Pamplona - Estella (14/03/15)

“What’s the weather like?” David asked as I pulled back the curtains and was shocked to reply “It’s….SNOWING!”. This was not the weather we had been anticipating; during the previous week it had apparently been 23°C on one day, but now it was barely 3 - 4°C! Walking out onto the balcony we observed large snowflakes falling and although they didn’t seem to be lying on the ground we wondered what conditions walking the Camino were going to be like!

We made our way down to a bar at the end of Estefeta Street and had a breakfast of Tortilla Potata, Café con leche (in my case) and Tea (in David’s). The locals were well muffled up against the inclement weather and one elderly gentleman was having an early glass of vino tinto to warm himself up. There was a pleasant early Saturday morning vibe in the bar and we noticed that the traditionally tiled floor was covered in fresh sawdust like Irish pubs in times past.

Plaza del Castillo was very different to the last time I had seen it when I was there in September; a light covering of snow covered the trees and bandstand and the warm evenings full of Matt attempting Basque dancing and Brazilian acrobats seemed only a dream.

Plaza del Castillo

 We checked out and made our way back to Pamplona bus station. The snow had become heavier and the Cuidadela was viewed through blizzard like conditions. We booked tickets and boarded the La Estellesa bus which runs from Pamplona to Logroño and takes approximately 50 minutes to reach Estella.

The Cuidadela viewed through the snow!

As we left the suburbs of Pamplona the snow finally stopped and we had a pleasant journey as we passed the sites of last Autumn’s pilgrimage: Alto del Perdón, Puente La Reina, Mañeru and Cirauqui. All flew past outside the window as I mentally relived the walk and fast forwarded to Estella.

Calle de la Rua

Arriving in Estella we made our way round to the Hospital de Peregrinos Albergue on Calle La Rua, however as it was only 12.00 and the albergue didn’t open until 13.00, I took David to Iglesia San Pedro so that he could receive the first stamp in his credencial here and symbolically begin his pilgrimage. On the way we passed Casa de Cultura Fray Diego and marvelled at the fine Renaissance moulding around the doors and windows featuring vines, fruits classical nudes and mythical beasts.

Casa de Fray Diego

After David had received his first stamp we shed our rucksacks and sat for a while in the peace of San Pedro. It was great to be back in Estella, ready to start the Camino again and I spent some time thanking God for allowing me to come back so soon. The apse and high altar looked beautiful and resplendent, decked out in purple with the symbols of Christ’s passion for Easter. We wandered around the cloister and David, being a Fire Safety Engineer was very impressed with San Pedro’s modern exterior glass lift that enables the disabled to reach the church, perched as it is above the town.


The high altar in San Pedro

San Pedro's impressive exterior lift

We also took time to look inside the Palacio de los Reyes de Navarra. The Palacio is now an art gallery and features the interesting art of Gustavo de Maeztu y Whitney (1887 – 1947). His paintings in deep reds, ochres and oranges were captivating and we were especially taken with the portrait of his sister as a graduate; the slightly melancholy air of her face contrasted markedly with the bright colours of the Summer garden behind her. Also interesting was the way the framework of a modern building had been carefully and sensitively inserted within what had obviously been the ruins of the 12^th Century Palacio.

David's door!

We returned to the Albergue and checked in, where we met an American Buddhist nun called Vira, who was also just arriving. There was also quite a large group of Koreans in the dormitory. After choosing bunks and organising our belongings we decided to take another wander through Estella so that David could see some more of the town’s sights. After looking at the Jaws of Hell on the Tympanum of Santo Sepulchre, David was captivated by a nearby doorway studded with ironwork. During our time together David joked that I spent my time photographing flowers and churches and I reposted that David had an obsession with photographing doors!

Casa Palacio de los Munarriz

Walking into town we admired the Roccoco grandiloquence of Casa Palacio de los Munarriz (c.1750) with it’s oversized cornice and scallop shell balconies. I liked a honeymoon (la luna de miel) advert I spotted in a travel agent’s window and was shocked to see that four nights in Edinburgh cost €850!

La luna de miel advert

I showed David the Romanesque portal of San Miguel Church and we enjoyed examining the nativity scenes on the pillar capitals that I had missed the last time or the sculpture of St Peter being crucified upside down on the arch. After all this culture and high art, David let us down by lowering the tone to tweet a photograph of an extremely large and elaborate Easter Egg in the chocolate shop in Plaza de los Fueros!!

Scenes from the birth of Christ on the pillar capitals of San Miguel

St. Peter being crucified

We had coffee in a bar in the Plaza and a local came in and attempted to communicate with us in “Spanglish”, there seemed to be some possible misunderstanding that we were a gay couple, which was only cleared up when I showed our Spanish friend a photograph of myself and my wife in my wallet, but as David sat there drinking his tea instead of getting his Spanish app out on his phone, this was a mistake which I am sure could easily be made!

David's tweeted Easter egg!

We also took the time to do a bit of shopping in the only Eroski (a Basque chain) supermarket open in the town centre on a Saturday afternoon and stocked up supplies for a picnic the following day as we were aware a lot of shops and cafes are closed on a Sunday in Spain and some of the route we were taking the following day would pass through some relatively remote countryside.

After a rest at the Albergue we made our way back to the American Diner in the Plaza for the pilgrim menu at 8.00. I had alubias blancas – white bean stew as a Primo and Lomo – pork loin steak for Segundo accompanied by vino tinto and of course flan – crème caramel for dessert. Whilst eating we also spoke briefly to some Danish pilgrims.

 After all the sightseeing and eating we felt we were now more than ready to get down to what we had come for – walking the Camino and we looked forward with anticipation to the next day.

The ham selection in the supermarket!