The weather has cooled down and there were menacing clouds this morning. At the 12 km mark we went through a town with a bar, and after coffee we decided to suit up for rain. That was a good decision since hail and showers followed, and the air was downright chilly – starting at 7°C…

Today was an excellent day. I took my time getting ready, with no pressure from companions (who were in different hostels). Then I made my way through narrow Cordoban streets, seeing some decorated Cruces de Mayo. This one apparently won second prize in some category… After about 4 km of urban area, I was over…

Bus ride back to Córdoba – staying another night since I have a bed and none were available in the next town. Hopefully things will ease up after tomorrow. Nice view from the bus shows some cereal crop as a welcome change from you-know-what! It has turned chilly (down to 9°C last night) and there…

I packed my bag and left it with those who will stay in the same place tonight, since I have to move to a different place. Then got the 9 a.m. bus to Córdoba with Gwen and Lori who will jump ahead 2 days because of poor accommodation options this weekend. The scenery from the…

Today’s theme continues with olives, but branches off in a different direction, at last. You need to understand that walking leaves one with a lot of time to ponder the trivial, as well as the important. First the olives. Different amounts of cultivation effort are noticeable. Here is an hard-working fellow who circles each tree.…

The day started as usual – a walk out of town with a castle/fortress on the hill. A couple of Germans came up behind. Very soon we got into the theme for the day: Olives. Olives in bloom… Olives by an ancient well, with a field of solar panels in the background… Olives with wild…

On exiting the town, we finally had a view of the castle. Here comes Lori – a former Canadian who has lived many years in Australia. Many almond trees are in blossom… I had to retrieve my rain jacket from the bottom of my pack for the first time, but we had just some sprinkles…

Lovely walking to start – past some places where both sides in the Spanish civil war were holed up. One can imagine the sniping that could have taken place. Then we had views of the quintessential Spanish landscape of olive trees. In a couple of villages we’ve seen communal laundries in good condition but don’t…