I’m not exactly sure how I feel tonight. Janine and I are in limbo, neither fully hospitaleras nor pilgrims. This afternoon, we handed over the reins of carrying on Guacelmo’s warm hospitality to Chris and Shawna from Canada and Annie from the UK. Nigel left this afternoon, and tomorrow Janine and I will be back on the Camino.

Janine and I went to say “good-bye” to Susanna at the supermercado, and later we had one last lively chat with the wonderful ladies who tried to teach us Spanish. When we explained that we’d be leaving Rabanal tomorrow, they surprised us by singing us a song! Engaging with these spirited ladies was a huge highlight.

Janine prepared a delicious meal of chicken, vegetables, and salad to welcome the new hospitaleros. With the kitchen and patio bustling, we headed out to the garden for dinner. We have 25 pilgrims tonight, the fullest we’ve been during our stint.

We’ve only lit the fire twice in the last two weeks, but Chris lit it today. The warmth acted like a magnet, drawing pilgrims into the salon. When I heard the strumming of a guitar and “Country Roads,” I knew that Janine had made the request. It was heartwarming to see everyone gathered, singing, and sharing, by the warm fire.

Tomorrow, we’ll set off toward Cruz de Ferro, hiking with the pilgrims we welcomed today. It’s one of the most symbolic places on the Camino, and it’s there I’ll leave my little red rock, which carries so much meaning. I wrote about it in my first post, and tomorrow, it will be time to let it go. We’ll end the day at El Acebo after a challenging descent.

Dave called today. He sounded happy at the beginning of the day but less so later on. He found his first yellow arrows and walked along the Douro River to the Atlantic Ocean—then promptly got lost after returning to Porto! It’s a good warm-up for our Camino Portuguese, which we’ll begin in just a few days. It’s strange to think that soon, we’ll be walking together again.