Puenta la Reina to Estella

Day 6:  Puenta la Reina to Estella

We awoke in our room in the early hours.  The room was pitch dark and stuffy, but the rustling of the other pilgrims signified it was time to go.  The only person who stayed asleep was Maas, the rest of us again gathered our things and left before dawn.  I remember looking for my boots, which were located outside on shelves, and there was no light except from my phone.
Once we left the Hotel Jakue, we discovered we had not even reached the town of Puenta la Reina.  It was a ten minute hike there, then through the town and then we actually saw the bridge for which the town was named.  It was a lesson to never stop at the first Albergue when approaching a village.

We walked and watched the sun come up.  This was our first clear day, without clouds, rain or threat of rain.  I snapped a photo of the blue, blue sky.
 
This entire week was Semana Santa, the Holy Week before Easter, and each day the number of pilgrims increased as Spaniards entered the camino.  For them the camino is always available, and they do different portions at different times of their lives, often with their families in tow.  Also, Spring Break (or the equivalent) had begun all across Europe, and their were Europeans from many countries.  We spoke with many of them, but sadly the names and faces blurred as most of them went home after Easter Sunday.
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The rest of the day was the long walk to Estella, a beautiful town with huge monuments and churches.  We had planned on staying in a private Albergue, but a passing Spaniard told us it was closed.  (We learned later that was incorrect information.)  In the meantime, we ended up at another municipal Albergue.  This was our third municipal, after Roncesvalles and Pamplona, and again it was a huge facility with 96 beds on three floors.  This one had a huge lobby, a nice enclosed courtyard and was the first place we stopped where the hospitalera told us to watch our belongings.  Of course immediately Leo lost his wallet and passport.  This created some worry and commotion, right until we realized both were inside his hat, sitting on the bed.

Leo and I had planned on meeting Susanne and Glaucia to explore this beautiful town, but we had our first major argument of the camino.  Neither one of us remember what it was about, but I would chalk it up to exhaustion, and spending time with one another 24 hours a day.  However, we did meet up with the girls a little while later, and we all decided to forego the pilgrim’s meal and find PIZZA!

We found a nice little pizzeria, ordered way too much food and drank way too much wine.  It was a fantastic bonding experience.  A guest of mine had given me $50 to have a good time in his honor, and as the bill was $50, it seemed a perfect time to do so.  Susanne and Glaucia protested, but I had already paid the bill.  What a fantastic memory.

Leo and I went back to the Albergue, but then decided to share a bottle of wine along the riverfront.  Then we went back to our crowded room of 20, and had a good sleep.