A late arrival in Madrid and a few days in Pamplona…

After a relaxing stopover in D.C., we checked out of our hotel and arrived at our gate several hours early.

Being members of an airline family (Jeff, a retired United pilot; Justin, a Delta pilot; Cindy, a retired Delta flight attendant, and her husband, a current United pilot), we have the privilege of traveling standby. Much of the time, we are lucky to even get a seat on a flight. Sometimes we are EXTREMELY fortunate and get to sit in First Class. This was our lucky day! And – bonus – we were able to sit together. 

We boarded our flight but were delayed due to thunderstorms in the area. We sat on the taxiway for quite a while, then had to go back to the gate for more fuel. By the time we were ready to take off, the storm was right over us – big lightening strikes and booming thunder – causing further delay. Were we ever going to get out of DC?! After sitting on the taxiway for another stretch of time, we ultimately took off 3 hours behind schedule. Whew!

Madrid airport is huge! Four terminals… we landed at T1, and the train to the central station in Madrid is at T4. It’s from there we caught our train to Pamplona and are staying for the weekend to acclimate and be rested to begin our Camino on the 9th. A three hour ride gave us a chance to catch our breath, take a nap and enjoy the scenery. Fields of corn and sunflowers span the countryside, and dozens & dozens of wind turbines dot the landscape.

Our hotel is located very close to the Plaza Castillo which the locals call their living room. Connected to it is Calle San Nikolas – a street which (we discovered) is extremely popular on the weekends. That street has a host of bars/restaurants where you can order a drink and choose from a plethora of ‘pinchos’ (think tapas but the northern part of Spain refers to them as pinchos). Friday night was a little too crazy for us, so we found an outdoor restaurant in a less crowded square and had a delicious dinner of chorizo, French style fried potatoes, peppers and calimari accompanied by a refreshing sangria. 😋

We are in Europe at an opportune time for the exchange rate which is almost even.  And the cost of food and meals is amazingly inexpensive. Breakfast, lunch and dinner yesterday = about $35. And that includes wine/sangria with lunch AND dinner!

I love the cobblestone streets and all the beautiful, old architecture – some of it dating back centuries. The city workers wash the narrow streets down each morning and the clank of dozens of bottles being emptied from the trash cans lining the square are signs of a people who enjoy a good time. 

Pamplona is probably most well-known as one of Ernest Hemingway’s retreats, and where he wrote The Sun Also Rises. We’re not far from the Cafe he used to frequent so, of course, we had to visit.

A great place for breakfast as the square is still quiet then. The city is also famous for the running of the bulls, and the statue and bull ring are only a couple blocks from our hotel. Great job on hotel selection, Cindy! 👍

Tomorrow we take a bus to St. Jean! Our bus tickets purchased, we have one more afternoon & evening to explore, and experience the wonderful food and vibe of this city.

“The goal is to die with memories, not dreams.”