5 October sunny day, perfect banana fish weather for a bike ride. No wind.

While QB walked the way I tried to avoid the Camino path. Much prefer the road as is does not disturb the walkers and does not rattle my bones and bike with the rocks and boulders and dirt. Today it was hard to avoid parts of the Camino.

Once again KB carefully plotted the route using the info from the tourist office and the panoply of books and maps. Once again, dead ends or roads that should exist but have now merged with the grand auto route. Founds ways around, mostly, but at times had to ride the Camino itself.

Ride though Rioja is a ride through the vineyards on the hills. Many hills ( 1.1 ESB today) with many smiling grapes. It is vendage time and some workers are out collecting. QB got a picture.

One stop along the was was to Navarette, a hilltop town (naturally ) with a church reputed to have one of the best, if not the best, retablos in Spain. Will let the art experts judge from the included photos. Paid a Euro to illuminate the church so a to be able to see them and later photograph them. QB’s photos were taken when the church was not lit; they were dumped. These are from the Nexus so not as fine grained and missing much of the real beauty.

with some putti

When we met up we had some excellent, very light and not sweet, Rioja Rosado with our tapas lunch. KB Spanish failed today when he thought he was getting calamari and got tripe instead. The other dishes were excellent with the veal with pimento leading a good pack.

Then off to the Monastery of Santa Maria la Real – a good find with a soap opera story. Started in 1054 via a vision by a real king its property was fought over for centuries. Included a bishop assaulting some monks to get some reliquaries, a bishop being excommunicated, a pope sitting out the fight for a long time, and some wonderful stone work.

So as not to boor the non-medievalists in the group pictures taken at the Monastery are posted on flicker.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/boogskbqb/ Titled Monastery of Santa Maria la Real in case they are not longer the lead photos.

Here is the setting on Najara facing red sandstone hills similar to Sedona in Arizona.