En Estella

The photos below cover the single day, Thursday 8 May 2008, the subject of the blog post below. The photos are in the order of the narrative in the post itself, mostly chronological order.
66. The bridge that gives Puenta la Reina its name 67. The Irish crew on the climb to Cirauqui68. A view en route to Cirauqui
69. The hilltop village of Cirauqui, about 8 kms from Puenta la Reina
70. This bridge on the way out of Cirauqui on the way to Lorca is certainly medieval and may even be Roman 71. Another view of the bridge
72. Brendan photographing his nephew Padraic before the bridge
73. Snatching lunch in the sanctuary of the church (well, not in the sanctuary)
74. The church at Villatuerta Puente
75. Entering Estella during the siesta. Only the albergue (on the left) is open.
76. A view from the bridge at Estella
77. Inglesia del San Pedro de la Rua
78. Detail of the entrance to San Pedro
79. C12 cloister attached to the church of San Pedro
80. Detail of the cloister
81. C14 Inglesia del Santo Sepulchro
82. A closer view of the Gothic tympnaum and entrance door of this church
83. Further detail of the tympanum
84. Dinner in Estella before the Irish crowd go home. The movement of the shot catches the the delight and fun of the evening. In the background are Angela from Koln and her father Michael who accompanied her on two sections of the Camino. Our paths crossed constantly.

Notes written after a long days walk and a boozy, craic-filled dinner in Estella.

It was a great 21 km walk from Puenta La Reina to Estella, still in Navarra. It was, as the Irish say, a soft day, a day of light rain drizzling down. We passed fields under a variety of cultivation-grapes, asparagus and wheat-like crops. It was very muddy underfoot. It´s more than a little like Tuscany and Umbria with green fields leading up to mountain ridges in the distance, and brown, medieval houses with tile roofs dotting the landscape. We walk from one village to another. The churches and the bars are the highlights.

We had a lovely lunch on the porch of one church, the Irish family of Michael and Rita from Kilkenny, Michael´s brother Brendan and M and R´s youngest child, Padraic, and their friend Laura who introduced me to them. We were joined by Jana from Berlin and Alex from San Paolo, whom I had met at Orisson. We shared bread, cheese and sausage, and lots of laughter.

We passed through Lorca with its beautiful church and finished at Estella (Spanish for star) where I just squeezed into the municpal albergue. (I walked separately from them in the afteroon since I was feeling my blister wound.) Happily, there was a Red Cross clinic in Estella where it was dressed and I was told not to wash it before tomorrow night.

It´s busy on the Way although it may be that it settles down a bit as people break the journey to return home. I know of 10 Irish who will go home in the next day or so, finishing the Way later on, perhaps over several years. I shall miss the group. They are great fun and so welcoming, Each is so delightful in an individual way. Padraic is just so bright and lively and Brendan so knowledgeable and generous. I shall miss them all tomorrow, travelling to Los Arcos without them. We´ve just had a great peregrino dinner together.

Estella is very wealthy. So many antique shops! And beautiful churches with such a distinctive style. So different to Italian churches.

The hospitalero is closing me down (early). Must run. More soon.