Estella to Los Arcos

13 or so miles. We should have walked more with our fresh legs but we are more or less following the guidebook. We got into Los Arcos at 1:30, which is far earlier than usual. It was good because we got the last few beds here but bad because this is a forlorn little hamlet with only about a thousand or so people.

Also the folks in this town seem a bit annoyed by pilgrims. For example, a shop owner got huffy with us for browsing for too long. Granted, one of my favorite travel activities is to see what kinds of foods you can find in the market and I spend far too much time investigating. Pale, phallic white asparagus, whole hog legs, and vegetables you mustn't touch (shop keepers always bag fruits and veges)...

Shops were closed for siesta when we first arrived so we visited with other pilgrims in the cramped kitchen for a while. There is a lovely group of New Zealand women, all retired teachers. Such a cheerful, friendly bunch from Hamilton, on the North Island. They remarked that people invariably break into huge smiles when they hear where they are from. Not so as an American. The consensus seems to be there are too many of us on the trail this year (contrary to what the drunk Pamplona guy said).

Today was my favorite so far in terms of scenery. We took the more rustic route today, so we went the entire way without towns or facilities. First oak forests, then rolling grasslands with castle ruins on distant hills. In the week we have been walking, the grass has grown tall enough to undulate in the wind. It was quite windy and cold today with some spitting snow but when the sun came out, the grasses glowed in that technicolor green I keep talking about. Perhaps it is knowing Spain has been inhabited for thousands of years, but there is a mystical and magical quality to the forests and glens.

We shivered as we wolfed down our salami, olive oil, and manchego cheese bocadillos (sandwiches), olive oil potato chips, green peppers, and digestive gallenas (taste like graham crackers only better). I had to wrap my fleece around my neck and head I was so chilled.

Not sure I am going to get used to coed bathrooms, sleeping next to scores of strangers, going to bed and getting up on the strict albergue schedule (lights out and building locked at 10:30 and awake at 6:30), but I have thrown modesty to the wind once again as I dress in the morning. I just can't sleep in all the clothes I will wear the next day like many pilgrims do.

Iy yi yi. Cowboy is here in Los Arcos too. He tries to tell everyone how things are done, like where they are allowed to go in the cathedral when he only arrived there 3 seconds before everyone else. There must be a lesson in this for me since we see him more than anyone else.

The cathedral Iglesia de Santa Maria here pretty much knocked our socks off when we went inside. Every square inch is ornately gilded, painted, carved, and decorated. Scott observed it was so impressive it would almost be enough to covert someone to Catholicism. My favorite touch was the silly painted on faces on the organ pipes (obviously a more modern addition).

Pics include free wine fountain and various views of the day.