This morning I left under the same bloody cloud ☁️ that has been following me for more than a week. I started walking, not raining, and met a very pleasant twenty five year old dutch lass. We chatted happily in dutch until we left the village and the rain started. I was reluctant to leave my flash hotel, but I knew they would have evicted me at eleven,so I left before I would have been dragged out kicking and screaming. When I told her I have two girls around her age and my oldest was old enough to be her mother, she cracked up and said I must have been a child groom. She also said I must be a crazy man to be walking in near zero degrees in a singlet. I told her every other pilgrim thinks the same. Her name is Gabby, and she is proud for me to be her camino dad. The track along the road has become a river, so a lot of walking had to be done on the road. Not a busy road, but frightening when cars zoom past and happy to spray pilgrims with water. I caught up with Helen and Mark at our first cafe stop. There were times the rain eased, but all in all, no fun walking like a drowned rat. At one point, we passed another young dutch lass, and Helen and Mark were astounded that I could speak in my native tongue. The last two kilometres into Rabanal walking on natural path up hill was like walking against the tide. I decided that maybe that ark would come in handy. I also decided I should try to get a bed here, as the next village was quite small and beds were possibly unavailable.Helen and  Mark soldiered on to that village as they had pre booked. As it turned out I struggled to get one in Rabanal, and in fact got the last room in a hostal. The stupid part was there were four beds, so I told the girl in charge that if any one enquires about a bed,I would be happy to share my room. About  half hour later, a guy from America introduced himself as Zowie and  was happy to share the cost for one of the beds. Zowie comes from Colorado and is on a bike doing the camino. He rides about seventy kilometres a day. At thirty one, he is young and fit. He tells me he enjoys living in Colorado for the mountain hiking and kayaking and all the outdoors that Colorado mountains offer.Ten or eleven days and he is done. I decided to have a hot lunch as the temperature is going down. I had a gourmet burger with chips. The reason for the drop in temperature is we have now left the Meseta and are climbing into the mountains. I started the day at nine hundred metres and finished at twelve hundred metres. Tomorrow will hit fifteen hundred before ending the day at seven hundred.Big day,hopefully l will survive. If it rains tomorrow, it will be sleat and possibly snowing at that high level. Just went looking for a bar. Not a big village and must be all working to siesta time as I couldn’t find one open till seven pm. Thankfully ,the supermacardo was open, so I was able to get some home supplies and am sitting in my very large room having a beer with Zowie. At seven pm, Zowie and I headed to a bar not far from the accommodation. Not raining, so that was a bonus. I have tried to get newspaper to help dry my shoes out. It’s like rocking horse shit, impossible to find. Can’t even buy it. I  hate starting the day with wet shoes, so I have filled them up with toilet paper and serviettes that I have borrowed from different places. Any thing to help dry my shoes for tomorrow. Zowie had pasta and I had an omelette. We had a beer and the usual vino. By nine o’clock most pilgrims are in bed, and at quarter past, I’m heading there too,looking forward to another big day tomorrow. Could be absolute crap but as crazy as it sounds I’m looking forward to it.