We stopped in a town called Estella, which I keep wanting to call Estrella (which means "star" -- like the kind that glows in the sky). It was a nice town, though on the way in we passed by some graffiti. There's a lot of this propaganda graffiti around Spanish Basque country that I didn't see in France.
Often the graffiti will say "This is not Spain" or "Free the Basque prisoners." It's somewhat amusing to me, though I suppose for the separatists it's very serious.
Anyway, I walked around for a bit but the church and tourist office were both closed so I went to a café and had a Caesar salad with a Pepsi. I wanted to get something called Cafe Azteca for dessert, which according to the menu is iced coffee with chocolate ice cream and whipped cream. But they didn't have any cold coffee or chocolate ice cream. So I got Cafe Bombones Irlandés instead. It was coffee with whisky and condensed milk. Lots of whisky. Or at least enough to give it a strong flavor, so I stayed for a while and surfed the Internet.
By that time it was late enough that the tourist office was open again after siesta time and I got a map and learned the church opened at 6 PM. So I got Kathy and we walked around a bit and visited the church. Luckily there's an elevator that goes up to it, and we opted for that instead of climbing the steps. The church itself was nothing special on the inside. It has been renovated at some point and was all bright and modern and plain looking. But it also had a cloister, and the cloister had roses along the path!
This dark red one smelled wonderful! Just like any rose-scented perfume or oil. It was the perfect rose smell. But others were lovely. I think this one that has pink around the edges is beautiful too.
That's Kathy. We explored a bit more, stopped at a busy ice cream shop and got some ice cream, then had dinner. She decided to take a bus ahead a couple of stages so the next day I walked alone again. Too bad she missed a treat!
Here's the monastery in Irache (or Iratxe in Basque).
And next to it...
Can't tell what that is? Here's a clue, but you'll have to decipher some Spanish.
Still haven't figured it out? Take a closer look...
Yup, that's right! It's a wine fountain! And it's free!
After Villamayor de Monjardín, just before the midway point for the day's kilometers, it was a long walk and there were no villages or even any fountains. I got very tired and sore for some reason even though I've gone farther in a day. It just never seemed to end. And then finally, the most beautiful sight!
What, you don't think that's pretty? Well... it isn't. But you walk for twelve or thirteen miles and end up with sore hips, knees and feet and then tell me it's not a beautiful sight after coming around a hill, when nothing else has been visible except fields, fields, and more fields. Although it's true that the Spanish town of Los Arcos is not pretty. In fact it's one of the least pretty towns/villages I've been through so far.
It's hiding a real treasure, though. La Iglesia Santa Maria.
Even the giant choir books are pretty. But maybe that's just me, because I love books.
I had met Dan again (at least I think that's his name). He's an American pilgrim I first met when I took a short day, the same day I lost my underwear. He'd already eaten, but he joined me for some wine while I had Paella Arroz Negro (black rice paella, made black because of the squid ink in the dish) and sangria. We sat in the sun for a while, about two or three hours. I ended up with a little sunburn but I hardly noticed because the weather's been so cold. It's like November.
I was so sore yesterday that I thought about taking a rest day. I didn't, but I did get off to a late start today and ended very early, so I only walked seven or eight kilometers. It's been a nice, relaxing day.
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