Lion King

The view from the doorway of our hostel.

Although technically the name for the city of Leon comes from "Legion", the lion is used as its symbol. Founded as a Roman military garrison in 29bc, it has been the capitol of the old kingdoms of Asturias and Leon.  Having been conquered by Visigoth, Moor, and finally Christian forces, it retains the style of every period. The old quarter is dominated by the 13c Gothic Cathedral with its 125 stained glass windows which bring in a great deal more light than normally in other Cathedrals. It is said to be the "gayest church in Spain"( you can add your own commentary).Because of the use of so many windows, the Cathedral has suffered numerous structural failures and one of the altars that had been especially designed was reconstructed so as to not cover any of the stained glass.

The altar and stained glass windows.



 

High Plains Drifter(s)

Contrary to common belief Clint Eastwood's "Italian Spaghetti Westerns" were actually filmed in this meseta area of Spain also known as the "High Plains of Castile". When I asked about some heat in our room, I was informed that the cold wind makes this area the coldest in Spain. Thank goodness Jerry has replaced his opera singing with reciting Eastwood's dialogue from these "classics". Problem is since Eastwood only had five lines per film, he has to repeat them over and over and over. This afternoon we stumbled into our only village for miles which had been a Templar stronghold.  We were just delighted to find a cold drink and honored to sit a while with the mayor who didn't have much to say.

Remains of the Day

They say that you "cannot claim to know Spain if you do not know the meseta" and I think we qualify as having intimate knowledge of it by now. This area was conquered and reconquered throughout history with each conqueror leaving his mark on the landscape. Unfortunately, parts of the ancient Roman road is being destroyed to make way for modern highways. Hard enough to walk the old Roman roads let alone drive a car on those stones.

 Deconstruction of Roman Road and Wall

Stone Causeway with Snow on the Mtns

Gypsy

Bundled up against the morning chill

In "The Way", Burgos is where Martin Sheen's backpack is stolen by the gypsy boy. We decided it might be fun to reference scenes from the movie so we located the bar where the pack was stolen but it wasn't open until much later in the evening. However, on our way out of town we walked down the tree lined lane where the boy carried  the backpack for Martin. I did read in one of the newspapers that the locals are not particularly happy with their portrayal in the movie .

Rhinestone Cowboy

 

Another day of the meseta, but still lots of interesting sites. The ruins and archway are of an ancient convent and monastery connected to the work of the hermit Saint Anthony of Egypt. Food was left here for the pilgrims but today pilgrims leave messages instead.  As we continued on we saw what we thought was a traditional pilgrim complete with his donkey. The donkey wore the scallop shell on his forehead, grazed along the path and also carried a pail of oats. Our image was shattered when the gentleman pulled out his IPhone to take a photo of us! Jerry tried to negotiate some rental space for our packs, but the deal breaker was when  Jerry wanted use of the IPhone thrown in.

The Station Agent

Yesterday we had a wonderful tree lined riverside trail. End of the day found us in a very nice restaurant with white tablecloths and wine glasses instead of our normal fare. Everyone knows how much I like soups but I have been avoiding the local garlic soup, until I finally decided to try it and what a surprise. Then I had delicious stuffed red peppers and cheesecake. I haven't eaten this much for ages. Meantime, Jerry was savoring one of the best (according to Jerry the lamb expert) leg of lamb... ever. It had wild mushrooms and a red wine sauce and I had to remind him that it probably was not appropriate to lick the plate. The night before, after a grueling long day, we decided to stay at a recently renovated train depot. The people were fantastic, but you should not always assume that just because the depot was abandoned that the tracks were also. Thank heaven for earplugs and their schedule stopped just before midnight. 

Snapshots along the way

Snapshots along the way:

guess what is on the menu for tonight!

bright red poppy fields everywhere

Bb



memorials along the trail



no chance of getting lost here

The Last Castle

Just a small climb to start the morning

We ended today in what one author described as a sleepy town "permanently occupied with siesta" so once we found a bed we decided to join in the tradition. High on a hill overlooking the town are ruins of a huge Castillo (9th c)which was a major Roman garrison with all of the fortifications for the protection against the invading Moors. Because of it's strategic location, it was the site of many great battles. Jerry thinks Patton would have had a field day channeling with Charlemagne here.  Amazing how the medieval stone wheels used to transport the quarry stone are now found being used as picnic table and seats. 

It's so great to finally see the sun and hear "buen camino" as we pass other peregrinos. This is the "meseta" which is primarily large wheat and grain fields.  We finally ended our day in a delightful medieval village. Jerry always tries to identify points of interest  a day ahead in order to provide me with a running commentary on all things historic and while in this village, he insisted that we go to find the Fuentes del Gallo... Hen Fountain.  We haven't really discovered the historic value but we found it! However, while we were walking through the village, a gentleman insisted that we come with him to see a medieval header over his doorway.  He explained that it actually was the lid of a stone coffin with a relief of a Knight Templar. Fortunately, I finally convinced Jerry that it was too heavy for his pack.

City of Lights

Arco S.Maria where El Cid entered the city

We are finally in Burgos and great timing as they were having a huge annual festival. We had to dodge the younger crowds as they were throwing the colored powder and we had just finished our laundry. The main event stage was a block directly down from us which started about 11pm and went until 4am.  They even washed the Cathedral in beautiful lights. Even industrial earplugs were not enough! The Cathedral is one of Spain's most beautiful and second largest but I covered it when we were here before so won't go back over that. Of course this is the city of El Cid who is also

waiting for a bed at the alburgue

buried in the Cathedral. 



The Perfect Storm

Tormentos and mas tormentos The Perfect Storm ...Rain, wind, mud and no WIFI..
Looks like it is going to be rough weather-wise for at least a couple
of weeks, so we are headed South to Burgos where the sun is shining to hike the
Camino Frances until the weather clears up North.  Before we headed South, we
made a point to see Bilbao again (but skipped the Guggenheim this time) and
traveled to Santander as we had never been there and it was our first visit to Cantabria.

Xs and Zs

We have been intrigued by the number of Basque names that contain an X or Z. In one day we came through Xemein, Arratzua, Gerekiz, Larrabezua, Larrabetzu and Lezama and now we are in Zarautz, famous for surfers and weight lifters. We ducked into a restaurant to escape a downpour and wouldn't you know it, the bartender was a weight lifter from New Jersey. He convinced Jerry to expand his normal menu selection and to order this colorful dish. It
was a pepper topped with a fish mixture and shrimp. I
had one with crab meat and shrimp... delicious! We hadn't
seen any soup on the menus so we asked and they made
some just for us. Perfect for a couple of drowned rats and the perfect ending for the day.           
 

On The Beach

Donostia is Basque for San Sebastian, a seaside resort city favored by Spanish and European aristocracy with large beaches, palaces, museums and some of the most beautiful tree lined boulevards. It has been burned to the ground nearly a dozen times therefore most of the buildings are from the 19th c. One of our fond memories will include what we both rated as the best fish and chips we had ever eaten.  

A Bridge Too Far (or lack of)

 

Near the end of our trail today we descended into a small fishing village and made our way to a ramp that served as the ferry dock. Small ferries are used to cross the many inlets along the route rather than building expensive bridges that would have to allow access for the fishing fleets. Once on the other side we picked up the Camino and made our way to San Sebastian where we plan to take at least a day to just see the sights.

A Walk In The Clouds

A little hard to put the packs on after a day of fun but the skies were dark so we were going to try to beat the rain. At least there was a village a few hours out for a cafe con leche stop, but after that it was rain off and on and cold wind. We walked through some beautiful vineyards and had some great water views but were delighted to get into town and find a warm place to rest.
 

The Vireda

Amazingly all of our gear arrived. We traveled to Irun via bus and tren, mailed our suitcases to Santiago, and hit the Camino bright and early this morning (Sunday, May 9th). We knew it would be a difficult day and the recent rains made the trail (such as it was) muddy and slick. As we reached one of the summits the air was suddenly filled with beautiful choir music.  We knew it had been a very steep climb but didn't think we were high enough to be at the pearly gates. As we rounded the next bend, we realized the music was from a monastery holding services. What a wonderful surprise and perfect shelter to get on the rain gear. After six hours of boulder hopping and slogging through the mud, we finally understood why everyone calls this the "vireda", loosely translated as the "widowmaker". Maybe we should have been training on Mt. McKinley.

About Tapas

Remember the scene in "The Way" where Martin Sheen is embarrassed when
he insists on ordering Tapas and is told that in Basque country they are
not Tapas?  Here they are called Pintxo or Pintxtos (note the x) or Panchos.
But in Martin's defense, I have heard them called Tapas more often than
either of the other two names. Also we immediately recalled that the common
response in Spain is "vale" (ok), used most often in multiples... vale vale. 

Darn More Hiking in Spain

With the credit for our cancelled trip to participate in the European Peace Walk (Vienna to Italy) last year burning a hole in our hands, we decided that 2015 would be our return to Spain but this time to trek along the Camino del Norte (Ruta de la Costa or Coastal Route).  Who could resist the opportunity to spend more time hiking in Spain? This is an ancient route used by the first pilgrims to avoid the Muslim domination which had extended northwards and made travel along any other route difficult and dangerous.  Pilgrims from Scandinavia, England and parts of France would arrive by sea at one of the northern Spanish ports to begin their journey along this route.  Much of the route follows the line of the old Roman road, the Via Agrippa.  Last year celebrated 800 years from when Francis of Asis traveled this very route.  While the Camino Frances was inland, the Camino del Norte will hug the coastline beginning in Irun on the French-Spanish border and traveling 825km to Santiago de Compostela. 

Buen Camino Amigo

Jurgen is a German police detective who we became friends with on our Camino in 2013 and actually walked into Santiago to the Cathedral together. After returning home in 2013, Jurgen had to endure the dreaded 3Rs-- ,radical surgery, radiation and retirement.  According to Jurgen, the latter caused him the most stress! So imagine how surprised but delighted we were to learn that he is doing the entire Camino Frances starting on May 9th. He will be a week ahead of us but we hope to meet up again at the Cathedral. Buen Camino Jurgen 

Camino Norte

This is described as a rough coastal route, with many steep climbs and equally difficult descents and is described as the most difficult of the eight Caminos in Spain. However, it is also said to be the most beautiful with craggy mountains, lush vegetation, winding rivers, ancient roads and of course the beaches.  So buckle up and come along with us….Our flight plan has us landing in Paris, taking a small commuter to Bilbao and from there we will find our way via bus/train to the trail head at Irun on the French border.  I may even be able to convince Jerry to walk across the bridge to H>….  The trail head on the French side.  Jerry has been practicing singing the Spanish opera (Carmen) in hopes that someone will ask him to perform along the way.  

What It's All About

El Camino de Santiago, “The Way of Saint James,” refers to any pilgrimage route (and there are many) that ends at the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela  in Northwestern Spain, where legend has it that the remains of Jesus’ apostle Saint James were buried.  The camino has existed as a Christian pilgrimage for well over 1,000 years.  In the medieval period it was one of the three most important Christian pilgrimages to be undertaken.  It was only these pilgrimages – to Jerusalem , to Rome and to Santiago de Compostela – which could result in a plenary indulgence which frees a person from the penance due for sins.  Legend has it that after Saint James was beheaded in Jerusalem his body was carried in a stone boat to the coast of Galicia, Spain.  His body was buried and forgotten until rediscovered in the 9th century and reburied in Compostela and in 1189 Santiago de Compostela was declared a Holy City. In 2013 we walked "the Way", formally known as the Camino Frances and this year we will attempt the Camino Norte.