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Spain Chozas de Arriba

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  • Hablar espagnol
    2
    Day 57–58

    León

    April 24 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    León geht auf ein römisches Heereslager zurück und war eine wichtige Drehscheibe für das von den Römern in Las Medullas abgebaute Gold. Seit jeher einer der bedeutendsten Etappenorte am Jakobsweg, ist die Stadt heute ein moderner Ort mit grosser kultureller Bedeutung und zugleich die Hauptstadt der Autonomen Region Kastilien&León.

    Die mächtige und prächtige gotische Kathedrale ist ein faszinierendes Wahrzeichen der Stadt, bei Tag wie bei Nacht sehr geschickt in Szene gesetzt.

    Auch die Casa Botines, ein Frühwerk des bedeutendsten katalanischen Architekten des Modernismo, Antonio Gaudí, zieht mit seiner auffälligen Fassade unweigerlich die Aufmerksamkeit auf sich.

    Dann ist aber auch die sehr schön renovierte romanische Basilika San Isidoro zu erwähnen. Ebenso die Plaza Mayor mit ihrem Wohnzimmer-Charme und den zahlreichen Taperías.

    San Marcos de León wurde im 12.Jahrhundert als Kloster und Hospital gegründet und bald danach dem religiös-militärischen Ritter-Orden de Santiago anvertraut. Durch die besondere Lage direkt an der Römerbrücke über den Bernesga-Fluss war es prädestiniert für die Versorgung und den Schutz der Pilger auf ihrem Weg nach Santiago. Das prächtig renovierte Gebäude ist heute ein Parador, ein staatliches Tourismus-Hotel. Die zugehörige Kirche ist eine Außenstelle des historischen Museums von León.

    Die quirlige, moderne und sehr gepflegte Stadt beeindruckt. Doch gleichzeitig konnte ich den Vergleich mit einer Playmobil-Stadt mittelalterlichen Stils nicht ganz abstreifen: fast zu schön renoviert, etwas zu sauber und zu ambitioniert für meinen Geschmack.

    Einen Besuch ist diese jung und frisch wirkende Stadt jedoch allemal wert. Und die Peluqueriqa por Caballeros an der Via Roma kann ich nur empfehlen.    Read more

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  • TravelerSpring 2025 Camino
    Day 24

    Lying low in León

    April 19 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 6 °C

    So here I am, in the big city of León, and mostly what I’m doing is enjoying my very own little hotel room and not going out. Partly because it’s cold and rainy, but also, I just don’t love the big towns.

    Walking in of course you trek through outlying burbs and industrial areas, then into downtown city streets. Guided always by the friendly yellow arrows, of course. Your average pilgrim feels increasingly out of her comfort zone until suddenly the magical Big Stone Wall appears, and you step into the Old City. Ahh! Much better! Now, where’s that Cathedral?

    Very aggravating that I can’t seem to find a poster or website that spells out their schedule for Easter. Nor does the front desk lady have any idea. And the Cathedral is literally across the street from this hotel! Why do I not have the WhatsApp number for the two super-devout Catholics I met along the way? I’m sure they have the scoop.

    Lost: one wool mitten liner, some time this morning. Very sad.

    So, now that I’m on the verge of exiting both León and Semana Santa, my new focus is covering enough ground each day that I have a reasonable chance of walking to Finisterre. I very much wanted to already and then a Camino blogger I like went and posted the most inspiring discussion of the experience of arriving there. If I can do it without turning this into a rush, I will. I mean, who among us doesn’t want to walk to the End of the Earth?    Read more

  • TravelerCamino Mixto
    2221
    Day 5

    Day 3 - Hospital de Orbigo to Astorga

    April 12 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 9 °C

    There was light rain today, so I tested my rain gear. It was sufficient. My boots are a bit muddy though. The trail was on gravel roads quite a bit, with a red dirt. And more hills as well.

    The slugs and snails and caterpillars were also in abundance on the trail. They seem to like the moist weather.

    I got into Astorga early in the afternoon. I checked into my albergue, it is quite swanky with NO bunk beds and very modern.

    I went to lunch at a Pizzeria and had amazing pasta.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino Mixto
    2
    Day 4

    Day 2 - Oncina to Hospital de Orbigo

    April 11 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 8 °C

    Today I walked 25 km, a lot further than I have walked for a long time. But it was fairly flat, about half on dirt roads and half on pavement.

    I stopped twice - once for café con leche and tortilla español, and once for a coke and pan chocolate. Healthy treats. Now I’m enjoying a cerveza. ☕️🍺

    Tonight I will have dinner at the albergue. I am staying at Albergue Hidalgos.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino Mixto
    22
    Day 2

    Exploring León

    April 9 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C

    A shower and a change of clothes felt wonderful after 48 hours of travel! I set out to explore León. I saw my first Camino marker, stopped in at the Basilica San Isidoro, then Katedral León. It is such a beautiful building with so much history.

    Then I had two things on my agenda. Eat something and buy some poles. The lack of sleep made me completely indecisive; so, after wandering aimlessly, I headed back to my hotel and found amazing homemade potato chips, free with a beer 🍺 🍺 (una más, por favor), and a great price for 2 cheerful yellow hiking poles (both places less than a block from my hotel.)

    Now satiated and exhausted, I am heading to bed.    Read more

  • Spanien, Portugal
    12413
    Day 9

    Abstecher nach Leon

    April 7 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    Ein sehr guter Tip vom Stefan (ein Freund von meinem Vater) dass wir unbedingt einen Abstecher nach Leon machen sollen. Eine angenehme Stadt, am Abend steppt hier der Bär. Stadtnähe haben wir einen Stellplatz bekommen. 20 Minuten sind wir zu Fuß rein gelaufen. Es gibt es viele Kirchen in der Stadt und ganz viele kleine Straßen wo die Bars sind. Morgen werden wir dann wieder ans Meer fahren.Read more

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  • TravelerFénix Camino
    Day 12

    Day 10. Stg 22. Astorga

    April 29 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 48 °F

    The 15-mile walk to Astorga was a great way to end my Camino. The walk itself had a little bit of everything, the people were entertaining, and it was a perfect spring day.

    I walked stage 22 of the Camino to celebrate Simon Bromley's life. Simon was Tania's husband, who passed away in 2016. He always wanted to walk the Camino, and now Tania is walking the walk for/with him. He was a wonderful human being and husband. Big hug to Tania my Camino angel 😇

    As we walked, we came upon a hippy Camino food stand out in the middle of nowhere, and I firmly believe Simon had something to do with it. It had a huge buffet of food and drinks. It only accepted donations and had a wonderful vibe to it. The dog (hector) was a bonus (see video) .

    The city of Astorga has a rich and ancient history dating back over 2,000 years. Founded as Asturica Augusta in the 1st century BCE by the Romans, it was a key military and administrative center due to its location on major Roman roads, including the Via de la Plata. It became an important hub for gold mining in nearby Las Médulas. Pretty old!

    We visited The Palace of Gaudí designed by the renowned Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí. His most famous work is without a doubt the Sagrada Família in Barcelona, Spain. Also visited the Iglesia de Santa Marta cathedral, which was built in 1751.

    As I mentioned, this is my last stage for this trip. I'm taking the train back to Leon tomorrow to explore the city a little more. I'll spend the night and take a train to Madrid to catch my flight back home on Friday. Hopefully, I've instilled a couple of you to consider the Camino de Santiago. It's challenging physically and mentally but well worth all the great lifetime experiences. I'll be back next year to wrap it up. Thanks for joining me on my adventure. Enjoy!    Read more

  • TravelerFénix Camino
    Day 11

    Day 9. Stg 21. San Martin del Camino

    April 28 in Spain ⋅ 🌙 39 °F

    Brutal 16-mile walk today.

    The walk out of León was nice with all it's buildings, enclosed streets, and history on display.

    The first defensive Roman walls (1st video) were built during the Roman period, around the 3rd–4th centuries AD. These walls formed a fortified rectangle around the settlement. The walls were about 5 meters high (16 ft) and up to 4 meters thick (13 ft) in places. Parts of the wall can still be viewed today. Massive!

    Once out past the city limits, we pretty much hugged a busy truckers road. It really is mentally fatiguing to see where you are going for 5 miles in a straight line. Totally exposed to the sun beating down on us. Makes for a long day.

    At least the Albergue was nice, but we've had no power since Spain, Portugal and France's power grid went offline around 1 pm.

    The feet are doing well. Lots of people are cutting their Camino short due to injuries. Knees, ankles, and feet are the main issues. The toe socks are popular this time around. Guess i need to give them a try next time.

    Finally! Power back on at 3.25 am.    Read more

  • Trip to Italy and Spain
    Day 74

    Travel day to Zamora

    April 16 in Spain ⋅ 🌧 45 °F

    It's kind of a long, boring day of waiting. We packed up and walked in the mix of snow and rain to the train station (about 3/4 of a mile). The temperature was hovering right around freezing.

    We catch our train to Madrid at 3:15 and then another one to Zamora at about 8:20. We are supposed to have a 3 hr layover, but the last two trains from Leon have both been late in leaving. I am glad we have some cushion.

    There are not many photos today, and we get into Zamora after 9 pm. The walk from the train station to our new place isn't too far.    Read more

  • TravelerCamino 2025
    Day 12–13

    Day 11-12 Astorga

    April 13 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    A very long 32km day. At least tomorrow is a rest day. Met Sonny and Lucien at the albergue and we ended up walking together and having a wonderful day. Even ended going for a traditional Spanish dinner with Lucien this evening. Unfortunately tomorrow everyone's moving on so I will probably not meet them again
    Ah well 😌    Read more

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