15/09/12: Lescar

Well, as rather expected we all had a great time last night. Our slightly differing plans meant that our little friendship was coming to an end, at least for now, and somehow we all joined in to make a great night of it. We offered to prepare some of the food - in fact I think we did most of it, and everyone sat down to enjoy an evening of great company and good food:

After a decent breakfast I said goodbye to everyone - somehow it seems like more than just a few days - and Robert drove me to Morlaas so that I could continue my journey. I know that we'll all meet again at some point, especially since Pau isn't that far in the car, even if it did take me two weeks to walk here!

I set out from the church at around 08:30 under light cloud and nice cool temperatures. The walk was flat and easy, and actually not particularly scenic for much of the way. This was a stage that skirted Pau and I spent time walking through quiet, leafy estates and past sports fields and on verges. I did howerver pass through the beautifully silent Foret du Bastard. It had the feel of old silence and I enjoyed wandering peacefully through the cool green. The soft crunch of my boots on the path felt intrusive in the deep hush:

 All the paths were very well marked, and I noticed as I passed through a park outside of Lescar that there had been a new St Jacques waymarker installed. I see this as a sign of the growing renewed popularity of the camino:

I reached Lescar with no fuss at all, having spent much of my morning reflecting on the past few days, and slightly missing my new companions. I felt that to have been made to feel so completely welcome and at ease among new faces was a form of gift that they had shared. Quite wonderful. And while I'm looking forward to adventures to come, it felt a little curious to be walking alone again.

I entered Lescar around 12:45 to discover that there's some form of Medieval fair going on here tonight. I hope I don't get accused of witchcraft or anything!

 

Having waited for the tourist office to open I went and found my bunk for the night, had a shower and went walkabout. I've found tonight's supper and, would you believe it, a free wi-fi zone in a village barely bigger than Castelnau! I'm currently sitting under a tree watching an increasing procession of Medieval peasantry wandering by, along with children dressed as faeries. There's music and dancing tonight but fortunately our gite seems far enough from the centre to be out of the noise, thus I'll be able to sleep well once I've finished checking out the magicians.

There is also a rather beautiful church here which has, among other things, some fine 17th century choir stalls (apologies for the poor quality of the photo).

There are two other interesting features of this cathedral. One is the tombs of the Kings of Navarre

Another is the surprising and high quality 12th century mosaics:

And although this photo might look a bit unintersting, I was struck by the fact that these are the remains of 12th century wall painting:

So, one final shot of the old town, and then I'll post this and get back for some supper, before going out to see if I can find any witches!

 

It's just over 30km to Oloron-Sainte-Marire tomorrow, so an early start and take it easy. More soon, hope you're enjoying the blog :0)