Navarrenx

Today was all up and down "rolling hills" which was kind of a nice change after several days of walking on mostly flat terrain. However, most of it was on asphalt again and that is hard on our feet and joints. The weather was a pleasant temperature for walking. At one point we passed a family that had 3 small children and 2 donkeys. The donkeys were laden with heavy saddle bags and the children had gathered dried corn and leaves to adorn themselves. 

Navarrenx is an old walled city with ancient ramparts that you can still walk on. It is a rather charming town that was brimming with life, especially in comparison to many of the other towns we walk through. Our Gite owner here is a character and cooked a delicious supper of vegetable soup, quinoa with ratatouille and roasted pork followed by local cheese and homemade jarred plums. All 8 of the guests tonight are native English speakers for a change. 

Patricia and I had a nice time checking out the town before I headed to a pilgrim gathering at the church which was all in French. I translated for some of the others as my French was the best of the non native speakers. It will be a challenge to have to start thinking in Spanish in a few days .

In a few days I will be in St Jean Pied de Port, the end of the Le Puy route and the beginning of the Camino Frances . I have walked 700 km already and plan to keep walking into Spain. I will play it by ear to see how far I will go, possibly to Santiago again. Day by day...