Day 7 – Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port

September 4, 2019

This was a rest day. I could not really sleep in because all the other hikers were getting ready to leave starting at 6:00 – mostly pilgrims on the Camino. The town is very funny in the sense that is gets very busy early in the morning, then by 8:00 or 8:30 the streets are empty and everything is calm again, only to get busy again around 10:00 with tourists. And busy again at the end of the day with a new wave of pilgrims. According to the manager of the auberge, September is high season for the Camino.

I went about exploring the city, mostly the Citadelle (fort) at the top, and the city walls, as well as the Roman bridge and the church. The city is very pretty and has retained a distinctive character despite all the outsiders.

The other event of the day was the passage of La Vuelta – the Spanish equivalent to the Tour de France, which was venturing on this side of the Pyrénées. I joined the thin crowds on the side of the road to see them go by. I swear that all the motorbikes of the Guardia Civil de Tráfico had come here and were preceding the racers. Finally they came, in two groups, and were quickly gone. It was fun though. The rest of my day was spent restocking on supplies and mailing a couple of postcards. Tomorrow is back to hiking, with several fairly long days lined up.