Day Nine: Pintxos in Los Arcos

We woke up in our nearly vacant albergue feeling rested and ready to make the second leg to Los Arcos. I had a particularly nice walk due to the fact that our albergue hosts, a sweet pair of grandparents, sent me on my injured way with a belly full of real whole milk and 1g pain meds. Yes- ONE GRAM. Needless to say, I floated into the next town.

Los Arcos quickly became one of our favorite pilgrim villages. Our first stop was our albergue, la casa de abuela. It was a beautiful home that had been converted into a spacious, modern and most importantly clean pilgrim hotel. After glorious and I'll say it again, clean, showers, we made our way to Hotel Monaco for the best menu del dia we have had yet.

First course- ensalada mixta and my first time eating tuna. Seriously. Second course- Cameron had lomo de vaca (steak) and I enjoyed a different twist on what I thought was one of my fav Mexican dishes, tacos de calamar. Surprise- not a taco, but thankfully equally as fresh and delicious. And for dessert- real yogurt. Such a treat. Did I mention all this also came with a bottle of local wine? A chilled red.

I think what really made Los Arcos a real gem was our connection with new and old pilgrim friends. After our lunch, I recognized a familiar voice from St Jean (our starting point in France) and ran to the reception to hug Mary Ann from Oregon. She was walking solo on a quest to discover her next journey in life post retirement. We helped her find her albergue her first night in St Jean.

Next is Jim from Pennsylvania- our new friend and bunk mate. Jim is traveling after losing his wife to cancer and has made it his mission to deliver healing massages to all pilgrims. We both indulged in his famous foot rubs and reflexology treatment.

Then we have Brent and Rachel from Colorado- we had our first taste of pintxos with these guys. On Friday nights, all the bars make delightful, bite-sized treats (like tapas but larger). With each pintxo, you get a glass of vino tinto (red wine) or beer- for free! I love Fridays in Los Arcos.

Our last friends we met here were a married couple, Brenda and Gill from Canada- also staying in our albergue. These guys can only be described as my fairy godparents. After my mega pain pill wore off, I reluctantly agreed to take the bus to Logrono the following morning since my knee was getting worse. This way I could rest and Cameron could continue walking. Cameron arranged to leave me in their hands, as Gil was nursing an injury as well.

So why was Los Arcos so memorable? Good food, good wine and great friends. Amen.