What do you do on a rest day?

1) Sleep-in of course, except I woke at 6am as usual. So I caught up with the latest news about the election back in New Zealand. Here’s a photo for all those cat-loving New Zealanders who were pleased to see the cat hating TOP party so soundly rejected.

An exhibit from a festival of street art in Burgos

2) Eat, and I have. The hotel has a marvellous buffet breakfast including tortilla, croissants, cheeses, cured meats, bread, eggs, watermelon and other fruits, and … wait for it … apple pie! There’s a first for everything and let me tell you it was delicious! Despite the pie I was relatively restrained and avoided indigestion. 

And then there was lunch at a street cafe. 

Burgos street scene at lunchtime on a Sunday

We had salad and a stew, both courses involved a lot of olive oil. I refused dessert – I do have my limits, especially on days when I’ve eaten apple pie for breakfast. 
3) Visit churches. Burgos is famous for them. It’s a rest day so I visited only one: The Catedral de Santa Maria. It’s a World Heritage Building and a jaw dropper.

Catedral de Santa Maria from an internal courtyard

Two hours in there with an audio guide gave me cultural indigestion. So, I’ve retreated to the hotel for a bit of a lie down before dinner.

I did see the tomb of El Cid, the great warrior of the 11th Century. Some fellow walkers have claimed he drove out the Moors. I think that might be more fiction than fact. A little research suggests he was something of a mercenary and did very well for himself – that’s my take on it, anyway.

And I saw some amazing altar pieces, gothic to rococo in design. The latter, in particular, involved a lot of gold. I prefer the simpler, earlier decorations, especially some of the earliest pieces which were portraits painted directly on to the stone. 

Tomorrow, we walk. It will be our first day on the Meseta, some might think I’m crazy, but I’m looking forward to it.