Day 3. Pamplona and its people

Day 3. 15km. 4 hours. Larrasoano to Pamplona.

I woke up at 530am Wide awake! Ugh! so went downstairs and did some stretches. Legs feeling a little stiff. Us four hit the road at 650am, again in the dark. We couldnt see where the signs were so we hoped for the best and kept wandering. We powered this morning! We walked alongside a river for a while which was a nice change, then past a waterfall. so we left our bags and went off track and hung there for a while. The want or more need for coffee got the better of us and we knew we had about a km or 2 to go to the first village. We got there and nothing was open! Ugh! Sundays. So at that point we’d walked 7km without breakfast (apart from the berries id been picking and eating, yummo) and just decided we may as well push through another 8km to pamplona for breakfast. We got about 10 mins down the road and thought nah, lets stop by the river and have a picnic breakfast with what food we had between us. So we had a breakfast of bread, chorizo, cheese, nuts and chocolate rice crackers. It was such a beautiful spot, the water was so clear, the bridge was an old stone arched one and no one was around! We then packed up and kept walking. This time it was mainly alongside a road before climbing back up over a hill (i. Hate. Hills!) and down into another beautiful town (i swear ill probably call every town beautiful). We then said to each other forget pamplona lets stop here for coffee. So we found a spot in the main street to stop. There was a sunday market, music playing, sunday mass had just finished so everyone was out and about and then it was reunion after reunion as our other pilgrim friends turned up. A couple of italian guys joined us and we had a debate over who makes the best pizza and they got very passionate, were waving their hands, saying they make the best pizza. we were smart, we knew that but they said the only way to settle it was for them to cook us pizza n pasta for dinner one night. Perfect! We then mainly walked through towns until we arrived at the pamplona citadel. Pamplona is unreal! Just narrow streets, lined with apartment buildings all so colourful. The streets were empty being sunday lunch so we went and got ourselves a bed (8 euro) before heading back into town. In the space of an hour the city had come alive. People everywhere sitting outside drinking and eating, kids running around, playing soccer in the plaza, a lot of elderly about sitting watching. We made our way to the plaza and got lunch and wrote in our diaries and had some serious in depth discussions for 4 hours! We had george join us. He is mid 40’s, swiss and has been walking for 2 months! I met him on day 1 and he is an entrepreneur, really philosophical and such a quiet interesting man! He just looks at you, not saying much, but you know hes thinking and writing down notea about you. Another character that ive met, is this small old french man walking on his own. He would come up to my chest at most. He saw me last night at the pub and gave me a strange look but did the thumbs down and signalled the drinking hand gesture then wandered off. I thought he to be quite grumpy but after passing him today along the way he laughed at me and said ‘cerveza! Cerveza!’ And gave me the thumbs up. I keep saying bonjour everytime i see him. So we have this little bonjour thing going on now. He doesnt speak english, but i asked him his name (which ive forgotten) and i said mine, but he wouldnt listen and just said ‘no! you Cerveza!’ So my name is beer to him. We’ve nicknamed him the blue man as everything he owns is blue! Im not exagrating. Everything! We then wandered the streets for the rest of the afternoon and man did i meet some lovely people. First these 2 immaculately dressed old ladies who looked like they had come from church. I said buenas tardes and smiled and then walked on. But a few minutes later they caught back up to me and i tried to tell them they look beautiful. But couldnt really convey that so i wandered the street with them for a while, they speaking to me in spanish but i not understanding. Eventually we caught up to my friends so the ladies gave me a big hug and a kiss on each cheek and we said adios. Made my afternoon. Then as we walking back down the street, which actually wasnt a street more like an open mall type thing, amanda and i saw this young boy and grandad kicking a soccer ball so we went on over to play. Then the boys dad comes over and we chat, he asked where im from and as soon as i had said australia, he signals for his wife to come over. She lived in sydney for 6 months when she was at uni so we had a good long chat about australia and she got her 4 year old boy Paolo to practice his english on me. We must hve been stopped talking to them for about 15 minutes, meanwhile ‘my boys’ were all now kicking the ball with the grandfather. It was great! We wandered back to the plaza to catch up with some others and then went back to our albergue to shower and rest before heading back out for dinner. Over dinner im not how but weve made a pact to write a book together about our time on the camino together. Who knows how that will play out! Early to bed again tonight. Amanda and i were so excited that we got a room with 4 beds in it and thought wed get a good night sleep but no. We’ve 2 of the loudest snorers underneath us both! We’re laughing in disbelief. We have 27kms to walk tomorrow so its going to be another big day. But i cant wait! R x

Setting off in the early morning

Our breakfast picnic spot

The search for coffee

George

Bull fighting arena

We laugh