Our journey has taken us today from Sansol, with its Templar-inspired church, past an ancient farmer’s humble storm shelter. Then to the tomb of the illegitimate son of a Pope. Cesare Borgia rose to become a military General who won back Viana for the Navarrese. We marveled at the technical skills and artistry in the churches. And how those artworks, thinly gilded, have inspired people through the ages to reach for something greater than themselves.
We set off towards Villmayor de Montjardin to a forecast of 16°C on a generally good track with some fairly steep hills (some refer to these as ‘undulations’, I prefer the term ‘hill’). There were some great views across the valley, and soon we were approaching the 100km mark – …
The day dawned bright for our journey onward to Estella “Next there is Estella, which is fertile in good bread, excellent wine, meat, and fish, and full of all sorts of felicity” ~ Codex Calixtinus We departed our hostel before sunrise and headed down the hill as the first rays of …
Cirauqui beckoned. The day dawned with perfect weather and a well-made track. We met a French pilgrim from Toulouse, and we all chatted in English. He was a young guy but very interested in people’s stories, and he was really enjoying the Camino. The guy told us he was finishing …
With a quick last look out of our window overlooking the Town Hall square, we packed up and headed out early to the outskirts of the town, past the University of Navarre en route to Uterga. There we found a cafe/bakery and enjoyed a pot of tea and a Napolitana …
Pamplona is the goal today. The morning dawned clear and cool as we headed back over the medieval bridge and left Zubiri behind us. It wasn’t long before the path began to climb. I looked back to see the town receding beneath us before we wound our way through leafy …
The Mezquita, or mosque-cathedral in Cordoba, Spain is an extraordinary piece of architecture, symbolising the intermingling of Christian and Islamic culture.
Camino podcaster Brendan Bolton asked recently: “When you hear the phrase ‘Post Camino Blues’ what is the first thing that comes to mind for you?” The way I see it, it’s kind of a late night Tapas bar staring into your vino tinto listening to a lone musician singing a …
What about the mind? You reach Logroño, and by now you are getting settled into the Camino’s routine, and you are starting to feel like a pilgrim on a pilgrimage. But what does that even mean, and how might we think about it? What makes this different from, say, a …
