Another all day rain. And it was cold and windy. I left a little earlier today because I knew it was going to be a long day. 19.2 miles and 44,194 steps. I did have a little spring in my step because the bad boy of bridge (Dennis) was due to meet me at the hotel in Lograno.
This is the entrance to the church of Santa Maria, built in the Navarrase Baroque style. I didn't actually know that...it was on the sign at the church. I went to the Church twice hoping that it would be open but it never was. Too bad. I love to go in the old churches and Cathedrals.
I passed through the Castle Gate or Castilla Gate on the way out of town. It is one of two remaining gates into the town.
We climbed and we climbed today and in spite of the rain, the scenery was beautiful.
I am amazed at the greenness of the landscape but it was really cold and windy. It was hard to even look around without being blown off the mountain.
As much trouble as it was to shed rain gear and backpack, I wanted to go into the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The brochure said "The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is nowadays considered a funeral church on the Road to Santiago. It belonged to the Holy Sepulchre Hiersolymitana of Jerusalem." It was a one room church with eight sides and was quite lovely but austere inside. The crucifix was especially beautiful. The brochure said that "the crucifix presides over the temple with a real crown and four nails but its authenticity is already a certainty because it dates back to the beginning of the 13th century." I looked up what the Holy Sepulchre Hiersolymitana of Jerusalem was and it is associated with the Greek Orthodox Church in Jerusalem and futher associated with the Crucifixion of Jesus. I said my prayers inside and then put all my wet gear back on to finish the trail.
Notice the umbrella, then look... both hands are operating hiking poles. She either had a special umbrella or had figured out a way to walk hands free with an umbrella. I am definitely going to have to research this.
So many times, I see memorials to individuals and mostly, I think they are pilgrims who have died along the Camino. I always bow my head when I pass them.
Such beautiful scenery!
It was a whole village of Cairns. Cairns was stacks of rocks made by hikers. They signify a special place or the collective effort of many hikers to add to the pile of rocks.
This church was high in the mountains. I though the tile was exceptional. I think that is Santiago in her lap and she is protecting him.
High in the mountains I saw many of these little shelters. I am sure if you were caught in a blizzard, you would be thankful to crawl into one. I, however, being scared of spiders would have to be really desperate to use one of them.
This is the Santa Maria of Viana Church and it was open. Woohoo! I went through the laborious process of shedding my rain gear and equipment to see the church and offer some prayers.
As I went into the front door, there was a beautiful likeness of Santiago. He was enclosed in a glass case.
This is the portal de San Felices, a Rioja Saint, that leads out of Viana. In olden days, muleteers drove their teams through the gates and into the city. Delivering wine? The Rioja district is famous for it's excellent wine.
Many of the rivers in Spain are out of their banks and more than once I have had to hike through ankle high water. And he rivers are fast flowing, not to be toyed with.
Some graffiti is good to see.
The distant mountains are snow covered and Dennis said that it snowed on him on the way to Lograno.
A foot bridge over the interstate.
My first sighting of Lograno! It turned out to be about three more miles of walking. Mama Mia...my feet at getting tired!
Although this was a poor part of town, it was clear that the owner took great pride in their residence. Look at all the pots of flowers
The Lograno tribute to the pilgrims!
So I got to my hotel and Dennis arrived about ten minutes later! Boy was I glad to see him. The next couple of weeks will be fun
So I have a funy to tell you. A few days ago, I emailed my friend Nancy to tell her I couldn't wait to see the pendant she got for her anniversary, only I sent it to Dennis. He replied asking me "what pendant?" I got a chuckle and said "no, no...that email was meant for Nancy." Unbeknownst to me, Dennis was actually looking at a pendant at the jewelry store for me to celebrate our anniversary. He told me the story and when he got my email, he was trying to figure out how the Sam Hill, I knew about the pendant....those darn FBI types. We had a big laugh. The pendant is a very beautiful cloisonne and I am thrilled. Our 12 year anniversary is April 15.
Adios for today!
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