Accommodation: Hotel Itzaplea
Henk and I arrived at the medieval fortified town of St Jean-Pied-de-Port after an hour's journey by train and bus from Bayonne. Our walking experience began at the Bayonne train platform where approximately 50 pilgrims of all ages and sizes and from many different countries were also waiting for the train. We could immediately see that the estimate of over 100,000 pilgrims undertaking the Camino each year was not an overstatement.
We arranged to meet Neil, our fellow travelling companion, at our hotel at St Jeanat 1.00pm and it was good to see him. Neil arrived from Madrid the previous evening. We made the most of the sunny, warm afternoon starting with a late, long lunch at one of the many outdoor cafes lining the street. We then made our way to the Tourist Information Office and then onto the Camino Pilgrims Office to have our Pilgrim Passport stamped. We must have this passport stamped each day as proof that we have undertaken the walk to receive our Certificate of Completion or Compostela at Santiago de Compostela. The office was very helpful with advice on how best to tackle the first and most difficult day of the entire walk and gave us the weather conditions on the Pyrenees.
Our next stop was to one of the many souvenir shops along the steep street, Rue de la Citadelle, where I bought a large scollop shell to place on my backpack. The shell is the symbol of The Way of St James. Neil bought a much more demure shell to wear for the walk. Henk is wearing a Camino badge given to him by my sister who undertook the last 120 kms of the Camino last year. Many pilgrims carry a wooden staff with the shell and gourds to emulate St James. There were many from which to choose at the souvenir shop but we decided the less we carry the better and we didn't want to look too eager! Thankfully, we are only carrying day packs with our all-weather gear, food and water. Our luggage is being picked up each morning and transferred to each night's accommodation.
St-Jean-Pied-de-Port (St John at the foot of the mountain pass) is a busy, picturesque town filled with tourists and pilgrims. It sits at the foothills of the Pyrenees which loom close by. Tomorrow we will be climbing them to 1400m. The lady in the Pilgrim's Office told us to take it very slowly especially the first eight kilometres as it is very steep. We are hoping for an early start before the heat of the day sets in and to give us the time we will need to climb over the Pyrenees to Roncesvalles in Spain. Tomorrow our 820 kms journey begins.
Photos: A "selfie' of us at lunch; the Rue de la Citadelle; the river flowing through the town.
Will watch and read with interest, Henk and Di! Have a great time. Luggage being taken to next night's accommodation sounds a bit pampered! :-)
ReplyDeleteHi Di and Henk. Looks beautiful there. So picturesque and interesting. Glad to hear you are getting on to those foot issues. Don't need anything nasty developing at this early stage. Sonya
ReplyDeleteGorgeous :-)
ReplyDeleteI may have to stop Susan from reading this or I know what we'll be doing soon :-)
Too late! And yes, you are right :-) I'll read this with interest, Di and Henk, hope you have a fabulous time.
DeleteHi Henk and Di, We hope you don't mind that we are following your blog. We are Jan and Ineke and friends of Judy. We are planning in walking one of the camino's next year so are very interested in your experiences.
ReplyDeleteHi Jan and Ineke, Enjoy the blog. The big issue is the heat and we would suggest starting later in September. Cheers, Di
ReplyDelete