Los Arcos

Dear family and friends
Day 6 and the tides seem to be shifting. Our little camino family of four is growing in new directions. Katie and I stayed with Marcie and Jennie in a municipal auberge last night in Estella. We have decided we are too old for this Shirley Mclean be damned. We were in a room with some 26 people all in bunk beds - no ladders! The bunks where Katie and I were given (we each were given a bed number by a very grouchy man) were side by side as two bunks were touching. They were both on top - and right beside the washroom. A very nice Spanish young man who was under me - he was very handsome - walking the camino before his marriage :)- offered me the bottom bunk which I would have loved. However the bottom beside was still empty and I did not relish sleeping beside a strange man. Lucky too because the o e who took that bed was a very unfriendly man.
There were 2 showers and 2 toilets which men and women shared. I'm sure you can imagine the snoring. I fell asleep with no problem but then someone came in past midnight and woke me up. I had little success falling asleep again even with earplugs.
Marcie and Jenny met some Spanish cyclists from north of Santiago and were glowing with delight this morning. So today we each took more space to ourselves as we walked - finding our own rhythms. I think our littl family provided safety and companionship in the early days when it was all new to us.
I had dinner last night with two women in their 50s- one from the US and one from the Netherlands. They both see this trip as a time away from families who rely on them, and this space to discover who they are individually. I could really relate; the discussion set the tone today for a more solitary walk.
We left Estella under cloudy skies which shortly shifted to mist then rain. Soon we hit a site called Fuente de Vino - for the Peregrinos. There are two taPs - one for water and the other for wine. I didn't embibe -7:30am is a little too early... But I took lots of photos.
The walk today was extraordinarily beautiful. After a short hefty climb we came to a bar ( where cafe and all sorts of food is available. I had my first cup of tea in 3 days! I had been walking with a Swedish couple who are doing the camino in 2 parts - fall and spring. We had a good visit together.
For the rest of the day we walked through vinyards and farming country. Unlike our country, they don't cover every inch in vinyards. But rather are combined with hay fields and ploughed fields. Big piles of hay bales are foun throughout. Around noon, Katie and I met up and rested against one of the piles of hay eating some French bread from yesterdays lunch but this time with a hunk of chocolate inside. Yum! Marcie and Jenny happened to come by while we had our siesta and took a photo.