Ventosa

I did end up being the only person staying at the new hostel last night. There is no fairness on this Camino. Last night the hostel had 10 bunk beds in a nice large room. Each bed had a locker (and key) each bunk had a chair, and there was a large bench in the middle of the room. Tonight there are 4 bunks in a small room, no place for packs, you must navigate around people and their things, to get to your bed, and it was already full by 2pm.
The day started out overcast, both weather wise and spirit wise. I can't do anything about the weather, but it affected my spirit, cool, damp, threatening to rain, windy. And a little thing - I lost the case for my glasses. I always carried it in my left cargo pocket, where my glasses would be handy if needed. It weren't there. I unloaded my pack, searched diligently around the bunk, in the lounge, I even retraced my steps to the cathedral (locked) and to Santiago church, and could not find it. Oh well it were lost, I would just have to be more careful with my glasses, which I usually didn't wear on the trail, just when I needed to read a sign or something. But I found it hard to forget about. Plus my leg was hurting a little.  How to put my mind on the important and the present.
The trail started out through the city of course, with its own distractions, and the suburbs, and finally through parkland. It also followed alongside the main highway quite a bit, and whenever the Camino came close enough to the highway to require a chain link fence, pilgrims would weave crosses in the links out of twigs or branches, or whatever they had or could find. There must be something instinctive in a pilgrim, with his load on his back, to identify with Jesus carrying his cross. Plus we are all on the Camino - the Way, and of course, Jesus is the Way. I pray that all the pilgrims walking this Way, will learn to know Jesus who carried their sins to the cross for them.
We came to a little village called Navarette. Typical old section with the village church in the middle. But this little parish church had the most amazing altarpiece. My app describes it as 'the most bling-bling baroque altar on the Camino. Massive, imposing, and breathtaking, with images from the Bible and the coronation of Mary at the top.' Imagine if you can a fancy altar reredos, with columns and statues and carved scenes from the Bible. There's Mary in her Assumption above the tabernacle, with four pillars and a dome, above that the crucifixion, then way up in the half-done of the church the coronation, there's the four evangelists, a multitude of angels and Saints. Then imagine everything (well not the statues or scenes which are painted) covered with gold leaf! And I mean everything. Then add two side altars in exactly the same style, and then join them together with the decorations flowing uninterrupted from one to another, across the entire front of the church and you aren't close to imagining this altarpiece. It is certainly a masterpiece of 16th century baroque art, worthy of any cathedral, but found in the small Spanish village of Navarette.
At a water/rest break about 1 pm, my glasses case miraculously appeared in my right cargo pocket. And the sun came out, my leg felt better, I felt better, and I made it easily here to Ventosa. I pray you pilgrimage is blessed also.