Author: Thom

We stopped into a little home-shop. The dog was sleeping so soundly when we went in, I nearly thought it was dead. Fortunately, it came to life. Here it’s sort of staggering to its feet, still half-asleep. We saw a lot of animals on the Camino – cows, sheep, dogs, and an enormous number of cats. We never saw one […]

Amidst the fields and flowers and vineyards of La Rioja, we walk an asphalt path towards the capital city, Logroño. Today’s walk was relatively easy, other than the fact that most of the day’s travel was on asphalt or pavement. I always say that a kilometer on pavement is worth two kilometers on anything else. It’s hard on the feet! […]

And just like that, in the quasi-industrial outskirts of the city of Logroño, we leave the Kingdom of Navarra and enter the Autonomous Community of La Rioja. This region was fought over by the Kingdoms of Castilla and Navarra for centuries. The western stretches were culturally Castillan, whereas the eastern parts were Navarrese. Eventually, the region developed its own personality […]

Sometimes, you just need to stop a moment. We’ve been walking several hours at this point, and Francine is pretty clearly in some pain. Thank goodness for socialized medicine! In the distance, you can see the city of Logroño. This is to be our lunchtime destination. I wrote in my journal that today was “walking to Logroño, followed by walking […]

We are approaching the end of Navarra, our first Spanish region in the Camino. Mind you, the next region we enter was part of Medieval Navarra and didn’t really exist in its current form until 1980. But more on that later. Most of the morning on this day was over hill and dale, through the Navarran vineyards, and ever closer […]

Just a little past Viana, possibly at a place marked “Cementerio” on my map, is this church. It’s hard to tell how old it is, since whatever the age it has clearly undergone extensive restoration and remodeling within the past few decades. It’s possible, of course, that “cementerio” refers to the surround fields of the undead, seen here pushing their […]

We wish you all a most happy Christmas! The Camino passes under the N-111 highway just after Viana, and this bit of graffiti greets you on the other side. It’s been there at least three years, since I saw it on my 2013 Camino as well. Date: 07 April 2016 Place: Leaving Viana – under the N-111 (Navarra, Spain) Map […]

Every town, no matter how charming or beautiful, has its rough sides. I don’t know if this is Viana’s, but it certainly isn’t the best foot forward. It’s just your basic vacant lot with a looming hill town in the background. Date: 07 April 2016 Place: Viana (Navarra, Spain) Map of the day:

The Camino wends its way through a number of towns, and in doing so typically wanders through the oldest neighbourhoods. Viana is no exception. Other than replacing some of the cobbles with concrete, these narrow, winding streets can scarcely have changed since medieval times. Date: 07 April 2016 Place: Viana (Navarra, Spain) Map of the day:

Every day of our Camino, Francine and I took a morning selfie. Normally, they were on her camera, but here’s one on mine. This is the start of April 7 – my mother’s birthday. It’s day 9 of the Camino, and we’re in Viana. My beard is already looking pretty weird. We’re barely awake. Ultreïa! Date: 07 April 2016 Place: […]