Spain
Catedral de León

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    • Day 17

      Day 13 - Leon last rest day.

      October 12, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 72 °F

      At 7 am Joan woke up to make her Physio appointment. Where she had to walk across desolate city streets to a place unknown in search of relief to her aching buttocks and hip. Julie slept.

      Surprisingly, Joan was able to follow her GPS and locate her Physio for a much needed stretch. The stretcher, was a 50yr old Spaniard, who made Joan a bit nervous, but all ended well and she came out of it feeling better yet 50 euros lighter.

      Upon her return to hotel, Julie and Joan planned their next day (a Pilgrims work is never done), and they set out for breakfast and to explore the city. After a lovely outdoor breakfast cafe, gazing upon the Cathedral, we decided to take a tour of the Cathedral. We spent the next two hours enjoying the history, art, and beauty of our savior Jesus Christ. It was our favorite Church of the Camino.

      After our tour, and meeting several pilgrims- and a quick tutorial on how to wear their backpacks (another story), we found our way to another MacKenzie suggestion and stopped at Topo, which we thought would be a quick refreshment. Little did we know when you ordered a beer you received two free slices of pizza. We were in heaven playing Uno, drinking beer, and gazing at the beautiful Cathedral and people watching. 3+ hours flew by.

      We decided we needed to see more of the city of Leon, and we set out for an adventure. That adventure led us to more Uno and another church.

      We needed food, we circled old town in search of food, and finally found a place we liked that was open at 7:30 pm, and we ended up in a hole in the wall that was amazing. Grilled artichoke snd Jamon, and grilled Squid plus a local wine- a perfect end to our Leon “rest day”!

      Tomorrow we hike to Astorga. We miss walking. That is the truth. Back on the Camino tomorrow.

      Buen Camino!
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    • Day 16

      Camino Day 11 - Leon (rest day 2)

      September 4, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

      After a night of heavy rain we only had a couple of showers today.
      We took the "tourist train" ride through the city and then wandered around doing a bit of Camino shopping, basically replacing items we needed for the trail.
      Lunch in a very Spanish bar which we also went back to for dinner as the food, locality and atmosphere was so good.
      We are all keen to get back on the trail tomorrow, but not quite as keen on the 26kms planned for the day.
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    • Day 3

      Cathedral de Leon

      May 21, 2022 in Spain ⋅ ⛅ 72 °F

      The cathedral of Léon is a complex, layered gem. Originally, it was the site of Roman baths upon which a Romanesque church was built. Over time, it was rebuilt. An earthquake destroyed one of the towers, necessitating a repair in a different type of stone. The city council of Léon built an enormous marble altar that completely unbalanced the underlying structure. The building started to come apart and churchgoers reported popping and cracking sounds over the course of years. When serious cracking and separations became too apparent, a master architect was engaged. He determined the cause was the massive altar, which was dismantled. Then, he had to recalculate all of the arch systems in the roof and devise repairs. The windows had to be dismantled and placed into boxes for almost 50 years and, once the structure was repaired, cleaned and replaced. It was one of the greatest conservations ever undertaken.Read more

    • Day 25

      Carrion de los condes to Leon 100km

      September 29, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

      We really made great time today….thanks to the ALSA bus. After taking time off to heal blisters and recover from a cold, there was no way we would make it to Santiago in our allotted time. So we decided to hop on the bus. As much as we didn’t want to do this, we knew it was the best decision for us. The funniest thing about the bus was that it was mostly full of pilgrims…we aren’t the only ones jumping ahead. The good thing about moving ahead is that we are catching up with some of our friends that had moved on. We were able to meet up with Josiah for drinks tonight.
      Leon is a beautiful city, vibrant and alive.
      The other great thing about being in Leon is that we found a note that friends, Nancy and Mark, from Cleveland, left hidden for us about 10 days ago. They are doing the Camino as well and when they were in Leon, they wrote us a lovely note and tucked it behind a sign. We were hoping it would still be there when we got to Leon and sure enough it was. What a great little surprise and morale booster to get us through the rest of the Camino. Thanks Nancy and Mark.
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    • Day 25

      Day 24, still in Leon!

      June 16, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 21 °C

      This has been a day of cultural gems. I went out for a walk at 7.30 this morning and wandered around admiring Leon’s street art and marvelling at the council’s efforts to ensure the city was blooming - wish we could emulate both at home.
      Our first proper activity was a visit to San Isidoro’ Basilica, an 11th century Romanesque church built while the Moors were in charge. I loved its austere beauty.
      From there we went to the adjacent museum (where we weren’t allowed to take photographs) and we were bowled over by the largest collection of medieval books I’ve ever seen, the highlight being a 10th century bible annotated in Arabic.
      I did sneak a picture of a wonderful 10th century crucifix which made me want to return to Leon on a art history holiday. The tour kept the best until
      last - The Pantheon of Kings - a chapel with amazing medieval murals on both walls and ceilings. I was so frustrated not to be allowed to capture any images!
      My next visit was to the museum attached to the cathedral which contained works of art which had at some period been displayed in the cathedral itself. Again, the building was amazing and the art works beautiful and thought-provoking. I spotted another image of Mary pregnant (perhaps I’m wrong that this is very rare).
      We went to mass in the cathedral chapel and then struggled to find an early dinner. My stomach is still a bit dodgy so I needed to be cautious but Fiona was ravenous and frustrated that all vegetarian restaurants were closed until 8.30. We settled in the end for a cheese sandwich (practically all I’ve eaten successfully for three days) at our hotel.
      In the way of things in this part of Spain, we then stumbled on some dancing women in the street in traditional costume. Maybe because it’s Friday?
      Our final huge treat was a concert at the cathedral which allowed us access to it at night and provided us with a sublime end to the day. The concert performers were a wonderful
      organist and a woman who looked like she’d been a thalidomide child playing the pan pipes. The purpose of the concert, according to the programme, was the inclusion and promotion of disabled musicians. Both performers were superb and it was very special to hear the cathedral’s very fine organ. Although we are now worryingly late going to bed I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.
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    • Day 25

      León Cathedral

      October 4, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 73 °F

      The cathedral in León deserves its own footprint. It is the most outstanding example of late Gothic architecture than I seen in cathedrals thus far. It is exceptionally airy and bright, with 125 Stainglass windows, some of them quite large. Apparently, they went a little too far with the light and airy construction and there have been a couple of collapses since it was built in the 13th centuryRead more

    • Day 33

      Camino Day 23: Mansilla to León

      September 3, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

      Total Distance: 18.2km (by bus)
      Step Count: 15.8k
      Blisters to date: 2
      Tortillas to date: 21
      Injuries: shin splints

      I didn’t walk today 😔
      The doctor was very emphatic on taking a rest day so I caught a bus early in the morning to León. Most of the city entrances were not the nicest to walk so I figured this would be a good section to skip without much FOMO.

      I got to town so early that I managed to get some beautiful shots at the Cathedral without anyone in the square! I sat at a cafe there to enjoy my coffee with a view and shortly after I bumped into Lukas and Tommaso. Of course we’d reunite! I also met Little John (who was going through his Camino spending more by staying in private rooms to spare people from his snoring - good people still exist!).

      After dropping my things off at the Albergue, we went to a mass with singing nuns (finally!). It was beautiful 😍

      From there, Lukas, Tommaso and I went to the museum and then walked around the city centre as there was a big medieval festival taking place. There was music and food and market stalls everywhere.

      Later that day, after resting my leg a bit more, I caught up with the Spanish ladies and we went to visit the Cathedral, known for its more than 130 church windows! Breathtakingly beautiful! ⛪️

      By the time we came out, it was pouring so we found an undercover spot to enjoy some food and drinks, one last hurrah before we parted ways the next day and another bittersweet farewell. We were all headed to Astorga but they’d walk the stretch in 3 days and I would do it in 2 as Jorge would visit me on the trail there 😊
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    • Day 33

      Leon

      June 23, 2023 in Spain ⋅ 🌙 22 °C

      I spent a couple of nights in the small town of Carrion de Los Condes, where I stayed in a renovated monastery, the Hotel Real Monasterio de San Zoilo. Not being able to walk very far, I was glad that they had a museum in part of the building.

      Now I’m in Leon, which is known for its cathedral, which has 133 stained glass windows. I also toured Casa Botines, a textile factory and showroom that was designed by Gaudi. It’s now a museum about Gaudi and his works. It also houses an excellent art museum. It has a room full of Dali creations. He was commissioned by the Italian government to illustrate Dante’s Divine Comedy.
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    • Day 168

      Leon hviledag

      September 25, 2023 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

      Det viste seg at Noreen, den australske damen som jeg har blitt kjent med, hadde fødelsesdag. Sammen med en mor og datter fra USA, ble det et glass sjampanje på oss hver og senere ble det middag. En veldig hyggelig kveld.

      I dag har jeg ikke gjort stort. Jeg spasert til Cathalon butikken, 20 min hver vei, kjøpte en langermet T-skjorte, en treningsbukse og en lett vindjakke - alt lett, pustende og ment for jogging. Jeg tror dette vil fungere for de kalde morgener som jeg erfarer.
      Ellers har vannblemmer fått hvile og eller har jeg ikke gjort noe som helst. I morgen tar jeg bussen ut av Leon. Dagsetappen er ca 35 km, som jeg reduserer med 10 km, med buss ut av Leon og dets industriområder. Tur i industriområder er ikke gøy og da er buss innenfor
      Litt om katedralen i Leon, som er bygget i gotisk stil, rundt 1000 år gammel. Katedralen er kjent for sine 130 dekorerte vinduer og 3 store rosevinduer, en av de gotiske katedralene med flest dekorete vinduer (blyglass). Det blir en flott stemning i katedralen når solen lyser opp vinduene som speiler seg inn i katedralen.
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    • Day 42

      Leon and stained glass windows

      June 22, 2023 in Spain ⋅ 🌙 11 °C

      I arrived in Leon about 5pm, and was greeted by a tremendous but short-lived downpour. My hotel, Le Petit Leon was easy to find, right in the heart of the Tapas area and a short walk to the main attraction, the wonderful Leon Cathedral. I popped in for a quick look and was blown away by the stained glass windows and the elegance of the Gothic design. Started in 1153 and commissioned by Alphonso the tenth it is one of the best Gothic cathedrals in the world. The time of day and therefore the light dictates the ambience. A huge effort has gone into the restoration of the Cathedral and various convents, churches and Roman Walls. The museum of Contemporary Art is great- just one floor and all the artworks are huge. The tapas scene is big here and bars come alive after 9pm.
      I love the feel of the place and saw my first Gaudi!
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    You might also know this place by the following names:

    Catedral de León, Catedral de Leon

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