Category: Liminal Space

As the Camino leaves the village of Tosantos, across the river you can see a stone structure built into the bluff. This is the Ermita Virgen de la Peña – the hermitage of the Virgin of the Cliff. Legend has it that an 8th century statue of Virgin and Child was hidden under a bell in a cave here during […]

This little footbridge runs next to the larger bridge bearing the N-120 highway over the Río Tirón. Viola is far ahead of Eamon here, and I’m trailing. Probably because I was trying to get this photo. We have now left the sprawling town of Belorado. Somehow, we still haven’t managed to get breakfast. Well, the next town is only an […]

This magnificent 12th century Baptismal font is located in the Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Calle in the small town of Redecilla del Camino. The base is decorated by eight columns, representing the Resurrection on the “eighth day” of creation. The number eight figures prominently in fonts from antiquity to the present day. The decoration on the bowl represents […]

This door, so ordinary and mysterious, may be found in the small town of Redecilla del Camino at number 25 Calle Major, just across from a small playground. A quick Google maps search seven years later reveals that it still looks exactly the same. Unlike most of the buildings on the street, it does not appear to be inhabited, though […]

And we’re back. It’s been several weeks since my last photo post. For the reasons, I refer you to the post on my main blog where I discuss These Trying Times. And then there was that whole “election” thing in the United States. We’ll try to pick up where we left off (more or less), and I’ll try to be […]

This rather foreboding archway is actually part of the portico for the Cathedral in Santo Domingo de la Calzada, as seen from the side. It looks as dark as it does because the sky was overcast. The sign to the left advertises tickets for the tour of the Cathedral. Of course, you can go right in and walk around yourself. […]

I’m fascinated by the texture of decay. This barn – garage? – is such a patchwork of rebuild and repair it’s almost impossible to determine what is original. It’s glorious. And with that, we bid Cirueña farewell. Date: 09 April 2013Place: Cirueña (La Rioja, Spain)Today started: in Ventosa (La Rioja, Spain)

One last photo from the cloister of Santa María la Real: the entrance to the cloister. You may remember the wonderful arches from yesterday’s photo of the cloister, well here’s mother of them all, the one containing the gates entering onto what the nearby sign calls “el Jardín del Edén”. All that’s missing is the Angel with the flaming sword: […]

In the old town center of Nájera, we come to the grand monastery of Santa María la Real. It was established by King García Sánchez III of Navarra in 1052 as the place of burial of the Kings and Queens of Navarra. After his death in 1054, the monastery and royal pantheon was granted to the monks of Cluny by […]

We arrived in the village of Ventosa and were delighted to discover this charming and well-appointed albergue, the Albergue de Peregrinos San Saturnino. Although we had only walked 20km today, we were all pretty beat. The flags in the photo will give you an idea of the winds we were walking into most of the afternoon. Date: 08 April 2013Place: […]