Like the proverbial saying. But more about that in a bit.

Back to last night…we all started to introduce ourselves at the hostel as we arrived. Neil, from Switzerland was the only one we had previously met. Turned out we were 11 in total- the 3 of us, one Swiss, 4 Canadians and 3 Germans. Plus Pilgrim, the dog we can’t seem to shake. He actually stayed inside the house with us all night.

The host, Lawrence, was an interesting fellow who offered guests a chance to pay for a communal dinner. I remember such meals fondly from my last hike. The meal conversation started out slow as we began, but as the meal progressed and the wine flowed we had the most interesting and fun conversations. It was a memorable evening. Great to get the perspectives from other world views.

We took it slow in the morning as we knew we’d have a shorter walk, given the weather forecast. And guess who was sleeping away in the lounge? Pilgrim, right at home! We had coffee and a bite to eat, packed up and ventured out. The umbrellas, pack covers, rain coats and rain skirts all in place.

We needed it all. Not only are there lots of feral cats and dogs here (think Pilgrim) but the rain came down like that most of the day. Slosh, slosh, slosh. Not really a day for pictures, so dear readers, you’ll have to forgive my lack of pictorial content.

We had barely got going when Karma turned around to say something to us when he suddenly said “Whoa! There’s a horse right there!” And sure enough, munching away was a large horse! One never knows what you’ll encounter.

We slogged on. Eventually Mandy mentioned that there was a kebab place just a tad off the trail. Sounded like a good opportunity to get out of the rain. That was about all it was as their power wouldn’t stay on. But they were kind enough let us stay inside and rest out of the rain.

Back out. More rain. I know Portugal needs it after 6 months of no rain but I wouldn’t mind a respite from being perpetually wet from rain and sweat.

Another cafe appeared. And it had power! And the largest americano I’ve gotten here. Guess who else showed up? The mom, dad and daughter Canadians from last night – and Pilgrim! They said he had followed a few others, then found them. In he walks into the cafe, and amazingly the young woman running the place comes over to not shoo him out, but instead to welcome him with a bowl of dog food! Incredible.

When we walked out, we had company. The dog seems to really like Karma, as he follows right at his heels. We tried to get him to follow others, to no avail.

On we walked through puddles and mud, cobblestones and pavement. I’m thankful for the hiking poles I carry and use every day to keep my balance through the dicey areas. Mandy told me this was “type 2” fun. Stuff that isn’t fun while you’re going through it, but fun to tell about later.

And the, voila! After carrying a postcard to mail since Lisbon, we finally passed a post box for international mail. Woohoo!

We eventually made our way into Valença, our destination for today. We came to a large grocery store, like the one we found in Lisbon, so we stopped for supplies. And Pilgrim was still with us! But as we sat outside in the covered cafe space, other hikers passed by. And Pilgrim followed! He must recognize all of us by our hiker stink.

Soon it was time for the hostel to open, so we trekked the last bit to check in. It’s a bit of an odd one, with a very lively crowd. However, I’m tucked into my cubicle after a less than restful sleep last night. To my delight, after being dismayed to be given an upper bunk, the sweet young woman, Michelle, from the Netherlands, offered to switch with me. Now, no fear of falling during night forays.

10 miles with 24,287 steps