{"id":58165,"date":"2013-04-10T09:28:57","date_gmt":"2013-04-10T16:28:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/la-rioja-where-the-wind-comes-whipping-down-the-plain\/"},"modified":"2013-04-22T22:42:07","modified_gmt":"2013-04-23T05:42:07","slug":"la-rioja-where-the-wind-comes-whipping-down-the-plain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/la-rioja-where-the-wind-comes-whipping-down-the-plain\/","title":{"rendered":"La Rioja! Where the Wind Comes Whipping down the Plain\u2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

09 April 2013<\/p>\n

When you think that the Camino can\u00b4t get more demanding, it usually does.<\/p>\n

We left Ventosa (which apparently means “windy”, which should have been our first clue) at about 7:30, despite our best efforts to be out the door by 7.<\/p>\n

By 9:30, we were drinking our cafe con leche\u00b4s in Najera, 10 km on.<\/p>\n

In Najera, we visited the beautiful Monasterio de Santa Maria la Real, where some of the kings of Navarre are entombed. It was a grand building, despite a rather ignoble period of its history after the Spanish state dissolved the monasteries.<\/p>\n

It served as a barracks, a prison, even a bull ring, before it was declared a national cultural treasure and given over to the Franciscans about 150 years ago.<\/p>\n

We spent rather too much time in Najera, but the walk through the vinyards to lunch in Azofra was pleasant enough.<\/p>\n

It was after this, that the rather strong and constant winds we\u00b4ve had the past few days suddenly became the most absurd headwind ever.<\/p>\n

They were listed at 30 – 40 kph, and Patrick mentioned that he\u00b4d been in tropical storms that were less windy.<\/p>\n

We fought these winds for 15 km that seemed like 30.<\/p>\n

We passed through the eerie and apocalytic town of Ciruna, full of new, modern housing developments, but utterly bereft of people. <\/p>\n

We expected zombies at any moment.<\/p>\n

And then, back to the wind.<\/p>\n

Eamon and Petra surged ahead, propelled by youth and long legs. Patrick, Viola, and I struggled, exhorting and encouraging each other, occasionally shouting and swearing at the wind.<\/p>\n

When we crested the (almost) last hill and saw the town of Santo Domingo de la Calzada in the valley below us, we shouted and wept for joy.<\/p>\n

It was, we decided, the most beautiful city ever built by human hands. The streets are paved with chorizo and jamon, the fountains flow with vino tinto and the river is surely cerveza.<\/p>\n

Angels sing of its wonders. If we could have danced for joy, we would have.<\/p>\n

\"20130410-202209.jpg\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"20130410-202254.jpg\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"20130410-202327.jpg\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"20130410-202441.jpg\"<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

09 April 2013 When you think that the Camino can\u00b4t get more demanding, it usually does. We left Ventosa (which apparently means “windy”, which should have been our first clue) at about 7:30, despite our best efforts to be out the door by 7. By 9:30, we were drinking our cafe con leche\u00b4s in Najera, 10 km on. In Najera, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[40],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-58165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-camino"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1aGBK-f89","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":83921,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/one-year-ago-into-the-gale\/","url_meta":{"origin":58165,"position":0},"title":"One Year Ago: Into the Gale","author":"Thom","date":"09 April 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"(from my journal) N\u00e1jera 09 April La Rioja: Somewhere West of Ventosa, Early Morning The Vineyards of La Rioja Viola with a Shepherd\u2019s Hut We left Ventosa at 7:30, despite our best efforts to be out by 7. Nevertheless, here we are drinking caf\u00e9 con leche, 10km on, at 9:30\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Camino"","block_context":{"text":"Camino","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/camino\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"La Rioja: Somewhere West of Ventosa, Early Morning","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/8728990345_1920cfbb0d_b.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/8728990345_1920cfbb0d_b.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/8728990345_1920cfbb0d_b.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/8728990345_1920cfbb0d_b.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":106362,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/santo-domingo-de-la-calzada\/","url_meta":{"origin":58165,"position":1},"title":"Santo Domingo de la Calzada","author":"Thom","date":"12 May 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"the crowing of the rooster in the cathedral. My introduction to Santo Domingo de la Calzada came on my first Camino. There's a town early on named for him that contains a cathedral dedicated to him. Today is his feast day, so it might be good to learn something about\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Camino"","block_context":{"text":"Camino","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/camino\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Santo-Domingo-de-la-Calzada.jpg?fit=530%2C707&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Santo-Domingo-de-la-Calzada.jpg?fit=530%2C707&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Santo-Domingo-de-la-Calzada.jpg?fit=530%2C707&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":107804,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/santo-domingo-de-la-calzada-2023\/","url_meta":{"origin":58165,"position":2},"title":"Santo Domingo de la Calzada","author":"Thom","date":"12 May 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"the crowing of the rooster in the cathedral. My introduction to Santo Domingo de la Calzada came on my first Camino. There's a town early on named for him that contains a cathedral dedicated to him. Today is his feast day, so it might be good to learn something about\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Annual"","block_context":{"text":"Annual","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/annual\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Santo-Domingo-de-la-Calzada.jpg?fit=530%2C707&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Santo-Domingo-de-la-Calzada.jpg?fit=530%2C707&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/Santo-Domingo-de-la-Calzada.jpg?fit=530%2C707&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":107941,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/tentative-itinerary-for-my-long-camino\/","url_meta":{"origin":58165,"position":3},"title":"Tentative Itinerary for my Long Camino","author":"Thom","date":"09 July 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"is said that no plan survives contact with the enemy. To this I would add that no plan survives contact with the Camino. Nevertheless, and with some sense of trepidation, I offer here my plan for my \"long Camino\". This is a total of 65 days walking (plus a scheduled\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Camino"","block_context":{"text":"Camino","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/camino\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/VP-route-v5-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C512&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/VP-route-v5-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C512&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/VP-route-v5-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C512&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/VP-route-v5-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C512&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/VP-route-v5-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C512&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":109833,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/planning-the-via-lemovicensis-or-well-never-have-paris\/","url_meta":{"origin":58165,"position":4},"title":"Planning the Via Lemovicensis, or, We’ll Never Have Paris","author":"Thom","date":"29 September 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"I plan to walk a long Camino for Francine. Some background is probably in order. At the annual Gathering of Pilgrims back in 2022, Francine attended a talk on one of the four main Camino routes in France: the Voie de V\u00e9zelay, also known as the Via Lemovicensis. She was\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Camino"","block_context":{"text":"Camino","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/camino\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/vezelay.png?fit=837%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/vezelay.png?fit=837%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/vezelay.png?fit=837%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/vezelay.png?fit=837%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":10548,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/an-inadvertent-camino-day\/","url_meta":{"origin":58165,"position":5},"title":"An Inadvertent Camino Day","author":"Thom","date":"24 August 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Although there\u2019s no such thing as an \u201caverage\u201d day on the Camino, it would seem that 25km a day is a fair rate. Some days are less, of course, and some are a bit more. This past weekend, some buddies and I were on our annual camping trip. Well, we\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Camino"","block_context":{"text":"Camino","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/camino\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/Bumping.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/Bumping.png?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/Bumping.png?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58165","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58165"}],"version-history":[{"count":239,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58165\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":60564,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58165\/revisions\/60564"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}