Stage Five -Puente la Reina to Estella

22.4 km

October 10, 2011

There were lots of smells in the albergue and I was thankful to be in a room with just 3 bunks with all women in the room. A nice change as the men don’t always smell so good and they snore loudly. (Sorry men!) I started walking at 7:45 and stopped at a panaderia (bakery) to pick up a couple of pastries. A popular one is the napolitanas de chocolate (pastry with chocolate inside).... A great way to start the day. Other pilgrims were gathered getting breakfast but I just wanted to get going. I think I was still feeling some urgency about covering the miles in a day and not quite relaxed yet.

The temperature this morning is on the rise as I am out of the mountains now. I started up the first hill of the day and had to strip my jacket and get the legs zipped off my pants. Every time I had to remove or put on an article of clothing it felt like a big to do. I would just get into a rhythm of walking but then have to remove another article of clothing. This happened most days. Getting the pack off and on took time. I soon accepted that that was part of the camino and to just relax. Why was I going in such a hurry anyway? I really didn't have any timelines to meet.
I walked through some lovely towns and over a Roman road and bridge just outside of Cirauqui.

I met and passed fellow pilgrim Frances, from London, on The Way. I had actually seen Frances my first day in SJPP and then again at the pilgrims blessing in Roncesvalles. We had a moment in the mass where we shook hands and he said “Peace be with you”. He looked to be overweight and out of shape. I wondered if he would make it all the way to Santiago de Compostela, as he had planned.

I walked alone today with just my shadow that is faithfully there every morning when the sun comes up. I would sing "Me and my shadow" in my head for something to do. I walked through olive orchards today. I tried one but quickly spit it out. Yuk. I also visited a very old church out in the middle of nowhere, built in 1026. It had a makeshift altar where pilgrims left notes and blessings and a wooden cross on the wall. I also met a woman from Quebec, who stopped and we took each other's picture under the pilgrims tunnel.

I arrived in Estella sometime in the afternoon and saw Kim and one of the Korean girls. They were standing outside the albergue and Kim was holding his nose. There was a kind of sewer smell in the air, from where I don’t know but Kim said he could not stay there. He seemed upset. He decided to go to the other end of town to see if a private albergue was open. The Korean girl decided to stay and I decided I needed a day off so would go to a pension in the centre of town. Kim went on his way and that was the last time I saw him. He did not allow for any rest days so he had to keep walking every day.  He has my email but I don’t have his.

Luckily, just down the street, I could see a tourist information office and it was actually open. The woman spoke English and was very helpful, recommending a few places and how to get to them. So off I went through the winding short little streets of Estella through a myriad of plazas and closed shops. Nothing opens til 5pm after closing at 2 pm for siesta. I found  the Pension San Andres downtown (cheap, private accommodation) in Plaza Santiago. How fitting!  25 Euros a night was the charge. (approx 40 CAD).

The woman who owned it was very nice and very helpful. She was used to accepting tired pilgrims but was also making a living at it. There was no exchange of paper work or checking in. I just paid her cash and she was in no hurry to get it.

I took the old elevator to the 4^th floor. My room did not look over the plaza but a back alley and people’s laundry hanging from the balconies. I would soon be hanging my wet clothes out the window to dry too. The room was small but with some really old furniture. Big wardrobe, and dresser, headboard. The only disappointment was the tub. I was so looking forward to stretching out in a hot bath but instead the tub was a half tub. I tried to soak in it but it was pathetic. At least my feet got a good soak.

That evening I walked around the plaza and went for a hamburger at an American style restaurant. It was the only one I could find open as they usually don’t serve dinner til at least 9 pm. I couldn’t see a pilgrims menu in sight. So I opted for a hamburger, which was still pink inside, but I ate it anyway as I was again..starving. I couldn’t wait to get back to my private room and lie out in my bed and sleep in in the morning. I was listening to my body and my body screamed..TAKE A BREAK