Day 8 - Los Arcos to Viana

I don’t know if the walks are getting easier or if I’m just becoming more accustomed to the Camino? Maybe both? I started the morning on my own. I was still a bit sore, physically and emotionally from the previous day. I didn’t sleep well and that was punctuated by our Albergue host fairly unceremoniously kicking us out long before check out time. He was ripping sheets from beds with people belongings still on them. He put away breakfast before many had made their way down to eat. It was a nice enough place, but the fairly rude exit was enough to sour anyone. A few kilometers in I met up with an American woman I’d met a day or two before. We walked together up to the first town, Sansol. Walking with other people, on a day when you’re having trouble with motivation, can be really helpful. They can help propel you forward - and she certainly did! After a stop for 2nd breakfast, I walked again on my own - though I was barely out of the town before I had to stop to don my raincoat. I walked through the village of Torres del Rio and from there it would be about 10 km before we saw another town. I eventually met up with father/son pair Greg and Rhett, and happily walked with them for the rest of the afternoon. We made our way through vineyards and olive groves, dodging rainstorms as we went. We arrived in Viana, during a moderate rain, in the early afternoon. After checking in to my hostel and grabbing a quick shower I went out to explore for lunch. I found a wonderful menú del día at a local hotel and enjoyed the three course meal with wine in the middle of the afternoon. After a quick look around town I descended the steep slope of Viana to enjoy a quick afternoon nap. Spanish towns seem to awake again after 6pm, so back up tue hill to search for souvenirs and a daily dose of local wine. After running into some friends in the ruins of the old cathedral, we ventured back to the hotel where Jeanette from LA, Martina from Berlin, James from MD (or Barcelona at the moment), and Greg and Rhett all settled in for drinks and tapas. It was a wonderful evening spent with friends! I even managed a fairly decent nights sleep in a half full hostel.Read more