Day 7: Villafranca de los Barros to Torremejia (27 Kms)

View from the outset

Today's walk, at 27 Kms, was a bit more than we wanted to try until Robin's knee started feeling better. So we headed out into the early morning half light to find some breakfast. At the Hotel Diana, a few blocks from our albergue, we got a bite to eat and asked the bar lady to ring a taxi. With breakfast tucked away a cab appeared and we were off to rejoin the Camino just east of the village of Almendralejo. This would pretty much chop 14 Kms from today's stage. Our driver knew exactly where the VdlP connected to the road we were on, and dropped us off just where we wanted to be. After a few moments of slinging and adjusting our packs, we were underway. It was a quiet, perhaps even lonely, intersection that we departed from, but in short order we were transported back to our purpose and felt once again that unique peace of being on the road to Santiago. The terrain we encountered was simply flat, dead flat. Olives and grapes seem to be the dominant crops. As we made our way along the Camino tractors worked away tending surrounding fields. Older tractors driven by older men seemed characteristic of the area.

Our destination just visible in the distance

Our boots crunched the gravel underfoot and the kilometers slipped past. It took some time for painful joints to loosen and get with the program, but in the end they did just that and delivered us to Torremejia, our destination for today. This is a farming community where tractors outnumber cars. We found lodging at the Albergue Touristico. We have booked room, breakfast and dinner. This comes to 51 euros for a double room. We met Giselle our French peregrina friend just as we were finishing lunch. She is spending the night here as well. So far it is only the three of us. Today the temperature gave the first hint of a coming change. We started out in Seville in the 80's, then moved into the 70's, and this coming week temperatures will finally slip into the 60's. It is near mid November and the feel of autumn is almost in the air. Tomorrow we will hoof it to Mérida. As the distance is only 15 Kms we should be able to manage that. Our hope is that after a few of these short days Robin's knee will be strong enough to resume somewhat longer distances. We shall see. We are having a great time of it and feel blessed we are still moving forward. All is good.

Home for the day

 

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