2024 Camino June 4th, 5th

 Continuing my Camino on June 4th when we  stayed in the town of Navarrete.   It was an 8 mile walk to arrive here from Logrono.

We are staying in a very old building tonight; It is called the Posada Ignatus.    Saint Ignatus lived in this building .   He did not own the building but was a guest .   

The Ignatian Way is that which Ignatius of Loyola travelled in his first months of conversion to Christianity in the year of 1522.  Navarrete witnessed the two stages of the life of Saint Ignatius of Loyola before and after conversion.

 Several years ago the  building was restored and became a small hotel known as Posada Ignatius.   Expensive  and small but filled with comforts all wrapped in history.  The original wine celar in the basment has been recreated into a small restaraunt where we had a fabulous lunch before leaving on the next day.  Absolutely great food, service and atmosphee.  

June 5th:     PueteNajer..... stayed overnight here and enjoyed dinner with our friend Grace from NYC...  Then we took a taxi to Najer and then walked  14 miles  to Santa Domingo on a hot day . 

2024 Camino June 3rd

 It was a long night  waiting for Jenn to arrive back to the albergue; but I'm so glad that she had a nice evening out with the girls in Logrono. 

She called me on the cell phone about 6:29 pm and told me she was nearly home... 10 minutes out.   

I am writing these journals from notes in a diary that I kept notes in during my Camino.  This was the next morning and we were still in Logrono .   We woke up next morning and checked out of our Albergue and headed over to the hotel where the girls that Jenn joined last night  were staying.  .    We had breakfast in the Albas Hotel .  The name of the hotel  Albergue de Pereyrinos.   

I called Jim today and discovered that he has a black film over his eye and is going to the doctor's office today.   NOTE:  doc said he is OK.

While we were in Logrono Jenn and her girlfriends visited two churches and she visited a third one by herself before coming home. 

2024 CAMINO JUNE 2nd & 3rd

June 2nd found us in Viana... we walked all the way there ...yes... all 13 miles.   and then we continued on another 13 miles to Lograno.  We had dinner in Logrono after we  arrived.  But First Jenn met the group of women (girls) that she has been spending evening hours with.  She returned with food to cook in the albergue .  She had zuhine, meat, noodles, cheese, etc.   We cooked it in the microwave and it was delicious.  For dessert we had lime ice creame.    After we cleaned the kitchen; Jenn headed out to meet the girls again after sending me a photo.  

I waited up for Jenn and was very happy to see her when she arrived home.  She sent me photos  during the evening to let me know she was OK!  

Day 6. LATE POST Travel to Cruise Ship

I woke up at 5:30 am and decided to just stay up and finalize the packing for our trip today to Vancouver  where we will board the Noordam, a cruise ship with Holland American.

By 6:30 am Jim was up and by 7:30 we'd eaten breakfast and were ready to go.  The taxi we'd ordered yesterday.... our driver from the airport... arrived right at 8 am.  It was about a 40 minute drive to the top of Vancouver Island to Swartz Bay where we caught the ferry to Vancouver.

Set sail at 9 am sharp and pulled into  a Vancouver 90 minutes later.   Then a long cross town taxi drive  for another 90 minutes to the Port of Vancouver for cruise ships.  Soon we were checked in and through customs.  Got into our room immediately by 1 pm.  Refreshed we headed to the Lido deck for lunch at the Taco Bar.  Worked at learning how to navigate the ship as we waited for the mandatory life boat drill after which we set sail for Alaska at 4:30 pm.   Arranged for a 5:30 dinner followed by a talk about Alaska and its history with Holland American.    They were the first company to run cruise ships in Alaska and eventually moved their home office from Holland to Seattle.
Went out on the very windy tail of the ship to enjoy our first sunset.  Early to bed and looking forward to a day of whale watching tomorrow.  For some reason this is not posting? But will keep trying.

2024 CAMINO May 31st

    We were up and out the door very early this morning.  It was going to be a long day.   We took a taxi to the first town, actually a very large city  by the name of Logrono.   From there we began to walk again towards the city of Estella and the wine company of IRACHE.  The company  has a special treat for Pilgrims:   A Huge barrel  fue roall of wine next to the road where you can stop and fill your cup with their wonderful wine  from a facute before travelling on down the road

I had enjoyed the wine in 2015 but in  2018 I was too early in the morning and they had not opened the gate yet.  It was a treat to share this wonderful treat with my daughter.  Soon we were back on  the trail and  and soon found a new treat down the road:  an outdoor shop where a father and son made beautiful  pieces of art  and jewerly from iron.    Soon we had made a small purchase and were back on the trail             headed towards our next village where we would spend the night:  Villamayor.   We walked along roads and sometimes through the vinyards today all under the hot sun.  The final walk was up a very steep hill but the views from our alberge were fantastic.   This village has a very old castle at the actual top of the mountain and has survived over the years.  In 2018, my daughter climbed the mountain after we had arrived..... no.... I did not join  her  as I was exhusted by the time we had arrived at our albergue.   We had ten pilgrims in the albergue and we enjoyed a wonderful dinner prepared by our host. Today we esti.mated that we walked 12 KM  about 8 miles.  

2024 CAMINO   JUNE 1st

We were up early this morning for a  14 mile walk to  Albergue San Sol.     When we arrived they did not find our booking request but Jennifer worked with the clerk and soon our reservation was found and we had beds for another night!    Bunk Beds.... must have been forty or so in a huge room.  It was an interesting night finding the way to the bathrooms with a flashlight!   We had a group dinner of ten pilgrms including two brothers.   Another interesting evening as we got to know each other's backgrounds and share our travel stories.  We all spoke English and that helped keep the conversation going for several hours.

2024 Camino May 29th

 Today was a long walk of 20  KM again.... another twelve miles

The weather has been mild and the walks are usually with friends that we've met on the journey .  Our albergue tonight is Albergue Puente located at the beginning of the town of Puente La Reina.  We have a friend in Yorba Linda who has family members that live here and own a grocery store.  Her grandparents lived here.  This town has a huge bridge at the end of the single road that goes through the village.  

Tonight w went out with new friends and ended up eating dinner with a new group outside in the town center.  Jim called me during dinner and everyone gave him a shoutout that I was OK .  Jennifer enjoyed the opportunity to get a massage while we were here.  A new friend was Renata who is from England.  She is a medical nurse who is on leave and chose to walk the camino during her time off.  

2024 Camino May 30th

 Today was a shorter day:  only 15 KM =  9.32  miles and we took a taxi for part of it!   

It's the end of May and June is around the corner!  Tonight we are staying at La Casa Magica in the town of Villuerta.

There was no massage serevice for Jenn; before covid nearly every albergue had a massue in house .   That service stopped when Covid arrived.  It's coming back; but slowly.    

We had a fabulous dinner tonight; the center piece was a huge round pan filled with paella!    Tonight we met Grace from New York City....she has traveled the Camino many times and is an expert at what to do and where to go.  There were also two young college girls by the name of Sarah and Brandy.  Our albergue is on the outskirts of town so we stayed in for the night.   We last saw the college girls at breakfast before leaving but Grace remained a close friend and companion until she headed home from Santo Domingo due to medical issues.    

2024 Camino May 28

  

Our walk today was 20 KM =  12  miles give or take a few blocks.  We were up early this morning and on the road to Pamploma.....   yes, the town that I arrived in just a few days ago.  Our walk into Pamplona  this  morning included an elevator ride with a bicycle; yes it was designed for bicycles to get up to the top of a very steep hill.  We took advantage of  the opportunity to join the bike and saved us a long walk up a steep hill.   Our albergue tonight is in the center of the old town and named "Jesus & Mary;  and  is very close to the Cathedral and the bull ring.   It is owned by the church and reserved for pilgrims ONLY.  We chose two bottom bunk beds near the rest rooms and stairs to the kitchen where we fixed our dinneer after  a trip to the grocery store.    We've both been here before but enjoyed walking through the town to see the sights again before  we returned to the albergue for a good night's sleep before hitting the trail again tomorrow morning.

2024 Camino May 27th

2024 Camino May 27th: 

Up early, we walked from Roncevalles to Larrosonq and  found that the trail was much more difficult than in prior years.   Extremely rocky and one needed to be a balarina to keep one's balance as you steped from rock to rock for  twelve miles !   We arrived at Zubiri and were happy to be off the trail.  This town is generally suggested as the stopping point for the day.  But back in 2015 I decided that the village was too run down and I did not stay there but went on to Larrosoana and have always stayed there.   But, we were exhusted and Zubiri has been totally remodeled and delightful; must of our new friends were staying there and wanted us to also stay with them.  But, we already had reservations at Larrosoana.  We stayed for a drink and then when we thought of the three more miles (but on a nice trail) waiting for us; we decided to call our first taxi cab!   Soon we were at St. Nicolas in Larrosoana; showered and rested we enjoyed meeting many new pilgrims from France, England and America at our dinner table this evening.

2024 Camino May 26th

We arrived at Roncevalls today.; it was a long walk up the Pyrenee Mountains.  We stopped at the statue of  the Virgin Mary that overlooks the valley where we started our walk yesterday.  My sister died in February of this year and I brought several of her rosaries with me to leave in various places along the trail in her memory.  We chose a blue beaded rosary to hang on Mary's arm.    And said a few prayers before walking back to the trail to joined the others as we walked towards  the break in the fence  on the boarder between  France and Spain.  It has a grated base that prevents the animals from crossing the boarder.  Yes, mostly cows and horsees that roam freely from their farms that are located along the route.

It's a long walk up and down but with a welcome relief of food and drinks  for sale about half way  on the trail.     A loca.l farmer provides the refreshments and we are happy to pay for them.  

The final approach to Ronncevalles is a long, steep hill full of trees and you arrive at the Monestery at the bottom.   On my 2015 Camino... my first.... I walked this trail in pouring rain and arrived fully covered in mud as I mostly "slid" down the hill from several falls.  This time Jenn took me on a different and much safer route; a long twisting rockt road .... but no mud!    We arrived tired but clean this time and we were amazed at the impovements  in the Monestary.    Many upgrades and  well organized.  The rain began just after we arrived but we were able to skirt the edges most of the time.  We loved the new single beds and took advantage of the very inxpensive laundry that they did for the pilgrams.  We had a good hot meal for dinner and breakfast in the morning.  Plus they packed a lunch bag for us including a bottle of water.

2024 Camino May 22nd, 23rd, & 24th (Travel Days)

I'm going to put my 2024 Camino Story on my Blog for you all to enjoy :  

I put the story of my first day in Spain on the blog as soon as I returned home and then life interfered !

But...today I'm going to add my handwritten Blog to my my Computer Blog. 

May 22nd, 2024 

Jim drove me to LAX at 2 pm.  Iberia was due to arrive and I would board the plane for a long flight to Madrid overnight.

It was difficult to find the departure gate and so I spent several hours in the waiting area meeting new people.  I continued to get up and check the boards for updated information on the departure gate.  On one of these checks I was not looking where I was walking when I returned to my seat and suddenly I was flying through the air over a table that was about 12 inches high.   I  had hit both legs midway between the ankle and knee.   Everyone came running to offer help.  But I said "NO" I'm okay...as the  lumps on my legs began to rise!     But...fortunately ; within a few days.... the legs were ok as the lumps went away.

I finally found  the gate number from a clerk in one of the shops in our area of the airport. So I moved to that area and began  a long wait for the the plane to arrive from Spain.  Yes; we were scheduled to fly to Spain on the same plane that my son-in-law was returning on.    Eventually it arrived and we boarded the plane... about 300 of us... including many families with children.  (I never saw my son-in-law as they took them off at a different gate.  )

Once everyone was seated they took the plane out on a runway and there we sat for about four hours before they finally announced that the plane had a problem and we were going back to the gate .  The good news is that they kept the air conditioning on the whole time BUT no water or food was ever offered.   The plane did not move....they off loaded us and we boarded buses for the trip back to the terminal.    After several hours of standing in line we were finally given a local hotel to go to for the night; we still had no clue when we would be on an airplane....It was after midnight before we got to the  very nice hotel.   Some food was provided and off to bed.

MAY 23rd (United States)

Last night was a nightmare.... But I was assigned to the Hilton Hotel and it was very nice.    I did meet a lovely family from Riverside and they added me to their group as we went together to the Hilton Hotel.  

Early this morning I returned to the International Terminal where I discovered that the Iberia Terminal would not be open for assistance and tickets until the afternoon.  Several of us were talking about the situation when a stranger joined the group and told us that we should check American Airlines as they sometimes worked with Iberia  when they had issues with flights.   

I immediately rushed next door to American Airlines Terminal,   I found an employee that was not busy and asked her to put my name in the computer to see if I possibly had a ticket that I was not aware of.

She hesitated and we bantered back and forth and "yes" I may have used the "old Lady" card with a few tears in the eyes.   But...she finally did and  YES ....  American had a ticket from LAX to DALLAS TEXAS in their computer with my name on it  !!!!!!    And....there was a second ticket attached that was would take me to MADRID FROM DALLAS OVERNIGHT.

May 24th (Madrid) ...from memory 

Arrived  in Madrid thaat afternoon to board a bus to Pampoloma.  Then at midnight that a bus arrived in Pamplona ... carrying two backpacks I set off across the city of Pampolpma at  midnight  to find the train station where I knew there would be taxis in the morning to get to St Jean France and the begininning of the Camino.  Jen, my oldest daughter was there waiting for me.  She has been in Portugal for a month with her husband who arrived home the day I left.  She came to meet me in Spain to walk the camino and has been here a few days.

The young adults were everywhere and wanting to help me.  It was a unique experience.  About 2 am one of the girls called a cab for me.  It was a woman driver who said yes when I asked if she would drive me to St Jean?  A 4 hour trip for her.  She was an excellent driver and we arrived at 4am in France.  

2024 Camino May 25th

May 25th (from memory)  

It was raining lightly when I arrived  by taxi at 4 am in the sleeping village of St. Jean, France from Pomploma, Spain. I stayed dry by hovering under small porch overhangs on the fronts of buildings.   At 5 am I texted Jenn and she came out to let me inside.  The owner also came out to greet me and I enjoyed a wonderful breakfest with all the guests.     As soon as the Pilgrim's office accross the street opened, we took  a break and went over to register.  Soon we were officially registered  to start our 500 mile camino to Santiago on the other side of Spain.  

         Back to the albergue to pick up our backpacks.  We had agreed we would use baggage transportation every day so off we went with our small backpacks up the very steep mountain for 5 miles to our first albergue, Orrisson.   Jenn became the leader of the group that seemed to form behind us. As she  proceeded to find an unusual road or path for our group to enjoy. It seemed to stretch on and on further than the 5 miles we'd planned.   She also had us walking backwards to stretch the fronts of our legs every so often.   Jenn kept me going  by  offering me small pieces of  Meringue Pastry, which she had purchased in Sant Jean yesterday.   She continued to do this throughout our trip on the long hills; sometimes ice-cream, popsicles, and various sweets to get me up the very steep hills.    It was a beautitul day and everyone greeted us when we arrived.  That night at dinner we each shared our story  about who we  were and why were we were walking the camino.  They made a huge issue about it being my third camino and nearing the age of 86.    

A few of the men said that I had beat them walking up the hill today.  We made many  new friends from around the world  that night. Tomorrow we begin the day  long walk across  the Piernese mountains into Spain.     

Soon we were tucked into our bunk beds.... yes .... we are in albergues most nights and when two people arrived together; one of them has to take the top bunk.  Jenn will generally do the honors for us as they must feel it is not safe to put me up there!   When I traveled  in Europe with my twin sister at the age of 70...   I was the designaed  top bunk girl!   

HEADING FOR SPAIN TOMORROW FOR THE START OF MY THIRD CAMINO DE SANTIAGO

 Hello friends and family and my faithful followers,

     Yes, that long ago plan to return to Spain in 2020 that COVID cancelled will  finally begin.  I leave LAX tomorrow afternoon and meet my daughter Jennifer in Madrid where we will spend one night before heading for St. Jean and the beginning of our 52 day walk across Spain to Santiago !   It's 500 km!

     Jennifer and her husband Kelly have been in Portugal and Spain since April 28th.  Kelly is flying home on the same day I'm flying to Spain.  He has his own Glass Business and duty calls him home.  

    Keep us in your prayers for the next 52 days and we will keep each of you in our prayers.  I will attempt to write a post each day and also will be posting some photos on Facebook .   As they say on the Camino... 

Buen Camino  

*Spanish for a good day"

Santiago de Compostela Botafumeiro