John and Encarnita on the Camino

Santiago

2009-08-04T17:28:00.000-07:00

We are here! Here in Santiago! In Santiago de Compostella. Saint James in the Field of Stars. The goal at the end of our road. Eight hundred kilometres from Saint-Jean, our starting point in France.

The city is familiar to us as we listen to the chatter in the square, admire its monuments, and wend our way through its streets.

The skies that held back their tears as we made our way through Galicia now open up and cry with abandon. Wind gusts tug at umbrellas. In the plaza in front of our hotel we encounter Gillian who arrived two days earlier; this evening her husband will join her if the weather allows his plane to land. The cathedral becomes the focus of our attention and the target of repeated visits to its vast interiors and its museum.

Cloister, Santiago Cathedral

Tapestry Based on a Cartoon by Goya

We are in the cathedral for noon mass on Saturday, when we are lucky enough to see the giant botafumeiro, the incense burner, in action.

Botafumeiro

That evening a repeat performance by this enormous dispenser and its team of eight handlers will be in store for us. (To witness click the small arrow in the lower left corner of the picture.)

Botafumeiro in Action

That afternoon we present at the church office our pilgrim's passports containing the stamped symbols of churches, hostals, restaurants and bars from all across the north of Spain, several from every day of our Camino. This testimony to our pilgrimage leads to the issue of our Compostela, the document in Latin that attests to our having completed the Camino. At the Sunday mass when the list of pilgrims by country will be read out, the four of us will make up the majority of the six Canadians reported as having completed the Camino.

Our hotel, the Hostal de los Reyes Catolicos, a place where pilgrims have found repose ever since the middle ages, attends to us when we want rest. Its dining room elevates our physical condition to an exalted level.

A Pilgrim's Rest

Hostal de los Reyes Catolicos - A Hotel with a Pedigree

Yet our mood is not in the ascendant. It is anti-climactic. Why?

Afterwards I wondered about this gap between what I expected to feel, and what I did feel. Why were we not as excited as we should have been during those first days in Santiago? We had completed the Camino. Certainly the city offered the visitor treasures beyond the cathedral itself.

Monastery of Saint Martin Pinario

Altar, Saint Martin Pinario

Banquet Hall, Palace of Archbishop Gelmírez

We had arrived in a city with many treasures. Right in front of our eyes was an important foundation block for the Christian faith?

Saint James Standing Guard at the Cathedral

Could it be the weather, which had turned miserable?

Could it be that one can experience the thrill of the Camino only once in one's lifetime? But Encarnita felt the same way as I did and this was her first Camino.

Certainly our entry into the cathedral was disappointing. The Puerta de la Gloria, one of Europe's most important medieval heritages, was dismantled and under restoration. Nor could we reach out and touch that entrance pillar, grasped by pilgrims completing the Camino. By so many and for so long that indentations had been worn into the marble. Restoration efforts had put it out of bounds. In the scale of Santiago time, all would soon be back in place, but for us it was out of reach.

Figures on the Puerta de la Gloria (photographed on a previous visit)

Even so, the cathedral constantly absorbed our attention. The south door leading onto the Plaza de las Platerías, was still there with its familiar faces.

Arch over the Puerta de Platerías

Stone Figures, Puerta de Platerías

Medieval Musician

Concert Goers

I believe the answer to this puzzle is to be found in the message left by so many pilgrims:

The Camino is not the goal, the Camino is the journey.

The memories we carry with us are memories of the days on the paths, of the people we met, and the sense of history at our side. Santiago de Compostela, the city is important and we would again enjoy its beauty. It was the Camino, however, that would remain strong in our minds.

Arca do Pino to Santiago de Compostela

2009-07-24T09:16:00.000-07:00

Our last three days on the Camino. Two and a half, really, as we retargeted our resting places in order to arrive in Santiago in time for noon mass on Saturday.

Lunch Break

The weather has definitely changed. Grey skies with the constant threat of drizzle if not rain. The countryside surrounding us is a green mosaic, thanks to the moist Atlantic winds. The eucalyptus trees reach up, tall and slender, to the sky above. The flowers thrive.

Eucalyptus

While our eyes were fixed on the remaining kilometres, our thoughts were on those we had accomplished. Constant reminders of experiences from this year and from the year before. A cross. A kilometre stone. A resting pilgrim. A stone heart created by a reiki healer--or by a follower.

Could It Have Been Brian's Work?

On the Trail

We enjoyed our final casa rural at Arca do Pino, where we took advantage of its washing machine and dryer to process our clothes. All our clothes, as we wanted to explore Santiago in a state of cleanliness, although we would not be prepared to engage in the tradition of Lavacolla, our next port of call.

Our way led us over gentle slopes and through shallow valleys. Galicia was comfortable and easy, not spectacular.

Approaching Lavacolla we found Santiago's international airport blocking our way. At the very least the powers that be could have given pilgrims a right of way across the tarmac, interrupting flights when necessary. Instead we were forced to march several kilometres out of our way around the end of the long runway.

Only Twenty More to Go

The insertion of the airport into that location, however, did lead to one curious outcome. For several days we had become accustomed to encountering stone markers every tenth of a kilometre, with the remaining distance to Santiago shown. On the other side of the airport, closer to Santiago, markers were not to be seen. The markers had been removed. If the markers had been left there they would have shown that the markers prior to the airport no longer were truthful. They should have been adjusted to allow for the extra mileage around the airport. New markers on the Camino on the Santiago side of the airport would have revealed the disconnect with the earlier markers.

In Lavacolla at the Hostal O'Pino the crowds of pilgrims began to build up. The establishment had grown since I was last there, and a new building had been put up just outside the hostal compound. The compound, however, contained a derelict building whose owner was demanding of the hostal owners more than the site was worth. Just because we are on the Camino close to Santiago, there is no reason for everyone to behave as good Christians should.

Breakfast at the first opportunity and an early morning start had us on our way before eight. The rain that had been threatening now came down, but with interruptions that generated rainbows.

Monte do Gozo (Mountain of Joy) and the monument commemorating the visit by Pope John Paul II slid by.

John Paul II Monument

Chapel, Monte do Gozo

We crossed the city limits. A long walk through streets that made one realize how large the city had become. At last a sight of the cathedral tower.

The four of us walked through the Arco Palacio, holding hands, into the Praza do Obradoiro.

Praza do Obradoiro

An about turn and there, in front of us and above us, the baroque facade of Santiago's cathedral.

Portomarín to Arzua

2009-07-19T08:51:00.000-07:00

Saturday looms five days away. Our Camino is coming to an end. A slight sigh of relief washed away by a river of regret, regret that an all absorbing experience is drawing to a close. More completely for some than others.

The atmosphere of these final days differs markedly from the freshness of the Navarrese hills and the monumental majesty of the Castillian plains. The Galician scenery is smaller in scale, a monochromatic green. Yes there are Camino markers, chapels, shrines, crosses:

Mary

Cross, Ligonde

San Roque, who appeared to be getting more attention in Galacia than elsewhere

and, of course, the never ending stream of bridges.

None of these Camino campanions, however, came with the pedigree that the churches and towns of Castille and León provide. Yet the desire to include more information, more pictures grows in strength, likely fed by awareness that the opportunities to feed the blog are about to disappear.

Our attempt to take in the sights of Portomarín was frustrated once again by our choice of day: tourist attractions in Spain are closed on Mondays. A visit to the interior of the Templar church will remain on my "to do" list for the future.

Church of San Nicholas, Portomarín

As we climbed out of the town, however, on our way to Ligonde we encountered our first pilgrim on horseback. He would reach Santiago before us.

Encarnita, on Foot

Joseph, emerged from a farm house in the neighbourhood of Hospital de la Cruz, and informed us of the crash of the Air France flight from Brazil to Paris. That sad news led to a half hour conversation in which Joseph recounted his experience of isolation as a migrant worker in France, his return to take over the family farm when in his forties, his formation of a family, and his desire never to be far from his inventory of animals and equipment and to keep both feet firmly on the ground.

That evening our accommodation would not be located on the Camino. José had spent two years converting an old farm in nearby Monterosso into a beautiful casa rural: spacious rooms, antique furniture and good food.

Casa Rural, Monterosso

The purity of our Camino was not impaired as José met us on the Camino in Eirexe and returned us to the very same spot the next morning.

Foggy Morning, Eirexe

The Camino continues to be populated by people stories, not all of which hung together. Nearing Palas de Rei we met a German and his large black dog walking in the other direction. He had walked the Camino .... He was retracing his steps to meet his wife .... She had been injured on the Camino but was now completing it .... This routine of a couple proceeding in opposite directions, we were told, was completed daily .... No matter how hard we tried, we were unable to fit this gentleman's set of facts to a single, consistent story.

John and Louise were an American and Irish woman who took over our table at a sidewalk café in Palas de Rei where we had enjoyed a very taste snack of octopus. Louise, who had walked the Camino before, was introducing John to the experience. Encarnita, as was her wont, moved directly to the questions that interested her. Learning they were not married and did not have specific plans in that direction, she managed to invite herself to the wedding, whenever it took place, provided it was in Ireland, a country Encarnita always had wanted to see. The honeymoon, in part, would be in Toronto, at our home.

Chorus Line

Poppies

After another night in a well equipped casa rural near Laboreiro, energetically run by Puri, we moved on to Melide, where we said good-bye to Kike, the facilitator of John Anthony's surprise appearance.

A taxi ride back to Portomarín where he picked up his car had him back in Madrid by dinner-time.

Galician Countryside

That evening we reached Arzua. The reservation we had made by phone turned out to be the same pension Bill and I had stayed in five years before. There was Manuel, a familiar face, sitting in his chair on the sidewalk between two doors. One door gave access to the pension, private rooms with baths; the other to an albergue with dormitory accommodation. His recommended route to good food worked well.

O'Cebreiro to Portomarín

2009-07-13T19:37:00.000-07:00

Now we are three on the Camino--plus Ludwig, our new mascot.

Leaving O'Cebreiro

The first half of the walk to Triacastela follows the crest of the ridge, with alternating views into the valleys far below to the north and to the south. We crossed an asphalt road and were following a dirt track when a man came running up to us in the opposite direction. Hair dishevelled, panting and out of breath, he shouted at us to turn around and follow the road. The track would become intolerably steep, and our faces would be pressed into the dirt of the hill. It was not a climb to undertake. Ignoring him, we pushed on. At no point was the Camino ever that challenging. Yes, we did find a steep climb for a few hundred metres, but the track provided the appropriate zigzags to help us to the top, where there was a bar. As we rewarded ourselves with a beer, we wondered what could possibly have led to such a panicky reaction.

St. James on the Lookout

On the Way to Triacastela

On our way down to Triacastela we could see a major quarry on the other side of the valley. In the middle ages it had been a source of limestone which the pilgrims would carry to Santiago as a personal contribution to the building of the cathedral. We found our packs quite sufficient and we had no idea how the medieval pilgrim managed to carry a meaningful amount to his ultimate destination.

We debated which route we would follow from Triacastela to Sarria: the shorter, but higher San Gil path, or the longer, lower route that took the pilgrim through the monastery town of Samos. We opted for the latter, although eventually forged an even longer but thoroughly delightful itinerary which took us from Samos over to the San Gil path before reaching Sarria.

The Monastery at Samos

The monastery's existence goes back centuries and its role in the history of Spain is extensive. Its buildings, however, are of recent vintage as a result of serious fires. Only half the enormous library was saved.

Camino Village

Teresa and Encarnita

On the Camino six degrees of separation are more than needed. Most of the time only a couple are needed. Encarnita met Teresa from Zamora. Teresa lived in Oslo, Norway, and was friendly with the small Mexican community. She did not know John Anthony's sister-in-law Tanía, but I am certain she would within a few days of returning to her home.

Roadside Shrine

Sarria on a Saturday night is lively. The town sits on a hill that lies between two rivers that come together a short distance below the town. One of the rivers, Rio Sarria, parallels the main street and the promenade that follows its bank is lined with bars and restaurants. Across the river a wedding celebration underway. As Encarnita, Sara and I were enjoying dinner, the guests were between ceremony and reception and enjoying a stroll along the promenade. The dresses were lavish in colour, adornment and length. One could easily see the difficulties one has in satisfying the requirements of good taste in the shops of a relatively small city.

The walk from Sarria to Portomarín took us past farm field after farm field. Grain. Potatoes. Sometimes we were in the open, sometimes under the shelter of stately trees.

At Barbadelo we decided not to visit the farm where I had stayed five years before. Instead we visited with a neighbour of Carmen, an older gentleman who was tending to his cows. Or at least, who should have been tending to his cows, according to his wife who instructed him from a distance to get on with it.

Self-service Convenience Store for Twenty-first Century Pilgrims

On the Way to Portomarín

Only 100 kilometres more to go

Hórreo, or Raised Granary

At last one gains the view of Portomarín crowned by its Templar church on the other side of the Rio Miño, which at that point is dammed up to form a long, winding lake. The descent to the bridge across the lake is long, as is the climb up to the town on the far side. At this time of year the water level of the lake is high; by fall it will be down to a point where the foundations of homes that had to be abandoned when the dam was built can be seen.

Portomarín and the Church of San Nicolás

Our home for the night would be what is termed a Centro Turistico Rural, 800 metres outside town in the direction of the lake. A large stone building that had likely at one point been a combined home and barn, and now served as a lounge and restaurant drew us like a magnet. The main lodge with half a dozen bedrooms and separate cabins spread around the fields were all made of logs, North American in design. A few couples had pitched tents in the field. A variety of recreational activities were offered including horse back riding.

Centro Turistico Rural - Portomarín

My interest, however, was focused on my watch. The last surprise, surprise for Encarnita, was about to unfold. She knew that Kike, the son of a very good friend from her childhood in Granada was driving up from Madrid to join us for a few days on the Camino. The relationship goes back even further, as Kike's grandfather and Encarnita's father were best friends. What had been arranged, however, was a flight that would bring John Anthony from Mexico to Madrid. We had done our best to keep Encarnita unaware of this added touch.

Encarnita was suspicious about Kike's driving six hours to join us. There had to be more afoot than two days on the Camino. She remembered how John Anthony, with her help, had surprised me in Leon the first time I was on the Camino. A number of times during the past three weeks she had asked me if John Anthony would be joining us. I did the best I could to deflect the notion, but Encarnita intuitively was certain that at some point her son would appear. That intuitive foreknowledge, however, did not in any way diminish the embrace they gave each other when at midnight he appeared from Kike's car. Now we were four on the Camino, five for a few days.

Ponferrada to O'Cebreiro

2009-07-05T07:03:00.000-07:00

Four leisurely days took us through the Bierzo bowl, which lies at the westernmost end of the Castilla-Leon region, to the celtic village of O'Cebreiro, perched high up on the Galician frontier. As we walked one could not help smiling at the amusing linkage with Canada. A week before when we crossed over into the Leon half of this joint Castilla-Leon region, we saw the graffiti promoting an "Independent Leon". Now that we were leaving the western Bierzan end of Leon and entering Galicia, we saw different graffiti: "Bierzo belongs to Galicia". Separation forever.

While the first two days led us through vineyard after vineyard, once we reached Villafranca del Bierzo we were climbing up through a steadily narrowing valley, only partially in the hands of agriculture. Although the ascent was at times draining for both of us, I was spurred along by the surprise that was in store for Encarnita at O'Cebreiro. I was fully complicit in the arrangement and restrained myself accordingly.

Gillian walked with us from Ponferrada to Cacabelos and on to Trabadelo. Her comfortable pace differed from ours, and it was clear we should proceed independently and come together again once we were all in Santiago. The vineyards before and after Cacabelos were extensive, weaving their texture across the gently rolling landscape. My memory of the LCBO shelves told me that Ontario was not bringing into the province a fair share of these excellent wines. It took some searching in Cacabelos but I eventually located the delightful restaurant where John Anthony and I had dined on our last evening together on the Camino five years before.

The monuments at Villafranca del Bierzo had interesting stories to tell. A Pope centuries ago had given a special dispensation to the town's old romanesque church: if a pilgrim who had struggled to reach Santiago but whose health permitted him to go no farther presented himself at the church's north door, the Puerta del Perdón, he would be given the same relief he would have received had he made it all the way to Santiago. Provided, that is, that the pilgrim presented himself during a holy year, a year in which the day of Saint James falls on a Sunday.

The stolid looking castle had been restored and one wing had been occupied by Spain's pre-eminent contemporary composer of classical music, Ernesto Halffter: this piece of trivial information took Encarnita and me back to the years when we would attend with her father the International Festival of Music and Dance in Granada.

Leaving Villafranca we climbed 350 metres to the crest of the valley's north ridge which we followed for the next three hours before descending to Trabadelo. The deviation was well worth the effort, as the air was fresh and the views extensive, a far better route than walking beside the old highway as it worked its way up the valley. It did take some time, however, before Encarnita forgave me. Leaving Villafranca there was a sign pointing out both the highway route and the alternative which we followed. The sign indicated that the latter was "alta dificultad". When we reached the sign I positioned myself in such a way that Encarnita would not see the defining adjectives. I knew that however strenuous the alternative path might be, it would not present any climbing difficulties. Nevertheless, silence reigned for some time.

We decided to break the trip from Trabadelo to O'Cebreiro into two days, stopping overnight at Las Herrerias, where we were accommodated in a quaint but very appealing casa rural: wonderful view across the valley, excellent cuisine and airy rooms. When we arrived a banquet was in progress for a group of engineers, and Encarnita ended up being presented with a gift package containing goat's cheese and a jar of cooked red peppers.

The narrowing valley lent itself to all manner of military activity. The Castillo de Sarracín was in a prime location to control traffic up and down the valley.

The next day we undertook our climb, starting at 500 metres and finishing at 1400. At first we were climbing steeply through woods and half way up at La Faba we stopped for refreshments. The town still had no more than twenty inhabitants, including its massage parlour operated by resident hippies.

The day was sunny and we were in the open following a path edged by broome and heather. Even in this remote area Encarnita found people with whom to talk.

Her conversation with Francisco, a shepherd who was keeping a loose eye on his two cows, revealed that a Canadian company had operated a silver and zinc mine for many years in the valley, but closed and sealed it off a few years earlier. A permanent consequence was the migration of young local women to Canada as brides of Canadian mine workers.

Ahead we could see high above us the town of O'Cebreiro. Gradually the rate of ascent slowed as we neared this delightful village of stone houses and thatched roofs.

Its church commemorates a miracle: a sceptical priest was performing mass on a stormy winter day when struggling into the church came the sole communicant, a shepherd from the valley below. When the host at the mass proved to be real flesh and the wine blood, the site was venerated.

Communion Cup, O´Cebreiro

For Encarnita, however, the surprise at dinner was the miracle. The two of us were enjoying our meal in the dining room of the casa rural where we were staying. Encarnita's back was to the door, when someone coming in dropped off a small, stuffed animal on our table. The mascot was a beaver, bearing a Canadian flag. Encarnita could not figure out where it came from when she looked up to see our daughter Sara's face in the door. Sara had flown overnight from Toronto to Madrid, and immediately taken a bus to Ponferrada and a taxi to O'Cebreiro. She caught her mother one hundred percent by surprise. Encarnita was thinking that John Anthony might possibly make an appearance, but never Sara.

Astorga to Ponferrada

2009-07-03T10:34:00.000-07:00

Encarnita and I are now back home but intend to continue posting day by day, as if we were still walking. It will be our Camino but with a time delay.

We last left you as we were leaving Astorga, heading for the Bierzo region. Getting there took three days as the trail climbed the Montes de Leon to a height of 1500 metres, before dropping back down to Ponferrada. The route is marked by small villages, some with permanent populations of only twenty souls, others abandonned. The countryside is often empty and the hills are covered with broome and heather.

On the way up the pilgrim passes through the Maragateria, a region whose people were muleteers and traders, carrying goods between the ports of the north Atlantic coast and the middle of the country. Their traditional dress and elaborate jewellery may go back to the original Celtic peoples. Their traditional meal is curious, not for what it contains but in the sequence of its dishes. The meal begins with the heaviest course--a variety of boiled meats--and works its way through to the lightest plate--a soup. It is sufficiently heavy going that the restaurants serve it only at the midday meal. The village houses and passage ways display beautiful stone work. Great pride is taken by the people of the Maragateria, and the two figures that hammer out of the hours on the Astorga city hall clock are Maragatos.

Rabanal del Camino was a large Knights Templar settlement in the early middle ages. These knights were the police of the Camino, protecting the passing pilgrims against bandits and nobles who were well versed in the arts of extortion. Eventually the Templar order became suffienctly wealthy and powerful that they represented a challenge to established authority and were forced to disband as an order. In Rabanal a small community of monks is today attempting to establish itself. In the town's twelfth century church they perform mass in gregorian chant, but they are not numerous and their voices not strong.

Albergue at Rabanal del Camino

On the way into Rabanal a small memorial consisted of three e-mails hangs from a fence. The first message was from a young pilgrim thanking a hospitaler who had helped restore the pilgrim's mind and body, but asking if the hospitaler had resolved his own health problems. The second e-mail was a reply from the hospitaler informing the young pilgrim that when the season was over and he had returned home, the hospitaler had been diagnosed with advanced cancer of the stomach. The third e-mail, a response from the pilgrim, was an expression of pain and consolation, of frustration that he could do nothing for his new friend.

The tall, iron cross at Foncebadon on the top of Mont Irago is a landmark. Pilgims traditionally deposit at the foot of the cross stones they have brought with them from their places of origin. The stones represent their worries and problems, which are left behind with the stones. Encarnita brought two stones each, one for Spain and one for Canada.

By now we were well up into the mountains and the vistas were far and wide. The hillsides were aglow with purple heather and yellow broome.

At El Acebo we stayed in a beautifully restored stone house that had been converted into a bed and breakfast. The Spanish government provides financial help to those who will restore family property and put it back into productive use. We were quite glad to be staying there, not only because of the attractiveness of the accommodation, but also because we talked with an Australian couple who were walking the Camino with their fourteen month old baby and staying in the albergues. No matter how relaxed the baby looked during the day, it undoubtedly would spend some nights wailing.

Good sleep or interrupted sleep, the sunsets at this altitude were spectacular.

On the way down to Ponferrada in Riego de Ambros we encountered a cat that looked more like a lynx than a domestic animal: a big body, a long tail, and whiskers about both its ears and its paws. Very obviously more than house cats were to be found in its family tree. As we completed the final descent into Ponferrada we were welcomed by garden after garden resplendent with beautiful roses, huge blooms in many colours. Obviously the climate agreed.

Ponferrada, as the name indicates, was named for its iron bridge and was for its known its iron works in the Roman times. It too had experienced the presence of the Templar Knights, as was evident from the huge castle they left behind.

Templar Castle, Ponferrada

It was more the Inquisiton, however, that caught Encarnita's attention. After checking into our hotel we strolled about the town. Encarnita struck up conversation with a foursome, consisting of two couples, both local, one older and one younger. It soon became apparent that the younger male was being sized up by the senior female as a potential boyfriend for the younger woman. As the interview proceeded, Encarnita found herself caught right in the middle. The older male and I enjoyed the dynamics as Encarnita sought to extricate herself.

The Inquisition in Progress

The next morning our neighbour and fellow pilgrim, Gillian Stoker-Lavelle, caught up with us and would walk with us for the following two days. She had started a week earlier than we did, but three hundred kilometres back of us in France. A couple of days later she would leave us and forge ahead, to reach Santiago three days before us. Obviously our paces differed.

Hospital del Orbigo - Sueur de Quiñones

2009-06-20T04:07:00.000-07:00

In an earlier posting we made reference to the challenge given to Spanish chivalry by a knight who was steadfastly refused by the object of his amorous intentions. On the river´s edge where for a monthy jousting contests were held, just beside the bridge across the river, reenactments take place each summer. This photograph portrays the scene.

Astorga

2009-06-15T09:38:00.000-07:00

On the way to Astorga we stopped at San Justo de la Vega, the first town on the downslope from the meseta that separates Hospital del Orbigo from Astorga. The town is not particularlhy interesting, although I would not share that opinion with its residents, but it does contain a cast iron water fountain.

In 1992, the year our son John Anthony worked at the World´s Fair, Expo ´92, in Seville, the year in which he met his future wife Li, a picture was taken of the two of them drinking from a fountain. That picture became the cover to the invitation to their wedding in Mexico several years later. In 1993, when Bill Hunter, JA and I walked the Camino, we saw an identical fountain in San Justo. We intended to talk a photograph of it for Li, but lunch and a memory lapse intervened. Encarnita and I corrected that omission this time round.

John Anthony and Li, these photographs are for you both.

Astorga was an important cross-roads in Roman times, moving produce, materials and troops north-south and east-west. Later it gained importance as the point where the Via de Plata, the route for pilgrims on their way to Santiago from the south of Spain, join the French Road that brought pilgrims from across the Pyrenees. Its roman walls are immense, its cathedral high, and its episcopal palace designed by the Catalan architect Gaudi.

For us, however, the Camino is as much about people today as it is about structures they leave behind. People who are following the Camino as pilgrims, and people whose lives are conducted in the shadow of the Camino. On the way to Astorga we encountered a sport where pilgrims were leaving messages on flat stones for fellow pilgrims they expected to come along behind them. Encarnita penned one for Gillian who at that point we knew was still a few days back of us. We meant to alert her to look for it, but didn´t.

Nevermind, when she reached this point she stopped to see what people were saying, and found our message to her. The Camino is full of coincidences.

Lorenzo is a good example of why the Camino is people. Encarnita and I had a quiet dinner at a small restaurant in Astorga, El Caprichio, a family operation. Lorenzo was the front end of the restaurant, while his wife Begonia was in the kitchen cooking. As we sat there, enjoying an excellent eleven euro "pilgrims menu" with a half litre of excellent Bierzo wine, we watched the daily life of this city go by.

At a corner table were two young male pilgrims doing their best to pick up a young female pilgrim. Encarnita and I were betting on the outcome.

A local resident stuck his nose in the door as he walked by. Invited in by Lorenzo he indicated he still had one errand to run, but did give his order. When he came by twenty minutes later, dinner was on the table for him.

At another table Lorenzo´s son and teen-age daughter were having supper. If you have a restaurant, where else is the family going to eat?

Suddenly there is a minor commotion. Two Frenchmen are treated as conquering heroes as they enter the restaurant. They were known to Lorenzo, having walked the French route across the north to Astorga, before departing by mechanized transport for Merida several hundred kilometres to the osuth. From Merida they had walked north following the Camino de Plata, and were now back in Astorga. Lorenzo remembered them, and treated them royally.

When we left Astorga the next day, Encarnita and I stopped by the restaurant to say goodby. We were offered coffee before we all embraced and said our farewells.

The Blog is Reactivated

2009-06-15T09:25:00.000-07:00

We last posted to the blog three weeks ago. We wanted to continue to keep everyone current with respect to our Camino, but arranging for access to the internet and free time to coincide was very difficult. After walking for seven or eight hours and looking for a place to put our heads down for the night, and to locate an understanding taverner who would provide a few tankards of beer, there was neither daylight nor energy left over. Besides, a few days after our last entry, Encarnita encountered a major, major surprise on the Camino, a surprise that kept us both busy. But more about that later.

We did finish the Camino, arriving in Santiago on Saturday, June 6th, in time for the noon pilgrims mass. It was a moving moment, marked by the realization that eight weeks constant walking had come to an end. It was also an occasion when the world´s largest incense burner (botafumeiro) was in full swing, effacing the odours rising from the bodies of the many pilgrims in attendance.

Now that we are in the south, basking under a 37 degree sun, it is my intention to reactivate the blog, posting every few days entries drawn from our very vivid memories of the Camino. They will be posted in chronological sequence with pictures added when I have more sophisticated access to the internet. For those of you who continue to check in to the blog, you will follow our trip as we walked it to its destination, but with a short time delay.

2009-05-21T10:31:00.000-07:00

I have eight minutes on the machine and will start an entry, to be finished tomorrow with pictures.

The walk from Hospital de Orbigo to Astorga is not long. After going through two small but prosperous farm villages, one climbs onto the meseta, the Altos, where the fields are wide and long and there is no habitation. Finally one comes to the Cross of Turibio, the location on the western edge of the plateau where one first sees Astorga and its cathedral.

Arriving in Astorga at the end of days walk, there is nothing more enjoyable than imbibing a beer in the square while waiting for the noble figures, one on each side of the bell suspended over the Ayuntamiento, hammer the strokes of the hour. The Episcopal Palace was designed by Gaudi whose capacity for creating interesting spaces inside a building was unsurpassed. One almost wishes that the contents of the museum inside were removed so one could enjoy the palace as Gaudi created it. Next door is the cathedral, again under continuous renovation. Its high, high arches always take one´s breath away.

León to Hospital de Órbigo

2009-05-19T06:59:00.001-07:00

Yesterday and today we have been walking along beside Highway N120 which connects Leon with Astorga. We were always on a path dedicated to the pilgrims, but most of the time too close to the highway to be pleasant. Tonight we are in Hospital de Órbigo, and tomorrow will leave the highway far away to one side.

Just beyond the outskirts of Leon we stopped at the Santuario of the Virgen of the Camino, the patron of León. The baroque statue of the Virgen inside the sanctuary belongs to the middle ages, but the building and its neo-gothic apostles on the facade are only fifty years old. We were fortunate to arrive while mass was being performed. Wandering about the interior we were startled to find a chapel dedicated to the Virgen of Guadalupe, the patron of Mexico. We chatted with the Arturo, the resident priest, who had studied in Encarnita's home city of Granada and learned that a very important benefactor for the sanctuary for many years had been a family from Mexico.

Altar, Virgen del Camino

Facade, Virgen del Camino

Apostles, Virgen del Camino

In San Martin we stopped for a snack in a delightful albergue, Albergue Santana. Whereas the standard albergue provides only dormitory style accommodation in rooms that hold 30 or 40 pilgrims, Benito, the owner, had concluded there were many pilgrims like us. His establishment provides a number of rooms with two beds, some with a double bed, and a private bathroom and shower. The entire facility was very modern and well equipped.

The long romanesque bridge at Hospital de Orbigo has a story to tell. Well back in the middle ages, an important noble, Seur de Quiñones, was a prisoner of love. The lady who was the target of his affection continued to resist his suit. To break free, Quiñones and his eight knights challenged any and all to combat with lances. Challengers came from all over Spain and from other countries. For a week, on the field that lies at the foot of the bridge, knights engaged in jousting and several hundred combat engagements took place. When score was taken at the end of the week, and all this was recorded by a notary of the time, one knight from Navarre had been killed. The very definite edge Quiñones and his supporters had in the outcomes enabled Quiñones to feel freed from his prison of love. He then went to Santiago de Compostela and gave to the cathedral the bracelet he had wanted to present to his lady. To this day, the bracelet forms part of the high altar.

2009-05-18T08:49:00.001-07:00

Leon is a jewel of a city.

I learn more about the Basilica of San Isidoro each time I visit it. It is not just the frescoes. It has been central to the history of Leon and of Spain for many centuries. Its library houses a series of tenth and twelfth century Bibles, the earliest in visigothic script, produced by the mozarabes, Christians living under the tolerant hand of the Moorish rulers.

One goes back and back again to the cathedral, to catch the play of the changing light through the stained glass windows. The vaults of its ceilings reach up to extraordinary heights.

Encarnita went to mass a second time on Sunday. She had not realized that the large church that forms part of the Hostal had a Sunday afternoon service.

Hostal San Marcos

Today, Monday, we had to leave. Sending ahead by post some literature we had collected en route in an effort to keep the weight in our packs down, and recharging our cell phone at an ATM, we left Leon. Exiting the city is a drearier process than I remembered. When Bill and I did the Camino it was fall, and we were most days underway an hour before it became light. Perhaps that is why my memory is not so jaded.

We followed close to the highway that connects Leon with Astorga, until we reached the town of Villadongas de Paramo, where we are now. The weather has been most favourable: sunny blue sky with some clouds, little wind and a coolish temperature. Great for walking.

Tomorrow we will go to Hospital de Orbigo, site of a wonderful story from the days of knights and chivalry. The day after we will be in Astorga.

2009-05-16T23:50:00.001-07:00

From Burgo Ranero we had another day´s walk across the Tierra de Campos (equivalent to the "prairies") to Mansilla de las Mulas. We took advantage of the late afternoon to have a taxi drive us out to the church of San Miguel de la Escalada. It was built in the eleventh or twelfth century immediately after the Christian king retook the territory from the Moors. The local people were quickly converted back to Christianity, but their artisans and workmen knew only moorish construction designs and techniques. As a result the church is completely moorish in style, horseshoe arches and all.

Today we left the plains and arrived in the city of Leon. This cathedral always exerts a greater presence in reality than it does in one´s memory. The stained glass high in the vaults of this masterpiece of gothic architecture is breathtaking. I couldn´t wait for tomorrow, and returned to the cathedral as soon as we had checked in to the Hostal San Marcos.

Tomorrow morning we will visit the romanesque Basilica of San Isidoro with its very old but well preserved frescoes. Tonight and tomorrow night we stay in the Hostal of San Marcos, one of the "must see" visits for any tourist in this region. Its entry facade, its lobbies and layout, its cloister and church are memorable. The meal in its dining room was exquisite. A definite high-light for the pilgrim.

2009-05-14T22:55:00.000-07:00

Yesterday our grand-daughter, Gabriela, was confirmed into our faith.
Congratulations!!

And, coming up is the birthday of our grandson, Nicholas.
Four years old on Tuesday.
Happy, happy birthday, Nicholas.

FROM YOUR ABUELITA AND ABUELITO.

2009-05-14T07:32:00.000-07:00

Today we walked 17 kilometres from Sahagun to Burgo Ranera, a small farming town. Tomorrow we walk the same distance to Mansilla de las Mulas, a somewhat larger farming town. All very much in a straight line. Today there was only one town between breakfast and supper; tomorrow there will be another, somewhere between lunch and tea time.

The path unfolds in a white gravel straight line mile after mile all the way to the distant horizon. Immediately on our left is a neverending row of plane trees; on the other side of the plane trees, vast ploughed fields of red earth alternating with light green fields of young oats. Underneath our path is an extensive irrigation system that can be tapped into for the benefit of the crops.

On our right, on the other side of the grass, is an asphalt road, so narrow and so little used it has not even been deemed worthy of having kilometre markers installed. A half mile farther over is the new auto-route; two miles the other side of that is the alternate route, the Roman Trajan route that runs in parallel to our path for 25 kilometres or so from Sahagun until they rejoin at Reliegos.

The weather was a mixture of blue sky and sun, and scudding white clouds. We were walking into a strong westerly wind, and the temperature was chilly. Hour after hour of the same.

It is on this stretch through Castille, from Burgos to Leon, with its enormous lack of variety that makes one wonder why one has decided to walk the whole way? But on Saturday, the day after tomorrow we will be in Leon. And on Sunday we will have the opportunity of enjoying the exquisite stained glass windows of the city´s gothic cathedral, and the frescoes of its romanesque Basilica of San Isidoro. One can revive and relive the sense of anticipation that the medieval pilgrims, traveling under much more difficult conditions, must have had as their journey took them to the west.

2009-05-13T09:41:00.000-07:00

Today we walked a short distance from San Nicolas del Real Camino to the old city of Sahagun with its distinctive architecture. Control of this part of the peninsula shifted back and forth between the Christians and the Moors. When King Alfonso VI and the Christians took over in the eleventh century, they offered the moors the right to continue living there if they converted to Christianity. Those who converted were called "mudejars". Naturally Alfonso wanted churches erected. The only artisans available, however, were skilled in building according to the Moorish tradition. As a result the early churches are all built of thin red flat bricks, and display the typical Moorish arches.

Tonight is the big football game: Barcelona versus Valencia for the Copa del Rey. Game starts at 10:00 pm.

2009-05-11T09:28:00.001-07:00

The marker on the other side of the road marks the halfway point from St. Jean Pied de Port to Santiago de Compostela. 400 kilometres away in each direction.

Last night Encarnita and I were now situated in Calzadillas de la Cueza, a small village on the plains of Palencia, la Tierra de los Campos. We followed a straight road for 17 kilometres that was devoid of towns and houses. The occasional farm building and irrigation equipment beside the track was all that revealed the human touch.

Yesterday we reached our destination just before the rains came. Today the weather held, and we had a beautiful walk along back farm roads. The land is slightly more undulating than it was yesterday, and the wheat is further along in its annual progress. Away off to the north we can see the line of the Cantabrian Mountains, which we will meet later in our journey.

Tonight we have the only private room in a small albergue with a beautiful patio and, the young woman who runs it promises me, has an excellent kitchen.

2009-05-11T07:32:00.000-07:00

It is now Monday, the 11th of May and we have just arrived in Calzadilla de la Cueza, having walked across broad, flat plains for the last 16 kilometres.

We are finding access to the internet to be infrequent, and very difficult to upload photographs, of which we are taking plenty.

Hermitage of San Nicolas

Our longest walk took place a couple of days back when we left Castrojeriz. Vast fields with this years crop just starting. Coincidences always occuring. The waiter in a restaurant Bill Hunter and I had eaten in six years before immediately identified me as Canadian; he still has a relationship with the young Canadian woman he was interested in the first time we met him. Bouncing into the restaurant came Alejandro Sandoval, whom I would call the ambassador-at-large for Itero de la Vega. We had met him six years before when he was sitting on the edge of a field way out in the country, making a census of pilgrims: 2 Canadians, 1 Belgian, 3 Spaniards, and so on. This time he entered the room in a merry mood, danced with the youngest woman he could find, and picked up the conversation with us.

Bridge over Rio Pisuerga, that serves as the boundary between Burgos and Palencia.

Fromista, 25 kilometers after Castrojeriz (all in one day), has two beautiful churches, a romanesque basilica whose lines are perfect, and a tall gothic structure. Then we were on to Villalcazar de Sirga, with its enormous church, testimony to richer times in the past.

2009-05-07T13:26:00.000-07:00

Encarnita and I are now back on the Camino. We had a boisterous dinner with friends in Madrid. Bus next day to Burgos. Sightseeing two marvellous monasteries: Cartuja de Miraflores and the Royal Monastery of Las Huelgas. Then on to the Camino Frances in the direction of Leon and Santiago. Two easy days from one camino town to another, before a longer day of 18 kilometers to Castrojeriz. The unending fields stretching out with their spring crops only recently emerging from the soil. Birds and bird songs all day long. The bluest sky you could imagine.

If I am lucky I will be able to post two pictures of the typical towns. A long single street with a row of houses on each side, fields behind. The heart we found today, a creation of Brian, the reikai master whom we met last year.

2009-05-02T12:49:00.000-07:00

Here we are, rushing about in the second half of Saturday afternoon, preparing to leave this evening for Madrid and Burgos to begin the second stage of our Camino. Last year we finished in Burgos, El Cid's cathedral city; Tuesday we will set out on foot to the west: Castrojeriz, Leon, O'Cebreiro and finally Santiago.
Organizing for a two month absence leads to a frenzy of activity, including many details that one would normally put off for tomorrow, and the tomorrow after that. We are both looking forward to a gin and tonic on the plane, contemplating the peacefulness that comes with knowing that all we have to do during the day is walk fifteen or twenty kilometres, find a place to stay, and enjoy a meal. Cannot wait.

Preparing to Return to the Camino

2009-04-05T19:55:00.000-07:00

Here we are again. Encarnita and I will be traveling to Burgos, Spain at the start of May to pick up where we left off last year on the Camino de Santiago. You will remember we had walked 350 kilometres after crossing the Pyrenees from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port on the French side as far as Burgos in the north of Spain before the change in Maria Luisa's condition brought us back to Toronto.

Many things happened during this past summer and the winter now drawing to a close. Our family has been adjusting to the loss of Maria Luisa. Frank and Gina, who accompanied us on the Camino, were married in November. John Anthony and Li have been up to Toronto several times, and Sara decided not to take up a position teaching in Spain in order to be with the family.

The Camino, however, never completely departed our minds. Encarnita and I knew we would return to finish the remaining 450 kilometres. Last October we went on a backpacking trip with Sara, John Anthony and his brother-in-law Beau on the Ganaraska Trail, a wilderness area north of the Kawartha Lakes. We wanted to see the autumn beauty of the Canadian shield and to keep ourselves in condition for the Camino. The pictures displayed in this blog were taken on this three day excursion.

This spring Encarnita and I have been walking as much as we can in the ravine systems of Toronto. Today, for example, we walked from the Edward's Gardens at Lawrence and Leslie down to the Distillery District on Toronto's lake front following the Don River, a distance in the neighbourhood of 17 kilometres.

On May 2nd we leave Toronto and should be walking west from Burgos by the afternoon of May 4th. Our path will take us across the Spanish meseta to Leon, and from there into Galicia and finally to the cathedral city of Santiago de Compostela. Our goal is its beautiful baroque cathedral, about the fifth church structure to have been erected on that site over the tomb of Saint James.

I estimate we will arrive in Santiago on June 6th. After a day or two in the city, we hope to continue west for four days, walking of course, to Cabo Finisterre (Lands End), to watch the setting sun with a drink in hand, resting in the salon of the lighthouse that has been converted to a hotel.

Our goal, however, is always the cathedral in Santiago, and we will do our best to keep this blog active with photographs and comments from what will be a wonderful voyage.

John

Stage Three - Castilla-Leon - Part 2

2008-06-07T09:53:00.001-07:00

San Juan de Ortega built road and bridges, as did his mentor Santo Domingo de la Calzado. Evidently never very popular with the ecclesiastical hierarchy, he finished his days in a hermitage which is now named after him. This beautiful Romanesque sepulchre is his final resting place. The church is famous for the way in which the last rays of the sun at sunset on the two equinoxes each year illuminate a single stone capital that tells the full story of the annunciation and birth of Christ.

After a couple of tries, Encarnita decided that in general she preferred private accommodation to group sleep in a community hostal. We will discuss this issue further before we set off on next year’s journey. She was heard to comment that she thought this one in the town of Agés was tolerable. It helped that the lady in charge came from the Andalucian town of Tarifa, where Encarnita’s grandfather had been borne, and recognized his name.

On top of Matagrande (literally translated as “big killer”) we encountered a shepherd who was picking up several lambs that had been borne that evening. He was also encouraging the formation of a series of concentric circles by having each pilgrim who passed add a stone or two. I cannot image what theories archeologists ten centuries from now might ascribe to this uncommon ruin.

At this point our pilgrimage for 2008 closes. We reached Burgos, having walked around the airport and along the five kilometres of industrial activity that mark the eastern end of this beautiful city. As planned we rented a car to leave the Camino and drive fifty kilometres south to the medieval town of Santo Domingo de Silos, where the monks still perform the church rites to the sound of Gregorian chant. Our hotel was a small renaissance palace. The monastery is famous for, in addition to its music, an exquisite cloister whose colonnade is topped by detailed and varied capitals.

After an evening in Santo Domingo and a visit to Covarrubias, we returned to Burgos. Instead of continuing our pilgrimage as planned, however, we decided to end it for this year. Encarnita had a bad cold and the weather forecasts promised continuing rain and cold. We would pick up the Camino next year at Burgos, rather than at Sahagún, as originally planned.

Stage Three - Castilla-Leon - Part 1

2008-06-07T09:36:00.000-07:00

The autonomous region of Castilla-Leon took a forceful approach to keeping pilgrims informed as to where they were and what they could expect. This one marked the border between La Rioja, which were exiting, and Castilla-Leon, where we would be until we reached the far side of Leon, sometime next year.

The Rio Reláchigo, flowing between Redecilla del Camino and Castildelgado, must never become grand enough to merit a full size bridge. With all the rain that had falled and would fall for the next week, I wonder if the pilgrims coming in ten days time would have as easy a time crossing?

Belorado is a town whose history goes well back before the pilgrims came. An important urbanization before the time of Christ, the axis of the town runs north to south, following the Roman road, as opposed to the typical east-west orientation of a town on the Camino. Entering Belorado one cames to the Church of Santa Maria. While the building itself seemed to be in some state of disrepair, the storks found it to be comfortable.

Encarnita found a gathering of small stones. There were enough to make a medium sized heart, but there appeared to be no order to them. Had Bryan been there and left his trademark, which had subsequently been disturbed? Whether creating or rearranging, Encarnita left them in order.

Stage Two - La Rioja - Part 4

2008-06-07T09:28:00.000-07:00

As we neared the western extremities of La Rioja, the landscape became flatter and vines gave way to wheat. Our path stretched far out ahead, and we settled into a rhythm. Knowing that we had another hour to walk before the landscape would change, we turned inward into our thoughts, outward to enjoy the flowers, the sounds of the birds, the undulations of the fields.

Santo Domingo de la Calzada was responsible for preparing roads, raising bridges and building hospitals for the pilgrims. The cathedral named after him rises up high and can be seen for some time as one walks toward the town. If you are interested, you should ask me why it has been the cathedral’s tradition to keep two live roosters in a cage high in the church to one side of the main alter. And it is not to wake up the parishioners.

It was Corpus Christi the day after we reached Santo Domingo. In advance of taking the host out of the cathedral and carrying it about the streets of the old town, the residents lay a floral carpet over which the procession will pass. It didn’t take long for Encarnita to enter into the spirit of the morning. Soon she was giving detailed instructions to the townspeople as to how the carpet could best be arranged.

This thirteen century baptismal font in the Church of the Virgen of the Street is carved from a single block of stone.

Stage Two - La Rioja - Part 3

2008-06-07T09:23:00.000-07:00

Poppies are for Encarnita. She wanted one captured up close, so her paintings would be true to life.

San Millán de Cogolla is recognized as the birthplace of the castillian language. The very first written evidence of the romance language that was evolving from Latin through the Visigoths is to be found in the margins of books written in Latin located in this monastery. Latin text with marginal notes written in the language spoken in the middle ages.

While there remains a cadre of monks in the monastery, a major section has been converted into a high quality hotel, with décor drawn from centuries back and offering an excellent dining room. Encarnita requested a plate of “Iberian ham”. It was almost more than she could handle.

Stage Two - La Rioja - Part 2

2008-06-07T09:10:00.001-07:00

From Sotés we followed rural roads northwest in the direction of Nájera. Very quickly we rejoined the Camino at the town of Ventosa. The small restaurant, Meson San Anton, run with love and taste by a young woman from Logroño whose husband worked in the city, so appealed to Encarnita that we decided to have lunch, even though we had scarcely finished breakfast. Encarnita was finding the Camino a rewarding experience: she could eat as much as she wanted and still lose weight.

The Monastery of Santa María la Real in Nájera is one of the architectural highlights on this stretch of the Camino. The monastery, founded by King Garcia IV around the eleventh century, when he and his hunting falcon stumbled on a cave that contained an image of the Virgin illuminated by a lamp, has been handed down over the centuries from one monastic order to another. Its two story cloister with the lace-like stonework encased in the arches is a marvel, and the detail of the Romanesque stone carvings a cheerful delight. While the church today may be challenged to find sufficient numbers of monks and nuns to staff its facilities, there appears to be no shortage of storks.

Shortly after Nájera we again detoured to the south, to visit the convent at Cañas and the monastery at San Millán de Cogolla. The Cañas convent rises up in the middle of a plain that stretches out in every direction. Again the stonework is delicate beyond belief, but it is the tomb of Doña Urraca in the chapter house that catches one’s attention. Doña Urraca, daughter of the convent’s founding family, was its first abbess. It is fitting that she have this beautiful stone sepulchre, carried on the shoulders of a procession of nuns, nobles and saints. It is also in keeping with the Romanesque sense of humour that the last nun in the procession be caught flirting with a monk.

We continued to find agreeable places to spend the night. This single star hostal had recently finished rooms in pinewood and offered a good kitchen. The fourth glass belongs to me, the picture-taker.

Stage Two - La Rioja - Part 1

2008-06-07T09:02:00.001-07:00

Logroño, capital of the autonomous community of La Rioja, has always served as an important station on the pilgrims route to Santiago de Compostela. Outside the Church of Santiago is the Pilgrims Fountain, from which those heading to Santiago have drunk for centuries. Shortly after this picture was taken we passed through the gate in the old city walls and were on our way to Burgos, the next major stop.

We had become used to the grandiose, gilded retablos standing over church alters. At the Church of Asunción in Navarrete the single retablo covering all three naves took our breath away. The baroque detail was magnificent and I felt we had to have the image of San Roque, the patron saint of the pilgrim, accompany us as we proceeded.

On the way to Nájera we engaged in a small detour that took us a couple of kilometres south of today’s Camino to Sotés. Our reason: a casa rural that appeared very attractive on the internet. Upon arrival we found the climb worthwhile: we would be staying in a renaissance palace with rooms decorated to fit a time long before our century.

Stage One - Reprise of Pamplona to Logroño - Part 3

2008-06-06T10:34:00.001-07:00

Encarnita found yet another heart along the way. These heart-shaped configurations of small stones, often surrounding a flower or piece of ribbon, were the handiwork of Brian, the reikei healer I mentioned in an earlier posting. He was obviously ahead of us, as we were reminded every time we encountered another of his stone hearts.

Another Camino marker. Did the boot signal a disheartened pilgrim who abandoned the route, or did it indicate nothing more than a change in footgear?

The octagonal chapel at Torres del Rio was not the first one we had encountered. The conversation with the photographer at Eunate was recorded in our journal of Camino moments; at Torres it was the a capella singing. The photographer at Eunate was testing out the lighting effects of the chapel as he was scheduled to record the wedding of a cousin. This cousin had met his fiancée on the Camino. The singers were part of a small choir from a northern city and offered an Ave Maria, followed by a renaissance piece when requested by Encarnita.

The entry into Logroño passes over a hill that was once the site of Celtic community. Before one can see modern day Logroño, however, one comes to the stand of Felisia. For fifty years Felisia offered beverages to passing pilgrims. She even had her own stamp for the pilgrims passports. When she died six years ago, her daughters took over the responsibility. They had no difficulty knowing when pilgrims were passing by, as each one was announced by their dogs.

Logroño has interesting churches as well as excellent wine. At the Church of Santiago, where we attended the pilgrims mass, Saint James the Moorslayer was in full fight over the portal, encouraging us on our way.

Stage One - Reprise of Pamplona to Logroño - Part 2

2008-06-06T10:20:00.000-07:00

Are Roland and Ferragut legend or history? Fiction or fact? Did the brave Christian knight, strong supporter of Charlemagne, fight and defeat the Moorish giant? This capital, forming part of the Palace of the Kings of Navarre records the struggle, but doesn’t answer the question.

Irache provides two important stopping points on the Camino. A monastery whose dwindling monastic population will soon be replaced by the staff and guests of a parador, and the twin fountains offered by the bodega to pilgrims, one dispensing water, the other other wine.

Encarnita soon found herself comfortable identifying the trail markings and leading the way. Whenever there was doubt, a clear sign would appear.

Arcos had its own version of the Running of the Bulls on the day we arrived. It would appear that the bulls were victorious over the timid town inhabitants this Saturday evening.

No matter how big or how small the church, decorations were grandiose and rich. The retablo at Arcos was no exception, and the sculpture of Santa Maria de los Arcos was typical of the exquisite detail to be found within these enormous baroque alters. Arcos was an important town on the pilgrims route, a centre for financial transactions, toll collection and currency exchange. Perhaps these endeavours funded the church?

Stage One - Reprise of Pamplona to Logroño - Part 1

2008-06-06T10:06:00.000-07:00

Digital cameras lead to an enormous, growing volume of pictures. Fortunately they all come in sequence and going through them enables one to replay each day on the Camino, one after the other.

On Tuesday morning, May 13th we set out from Cizur Menor, just to the west of Pamplona. Our objective for the day was to climb the Cuesta del Perdon (the Hill of Forgiveness) and descend on the far side to Puente Reina. At the crest we could see for a distance of at least two days walk both to the east and to the west. We were also able to rest in the company of steel pilgrims, who were going our way.

The next day at Puente Reina we were given a personal tour of the Church of Santiago el Mayor by a young priest, who had just finished lecturing a group of thoroughly disinterested young Spanish teenagers who were on a school tour of the town. Javier Resano, our guide, took us through the church, through its treasury and into the cloister where few people ventured. A vessel worked in Mexican silver in the sixteenth century and presented to the church by one of the returning Conquistadores was the pride of the collection.

In Mañeru the auroros were at work. This tradition welcomes the day of San Isidore of the Labradores (labradores are workers in the fields) by having groups of workers singing in different quarters of the town.

I may already have posted the picture of this Roman bridge. On the Camino we were walking over the remains of several civilizations, not just the memories of Christian pilgrims. Arab, Jewish, Visigoth, Roman, Celt. We approached this bridge along a road whose stones were laid down by the Romans, who had also built the bridge.

The joys of the Camino include the many church cloisters encountered by the pilgrim. In Estella this small oasis, sheltered by the monumental Church of San Pedro de la Rua, insulated one from the bustle of the town and the demands of the Camino.

June 4 - The Blog Continues

2008-06-04T11:14:00.000-07:00

Encarnita and I have finished walking the Camino for this year. We will be back next spring to complete it.

This year´s Camino, however, is not finished. We went (by bus) from Burgos to Madrid where we spent a day visiting friends. Then we went to Granada (by car) where I caught up with my laptop and adequate software. I know have proper access to my photos and can reduce them to a manageable size. I also have better access to the internet.

Over the next few days, therefore, I will be posting pictures from the Camino along with commentary. The fact that we are not walking will likely release energy for more incisive commentary.

Don´t stop watching.

John

May 31st - End of the First Stage

2008-05-31T11:12:00.000-07:00

We will bring to a close here in Burgos the first half of our Camino journey. A little sooner than we had planned, we decided not to continue on to Sahagun this year for several reasons. The fourth member of our group, Gina, had to return to Toronto for an earlier commitment and left the Camino two days earlier at Villafranca - Montes de Oca. She wants to complete the Camino and will join us next year. If Frank, Encarnita and I stop now, Gina will have only a short distance to walk next spring before she catches up with us, and we continue on as a group.

Encarnita has also come down with a cold and the enjoyment is taken out of the Camino when one has to proceed under the weather, especially when the days have been as cool and damp as they have been for the last two weeks and promise to continue to be.

We will head south in the morning, stop off in Madrid for a day and visit with friends, one of whom was about to join us for the next week. Pepe, in Madrid, is likely breathing a sigh of relief, but we will encourage him and his training for next year.

We took full advantage of Burgos to explore some of the city´s many monumental landmarks. I had forgotten how rich the gothic cathedral is. Frank and I also paid our respects to the Monastery of Las Huelgas, whose abbess was so powerful that she could negotiate directly with the Pope, and the Cistercian church of Miraflores, with its highly detailed marble sarcophagus for the King and Queen who produced Isabel the Catholic, the queen who financed Columbus.

While we are ending the walking, I will take advantage of the time in the south to find some software that will enable me to enter pictures more quickly on the blog, and with a time delay bring you pictorially up to date.

John

Pamplona to Logroño - 2

2008-05-30T16:08:00.000-07:00

The bridge at Puente Reina (The Queen´s Bridge presents a lovely image as one leaves the town. Pilgrims have crossed it for centuries.

Indeed, in the early years of the Camino the path and bridges did not exist. It was the work of men like Santo Domingo de la Calzada and San Juan de Ortega who recognized the plight of the early pilgrims, and began to create the paths and build the bridges across the rivers that we use today.

While the walking can be tiring, our pace is not so severe that it prevents one from smelling the roses.

Photos: Pamplona to Logroño - 1

2008-05-30T15:26:00.000-07:00

On the Camino one thing you can count on is a steady stream of churches. This church at Cizur Menor was decommissioned some time ago, the surviving active one is just as attractive.

May 30th - We are in Burgos

2008-05-30T10:49:00.001-07:00

We spent last evening and this morning in a favourite place - Santo Domingo de Silos. It is a functioning monastery in a small town south of Burgos. Our hotel is a small Renaissance palace, and the monks conduct vespers and mass to the strains of gregorian chant. The picture on the left is the monastery´s cloister. The upper level is supported by unusual double columns and each of the capitals tells a story of its own.

This posting is also meant to serve as a test. I think I may have found computer equipment and software that will let me post pictures. The equipment is, however, located in a room with lots of lights in the ceiling, but no light switch. I almost had to dismantle the computer equipment to find a USB port. But that´s life. We will see if I can add more this evening or tomorrow.

John

May 28th - Atapuerca

2008-05-28T04:50:00.000-07:00

We are making our way through the eastern stretches of Castilla la Vieja to Burgos. We stayed in two very well equipped casas rurales, one in Villafranca - Montes de Oca, the other in San Juan de Ortega. The latter was opened only a few weeks ago.

We have now left the valley of the Ebro and the rioja wine country behind. The rivers now will run to the west and to the Duero (Douro in Portugal). We were saddened to learn that the priest who so generously provided hospitality to the pilgrims coming through had died a few months ago. The owner of the casa rural in San Juan is filled with enthusiasm and soon may replace him.

We stopped in Ages for breakfast this morning. The lady who operated the albergue came from Tarifa, and when Encarnita said her grandfather came from Tarifa and his name was Seco de Lucena, the lady immediately recognized it. Her cousin is the town historian and we will be in contact.

At this moment I am enjoying the free internet facility provided by the presentation centre at Atapuerca. Atapuerca is one of Europe´s major archeological sites. It was in the newspapers around the world a month or two ago, when convincing proof emerged that they had found the remains of the common ancestor to Neanderthal man and homo sapiens.

We will be in Burgos tomorrow afternoon and will take a detour for one day to Santo Domingo de Silos where we will listen to the monks in the monastery perform services to the tune of gregorian chant.

John

May 25th - Castilla la Vieja

2008-05-25T13:30:00.000-07:00

Still having trouble inserting photographs into this site. As a result I will rely entirely on words.

Today we participated in Corpus Christi in Santo Domingo de la Calzado. We then walked across the farm lands laden with wheat, potatoes and peas, as we headed into Castille. Tonight we are in a hostal beside the highway. Tomorrow we have 22 kilometres to do before we rest.

The weather has been wet. Not continuous rain, but enough dampness to cause people to worry about mildew on the vines. We will try absorb enough good wine memories from previous vintages to soften any sadness over a poor 2008.

Enough for now.

John

May 23rd - Even More Pictures

2008-05-23T15:01:00.000-07:00

The marvel of the Camino is the landscape. Through Navarre we were working our way through a green landscape: wheat starting out, grape vines and grape vines destined to produce wine, fine woods. A green landscape on the foundation of a red soil.

On the way from Torres del Rio to Viana we were fortunate enough to coincide with a Romeria when the townsfolk of Bargota carried the statue of the virgin from their church to the nearby hermitage of Santa Maria del Poyo, the saint who had worked wonders for the town and had become its most important religious link. At an outdoors altar behind the hermitage the townfolk gathered for mass, accompanied by a twelve person choir and guitar. And skyrockets.

May 23rd - More Pictures - The People We Meet

2008-05-23T14:40:00.000-07:00

A most important ingredient of the Camino is the contact with people. People whom we would otherwise never know. People who are on the Camino for all manner of reasons.

Bryan, from Birmingham, is a healer, a practitioner of reikai (I may not have the term spelled correctly). Reikai is the art of laying hands on people and improving their well being. This was Bryan´s second time to walk the Camino. He had developed the practice of arranging stones in the shape of a heart. Over the following days we found four or five of his messages along the trail.

John, from London, had walked the Camino. He was now retired and had returned to the Camino to give back. From his trailer we he moved to different locations along the trail, he would administer first aid or coffee or both.

May23rd - Pictures from Encarnita

2008-05-23T14:27:00.000-07:00

All those grassy fields of poppies that Encarnita has painted? They really do exist.

Encarnita encountered this stone at Obanos, on the way to Puente Reina. Immediately she decided her name had purpose, as it contained the most important mystery of the catholic church.

May 23 - Installed in the Monastery at San Millan de Cogolla

2008-05-23T11:31:00.000-07:00

Encarnita is crossing the Pyrenees walking against a howling wind. Once past this marker, she is in Navarre and Spain, and it is down hill to Roncesvalles.

It would appear that I have overcome a technological hurdle and am now able, at least in this monastery, to transfer pictures from my camera to the internet.

After a beer and dinner, I will attempt to produce a few more pictures and text, to bring you all up to date.

John

May 18 - Arrived in Viana

2008-05-18T14:02:00.000-07:00

I am frustrated by my inability to post photos of any of the wonderful sights we are enjoying. It would seem that the software limitations of the machines we encounter, if we encounter machines, rule out the posting of pictures from either of out two cameras. Words will have to suffice.

First of all, we are walking well. Yes, the feet hurt and the back gets sore. But we did complete 20 kilometres today, have had supper, enjoyed a couple of beers and some wine, and will soon head to bed. By morning, we will be ready for another day.

We have gradually moved from the mountainous landscape of the Pyrenees down though the hills of northern Navarre, and are now exploring the rolling fields of wheat and wines that make up the southern part of the region. Tomorrow we will be in Logroño, at the heart of the rioja wine country. The landscape is very green, springing from a reddish soil that has changed the colour of our boots, thanks to the rain that has left stretches of the trail quite muddy.

The landscape is vast, much broader than one would think. The Cantabrian mountains to the north appear from time to time, but we are comforted by the knowledge that we do not have to cross them.

The real joy of the Camino, however, is not the landscape, not the flowers, not even the continuous sound of birds singing as we walk through the hedge rows. The real joy are the people we talk with and what we call "Camino moments" that occur.

Let me give you a few examples.

This morning we stopped to view the old church in Torres del Rio. It is small, really only a chapel. Its floor plan is octagonal in shape, and its ceiling was constructed in a Moorish design, as that was the only technique the artisans of the period knew, because the Reconquest had happened only a few years earlier. As we stood admiring the simplicity and the beauty of the design, we hear music. Five voices, signing a capella an "Ave Maria" from the 16th century. They were a church choir and wanted to lend their talents to this ancient architectural treasure.

A little later we came to an outside altar that seemed to be prepared for some event. A Romeria, when the statue of the virgin is taken from the church to a special site, in this case a hermitage that was devoted to the patron saint of the nearby village, and mass is celebrated. The whole town had turned out, and there was lyrical music from a group of fifteen parishoners.

This evening we are staying in an up-scale hotel. Frank and Gina, however, asked us to join them for dinner in the albergue where they are staying. The albergue, or hostel, is attached to the cathedral. After dinner, we went through a secret entrance into the choir, high in the church, and spent fifteen minutes contemplating the enormous barroque altar that was slightly illuminated.

Each day has its moments, more than one, that makes this a very special trip.

Tomorrow we will spend the afternoon and night in Logroño. The following day we are off to Sotès, where we have accommodation booked in a hotel that has six rooms located in a renaissance mansion. And so life goes on.

Sorry about the pictures. I will keep trying, but I won´t lose any sleep over it.

John

2008-05-16T08:37:00.001-07:00

May 14th - Puente Reina

2008-05-16T08:04:00.000-07:00

We are finding access to the internet less convenient than I had thought. This afternoon I have a machine that is more modern than the one I have at home and the software is one generation ahead of mine. Nevertheless, I cannot figure out how to attach the disc from my camera to the computer so that I can transmit pictures. You will have to be content with words.

The title has to do with where we were two days ago. We left Pamplona (Cizur Menor) and climbed the Cuesta del Perdon and dropped down to Puente Reina, where the two major pilgrims routes from the middle ages join: one from France and the north, the other from Toulouse and the south. The Queens bridge is a beautiful medieval structure.

From there we took two days to reach Estella, a major town on the Camino. We took two days because I wanted to stay in Mañeru where there is a delightful bed and breakfast.

This morning we left Estella and are now ensconced in Irache. On one side of the road is a huge monastery that we are about to visit. On the other side is a bodega (winery for those limited to English). If you look at www.irache.com you will find a camera focused on the entrance to the winery where there is a pair of fountains, one providing water and the other wine. We may be there.

We have stories to tell, and I wish I could tell them with pictures. I think I will stop writing and spend a little more time with the technology to find out what is possible.

John

Tuesday, May 13th - Cizur Menor

2008-05-12T22:29:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a short day taking us from Pamplona to a refuge in a small town half a dozen kilometres to the west. After four days of cloud, rain and wind, we enjoyed a picnic of chorizo de Pamplona, relaxing under a bright sun in the garden of the refuge. A good pilgrim´s dinner in a nearby restaurant. The atmosphere in the dormitory for twelve, with the nearby church bell sounding every thirty minutes was a different experience. Tonight we are in a hotel, after having climbed the Cuesta del Perdon.

More coincidences on route. Nadia and Samir Kassissieh, good friends from Wellesley, are on the Camino about a week ahead of us. We are in touch by e-mail.

Sorry there is no picture posted this morning, but we have to get under way. I will try to do two this evening.

John and Encarnita

Four Days into the Camino

2008-05-11T15:06:00.001-07:00

This evening we reached Pamplona, having walked twenty-two kilometres from Zubiri.

The picture shows Jean Anne a doctor from Oakville on the left and Frank on the right, a friend and associate from Sun Life. The reserved chair is for Encarnita who was likely occupied taking the picture. The beers were a reward for our climb up from Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port half up to the pass across the Pyrenees.

The following day we crossed the Pyrenees in the face of a howling wind, and came down to Roncesvalles, of Charlemagne and Roland fame. The following two days were spent walking down the Arga Valley to Pamplona where we are now.

The people you meet are one of the attractions of the Camino. Fellow pilgrims from all the continents and the people of Navarre. Today, by chance Encarnita asked for directions from a resident of the outskirts of Pamplona. It turns out his aunt was the maid for Encarnita´s father´s best friend. The world is small, and the adventure great.

We apologize for not posting sooner, but access to the internet was restricted, and one of the possible locations had been decommissioned by a storm.

More soon.

John

Anticipation

2008-05-03T13:19:00.000-07:00

Saturday, May 3rd,

Departure day was drawing near. Indeed, Encarnita had already left to spend a few days in Granada with her family. We will meet in Madrid on Tuesday, together with Frank and Jean Anne.

Running around organizing a two month absence at the Toronto end, bringing together the material ingredients for our walk, all takes time and energy. I am certain our family in Toronto will be glad when we are both gone.

Looking ahead, I will add a second pilgrim's scallop shell to my collection. Undoubtedly Boris will manage to hitch a ride, thanks to Sara hiding him somewhere in my backpack. Boris has an easy life: well travelled with no need to make an effort.

Fiori Takes Care of the Homestead

2008-05-03T12:24:00.000-07:00

We had to leave little Fiori behind. Of course, this city dog is probably more comfortable there where the pads of her feet have grown soft and where she can cohort with the other street dawgs down on Queen West. Sara tells us that Fio's taken up art down on Graffiti Lane of Rick Mercer fame. Good for her! Perhaps she'll contribute to the next Don Valley Art Show.

Getting Started

2008-05-03T12:23:00.000-07:00

It was a more difficult beginning than usual.