Olite:
The sleek shape of the Castle-Palace stands out against the skyline of Olite. Olite is a small town in the center of Navarra about 40 kilometers south of Pamplona. During the Middle Ages it was the seat of the Royal Court of the kingdom. In the past, Olite has been a home to monarch and princes, and was declared a national monument in 1925. This is one of the best examples of civil Gothic architecture in Navarra, and one of the best in Europe was well. Since Olite has a Mediterranean climate it is also known for its wine as well.
Estella:
Estella is basically a half way point between Pamplona and Logrono, between the mountains and the plains. Estella was a major stopping point on the pilgrims' Road to Santiago de Compostela. Estella is a romantic city that places great value on its palaces, homes, churches, and bridges and is sometimes referred to as the "Toledo of the North".
Tudela:
Located in the south of Navarra, and is its second city in terms of both size and importance as well. This city was founded in 802 and is one of the most important cities of Islamic origin in Spain and Europe. For more than 400 years, Muslims, Jews, and Mozarabs coexisted which was very rare for that time. Tudela is known for its fine cuisine, especially its vegetables of the Ribera region.
Ayegui - Monastery of Irache:
One of the most important monumental complexes in Navarra. Throughout the years it has been a pilgrims' hospices, university, military hospital, and even a religious college. Its location, on the Pilgrim's Way to Santiago de Compostela near Estella, has made it an obligatory stopping-place. We toured the Romanesque church (12th century) and also the monastery that the Benedictines started building in the second half of the 11th century.
Roncesvalles:
The historical defeat of Charlemagne and the Pilgrim's Way to Santiago de Compostela have made Roncesvalles a key location. Located in the Navarrese Pyrenees and also occupies almost a thousand hectares. Roncesvalles is the point chosen by the majority of pilgrims to start the Pilgrim's Way of Spain. The tomb of King Sancho VII is an excellent example of medieval architecture and also a legendary place as well.
Puente La Reina
"The crossroads of the ways" is a medieval town where the two main routes on the Pilgrim's Way to Santiago de Compostela converge. This town is just 24 kilometers south-west of Pamplona. The Romanesque bridge across the river Arga is the most amazing sight of the town. It is known to be one of the most beautiful and distinguished examples of Romanesque architecture on the way to Santiago.
Pamplona
Located in the center of the Autonomous Community of Navarra, on a plain surrounded by mountains, lies the capital of the Ancient Kingdom of Navarra. Pamplona was founded in 75 B.C. by the Romans, and has been crossed by several cultures throughout the centuries. The Old Quarter is surrounded by walls and watched over by towers. Pamplona is a medieval city of narrow streets, small squares, churches, and noble houses. Pamplona is known for its pinchos (tapas) and also its rich cuisine. One of Spain's most famous fiestas, Sanfermines takes place in Pamplona, during July and is known throughout the world.
Ciao!
Well for those who have been following my blog, sorry I haven't posted since I returned from Navarra. I have been having an extremely difficult time connecting to the internet, and of course IES computers have been down.
In my opinion, Navarra was an awesome experience and very interesting as well. Many students were disappointed in the trip location, and the organization of IES as well...but I will get to that eventually.
As I mentioned before, my bus was the lucky one who had the privilege of leaving at 8 AM. Thankfully I sat in the back with some people I knew so it wasn't too bad. I was pretty disappointed in the size of the buses, because the ride was about 6 hours to Navarra so it was terrible being crammed in a bus. We took a couple stops on the way to use the restrooms and also to eat lunch. As we stopped to eat lunch it started snowing and was about 30 degrees.
Before we arrived at the hotel we stopped in Ayegui, and got a guided tour of the Irache Vineyards which was very fun. There was also a wine museum located there which was cool because our guide explained the tour very well.
This next few pictures are from in the basement of the wine museum..
These next few photos are outside, and you can see part of the vineyard..
A Monastery which was located very close to the vineyards..
Some friends I made on the Sevilla trip, Monica and Luke...
Inside the el museu de vino:
After we finished at the vineyards we got back on the bus and headed towards Pamplona, where the hotels were located. We didn't get to choose our roommates, but I ended up getting lucky as my friend Nick and I got put in the same room. The hotel was pretty nice, a three star I believe which was much better than the hotel in Sevilla. There were six buses in total, and 2 buses were split up in three different hotels. I feel like this was a much better idea because some 500 students are a very large group. We enjoyed dinner at the hotel, which was included and then went out for the night. It was awesome because I knew most of the people in my hotel so we had a great time.
Friday morning came around way too fast, and the 7:30 wake up call was pretty rough. We got back on the bus and headed towards Puente la Reina and enjoyed a guided visit in the town, which was a significant stop in the Camino de Santiago.
This following picture is the Romanesque bridge across the river Arga which was one of my most favorite sights of all. It is one of the most distinguished examples of Romanesque architecture.
Some of my friends from Spanish class in front of the bridge...
I noticed that the following picture of the scallop shell was displayed all over this city. Eventually I learned that this is a traditional symbol of the Camino de Santiago and can easily be found along the coastlines of many Galcian beaches.
If you look to the right you can notice the shell again....
A view from the city before we began our tour..
My friend Nick and I on the bridge before we left Puente La Reina
This next picture I took while on the bus driving towards Roncesvalles.
The next few pictures are while we were in Roncevalles which is known for the historical defeat of Charlemagne and the Pilgrim's Way to Santiago de Compostela.
Some of the guys that were in my group..
After some free time we headed back to Pamplona to check out the city and learn about its history and traditions.
This following picture is outside Hemingway's "favorite" cafe...
One of the plazas in the center of Pamplona
One of the cafes that were named after Hemingway, it is located on one of the streets the bulls run on.
These apartments were once a hotel that Hemingway always booked during Sanfermines...the balconies look over to where the bulls run...
A street where the bulls run..
This is where the bulls are released and then they run up the hill. We all actually got to run up the hill, which was pretty cool. One day I definitely plan to return to Pamplona to see los Sanfermines..
This next picture is a few of my friends at a local bar, Luke, Monica, and Peter
The next few photos are just around the city of Pamplona.. Then we continued on our guide and headed towards Plaze de Torros, which is where the running of the bulls ends, and also where the bullfighting stadium takes place. This was probably my favorite part of the trip because I really wanted to see a stadium and learn about how the bullfights go on, etc..
This next pictures is a statue very close to the bullfighting arena...
Outside the front of the bullfighting stadium..
A few pictures from inside the stadium..
After we walked around the stadium finished taking pictures our tour guide asked one of the men who worked at the stadium if he could demonstrate what happens in a bullfight.
The spot where you must stab the bull in order to perfect the "art" of the bullfight. Bullfighting is much more gory than I thought and I will explain it another time after go to one.
This is one of the rooms where the Matadors pray because they are extremely religious people, which I thought was interesting.
From what I understand, this following room is where the bulls are killed, or taken after they have been killed in the fight.
After the tour finished we made our way back to the hotel. We had a few hours to relax or shower before our dinner in the hotel. The hotel had wireless, so I decided to bring my laptop, and of course I was not able to connect the whole time. We had a nice dinner, and then I went out with some friends for the night. Of course it was a late night, and we had a wake up call Saturday morning at 7:30.
Our last stop before heading back to Barcelona was Olite, where there is a Castle-Palace. This is one of the best examples of civil Gothic architecture in Navarra. I really enjoyed this small town and thought that some of the views were remarkable!
Overall I really enjoyed Navarra and thought that it was a very interesting location for a "study week trip". However, I really wanted to go to Northern Spain sometime during my trip, and it was convenient that I got to go with IES. I felt like they were pretty organized considering the student to staff ratio. All of my tours were in Spanish which was interesting and challenging. I feel like I had a better experience than some of the other students. The only complaint I had of the trip was the bus. It was way too small considering the time we spent on the bus. We literally were on the bus half of the time, but I'm sure they saved a lot of money.
After the long six hour bus ride back to Barcelona I had to get prepared for Lindsay to come the following morning, at 7 AM!
