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Day 0 - Arriving at the start…

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 I am in St Jean Pied de Port the most popular starting point of El Camino De Santiago(Frances).  It was an early start today in the predawn. I took the train from Madrid to Pamplona, and then walked half an hour to catch the bus from Pamplona to St Jean Pied de Port.  Gate in the old city of Pamplona First siting of bicyclists doing El Camino On the train from Pamplona. I met several other pilgrims while on the train. 3 of them opted to get a taxi to St Jean and 2 of us already had bus tickets so we walked to the train station.  Madrid in the predawn.  The Pilgrim’s office in SJPP. Very busy this time of year. They provide general advice and also an official credential.  The church Inside the church The river Nieve The old town as seen from the citadel  Lots of “ports” in this town
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To Santo Domingo de la Calzadores

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 Another perfect day for walking: temperatures in the low 60s and overcast. I heard a new bird call today. It was the corn bunting. It was mostly a rural walk with fields of wheat and canola, and a few vineyards. I saw another “beehive”, and of course the raised aqueducts. There was some really interesting art on the walk today I arrived earlier than I expected in Santo Domingo, so I had the opportunity to play tourist. Santo Domingo was born in 1079. He wanted to dedicate his life to God, but was not accepted in seminary. So instead, he dedicated his life to making the way easier for the pilgrims. In this town, he built a bridge over the river, as depicted in the piece of art at the top. He also built a hospital for the pilgrims and a church. The hospital has now been turned into a luxury hotel call the Parador.  The city was once a walled city, and you can still see parts of the wall. The church has become a cathedral, and I visited the cathedral and the bell tower and the e...
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Booking

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 Well, I have done the thing that I did not want to do. I have booked my night’s stays all the way to Santiago de Compostela. I find this very stressful. Now I will have to walk exactly the distances I chose today. No stopping at interesting spots etc.  I tried to get a bed for tomorrow 3 days ago, but was unable to get a booking for tomorrow night, except for 36 km away And that is too far for me. I will take the bus part of the way and walk the rest of the way. This experience encouraged me to spend the day trying to book the beds. I took an extra day here in Logroño. Even the Pilgrims’ office is encouraging everyone to book at least four nights out.  These poor pilgrims at my hostel have just figured out that there are no reservations within a 3 day walk of Logroño. They are all trying different tactics to make it work. One is trying to stay 3 nights in one place then walk tomorrow as far as he can then bus to his reservation then the next day bus back to where he had ...
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