Molinaseca to Ponferada and Villafranca del Bierzo

We set off early and, incredibly after yesterdays walk, I find I'm OK. Just outside Ponferrada in Campo, near the roman cistern, we come across a memorial to an Irish pilgrim Joseph Carty. God rest him but I wonder if the descent into Molinaseca had something to do with his demise.

Memorial to Joseph Carty and Irish pilgrim who died just outside Ponferrada

Arrive into Ponferrada and go into a cafe near the Castillo and find Jozefien is there ahead of us! She's feeling a little blue. On that basis we declare it an official 'girly day'. So we go window shopping, drink coffee, loiter, lunch and phone our husbands for proper chats. Its disgraceful unpilgimly behaviour and thoroughly enjoyable.
I didn't realise just how much I miss perfume until, each looking like the wreck of the Hesperus-roots showing, nails wrecked & eyebrows fulsome etc, we walk into a Farmacia to get yet more Compeed.  I'm smelling the perfume samples longingly when the pharmacist, a stern but elegant older woman, sweeps her eagle eye over us, then marches off returning with one of those enormous display bottles of scent and instructs us with graceful hand gestures to 'twirl' in the middle of the pharmacy as she sprays us head to foot with perfume!
Oh it's  gorgeous to smell so good again. This gracious lady also gives us little perfume samples telling us that they are "light light" and, having heard Frances had filled her journal and was looking for another one, runs after us (in high heels) and gives her a lovely little notebook that she'd found after we left her premises...all for free out of the goodness of her heart (by the way the perfume was Clarins 'Eau Ressourcante'/ 'Rebalanceing Fragrance" and that it did!).

 Arrive into Villafranca del Bierzo find it's hemmed in by hills and full of tourists and pilgrims. The people here get a cardiovascular workout by just walking around the town-lots of ups and downs but very pretty even in the gray and overcast day.

Wrought iron balconies Villafranca

Frances is entranced with the place and takes loads of photos of the buildings

The town has wonderful examples of those glazed galleries and we wander up,down and around before dinner. We had told Jozefien about the effect of alabaster windows and as the Gothic church here good examples she heads of to go and have a look but I'm bushed and need a little rest.
 

This little house looked as if it was about to fall down but its inhabited and we can see the tv flickering.

Meet back up with Jozefien and she introduces us to Anne Matte, a Danish lassie who we've seen on and off for at least the last week or so but have not actually met before. Anne Matte left SJPP about 3 days ahead of us and she's such a tonic-so honest and funny with a wonderful outlook on life. We share desert and talk about 'the big one' tomorrow. Jozefien has decided that she really needs a rest day and Anne Matte that she'sjust going to walk up the valley as far as she feels 'comfortable with' and reckons that La Faba will be her max tomorrow. We are sorry we won't be walking along with them tomorrow but know they have to walk their own way as we do ours.

A jeep full of bags is parked outside the albergue its the same one we saw at Acebo belonging to the German/Austrian group who seem to on be a sort of package tour with the jeep carrying their bags and accompanying them throughout the day as support.

Its chilly and overcast and we are a little apprehensive as we stroll around.
Perhaps it was seeing the memorial to the Irish pilgrim who died but this evening it really hit me that we are coming closer to the 'end' of our physical journey and it makes me wonder about the big 'Camino crisis/experience' others have described. For me it's been more a matter of small daily epiphanies; friendship tested and found true, the unexpected generosity of strangers, the sweet honesty of Jozefien longing to see her husband, taking joy in little things and the grace of giving and receiving kindness -these precious little things, and others like them, are what define my journey so far.
Go to bed early as too give ourselves as much time as possible it's going to be an early start again tomorrow.

Moss and saxifrages 'caulking' slate roofs in Villafranca

Logrono to Najera

Boot success this morning Frances got her perfect boots-and they are great-Gortex, light, fit like a glove and cost half nothing compared to Ireland. The choice of everything here is astounding- it would be worth it to fly over to get the gear. I buy replacement over trousers- Gortex for about 20 euro! God bless Decathlon and Katherine for knowing about it. Katherine had decided she needs to give her knees a rest so will stay on maybe for a day or two in Logrono and will rejoin if/when she can. On our way out meet Emily she has taken the bus as to give herself a rest day and will wait for Sean to catch up. Looks tired and I hope she's ok.

Andy Goldworthy eat your heart out! This is my little tribute, one of hundreds of such towers/mounds, to Roland for slaying the giant Ferragut. Who knows if the story is true but the cairns do give the place an air of a ritual landscape. The local authorities obviously don't think so as there is a grander memorial to the event (much closer to the road) a few km further on but my money is on this place.

Roughly painted on the wall of an allotment shed on the way into Najera is the phrase "Peregrino en Najera, najerino" "Pilgrim in Najera you are a Najeran" And that sentiment was maintained by everyone we met in the street, the pharmacist giving us handfuls of little sweets the guy in the hostal being so helpful directing us to a great place to eat and helping with enquiries we had. I loved this town it may be kind of down at heal but somehow that doesn't matter. We are finding out that its the warmth of the locals welcome and their willingness to engage with you as a pilgrim that matters and not the cultural/artistic ratings of a place. In Puenta La Reina, despite its picture postcard prettiness, we met with a cold transactional manner, they could learn a thing or two from Najera.

(thanks to Ana from the forum for this photo as we lost ours)

Dined again with the lovely French couple we met in the Cafe Moderno in Logrono. He grows the grapes for one of the large champagne houses and is a keen 'randonneur'. She partakes in his hobby on a 'part time basis' joining him for a week every now and then. They seem to have got it down to a fine art-he takes off in spring his low season for a month or two and she goes on a cruise when he's busy at harvest time. He was such a genial chap and he told us the reason he walked, and rewalked, the CF was for the joy he finds in people he meets the food and wine he enjoys and the environments he walks through. Beatus vir indeed.

The red sandstone cliffs provide a spectacular backdrop to the town and the storks nesting about the town make a clattering noise with their bills as they settle down. The stone is soft and easily carved out to form shelters, storage, graves etc over the centuries.

The church tower is crowned with a storks nest at each corner.