[Gocamino] Intoxicatingly beautiful places on Camino

[Stuart Thompson]

Maybe two days was too much time to spend in St. Jean Pied-du-Port.  Perhaps I stood too long on the bridge (just below the church) across the River Nive watching one of the locals repeatedly throw sticks into the river for his loudly-barking dogs to retrieve.  Soaking up the atmosphere at sunset while waiting for it to be respectably (by European standards) late enough in the day to appear in a restaurant in search of a fresh trout dinner seemed at the time to be the best way to spend time.  The beauty of the town at sunset was intoxicating, and I had not even had any wine yet.

Hospital de Orbigo with its resident storks (cigüeñas) atop the beautiful little church, the Paso Honroso (even over an essentially dry riverbed the history of that bridge is so powerful as to feel almost present), and getting "stuck" behind a traffic jam of the shepherd's flock - a magical walk to Astorga.  The kindness of two Australian (nearly) strangers in shepherding me along.

Part of me is intrigued by the thought of places on the Camino being ranked according to their beauty.  Like comparing the best wines of the world.  But since it all depends on individual preference, what one person considers intoxicatingly beautiful could mean nothing to the next person.

One of the best parts of reading about other peoples' Caminos is the contact high the one can get just by reading their accounts of the Camino's beauty.  If anyone else has their own account that they would like to share regarding beautiful Camino places, I, for one, would greatly enjoy reading.

Buen Camino! 


		
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