Day 7: Next Time Won’t You Sing With Me

Day 7

Sansol –> Logroño (about 21km/13 miles)

Today was a short(er) day going into Logroño. I had wanted to sleep until 7 and have an easy day, but alas, we were kicked out of the albergue before 7:30 AM. Thanks. I wish I had gone the extra 10 minutes to Torres del Río yesterday, but I thought it was farther than it was.

In the beginning of the walk, the paths were crowded with everyone leaving at the same time. Before long, however, it felt like I was walking alone, with just a few people ahead of me and behind me.

I’m constantly amazed by the people I see on the Camino. Early on my walk today, I saw a man who set up a truck with some chairs and tables for thirsty pilgrims. He had the truck connected to his car and a generator. Unfortunately, I wasn’t in need of a beverage at that time.

I continued along the path, occasionally crossing the highway. Vineyards went on for miles and miles. Sometimes the path went up, up, up, but then we were rewarded with a descent.

Around 10 AM, I arrived in the town of Viana. It’s a medieval town, and its claim for fame is that it was once the stomping grounds for Cesare Borgia, one of the illegitimate sons of the Borgia pope. They were Valencian, but he lived and died here. Off the Camino path, his body is buried in another cathedral in Viana.

I grabbed some cold water and an ensaïmada before strolling into an old cathedral, now in ruins. The Catedral de San Pedro was hauntingly beautiful. I waked around and settled in the gardens to eat my snack. The weather was beautiful, so I just took it all in.

Before leaving the cute town, I wandered into the cathedral. Before entering, a group of children walked up to me and asked if I could help them with some dance, called “chiki chiki miau miau” or something like that. It consists of a shimmy and cat motions. They filmed it and ran off.

When I walked out of the cathedral, I was approached by another group of children. They’re all doing a summer camp and had to do some sort of scavenger hunt. This time, I had to sing a song about Viana … in euskara (or Basque). I don’t remember the whole song, but it started off saying “Hau da Viana”. They wrote the lyrics out for me on a phone, I asked for the pronunciation, and we sang the song. That brought a smile to my day.

After this, I left Viana. The next stop was Logroño. There was nothing in between. I continued to pass grape vines and highways. Eventually, I crossed into the La Rioja region, leaving Navarra.

The road into Logroño is cruel. It goes uphill until finally, you can breathe and go downhill. At the bottom of the hill lives and old woman. Her mother used to sit there and help the pilgrims. Her name was Felise. Now, her daughter María helps out. I got a stamp in my credential from her.

At that stop, I ran into a friend from my Camino. I was surprised to find her because I thought she would be far ahead of me. We finished our walk into Logroño together, giving us a good push to finish.

I’ve been to Logroño before, so I didn’t really need to do any sight seeing. I’m also doing something some pilgrims look down upon. I’m staying in a private room. -gasp- What can I say? I needed some space. I napped, I did some laundry, the usual. Tomorrow is a long day. About 18 miles. I need all the rest I can get.