only gave you sheets a blanket and a towel on request.

I am writing this at the end of the day. This was a tough one. The guide books say that this is an “easy walk in the woods”. It isn’t. Most of the pilgrims we met reinforced this observation. But, we made it.

However, all that complaining aside, it was a beautiful experience.

Had our first Pilgrim meal. Had salad, bread, main course (I had pork loin, french fries with Pardon pepper) (Tina had pasta Bolognese) a glass of wine and dessert -15.50 €

Met some fellow pilgrims from Italy; had a great conversation even though they didn’t speak English nor we Italian.

Tina recorded a bunch of steps and miles today.

Today we picked up the leg to Burguete. A tough day. More great vistas across the Pyrenees. The price for the great views was a lot of uphill climbing.

Crossing into Spain

The price continues to be paid on the steep trail down to Roncesvalles

Made it to Roncesvalles

Easy few miles to Burguete – Dinner and bed

In cities it seems everyone speaks English. That is not the case in rural Spain.