Walking the Camino de Santiago
As seen in the streets of Astorga in 2016. Can anybody identify this flag? During our Caminos, we have seen any number of regional or local flags, but this one has me stumped. Date: 20 April 2016 Place: Astorga (Castilla y León, Spain)
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This 19th Century chapel may be tiny, but I’m pretty sure it’s loud, which I think makes up for its small footprint. It’s the home of the Cofradía de la Vera Cruz, a confraternity that participates in various processions during Lent and Holy Week. In addition to this chapel, there are two churches and a Roman museum on this plaza. […]
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The first plaza in Astorga contains a church, the very grand and modern albergue that we stayed at in 2013, and this statue of a weary traveller, suitcase slung over his back. I’ve never seen a pilgrim walking with a suitcase or a trenchcoat – the peregrina in the background is much more usual. Date: 20 April 2016 Place: Astorga […]
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The sign and the entrance to the city may not look like much, but Astorga is one of my favourite Camino towns. It has a number of beautiful churches, including a wonderful Gothic(ish) cathedral. There are museums dedicated to chocolate, as well as one housed in the old Episcopal Palace designed by Antoni Gaudí. There’s evidence that people have been […]
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They left up part of the original church. It serves as the bell tower for a 20th-century meeting hall-style building that wouldn’t be out of place anywhere in suburban Protestant America. It’s positively disjointed and hideous. Why, oh why would you do that? Date: 20 April 2016 Place: San Justo de la Vega (Castilla y León, Spain) Today’s map:
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A Camino road sign for all the Charleses in your life. Date: 20 April 2016 Place: San Justo de la Vega (Castilla y León, Spain) Today’s map:
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There is some great public art on the Camino. This larger-than-life pilgrim stands on the Camino route as it descends into the valley of the Río Tuerto and the village of San Justo de la Vega and the city of Astorga beyond. I have imitated this statue no more than dozens of times on any given Camino day. Date: 20 […]
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The Camino drops into Astorga following a relatively steep paved road. Great for bicycles, not so much for those on foot. Still, they have thoughtfully provided benches every so often. In the foreground, you can see the village of San Justo de la Vega, and just beyond that the city of Astorga. Date: 20 April 2016 Place: Approaching San Justo […]
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So after several hours of mucking about, we come to a broad, dry path, for which we are extremely grateful. Someone has thoughtfully marked out for us the way to continue. Date: 20 April 2016 Place: Approaching San Justo de la Vega (Castilla y León, Spain) Today’s map:
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After a brief respite, and what should have been our third and final warning, we came to this. Miles and miles of this. The surface of Mars. The clay stuck to the bottom of our shoes in layers that we had to scrape off every dozen steps. Puddles were impossible to avoid for long. There was no dry or firm […]
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