Walking the Camino de Santiago
While this might have been the first time in Spain I saw a fast food conglomerate advertised, it was not the last. In all my Camino adventures, though, I don’t recall actually seeing one of the restaurants. In any case, you can certainly tell we’re approaching the big city – you don’t see a whole lot of billboards on Camino. […]
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The march towards León continues! By the time we reached Arcahueja, the transition of village to suburb was noticeable. I particularly enjoyed this home, with its amazing window. There’s a stone mason nearby, with a field full of completed statues, and I suspect this may be their work. Date: 19 April 2013Place: Arcahueja (Province of León, Castilla y León, Spain)Today […]
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This bridge over the Río Porma is now relegated to the use of automobiles (and, weirdly, livestock). Humans and bicycles have their own, much more modern, bridge from which I took this photo. I always enjoy these funny little dichotomies of modern automobiles on a medieval bridge. The bridge is as long as it is because the river frequently floods […]
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The Camino between Mansilla de las Mulas and León is a string of closely packed villages, the likes of which we haven’t really seen since before we entered the Meseta a week or more ago. As we go, they get less and less like villages and more and more like suburbs. Here we see Eamon walking through the first of […]
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We left Mansilla de las Mulas, crossing a nondescript bridge over the Río Esla. I saw this lone fisherman standing amid the wildflowers on the banks of the river, and it immediately struck me as about a bucolic and romantic image of this part of Spain as you’re likely to see. Date: 19 April 2013Place: between Mansilla de las Mulas […]
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We left our albergue in Mansilla de las Mulas at about 8:30 in the morning. This stone cross, or Cruceiro, is near the edge of town. Normally, these mark Medieval boundaries or places of justice. Since this one is pretty clearly within the boundaries of the town, I suspect this was for the latter rather than the former. Today’s goal […]
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Here we see three pilgrims – exhausted, sunburnt, but clearly having the time of their lives. From left to right, Heather from Scotland, your humble narrator, and Eamon from New Zealand. Heather and her father were biking the Camino, and Eamon and I ran into them over the course of a handful of days before they zoomed ahead of us. […]
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The municipal albergue in Mansilla de las Mulas is memorable both for having a wonderful interior courtyard, as well as an on-duty nurse to tend to ailing pilgrims. My friend Santiago had developed some serious blisters on this day, and the nurse helped drain and dress them. Santiago’s feet proved extremely sensitive to the touch, so here we see the […]
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I spent some time exploring in the Meseta town of Mansilla de las Mulas, taking innumerable photos. Several of the buildings caught my eye, including this doorway. I’m particularly intrigued by the fact that the power lines run across the facade of the building, as they seem to in many older Spanish buildings. And, of course, I just love photographing […]
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Happy New Year! We’re back. This sign, painted on the side of a building in the Meseta town of Mansilla de las Mulas, is a reminder that the Spanish love their livestock. I’m convinced that almost every town in Spain has their own style of pork, beef, or cheese. If you want some meat, this is the place! Date: 18 […]
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