Death in the Afternoon

Ruth-
I am sitting just outside the Cathedral in Pamplona on the second last day of the San Fermin festival. During the festival the city bursts with about 1 million tourists and dare devils here for the running of the bulls.
I rode into Pamplona with a great guy from New Zealand. It was nice to have a companion for the ride into the city. We joined the Camino about 9km out and had a beautiful bike path the whole way in.
As we entered the city walls the smell of beer and urine hit us and we chose our route carefully through the broken glass. An American we met at dinner last night, who had visited Pamplona two days earlier, referred to the Vancouver riots as child's play by comparison.
The streets are terribly narrow for such a crazy event, and the barricades lining the route don't look like they would provide adequate protection for the spectators. The six bulls and six steers race through the kilometer route at speeds up to 24km/h!!!
Sitting in a square just a block off the main hub, is safe enough and great for people watching. I just talked to some Brits who ran with the bulls an hour earlier, and still looked very excited. They claimed it was safe as long as you stayed near the front... Right! The papers report however that between 200 and 300 people are injured each year. This year they have had 165 emergency services workers and 16 ambulances spread out over the route.Today, I guess was a relatively good day with only 7 people injured. A good day; unless your one of the bulls.

Later
Casa Carpintero Astráin, Spain

We have settled into a 400 year old B&B on the square of this tiny town. We are slightly off the Camino which might account for our very warm welcome here. I think some of our hosts, like the Señora from Larrasona, are a wee bit pilgrim weary.

Gordon - This evening we learned what became of the six bulls involved in this morning's run. We arrived at the bar for dinner just as today's bull fights were beginning, live on national television. I don't believe they carry this on TSN. While undoubtedly cruel, the picador and bandilleros cause real injury to the bulls and copious amounts of blood flow, we were riveted to the screen for two hours. The outcome for the bull is certain, but there is also the possibility of real injury or death for the human participants. In fact, one matador was thrown and trampled, but he returned to fight his second bull. It is sad to watch an animal go from magnificent athleticism to death in 10 minutes, but it was a compelling watch. And for sensitive, new age guys, please note that the six steers that ran with the bulls this morning are still alive and well and looking forward to tomorrow.

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Location:Pamplona, Spain

On Top of the Pyrenees or at least at a low pass.

Hotel Roncesvalles
Ruth-
It was a tough first day but I made it up the 900 meter climb over the Pyrenees and it is a wonderful feeling to be here. Gord and I took different routes this morning; he on the much higher Route Napoleon and me on the Valcarlos route. Every trip there is usually one thing I get really anxious about and today's climb was it this time. Although I would have loved one more lower gear, it was quite manageable with lots of rest stops and a bit of pushing. Nothing like the 17km of pushing I read on someone's blog. Eeek!
We were very lucky with the weather; it has been quite wet here but today the sun broke through by noon. As this shot suggests; sun is a rare thing in Roncesvalles.

Gordon - It was a glorious day on the route de Napoleon, which is the trail taken by most pilgrims in fair weather. The route climbs steeply at times, eventually rising 4,000 feet above St. Jean Pied de Porte. Unlike mountains in Canada, the Pyrenees are alive with human activity. Houses are found most of the way up, and the peaks are wide open pasture land dotted with herds of shaggy, horned
sheep. There are also a surprising number of single lane roads twisting over the landscape. Shortly before I reached the Spanish border I encountered a van selling drinks and snacks. In an effort to get pilgrims to stop, the vendor asked each one which country they were from, which he then entered on a chalk board. About 60 pilgrims had already passed ahead of me. Half of them were from either France or Spain, but in all about a dozen countries were represented, including Korea (9 pilgrims) and Israel. I was the first Canadian of the day.

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Location:Roncesvalles, Spain

Camino Eve

Gite Ultreia, St.Jean Pied de Port
The last time we were here was a much sadder time because we had to leave the camino. This time it is a starting point rather than an end. Tomorrow we cross the Pyrenees into Spain!!!!!
The Gite I pre booked in Roncesvalles for tomorrow night lost our reservation but they are giving us a room at their four star hotel for the same price. See- St Jacques is already delivering the goods! Of course the last fancy place we stayed at we had bed bugs so who knows.

The town is as beautiful as ever even though it is swarming with summer crowds. Sort of like Banff in July but with better cheese.

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Location:Rue de la Citadelle,Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port,France

Bayonne

Hotel des Arceaux , Bayonne

Bayonne is a beautiful place to recover from a long series of flights. Unfortunately, my synapses are firing in slow motion so I won't try to write much today.
After a brief period of lost baggage we are now all reunited with our stuff. Cycling without pedals and wheels for the trailer might have been tricky; not to mention the scandal I would created cycling without cycle shorts.


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Location:Rue Port Neuf,Bayonne,France

My Bike Friday!

Rule # 1 Never start looking on the used websites unless you have money to spend. Yesterday I bought a used folding bike that I have been wanting for years. It is an older version of the New-World Tourist pictured here, but it has been lovingly cared for by it's previous owner Jim. It comes with a trailer/suitcase that the bike fits into too! I haven't tried out the trailer, but the bike works beautifully! With a few more test rides, it might be Camino Bound!

Location:Russell St,Victoria,Canada

Year Three: Addicted to the Camino de Santiago 2011

Gord and I will be returning to the Camino de Santiago in July 2011 to pick up where we left off at St. Jean Pied de Port (kilometer 760 of our journey). This time I will be on bike and he will be on foot. I am done grieving that walking is not in  my plans and ready to cycle over the Pyrenees for the second time in a year. In order to stick together Gord will be walking long days and I will be cycling short ones. This is the first trip we have ever done together where he will be working harder than me. We fly into Bayonne France on July 8, and I am starting to get very excited.

Information on the Camino Frances

There is so much information out there on the Camino Frances, but I would recommend you start with the The Confraternity of Saint James. Their overview of the route can be found at: http://www.csj.org.uk/route-camino-frances.htm.