On the road again

Sunday 14th May - Mothers Day

We enjoyed our 2 days in Galbarra (not to be found on any map we had) and time to move on, headed for Pamplona. Along the way we visited a village called Puente la Reina whose claim to fame is a bridge built in the 11th century. There were a number of churches in the town and nearby, most built in the 12th century along the way of the Camino de Santiago. Here we saw lots of walkers - in the teeming rain. I would have taken the day off and stayed warm and dry in my hotel - but that's not the spirit I don't think. 

Casa rural Landa in the village of Galbarra.

Puente de la Reina - stork coming in to land.

The Queens bridge - 11th century.

Love this door knocker.

This terrier loved being dragged along on his back. 

The walking trail. Can't believe the number of walkers out in the pouring rain.

This church was beautiful in its simplicity.

This cross was from the Knights Templar.

Enjoyed a break in the village for coffee and a snack. We have got used to 2 different styles of coffee - cafe con leche, which is coffee with a lot of hot milk, and cafe solo lago which is sort of a long espresso, but not as long as a long black.

On to Pamplona - and this was looking like a disaster in the accommodation stakes. When we arrived the place looked unattended and we questioned whether it was still operating. We found an open door, and the cleaner, who eventually called the owner. He arrived 10 minutes later, and we were in. Then we headed off to do the laundry at a service station we spotted on the way in. The guys at the service station had some English so we were able to have a bit of conversation with them, and buy a sandwich for lunch. Not every mother gets to have a sandwich at a service station for lunch on Mother's Day while doing the laundry. 

They sell wine at the service station. 

When we got back to the pension there was a couple waiting outside in their car. They had a booking too and were hopeful that we were the owners. We tried phoning and emailing but were getting nowhere. The other fellow had a snoop around upstairs and found a cupboard with room keys in it, so they took one and claimed a room. They can sort it out with the owner if he puts in an appearance. And I've just figured out how to use google translate conversation so we were able to 'talk' with the other couple.