We’re Official!

Saint Jean Pied de Port, France
After checking into the hotel and grabbing a quick bite, we collapsed into bed and slept like the dead. At checkout we inquired about a taxi to the bus station, only to find out that it's a 5 minute walk from the hotel if we are up to it. Ha ha good one. We found the station and our bus to St Jean Pied de Port no problem. However, when the bus driver came down the aisle with barf bags before even starting out, it was not a good sign. Sure enough, we got quite a core workout between all the traffic circles in town and the hairpin curves coming through the Pyrenees. Spotting gaggles of pilgrims along the way, Mike leaned over and said "good heavens, what did you get me into?" How quickly he forgets that he volunteered. The bus mercifully stopped and let us out at a little market in the center of town with our breakfast still intact. St Jean Pied de Port is a quaint little Basque town dating back to the Middle Ages, full of narrow cobblestone streets and charming shops, cafes and lodging. We checked in at the local pilgrims office for guidance and weather forecast. Looks good for tomorrow. We got our first stamp in our pilgrims passports or credencial, making us officially pilgrims! We shared lunch with Marcia, another pilgrim from Australia. She's quite adventurous and has completed multiple hikes to include Mt Everest base camp, but this is her first Camino. She's waiting for a friend to join her here who she will be helping to walk across the Pyrenees. At the appointed time we checked into Beilari, our lodging for the night. Josef gave us a brief orientation and showed us to our room. We're sharing a room with 2 other women. Good way to break in easy to the "sharing a room with 100 of my new best friends" routine.Read more