Author: Thom

This church is definitely not on the street, so obviously I don’t understand its name. To get to the front door, one must climb these steps. There is a modern elevator that you can take from the street level, but I’m pretty sure that doesn’t have anything to do with the name. I recently learned that the stairs are even […]

Looking for a new place to live? Back in 2013, there were some great places for sale in Estella, right next to the old city hall. I wonder if they’re still available? We’ve crossed back over the river in pursuit of the one church we’ve been told is actually open for visitors, San Pedro de la Rúa. I think it’s […]

The Río Ega winds its way through Estella. I took this photo from one of the bridges. It shows off the town’s steep topography pretty well. I’m not entirely sure which church that is in the background, although I suspect it’s the Iglesia de Santo Sepulcro. The town map below will give you a clearer idea of the river’s path. […]

The town of Estella is nestled in a steep river valley. The banks rise up into craggy hills throughout the town, giving it a fairly vertical topography. There are quite a few places where streets suddenly give way to long flights of stone stairs. On the left of this photo is the shored up plateau on which sits the Iglesia […]

These four figures may be found on the façade of the Iglesia San Miguel in Estella. Who are they? Buoyed by the certainty that the rightmost figure was Saint Peter – the keys are a giveaway – I leapt to the conclusion that they were apostles. Unfortunately, the two center figures are wearing a crown and a miter, so that […]

After settling into our albergue, I ran over to the nearby church, also dedicated to Saint Michael the Archangel. This is the view as you approach, but it’s nothing compared to the closeups. This is my third Saint Michael today: first the hermitage, then the albergue, and now the church. Turns out there would be fourth before the day was […]

As it enters Estella, the Camino follows the bank of the Río Ega, which winds its way through the town. We soon pass by the the unfinished and partially ruined Iglesia de Santo Sepulcro. Construction began in the early 12th century, when the church was the headquarters of a group called the Cofradía del Santo Sepulcro (Brotherhood of the Holy […]

The town of Estella is serious about pilgrim hospitality. After all, they’ve got to live up to their reputation! Of the four albergues listed, we headed over to the parroquial, which was named after Saint Michael. Seemed appropriate after spending quite some time in his hermitage earlier. In town, we ran into many of the pilgrims we’d been walking with […]

This pilgrim fountain is right before the town of Estella. The engraved words are those of Aymeric Picaud, a twelfth century monk and pilgrim. He is quoted in the Codex Calixtinus as saying that Estella had “good bread, excellent wine, plenty of meat and fish and every kind of happiness” for pilgrims. And indeed, it still does. Date: 05 April […]