Valdeiglesias

After dragging myself away from Albergue Verde felt like nothing would be the same -
And it wasn’t really.
Howver, a lovely walk with increasingly different scenery to our days on the Meseta. More undulating and greener, with more trees and less sky. Weather was mixed, cloudy but warm and then rain as we came into Astorga.
First coffee was at Santibañez de Valdeiglesias - advised by Cally (from Albergue Verde) that the coffee wasn’t good, unfortunately listened to another guy who said it was fine. It really wasn’t - pretty i drinkable and very expensive.
High point of the day, apart from the Palacio Gaudi in Astorga, was the donativo rest area run by David between Santibañez and St Justo. Wonderful fruit, and all sorts of other food as well as places to rest. I satisfied my craving for watermelon and also had a banana - just what I needed at that moment. A very generous place driven by love of the Camino.
Then continued into st Justo, where I went into a farmacia to see if they could give me something to help with my wrist - think I was bitten by something in the garden last night and it has swollen up - a bit like my shoulder did previously. The stuff they gave me in Carrion de las Condes didn’t seem to be working - this farmacia advised something else. So I’m hoping, but it’s still fairly itchy and swollen at the moment.
Into Astorga, in the rain, over a crazy bridge!
Astorga seems a bit run down, very quiet and a bit dull.
Our Albergue is clean but expensive for what it is and have just paid €17 for a plate. Of rice and beans - which seemed expensive. Basically back to 1970’s UK when vegetarians got the main course less the meat rather than an actual meal. It was fine but a bit boring, even when sliced up with loads of Tabasco. And I felt slightly cheated when we had to pay the same as the people eating loads of meat! But you win some, you lose some, and last night was a privilege, as was the donativo rest stop today, so I’m very happy.
The highlight of Astorga for me is the Gaudi Palacio. Quite astonishing and I could have happily spent hours in there. Another weirdly emotional place for me - he seems to be an architect that has the power to move in an almost religious way - the chapel within the palace filled me with awe - I would come back to Astorga just to be there again.
Something in the palace made me think of Healah from RAK, who I haven’t heard from for ages, so I WhatsApped her and she wrote back immediately - that too was a gift and very unexpected.
Also good was meeting the other (all new) fellow pilgrims at dinner and having a drink with Bart (we met at Albergue Verde) in one of the squares.
Need to go to sleep now as have to be up early to get to Rabanal to ensure we get places at the Confraternity hostel.Read more