All three of us enjoyed a sound night’s sleep and another walk through Oloron in search of morning pastries.
Walking out of the city, we passed this lovely old Romanesque church.
The carving above the west door was particularly striking. Around the outer edge were depicted musicians holding their various lyres and lutes; the inner layer depicts scenes of rural life - duck plucking, cheese making, boar hunting, some of which we could make out!
This fellow was feeling the weight of the world.
The descent from the cross was the theme of the main carving - with Nicodemus in the process of untying Jesus’s hands.
And this fellow was being stomped on by a horse.
The voie du Nord (the way Neil is walking) is about 1100 kms from here. 👣👣👣👣👣👣👣👣
A few kilometres further on, we met Marie Pierre. She runs the village epicerie and has a personal vocation to welcome pilgrims who walk by with free coffee and home made cake. We gratefully partook!!
Fresh figs were a parting gift.
We found a nice picnic spot for lunch by the river near some stone markers representing different parts of the region.
Our first ent.
Towards the end of the day, after a long steep climb we tried a shortcut that was clearly marked on the map. Alas, the path began to peter out after a kilometre or so. We ended up bush bashing down a very steep incline into a creek valley. A little later we noticed a field appear above the creek line and judged it would be easier to walk through the field than the creek. We clambered up the bank and under a barbed wire fence, startling three donkeys and a bunch of cows. Then the donkeys became inquisitive, very inquisitive.
The socks hanging on the back of Neil’s pack to dry seemed at risk of being eaten. But in the end all was well!! We found our way through the field and back to the road, and shortly afterwards to the gite. We are staying in the caravan in the back yard - no power, no lights and raining. Quite cosy otherwise! Sarah and Andy are in the house together with a bunch of Spaniards and Italians.
It was quite a long stage today - over 30km - but it means a shorter one tomorrow. We’ve just enjoyed a lovely dinner and look forward what the next day brings.
👣 💜 👣 💛 👣 🧡
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