"Fligh to the Ford" (V)

Everything is calm, suspiciously calm, I would say. Strider finds it odd to find no trace of the Enemy, but the discovery of a beryl, an elf-stone, which he takes "as a sign that we may pass the Bridge", brings him hope. 

Indeed, they do cross the Bridge in safety, abandoning the Road for a safer but darker route, a "sombre country of dark trees winding among the feet of sullen hills". Instances of pathetic fallacy are prominent here, with the hobbits happy to leave the "cheerless lands", but finding themself in a new country which "seemed threatening and unfriendly". The sight of some ruins reminds Frodo of Bilbo's account and considers that they may be in the spot of his adventures with the trolls. His question concerning the builders of those ruins allows us once again to see the depth of knowledge Strider stores; nothing seems to be forgotten to an heir of Elendil, and Rivendell appears now not only as a destination to long for, but also as a place of special significance for the Ranger: "There my heart is," he tells the hobbits, "but it is not my fate to sit in peace, even in the fair house of Elrond". 

The going gets now tougher as they reach a valley, "narrow, deeply cloven, dark and silent" inhabited by "Trees with old and twisted roots". There is no clear path, and they keep on walking on this tiring area for the next two days. Therefore, I'll see you in two days' time!



P.S. The rain finally arrived in Granada yesterday and I am so happy! Everything smells delicious; walking down the forest of the Alhambra, always a pleasurable experience, was almost magical this morning! 

And the proof that autumn is officially here: the old woman selling chestnuts to the little boy in the window of "Los Italianos" ice-cream parlour. LOVE IT!