But let’s pick up where I left off…
(Written on 5/18) 5/18 Zubiri to Pamplona 13.5 miles
Greetings from Pamplona! If you’re wondering where you’ve heard that name before and aren’t super familiar with Spanish geography, you’re probably thinking of the festival of San Fermin, and specifically, the running of the bulls, which takes place in Pamplona. Or you read a lot of Hemingway.
First of all, shoutouts to Amy’s, Theo’s, and Zennon's families! Thanks for reading! Also, I hope Kamaya’s grandmother still reads this even though it’s been several years since Kamaya and I visited Thailand together :). Students, if your family or friends read the blog, let me know and they'll get shoutouts as well.
We left Zubiri this morning around 8AM after a mini dance/stretch party (we need more of those) for another long day on the trail. I started in the back of the pack today, but after walking a few miles in the company of others, I kicked it into Autopilot mode (read my blog posts about the Grand Canyon to understand the Autopilot reference) and spent the rest of the morning trying to catch each hiking group, which was fun because I got to say hi to everyone on the trail.
Today’s walk was—and this is where I stopped o n 5/18. I wonder how I was going to describe the walk…
(Now being written today—5/19)
**Yesterday’s walk** was reminiscent of east coast hiking for those of you familiar with those trails. Things were green and lush and soft and damp. And there were horses. Since I spent most of my hike walking solo, I had a lot of time alone with my thoughts. I thanked the sun for shining and said Buen Camino to every pilgrim I passed on the trail. I was grateful for my body’s ability to shoulder a heavy pack (but not as heavy as the day before—I paid to have my laptop carried to the next albergue because that is an option!) and moving up and down steep terrain. I noticed wildflowers and walls of ivy and muddy boot prints and the sound my trekking pole made when it made contact with the ground.
From left to right: horse, another horse, Hunter, Kimmy, Jeff, Ellie, Paris
Views from the trail
Gotta take a few Kelfies a day
Chris, Madeline, Max
Views from the trail
With the exception of one cafe at mile 4, there weren’t any other real stops until mile 11. I decided to cruise past the mile 4 cafe because it was still pretty early in the day. Luckily, an enterprising van driver found a place to park and sell snacks and soft drinks around mile 9.5, so while I was savoring my soda limon and banana, Grace and Necie caught up to me and we hiked together into Arro, where we also enjoyed a tortilla lunch and coffee on a patio.
Grace and Necie
Old gate
View of Pamplona Street
View of Pamplona Street
I made it to our lodging, the Aloha Hostel, and got settled in before heading back out with Jeff to do some posting up at a cafe for a beverage and some people watching. Pamplona was hosting the Spanish triathlon championships the same day, so we cafe-hopped a few times to watch the race at different points and sample some tapas. We’d run into groups of our students also roaming around Pamplona so it was fun to hear what things they’d discovered along their route. Our large group dinner was at a restaurant called La Nevada. As much as I would have loved to see more of Pamplona at night, a small entourage and I ended up at Urgent Care for some not-life-threatening-but-lets-go-get-checked-out-by-a-doctor-just-in-case situations. It was a late evening, but we all got the treatments we needed and were in pretty good shape by the following morning.
Funny story. Deya said the elevator wasn't working.
I got in the elevator to prove that it was working.
It went up (working).
I got in the elevator to prove that it was working.
It went up (working).
But then the door wouldn't open.
I was convinced that I was trapped in this tiny-ass little elevator,
and I don't like big elevators on a good day (I'm a stairs gal).
So I'm 1) a little panicked 2) preparing to live in this elevator 3) texting everyone
to ask them to open it.
I was convinced that I was trapped in this tiny-ass little elevator,
and I don't like big elevators on a good day (I'm a stairs gal).
So I'm 1) a little panicked 2) preparing to live in this elevator 3) texting everyone
to ask them to open it.
Jeff comes over and gently pulls it open. It's a push/pull door.
I just Tommyboy'd myself.
First cafe stop in the plaza to people watch.
Alivia, Zennon, Tia, Theo, Nicole, Amy, Necie in Pamplona
One of the sites from which Jeff and I watched the triathlon.
Race watching.
We started the morning off with a tour from some of our students (there ARE assignments as part of this study abroad program), who taught us about San Fermin and the running of the bulls in front of the famous Encierro status. They outlined the route and gave us a sense of how the running of the bulls is situated as part of the larger festival and city culture. We discussed Hemingway, and Chris and Jeff gave us a demonstration of how a bull fight *could* go.
I was given consent from both Chris and the Bull to post this video.
Students teaching us about
El Encierro
Chris, Hunter, Ellie, Jeff
Theo, Grace, Berkeley, Sophie
We received "trail magic" from a local that operates a food stand.
He gave us a bunch of bananas!!
Madeline and Paris
Matthew, Madeline, Paris, Necie, Amy, Jeff
View from the trail
The cathedral in Logroño
We got into Logrono around 1PM and had a little time to kill before getting into our rooms. On the recommendation of the albergue host, we ventured to La Calle de Laureles, WHICH WAS POPPING OFF at 1PM on a Sunday. Man, it was wall to wall people and everyone was having a good time.
We found a cafe toward the end of the street, and after getting settled with our food, a large group of good natured football hooligans came marching down the street singing and laughing and toasting and doing other general football hooligan type stuff. We asked the bartender what the deal was, and as it turns out, there was a home game tonight! We put it out to the students as an optional evening activity, and I think we had 16-17 folks from Westminster in attendance at the game. And what a game it was! Someone got red-carded in the first 45 seconds of the game, so our team (UD Logroñes) played a man down the entire game. They scored with 2 seconds remaining going into the half. Second half, the other team controlled the ball more and had more shots on goal, but our keeper played lights out and had some monster saves! Our team won the match 1-0. So much fun!
We found a cafe toward the end of the street, and after getting settled with our food, a large group of good natured football hooligans came marching down the street singing and laughing and toasting and doing other general football hooligan type stuff. We asked the bartender what the deal was, and as it turns out, there was a home game tonight! We put it out to the students as an optional evening activity, and I think we had 16-17 folks from Westminster in attendance at the game. And what a game it was! Someone got red-carded in the first 45 seconds of the game, so our team (UD Logroñes) played a man down the entire game. They scored with 2 seconds remaining going into the half. Second half, the other team controlled the ball more and had more shots on goal, but our keeper played lights out and had some monster saves! Our team won the match 1-0. So much fun!
View from our seats
Some of our game attendees. The others were on the other side of
the stadium
Players celebrating the win!
Obligatory faculty photo
View of Logroño at night
Woke up early for a student presentation on culture and gastronomy of the Rioja region of Spain. The students discussed the different types of grapes used to make wines in this region, common foods, etc. Well done!
Students giving a presentation on culture and gastronomy
After the student presentation, we set out on what will likely be the longest day on the trail from Logroño to Nájera, about 30 kilometers. I walked the first portion of the trail with students and we all stopped for lunch together at a cute cafe in Navarrete. There was also a stunning cathedral.
View from inside the cathedral
Another view from the cathedral
You're gonna get a lot of pictures of Amy, Necie, and Grace because they're fast hikers (like me!)
View from the trail
Rainy Kelfie
Post rain Kelfie
This photo doesn't really do the trail justice, but there were tons of vibrant wildflowers.
The second half of the trail, I mostly hiked by myself but had folks (Necie and Amy, mostly) in my eyeshot for most of the walk. It was nice to have some quiet time to process and reflect. I recently got a hearing aid, and while I am not generally someone that hikes with music/earbuds in, since there was a fair amount of road noise on today's route, I decided it was justified to pipe some music into my hearing aid. I started with gentle classical and nature music...and ended with Rage Against the Machine <shrugs>.
I arrived in Nájera around 2:30 and folks trickled in shortly after me. The albergue is super cute. It's an old multistory row house that's been renovated into a hostel. Jeff and I got our daily snack tour of the city before a few hours of downtime. We had dinner as a group at El Bien Yantar, where my table (Lily, Kimmy, Paris, Berkeley) spent most of the time laughing hysterically and scheming.
Okay, I"m officially caught up. Next stop, Burgos!
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