I finally made it to Pamplona, 3 flights and 14 hours of travel. With a 6 hour time difference, I was tired and my knee was really stiff. Luckily my room was ready early and I was able to stretch and take a nap. The rest of the day I walked to a beautiful Japanese garden and a supermarket. It was an early night.
The next day I walked to the Plaza de Torres where bullfighting occurs.
From there I walked to the Plaza del Castillo. On this site twice there were castles surrounded by city walls and was even used for bullfighting.
On the Northside of the plaza is the Cafe Iruña. It is the place where Hemingway wrote multiple books including the Old Man and the Sea. Here I had a small glass of beer and two pintos, which are Basque tapas. Quite tasty. The rolled one has sausage and cheese inside. The inside of the cafe has remained unchanged.
From there I walked to the Basilica. Along the way I noticed the Camino de Santiago signs pointing the peregrinos on the path through Pamplona. Still a little bummed that I am unable to do that journey due to my knee replacement but it was great to see the joy and determination on the faces of the hikers.
This bridge (Puente de la Magdalena) is one of four medieval bridges still standing here.
The entrance to the old city from the Camino de Santiago. This is an actual working drawbridge.
The basilica.
I walked a total of 10 km which I finally achieved 4 months after knee replacement. Some of the other things I saw along the way:
The citadel is a military complex that has the best architecture in the world. It is possible to walk through at many points to cross the city and is now an amazing park.
At the nautical club, they were taking turns paddling the kayaks down the spillway. The kayak made it!
Tomorrow I will take a walking tour to learn more about Pamplona.