Exploring Pamplona They certainly know how to party in Pamplona, though it felt a bit desperate. We heard that Pamplona has festivals just about every week – but I wasn’t sure if it was there for the locals or in an effort to bring in the tourists. We were up early …
Our hostess left us a thermos of coffee on account of our early departure. We set off before dawn, back up the hill and set our sights for Pamplona. We walked alongside the River Arga – a beautiful stream among the green woods. We stopped at Irotz for breakfast – …
Leaving Zubiri, we passed a noisy, dusty manganese processing plant, which supplies to the steel industry, including the arms factory down the road. Some people feel the sights and sounds of industry to be incompatible with the Camino. In reality, industry has sat alongside the spiritual path for millennia. The Romans …
After a sparse breakfast, (I’m beginning to wonder if the Spanish DO breakfasts!) we had a delightful walk through light woodlands, with a few short steep climbs. The light through the trees is wonderful. Welcome to Basque country We walked to Viscarret/Guerendiain (the latter being the Basque name) for lunch …
The first ‘modern’ European travel guide was written in the 12th century by monks accompanying Pope Calixtus II. It was, of course, the guide to the Camino (French route). So the guide, known as the Codex Calixtinus, became the definitive route – and the route today largely follows the one set …
