(Camino de Santiago) Torres del Rio to Viana

A gorgeous hiking day today - completely overcast and cool!  :) We met up with the amazing Shelly Valdovinos (from Las Cruces) in Torres del Rio - she had started at 4:30 a.m. from Los Arcos and complete the exposed stretch in early morning darkness (so smart!).  After meeting in Torres, she walked with us about 7.5 miles to lovely Viana (town before Logrono where we catch the train back to Barcelona tomorrow.)  It's sad to be getting off the Camino tomorrow.  After a week, I'm hooked on this physical rhythm, the countryside, navarran culture, and social-ness.  Coming into a village when your feet are barking and you need to rest and eat - and you're wondering where the Italians are, or where your hiking buddy is waiting for you, or where the Irish siblings are, or where the blue haird girl and her grandfather are and if she finally got the courage to hang out with the Hungarian she has a crush on)...The social aspect of the Camino make it.  It is such a unique and intense feature on the Camino - even if you can't understand each others' verbal language.  I just... love it.

Morning rays between overcast clouds (ahhh) with Torres in the distance

Shelly Valdovinos, a friend from Las Cruces, spent a day of our journeys together.  Such an amazing woman.  We had been trying to connect for days and finally caught up in Los Arcos. <3

Between Torres and Viana

A message from the Camino

Trail sign

A beautiful guitarist playing for the Peregrinos as we passed.  <3

Single track, then road walk a little ways into Viana

A welcome breakfast in Viana.  10 a.m. tortilla de patatas 

and...of course some tinto for our sore feet :)

Jane's "office" in Viana (Our routine typically: walk early in the morning bring or grab breakfast enroute, arrive by 1 or 2 latest, handwash the hiking clothes we were in to wear the next day, nap and work and check in with Shelly and other pereginos and meet up for dinner, drinks, and hopefully to sleep by 10 or 11 to wake up super early the next day to hike before the heat).

Church ruin right by our hotel entrance. (We want to stay in donativos or alburgues next time - it's cheaper and more communal...although there are a couple downsides...)

2 bottles of wine and a watermelon at the church ruin - with Jane, Khaled, Shelly and me - to tide over late afternoon starvation before 6:30 or 7 p.m. dinner/cafes open back up after siesta

:)  Good good people - the finest.

Small world.  Khaled lived in Fort Collins for 5 years - and as it turns out, we know a pub owner (who I grew up with in grade school/high school). 

The Italians! 

Awesome group of welcoming Italianos and us, hanging out after dinner near the alburgue grounds

Fun!