Zariquiegui to Obanos: September 5, 2014. Day 6
Today began with the steep climb to Alto del Perdon or hill of forgiveness. After reaching the summit you are rewarded with views of the Pyrenees and Pamplona in the east and the towns we will come to on the west. It is truly breath taking. It was rewarding to look back and see how far we have come. At the summit you are also rewarded with a life size wrought iron representation of medieval pilgrims heads bent to the west wind. Reaching this landmark felt like quite an accomplishment. A British woman and I had a laugh. There was a sign telling us about the place with the last line ending in a question. "Do you know how far it is to Santiago? It is only 467 more miles." Seemed like a cruel little joke when we were feeling so accomplished.
The path coming down was steep and rocky. We met the ladies from Denmark. We had a brief celebration of our accomplishment and I took their picture.
Further down the trail I met 2 Americans from Florida. Kathy, the wife inspired me. She is making this pilgrimage with 2 knee replacements. It reminded of another woman we have seen with her husband. She appears to have had a stroke on her right side. She walks with some difficulty with her walking poles giving her much support. We saw her entering the cathedral in Santiago with some support. She too inspired me seeming to keep a similar daily pace as ours. She must have much determination.
As we continue along the road does begin to flatten some. We continue to be rewarded with beautiful scenery of rolling hills distant mountains and agricultural land. We are now entering wine country. Angie and I sample a grape or two as they grow right next to the path. We drink water from fountains that are dated back a thousand years. We marvel at the architecture of the buildings in the little towns. These homes may be 700 years old, but the have been continuously cared for. Their windows are adorned with beautiful red geraniums against white stucco. Very striking!
We arrived early today at our Alberque-hotel jakue
. It is a hotel and restaurant that has an alberque in the basement for pilgrims. The basement has 2 rooms with 40 beds. The rooms are divided into cubicles of 4. We are sharing our cubicle with a German woman in her 20's and another from Ontario, Canada. Our new German friend is traveling with her father. Kathy is traveling alone and will meet her husband in Santiago on the 8th of October.
Lessons learned today: Take the next right step and new vistas come to you.
Today began with the steep climb to Alto del Perdon or hill of forgiveness. After reaching the summit you are rewarded with views of the Pyrenees and Pamplona in the east and the towns we will come to on the west. It is truly breath taking. It was rewarding to look back and see how far we have come. At the summit you are also rewarded with a life size wrought iron representation of medieval pilgrims heads bent to the west wind. Reaching this landmark felt like quite an accomplishment. A British woman and I had a laugh. There was a sign telling us about the place with the last line ending in a question. "Do you know how far it is to Santiago? It is only 467 more miles." Seemed like a cruel little joke when we were feeling so accomplished.
The path coming down was steep and rocky. We met the ladies from Denmark. We had a brief celebration of our accomplishment and I took their picture.
Further down the trail I met 2 Americans from Florida. Kathy, the wife inspired me. She is making this pilgrimage with 2 knee replacements. It reminded of another woman we have seen with her husband. She appears to have had a stroke on her right side. She walks with some difficulty with her walking poles giving her much support. We saw her entering the cathedral in Santiago with some support. She too inspired me seeming to keep a similar daily pace as ours. She must have much determination.
As we continue along the road does begin to flatten some. We continue to be rewarded with beautiful scenery of rolling hills distant mountains and agricultural land. We are now entering wine country. Angie and I sample a grape or two as they grow right next to the path. We drink water from fountains that are dated back a thousand years. We marvel at the architecture of the buildings in the little towns. These homes may be 700 years old, but the have been continuously cared for. Their windows are adorned with beautiful red geraniums against white stucco. Very striking!
We arrived early today at our Alberque-hotel jakue
Lessons learned today: Take the next right step and new vistas come to you.
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