Larrasoana to Cizur Menor (Camino de Santiago)

The morning routine was starting to get established. We awake between 5 and 5:30 am and are walking by 6am, always in the dark with headlamps and usually the first ones leaving. We had 13 miles to cover today but a lot of up and down. The hike for the first 15km was through lush farmland, much of it along a lovely wooded river. The serene countryside changed as we approached the outskirts of Pamplona. It seemed like miles of pavement through the suburbs and business district until we reached a park setting and the great walled section of the old city. The path went around the fortification to a large stone ached gate with a wooden draw bridge over a moat. Entering the ancient city one was treated to narrow cobblestone streets and aged buildings just as one would expect of old Spain. I had read Ernest Hemingway’s The Sun Also Rises about the famous running of the bulls that are held every July and pictured myself running down a narrow alley with thundering hooves in pursuit. Our group was quite goal oriented and we quickly walked through the old city and found ourselves in the northern business district. We missed seeing any of the sights and stopped for a meal and waited for another friend to catch up. It was a disappointment that we did not stop at the many tourist sites, especially the cathedral. We continued on for the last 3km to Cizur Menor and another alberque where we paid 10 euro for the nights lodging. Journal: “It is afternoon and getting very hot. The Camino is following a busy highway and there is no shade. I don’t seem to mind as I walk along what seems to be miles of bright yellow rapeseed (canola) fields. The color busts against the blue sky, a moving artist palette.”