Day 14 (5/25) Burgos to Boadilla

Boarded a bus to shorten the distance between Burgos and final destination of Boadilla. Morning got off to a bumpy start, but I had a nice long walk and two lovely cafe stops with Matt and Jeff. There was a food truck after a long hill climb that provided much needed shade and refreshment. I’ll remember that truck and that hill.

Boadilla is very small, but the lodging is beautiful and the service is great. I need to remember that this is one of my favorite places to stay.

Day 13 (5/24) Belorado to Burgos

Boarded a bus, picked up the group in Villamayor and drove to Atapuerca, an archeological site. Check my blog from 2024 for details.

Took the bus from dig site to Burgos. I love Burgos. Great food, cafes, people watching, lodging. Spent the afternoon touring different cafes, helping a student resolve a passport issue (lost). Dean Matt joined us for dinner. We went to Burgos’ very impressive Cathedral at the end of the evening and it was stunning and a truly memorable moment from the trip.

Day 12 (5/23) Cirueña to Villamayor del Río and Belorado

I apologize that I have very little to say or recollect from this walk. Most notable feature is that our group is split between 2 towns. Jeff and 12 students are in Villamayor. Deya, 6 students, and I are in Belorado. Cute albergue (hostel?) and quaint town. I’ll add photos later.

Day 11 (5/22) Nájera to Cirueña

Breakfast at Bar Naxara before a very, very hot 9.5 hike to Cirueña! Great conversations with the students and set on the trail, and then we all spent a few hours at what appears to be the only restaurant in town before our albergues opened. The town is so small, our group is split between three albergues.

Day 10 (5/21) Logroño to Nájera

I’ve been really encouraging students to not be heroes and to portage bags & take cabs when needed, and I finally swallowed my pride and followed my own advice and took a cab from Navarette (half-way point 9 miles in) on today’s walk. That said, today was one of my favorite camino days. Had an impromptu picnic with students along the trail, had a great coffee break in Navarette, and spent two hours lounging by the river in Nájera while waiting for the albergue to open. Jeff, Aaron, and I found a cool little bar in town for lunch and cider, and I thought that it had a vending machine of Vienna sausages, but they ended up being poorly illustrated sunflower seeds. Still tasty.

Fun dinner at Bar Naxara where students were introduced to Birdmanning. God help us all.

Day 9 (5/20) Torre del Rio to Logroño

Today was an easy day in that we only had 12.5 miles.
We had a solid Pilgrim’s breakfast at the Albergue (Pata
de Oca) before setting off around 8:15. The only major stop
was Viana about 6 miles in and it was my first camino
flub up in that I stopped at the first cafe that was
overpriced and had limited food choices (thank goodness
Jeff and I packed sheep’s cheese and salty meats!). If I had walked another 4 minutes, I would have ended up on this great avenue with tons of cafes and better people watching.
Always go for the second stop.

While the last two miles walking into Logroño were beautiful, my body is finding new ways to break down. I have a huge lump on my knee that is very, very painful when walking downhill. Some sort of patellar bursitis caused by overuse and downhill walking… hmm…

Logroño is one of myfavorite stops on the camino. It’s a lively town with great food. The students gave a great presentation on the history of the Camino and Rioja wine history and culture. Afterwards, Jeff, Deya, and I ate
all of the tapas on Calle Laurel. All of them.

Tomorrow: long walk to Nájera.

Day 8 (5/19) San Sebastián beach day

Finally caught up! We boarded a bus at 8:15 and drove 90 minutes to San Sebastián on the coast of Northern Spain. It did not disappoint.

I immediately treated myself to lemon gelato and a coffee while students played bocce ball with Jeff (and some dogs), kicked around a hacky sack, read books/took naps, and of course got in the ocean. The water was very cold, but it felt phenomenal on everyone’s feet and legs. I couldn’t stop myself — I went for a run because frolicking on the beach is my actual favorite lifetime activity.

After my run, I read ACOTAR while listening to Radiohead <shrugs> while walking up and down the beach until it was time to meet Jeff and Deya for lunch. We dined on pinchos in the plaza and I treated myself to some chocolates from the sweet shop before returning to the beach for one last frolic. The students have done a great job of being on time.

Thank you, Deya, for facilitating a perfect beach day! 

We stayed in Torre del Rio (another new city for me) in a very funky old Albergue that was Templar themed. The Albergue hosts were fantastic. It was our first real “get to know the locals” Albergue experience, complete with music and dancing and a surprise visit from the mayor. 

Tomorrow, back to the Camino en route to Logroño.