{"id":83915,"date":"2014-04-06T08:00:45","date_gmt":"2014-04-06T15:00:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/one-year-ago-snow\/"},"modified":"2014-04-16T09:42:20","modified_gmt":"2014-04-16T16:42:20","slug":"one-year-ago-snow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/one-year-ago-snow\/","title":{"rendered":"One Year Ago: Snow!"},"content":{"rendered":"

(from my journal)<\/p>\n

Estella
\nE<\/span>aster Saturday \/ 5:20AM<\/p>\n

I woke up early and surprisingly refreshed. I wrote some post cards and will attempt to pack my bag before everyone else it up for breakfast.<\/p>\n

It’s snowing.<\/p>\n

\"Breakfast<\/a><\/p>\n

Breakfast in Estella. Eamon and Patrick in the corner.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Los Arcos
\n4:30PM<\/p>\n

Arrived in Los Arcos about 3PM. This morning, Charlie, Eamon, Petra, and I set off from Estella in high spirits and snow. While not heavy or constant, it was thick, gloopy stuff. It didn’t stick to the roads, but did most everywhere else.<\/p>\n

We stopped for a quick caf\u00e9 con leche and croissant in the outskirts of Estella before pushing on to Irache. There, we generally made fools of ourselves drinking from and posing for photos next to the famous wine fountain.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a><\/p>\n

The Wine Fountain at Irache<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

It’s possible that I over-hyped it in my head, or maybe it was the sleet and snow, but I left feeling vaguely disappointed. The wine wasn’t very good either.<\/p>\n

By the time we reached Villamajor, in the shadows of the castle of Montjardin, it was downright Christmassy.<\/p>\n

\"Walking<\/a><\/p>\n

\"8729597494_8a4c90ca0c_b\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"8728479337_b0ce38ff49_b\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"8728478359_167ab3a404_b\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"8728480033_910cb3be04_b\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Spent quite a lot of time talking with Eamon while the others fell behind. Visited the church in Villamajor. While th emedieval statues were nice, the rest of the Romanesque interior looked rather like it had been gutted by iconoclasts. Cold stone with no relief.<\/p>\n

We took a wrong turn after the church and started climbing to the castle. We were soon put right and began the descent from the town, only to discover Charlie and Petra waiting for us.<\/p>\n

We descended out of the snow , and I walked with Charlie the rest of the day – fascinating fellow. He retired from the British army and worked military sales in Indonesia for a number years before abruptly changing careers in his fifties. He training to become a psychotherapist and now has a small practice.<\/p>\n

The Way wound up and down and around hills and ridges through ancient vineyards, until we came happily and at last to Los Arcos, where Eamon and Petra were waiting for us. We checked into the most charming albergue yet, with the longest name we’d seen, Albergue la Fuente Casa de Austria.<\/p>\n

\"8728486115_b68d12d268_b\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Early<\/a><\/p>\n

Early April Vineyards<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"Los<\/a><\/p>\n

Los Arcos<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"Eamon\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Eamon<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"Petra\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Petra<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"Patrick\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Patrick<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Charlie and I talked a bit about the Camino and why we wanted – or needed – to walk the Way. <\/p>\n

I still haven’t worked it out.<\/p>\n

\n

8:00PM<\/p>\n

Sunday Mass on Saturday night in the local church of Santa Maria. Impressive enough on the outside, but the interior was a cavalcade of baroque gold, three stories tall. I counted nine altars, but I certainly missed some. We tried to get photos after Mass, but it was impossible to get everything in frame. Afterwards, the priest gave us all the pilgrim’s blessing.<\/p>\n

\"8728495819_ffeff11409_b\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"8728493879_c429b1b8b9_b\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"8729610710_5017e51794_b\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"8728492767_eba5ef9f8d_b\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"8728508767_d246f5102b_b\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"8728507539_12fa56b3e0_b\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"8729620930_e220140ab4_b\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"8728500519_65c347014c_b\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Albergue<\/a><\/p>\n

Albergue la Fuente Casa de Austria<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

All the photos: day 5<\/a>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(from my journal) Estella Easter Saturday \/ 5:20AM I woke up early and surprisingly refreshed. I wrote some post cards and will attempt to pack my bag before everyone else it up for breakfast. It’s snowing. Breakfast in Estella. Eamon and Patrick in the corner. Los Arcos 4:30PM Arrived in Los Arcos about 3PM. This morning, Charlie, Eamon, Petra, and […]<\/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-83915","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-camino"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1aGBK-lPt","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":57264,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/snowing-from-estella\/","url_meta":{"origin":83915,"position":0},"title":"Snowing from Estella","author":"Thom","date":"06 April 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"I\u00b4m currently in the town of Los Arcos. Four of us set off from Estella this morning in high spirits and falling snow. While it wasn\u00b4t heavy or constant, it was thick, gloopy stuff. Flakes the size of walnuts! It didn\u00b4t stick to the roads, but did most everywhere else.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Camino"","block_context":{"text":"Camino","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/camino\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":83911,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/one-year-ago-saint-michael-the-archangel\/","url_meta":{"origin":83915,"position":1},"title":"One Year Ago: Saint Michael the Archangel","author":"Thom","date":"05 April 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"(from my journal) Ma\u00f1eru Easter Friday \/ Noon Seven AM wake-up call and on the Road. Ali and Cliff remained in Puente la Reina. Ali is getting some help for an allergic reaction to her socks. Cliff\u2019s blisters are getting worse, so he\u2019s planning on resting a few days and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Camino"","block_context":{"text":"Camino","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/camino\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Morning in Puente la Reina","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/8728272155_a66f9b1a3f_b.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/8728272155_a66f9b1a3f_b.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/8728272155_a66f9b1a3f_b.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/8728272155_a66f9b1a3f_b.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":83914,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/one-year-ago-an-easy-28-km-walk\/","url_meta":{"origin":83915,"position":2},"title":"One Year Ago: an Easy 28 km Walk","author":"Thom","date":"07 April 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"(from my journal) Logro\u00f1o Divine Mercy Sunday \/ 6PM Petra and Claus having breakfast at our wonderful albergue in Los Arcos Charlie, setting out from Los Arcos Today I walked 28 km. From Los Arcos it was a delightfully easy 7 km to Sansol. Onward, we walked over easy roads\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Camino"","block_context":{"text":"Camino","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/camino\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Petra and Claus having breakfast at our wonderful albergue in Los Arcos","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/8728635953_f1c53b793c_b.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/8728635953_f1c53b793c_b.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/8728635953_f1c53b793c_b.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/8728635953_f1c53b793c_b.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":83957,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/one-year-ago-the-meseta-nears-its-end\/","url_meta":{"origin":83915,"position":3},"title":"One Year Ago: the Meseta Nears its End","author":"Thom","date":"18 April 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"(from my journal) Mansilla de las Mulas 18 April Another long Meseta trek. Breakfast in El Burgo Ranero. Met a cat outside the bar who begged for food. Power-walked after El Burgo Ranero \u2013 not sure why the energy. Met back up with Eamon at rest area about 5km before\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Camino"","block_context":{"text":"Camino","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/camino\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Meseta approaching El Burgo Ranero","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/9037579422_95eee4d991_b.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/9037579422_95eee4d991_b.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/9037579422_95eee4d991_b.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/9037579422_95eee4d991_b.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":57134,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/the-rain-in-spain-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":83915,"position":4},"title":"The Rain in Spain?","author":"Thom","date":"05 April 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Just a quick note as we leave Estella. It\u00b4s been raining on and off since I arrived on the Camino, though yesterday was clear and gorgeous. This morning, however, the Camino has a new surprise for us. It\u00b4s snowing. It\u00b4s not sticking, mind, but big wet flakes of snow are\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Camino"","block_context":{"text":"Camino","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/camino\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":83905,"url":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/one-year-ago-walking-at-last\/","url_meta":{"origin":83915,"position":5},"title":"One Year Ago: Walking at Last","author":"Thom","date":"02 April 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"(from my journal) Roncesvalles Easter Tuesday \/ 6:52AM \u201cWake Up, Little Susie\u201d at 6:30, played on guitar and sung by a very enthusiastic minstrel. Oy. Looking back at Roncesvalles Setting off at last! This is the photo that every pilgrim has taken. Zubiri \/ Albuergue Zaldiko Easter Tuesday \/ 3:45PM\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Camino"","block_context":{"text":"Camino","link":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/category\/camino\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Leaving Roncesvalles","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/8613862020_975a524499_b.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/8613862020_975a524499_b.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/8613862020_975a524499_b.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thomryng.com\/camino\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/04\/8613862020_975a524499_b.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83915","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=83915"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83915\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":83917,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83915\/revisions\/83917"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=83915"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=83915"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thomryng.com\/amateurmonk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=83915"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}