Dinner with our Dutch friends was fun as we told stories, shared ‘life parts’, and amused ourselves with the local live entertainment. The first part was an older family member who seemed to have a homemade obstacle course leading through our tables to ‘her’ chair. Each time a dinner guest moved an obstacle she would put it back and push her wheelie through it. Sometimes the guest was also as persistent.

The performance of the night was given by 12 Irish women in their 60s loudly and determinably destroying ‘long ago Irish ballads’, as well as the much desired quiet time for the other guests. As we left, the cafe owner gave us a look that was a mixture of ‘sorry but nothing I could do’, and ‘I used to be quite fond of those ballads’.

Another very steep hill to start the day (when I give the climb gradient, very steep is a Swiss hill/mountain, extreme is fear of falling backwards a step or forever). We left early to beat the ‘noisy and wandering all over the road crowds’, especially difficult on narrow steep tracks. Initially they were steep bitumen roads through villages with those wonderful grain-drying sheds and types of lavoires.

Corrie’s back was hurting and my balance is not always great, so we left the short distance walkers, the young and noisy (not all, as many of the young are silent save to say ‘hola’) and the unfit and tired, in our necessary wake. The pinnacle came, and once again back to the pretend downhill skiing method which caused a young Spanish couple to say ‘you are a champion’ as they put their arms around me.

Along a short valley then it was up an ancient stone slab path. Some days ago we travelled on a similar riverside path. This one had its own waterway or creek (leftovers from days of rain) finding its trickling waterfall way over our slab track. At one stage a Columbian man overtook us and gave me one of his homemade wrist bands without a word (he had read my back).

Then it was through a long valley of garden vineyards and vegetable patches. We came across a Dutch friend from day 1 as we lent on a rock and branch rest. A lovely encounter as we looked at our guide to work out which of the two arrows was preferable. We chose the birds’ home: the longer ‘tightly meandering river rainforest track’ and momentarily paused to listen to their ever changing repertoires. Another short and delightful sit on a naturally noisy river bend and it was home again in a large town with another perfect Spanish host.