Puente La Reina to Maneru to Estella by bus

It was supposed to be raining this morning yet thankfully it had not yet arrived. We had breakfast at the hostel and started walking by eight. I took a few pictures on the way out of town. One was of the Queens Bridge. She purposely had it built to give safe passage for the increasing number of pilgrims passing through on their way to Santiago, in the 11th century. This entire trip is filled with 11th to 14th century architecture. Much of it still in use today.

 I climbed a steep hill to a Cathedral that displays the crucifixion on a Y shaped cross. It was called a robber’s cross brought here by German pilgrims in the 13 or 14th century. 

The morning was getting late so we started our walk to Estella. Clouds in the distance were darkening and moving our way. Climbing a pretty steep hill, it started misting. In another 15 minutes thunder cracked and lightning was all around us. It was raining hard by the time we topped the hill and arrived at Maneru. We hurriedly looked for cover under an awning where three other hikers had congregated. Every one was discussing their next move. I checked the weather and things were predicted to get worse the rest of the day. Carolyn and I decided it best to catch a taxi or bus to the next town. We found a bus stop but were having difficulty reading the schedule. A man saw us and offered to help. His name was Fermin. He called around and determined that all taxis were far away. He interpreted the bus schedule but realized we were at the wrong bus stop. In the rain he chaperoned us to another stop. We had just arrived when a car pulled up. A woman got out and joyously said “Carolyn and Tom, my friends!’’. We thanked Fermin and I took a picture of the group before he left.

The lady’s name was Pilar and she is from Ecuador. We had met her on our first day in Saint Jean. in fact she was the first person we spoke to while standing in line to register for the Camino. I think the three of us were drawn to each other at that first meeting. She told us of her storm experience while we waited for the bus.

Finally in Estella, the three of us went to the nearest cafe to get out of the rain. Over hot chocolate we thought again about the chances of meeting each other under those circumstances and how her experience of the storm was much like ours. She had become afraid and disoriented. From out of nowhere she heard a voice call her name. You could imagine how surprised she must have been. The voice called again PILAR, PILAR! She looked up and there was a woman calling out from a second story window. “Come up here and get out of the rain. Pilar asked “How do you know my name”? “I recognize your face from pictures my mother had from her college days in Pamplona”. Indeed Pillar had been in college and friends with her mother. But that was forty years ago.
They talked and she agreed to take Pilar to the bus stop. The same bus stop that Fermin brought us to and we arrived at exactly the same moment as Pilar. Two days later she and I walked together from Vianna to Legrono telling stories of our past and developing a special friendship that will continue long after the Camino. Carolyn and I plan to meet with Pilar in the future. She is a really extraordinary person.

There are so many events like these happening every day.`From the historical sights to the relationship building, not to mention the physical effort of walking from town to town, a day on the Camino has a way of changing you. You begin to rely less on certainty and control and  look more toward mystery and possibilities that you could never have imagined. So did the storm change our plans? Or was this a plan chosen for us? Buen Camino on your journey!

This journey continues to Los Arcos