Day 29 - Molinaseca to Villafranca del Bierzo

The walk started later than it really should of, given that we had to cover 32km today, but we needed to get new credentias (our pilgrim passports being pretty well full of stamps), and the hotelier in Rabanal del Camino said we could get one at the tourist office in Ponferrada. We didn't know what time it opened but were pretty sure it wouldn't be before 10am. Lynn also wanted to get the tape for her feet that Margie had recommended (and used to tape her feet courtesy of the Canadian women) and Margie said we should be able to get it in Ponferrada.

On the way out of Molinaseca, we met James from Australia, resplendent in bare feet and magic staff.  We had hoped that we could walk along with him at some point to learn his story but it looks like our paths may separate.  Being somewhat eccentric, he accumulates quite a following.

The walk into Ponferrada was notable for the scenery.  The town is in a valley and is surrounded by hills, offering stunning views.  The small population of 62,000 is offset by it's very modern appearance, the first place with high rise apartments, and it's busyness.

As with so many of these towns along the Way, there were a lot of tourist attractions in Ponferrada. We at least wanted to visit the 12th century Templar Castle.  The town came under the protection of the Templars in 1178.  Their rule was short lived as they were outlawed in 1312 by a church fearful of their increasing power and esoteric tradition.

The Templar Castle, as with most of the main tourist attractions, was right along the Camino. When we got to the castle we climbed up the ramp leading to the door, but it opened at 11, and we didn't want to further delay getting on with all the km we had to do today. A lady from Ireland took our picture in front of the castle and she said that she left her camera at home when she decided to do the Camino.  She said you can't walk and be a tourist at the same time, as the walking took all your time and energy. That is unfortunately very close to the truth.

Next we went to the tourist office, and as expected it opened at 10am. It was 9:50 and so we elected to go for churros.  Russ got hot chocolate, perhaps more akin to hot chocolate pudding, and deep fried yummies that he dipped in the pudding, err chocolate.  Wonderful.  Lynn had cafe con leche and a muffin - it was just like being in a coffee shop at home!

James was there with his entourage expounding on his need for meat.  He, like a lot of us, is getting tired of toast, jam, orange juice and coffee for breakfast.

To the tourist office, which after standing in line for 15 minutes, announced they don't issue credentias.  Going for coffee instead of waiting for the office to open was a tactical error. The lady said the only place in Ponferrada we could get the pilgrim passport was the Basilicam and it opened at 1200. That was out of the question. But she did tell us where else we could one on the way to Villafranca today.

This, coupled with our searches of numerous Farmacias for medical tape, wasted over an hour, and it was now getting hot and we still had 24km to go.

The Way out of Ponferrada was much more interesting than our trek in.  The city fathers' seem to have decided that perigrinos are not of importance as the route markings became so vague in places that we even had a local in a car pull over and wave at us to indicate the correct way.

The track today was for the most part on or adjacent to highways.  Not a safe walk by any stretch but it was a nonetheless beautiful scenery, with magnificent views of mountains and valleys. We also went through numerous towns/villages throughout the day.

We seem to have good timing for festivals. When we stopped in Camponaraya for lunch, there was a parade celebrating the harvest going through town along the Way, with flags in front, followed by a float with a statue of Christ on the cross, and the church priest leading the masses in song, and a marching band bringing up the rear, including bagpipes.  Everyone in town seemed to be in attendance, dressed up in their finest clothes. The perigrinos and cyclists felt bad for just charging ahead but we had places to go.

Now we were starting to see more vineyards as we entered Bierzo.  The problem was that the heat and asphalt roads were starting to take a toll on both of us, but specially Lynn's feet.

We did manage to get new pilgrim passports in the Alberque at Cacabelos, the last main town we passed through at 24km. We also restocked with water. Good thing too, because Lynn managed to go through 1.5 litres in the last 8 km. It was hot!

We hobbled into Villafranca de Bierzo, after climbing steeply for about 5km followed by a steep descent (why lord?) very grateful to be there and very happy to easily find our hotel. The hotelier could see how worn out we were, and gave us a big bottle of cold water and took us right to our room without checking our passports or getting our voucher. He said we had the best room in the hotel, and it is really nice. We are so tired we decided not to bother with washing anything but our socks.

Summary - a long day that had a few more failed objectives than we would have liked, with the question, "why are we doing this?" coming up when total exhaustion had set in.

Distance today - 32km
kmDistance total - 607km

Day 28 - Rabanal del Camino to Molinaseca

We were off at 7:45.  It was to be a fairly gruelling 25.5km and we wanted to get distance behind us before it got hot.

Today's track started out with a 350 metre climb.  Surprise, not.  The view was absolutely magnificant, valleys and forests.  The town looked beautiful in the early light.

Further along we passed what had once been a church, only pieces of wall remaining.

The goal of the day, although not the end point, was the Cruz de Ferro.  This cross, located at almost the highest point of today's climb, is where perigrinos have been depositing a rock, or other token, to a huge pile that witnesses to our collective journey.  We, of course, added our contribution, which Kristine had selected from around the pond in our backyard and which we have been carrying in our backpacks.

It is one of the most magical places on the Camino. History has it that there was once a former cross on a Roman altar in worship of Mercury, the god of the road; the said cross was put there by a hermit who devoted his life to protecting pilgrims on their journey to Compostela.

This may have been the holiest day of the Camino. At Santiago we will be praying to St James to intecede on our behalf, to ask God to grant a wish, or grant a pardon for some sin. But today at the iron cross, when we placed our stones among the heaping pile of stones placed by thousands of peregrinos, our prayer was to God.

We then began our descent, which was greater than our climb out of Rabanal.  We now faced a drop of over 900 metres in 14km. The problem with steep descents is that the large number of perigrinos destroy the vegetation, leaving the soil exposed, which then washes away, leaving only large, smooth cobbles.  A down hill walk is a constant staring at your feet, watching where to next place your foot.  Any attempt to sightsee while walking almost always results in a stubbed toe, which starts to really hurt after awhile.

We went through many towns today, one has no inhabitants except for Thomas, who is considered to be the last 'Templar'. In El Acebo there were the most beautiful wooden balconies.

Then, much to our surprise, a cyclist came up upon us from behind.  His only comment, with a thick British accent, was, "this wasn't very bright".

The thing about this walk is that you can see your destination from 10km, away.  You walk for an hour and it is still just as far away.  Far nicer to have your destination suddenly appear around a corner.

Summary - a very nice day of walking, the up being better than the down.  We are back to magnificent views of mountains and valleys. Possibly the most spiritual day next to Santiago.

Distance today - 24.5km
Distance total - 576km

Day 27 - Astorga to Rabanal del Camino

The hotel we had last night was head and shoulders above the bed bug hilton from hell.  We stayed in Hotel Gaudi, across the street from the cathedral and the Bishop's Palace, designed by Gaudi.  Supper was a superior perigrino special.  And we had a good nights sleep, being in a superior hotel, being exhausted, feeling somewhat safer.  We have, however, adopted the concept of putting nothing on, or even near, the bed. And sleeping now involves frequent flashlight checks of the sheets. Just a bit paranoid. Lynn's philosophy is to assume there are bed bugs and hope you don't have an opportunity to prove the theory, as opposed to assuming there are no bed bugs and hoping you don't have an opportunity to disprove the theory.

We decided that as it was a short walk today, only 20km, we would do some sight seeing before heading off. We met the Canadian ladies at breakfast, who are  staying an extra day. This really would have been a good location for that. We will meet them again in O'Cebriero, their last night on the Camino for this year, and plan a big party.

I should mention that as we were entering Astroga we passed a church that had been built on Roman ruins.  They had excavated what was outside the walls and that included a Roman bath with a magnificently preserved mosaic floor.  One thing about the Romans, when they came on the scene, the quality of life certainly picked up. The mosaic floor rivalled the beauty of some we had seen in Israel.

First on the list of things to do was a visit the cathedral.  This was built in the 15th century and has a mix of Gothic, and later styles of architecture.  The vaulted ceiling must be at least 30 metres high.  It was free to visit the cathedral between 9 and 10:30 am, with mass at 10am. We were there at 9.

We wanted to also visit the museum and Bishop's Palace, which didn't open until 10, so we went back to the hotel for cafe con leche and ran into Margie, a personal trainer, who very kindly taped up Lynn's foot using materials provided by Margie and the Canadian ladies. Lynn did make several trips to numerous farmacia's first but was not able to buy what Margie said she needed. Lynn is trying to avoid problems that may be developing - although, she's hoping her problems are just from having the boots on for 12 hours straight on friday the 13th, and a lack of sleep.

Then, after Margie taped Lynn's foot, the three of us visited the diocesan museum adjoining the Cathedral.

Next to it is Bishop's Palace, designed by Gaudi, in a neo-Gothic style.  It doesn't house any bishops but has a marvellous display on peregrino's on the Camino. There were two paintings in there in particular that we both loved. Good thing they weren't for sale or it might have become a very expensive holiday. Unfortunately, we just did not have time to do the placed proper justice. We probably won't see Margie again so we all hugged and bid each other a buen camino. Lynn got all chocked up saying goodbye - she is such a beautiful person.

The way from Astroga to Rabanal was very pleasant, with the scenery becoming much more varied and  interesting once again. The only down side of delaying our departure was that it was extremely hot.

The Way is obviously GBLT friendly, if it were only so for us all.

On the way out of Murias de Rechivaldo, we were serenaded by a cyclist on his harmonica.  No harmonica holder for him; one hand on the instrument and one on the bike handle bars.

Further on in El Ganso, we met the famous bare footed Aussie, James.  He looked to be an interesting character, in his dreadlocks.  Quite young. His only comment on walking in bare feet was that he had to be careful. It seemed he had been drinking quite a few cervesa at that point and when we said we left Astroga late today to visit the cathedral he started going on that it just wasn't right to have to pay to visit a church. We told him we hadn't paid to visit the cathedral, although our ticket to the museum and Bishop's Palace included the Cathedral (a mute point). We certainly sympathized with the sentiment, but the reality is that if a lot of these churches didn't charge tourists to visit - there wouldn't be a church to visit.

The last 2 km going in to Rabanal was a very lovely path through the woods alongside a chickenwire fence that pilgrim's had filled with wooden crosses made of tree twigs. It was a very holy walk through a sacred place.

There are many ways to mark the Camino.

We arrived at the Hostal at 5pm. We really only had time to do our laundry and shower before supper. The intoxicated Aussie from Villadangros was there. He is being very friendly, although we are trying not to encouage him. I'm afraid he will be a daily fixture at our hotels now, as he is traveling with Tee Travel like us and seems to be on the same schedule.

We had another 'hang out' with Kristjan and Kristine after dinner, and in the middle of it there was a local musical parade down the street of the Camino (our street). This is apparently a monthly event paid for by one of the town residents. Very enjoyable.

After that we were both beat and Lynn's feet weren't too happy after another 8 hour day on our feet in the boots. So the blog didn't get done.

The hotel in Rabanal was clean, but coming under the name Hostal, and not having a mattress cover, Lynn found it difficult to sleep. The numerous flashlight sheet checks were all happily negative however.

Summary - Astorga was a wonderful city for sightseeing, said goodbye to Margie, and had a nice walk with improving scenery.

Distance today - 20km
Distance total - 551.5km

Day 26 - Villadangos del Paramo to Astroga

Last night we had supper with the Canadian ladies and two gentlemen from England.  The discussion went on for some time and a good time was had by all.

After supper we had an hour long video chat with Kristjan and Kristine, interrupted for a time by a very intoxicated Aussie pilgrim who plopped himself at our outdoor table, lit an obnoxious cigarette, and began a totally incoherent conversation despite the fact we told him we were having a video call with the kids.  It sounds like all is going well at home but that Kristjan has eaten all the food and has to go shopping.  Kristine is on her weekend at home, and all seems to be going well there.  She is working on her last credit and thus will officially graduate from high school in a few weeks.

A day to remember!

Friday the 13th dawned bright and clear.  Actually it didn't dawn at all as our "day" started at 2:20am.  It was then that Russ noticed that he seemed to be itchier than usual.  Most of the hotels we have stayed in don't have air conditioning so you tend to be a bit damp and itchy when sleeping.  But something didn't register correctly.  Turning on a flashlight, he was greeted with a family of BED BUGS!!!!  Needless to say he freaked, waking up Lynn.  Of course, having never seen them before, right away Russ looks them up on the internet and then starts gathering a collection of them in the hotel plastic glass. Lynn was quite calm until she saw one crawling on her pillow and then, fully engaged in the drama, helped make the positive ID comparing what was in the cup to the picture on the Nexus! The instant reaction was to flee. We packed up in record time. Luckily our suitcase and other things were a distance away from the bed and basically packed. Everything that did come in contact with the bed was stuffed and tied in plastic bags and put in the knapsacks.

So there we were, homeless waifs wondering what to do and where to go.

We thought about hitting the Camino, lots of people set out in the morning in the dark, but Lynn was a bit scared at the thought of setting out that early and doing 28km in the dark. The lobby of the hotel was locked by a key. You needed to unlock the door from the inside and lock the door from the outside. If we just left, we couldn't lock the door. Also, Russ wanted to show the hotelier his bed bug collection.

We wanted to get out of that hostal. So we decided to go outside and sit on a bench.  That didn't last long as the bench had one broken slat and it was really uncomfortable to sit on. Then we noticed another bench at the other end of the block and we moved to it. That lasted for half an hour but was terminated by the cold, trucks whizzing by at 100km/hr (the hotel was right on the N-120 and why slow down to the posted speed limit of 50km/hr at 2:30am?), the stench of cow manure wafting down the street perpendicular to us, and the sound effects coming from a nearby house with a young couple loudly doing what young married people do (at least we think they had to be young judging from the music they were listening to).

So back to the hotel where we decided to camp out in the tiny hotel lobby in the dark.  At first we sat on the marbles stairs, but time was going by very slowly. Then we decided to take off our backpacks and just sit right down on the marble floor and lean against the wall. We both had our shorts on and that marble floor was very cold and very hard on the tailbone.  Time continued to go by slowly, and both of us even went up to the  dreaded room to use the bathroom, as there was no other bathroom available.

Lynn had thought the other group of Canadians were planning on leaving at 6am, so we thought we would tag along.  That proved to be wrong, as 6am came and went with no sign of the ladies.

At about 6:40am one of the British guys comes downstairs to read a book, remember we were in the dark.  To get light in the lobby there was a switch on a timer, which timed out in 45 seconds, so the fellow had no light. Lynn explained our situation and he carried on typing on his iPad.

But it gets better. At around 6:50am a fellow delivers bread and croissants to the hotel which he leaves on a ledge outside, knocking over Russ's bed bug collection. So Russ unlocked the door to go save his specimens. When he relocked the door coming in it jammed, and it wouldn't lock the door and it wouldn't come out. The major downside of that was that we lost access to our bathroom!

At almost 7am, the ladies started to make their appearance.  They were horrified, everyone else said they didn't have any bedbugs, and Natalie offered us her key so we could use their room to have a nap before we started.  We couldn't afford the time as it was a 28km day, and besides, we just wanted to be out of there.

But there is even more.  Lynn expressed the need to use a washroom and as the restaurant was locked, our key trapped in the door, they graciously offered us the key to their room to use the facilities.  Lynn went upstairs, used the facility, and guess what she found crawling on their beds? She didn't tell.

The hotelier showed up next and didn't even manage to look surprised about the bed bugs. She did pick up the cup, looked at it with the resign of recognition, and took the cup into the hotel.

So off were at 7am, in the dark, walking a trail marked by yellow arrows we couldn't see.  Luckily we saw flashlights bobbing in the distance, which we followed.  Shortly it became light enough for us to see the trail.

The rest of the day was luckily less eventful.  While we were still technically in the meseta, there were hills in the distance and the ground started to become hilly, with many more trees.

Just before getting to Hospital de Orbigo, we passed over the Puente de Orbigo.  Supposedly one of the longest and best preserved medieval bridges in Spain, it dates back to the 13th century and was built over an earlier Roman bridge.

The one thing we have noticed about the Camino as it goes through small towns is that they seem to make sure you walk every street in the town, whether of interest or not.

The remainder of the walk was much better than previous days.  We spent more time on undulating landscape and enjoyed both the view behind and the more varied vegetation.

When we finally crested the last hill, Astroga, and it's Bishop's Palace were spread out in front of us.

As we were walking into Astroga, we encountered a Spanish couple.  His English was good enough for a conversation.  We told him we were Canadians and much to our surprise, he pulls out his cellphone and calls up the Canadian national anthem.  A very touching gesture that made me want almost to cheer as the Montreal players took the ice :-)

The walk into Astroga was another long and as is often the case, but not always, well marked. This time we asked one of the colourfully dressed local police for assistance.

We arrived at the hotel weary, but not as bad as it might have been given the 4 hours of sleep. Much contemplation during the day was on how to eradicate the bed bugs. At lot of effort was expended - only time will tell if we will now be plagued by them. We learned you don't have to stay in albergues to get them, and although we are down hearted, we are not disillusioned. Lynn does have three bites on her arm which have badly swollen, so there must be a bit of an allergic reaction there.

Interestly, Brierley's inspirational thought for today says 'how easily do you fall and how quickly do you get up.' ... True greatness is not in ever falling, but in picking ourselves up every time we do.'

Summary - the day from hell, hopefully never to be repeated.

Distance today - 28km
Distance total - 531.5km

Day 25 - Leon to Villadangos del Paramo

Last night we had a nice supper by ourselves, there being many places to eat in Leon.

This morning the Canadian ladies were in the restaurant for breakfast.  They had gone to the Parador the night before for some libations, and had met Richard from California.  It sounds like he has torn his achilles tendon and is being forced to abandon his Camino.  He does intend to come back next year to complete his pilgrimage.  This brings to two the people we have met who we know have been forced to abandon the walk due to injury: Richard and one of the Germans.  Both have not been able to walk since Sahagun and are leaving from Leon. We feel sad for them both.

It sounds like Jack is getting better and moving faster, while George now has major blisters and Martha has a problem with her achilles. They have been  doing longer daily distances than us on the mesa and have gotten one day ahead of us. Margie ran into them on our first and their second day in Leon. So we probably won't see them again. They are staying in alberques and have experienced bed bug bites a number of times now. We're so glad we are staying in hotels. Somehow the romanticism of being true pilgrims and staying in albergues wouldn't compensate for being bitten by bed bugs and getting lice. And as for being a true pilgrim - I, Lynn, am every bit a true pilgrim even if I'm not staying in alberques. What could where you stay possibly have to do with your pilgrim status? A pilgrim is a person on a journey to a holy place.

Today was another walk with uninspiring scenery on the mesa. As we walked through Leon we passed the Plaza de San Marcos and the Parador Hotel San Marcos. We got a picture beside the statue of the weary pilgrim.

We went into the lobby of the Parador to admire the place before carrying on. Just as we were crossing the old bridge over the river Bernesga we met up with Margie and got caught up on all the gossip.

The next 8km to Virgen del Camino went very quickly. Lynn told Margie about her reason for doing the Camino, the people she had met that had had a great influence on her coming to terms with what she wanted to get divine guidance on and how she hasn't really thought about it too much since. Margie said that she had gotten distracted from her reason for doing the Camino because she had gotten caught up in the comeraderie of the Camino. She asked if we had brought stones to add to the Cruz de Ferro. We said we had. This is a time for pilgrims to pause awhile to reconnect with the purpose of their journey. I want to be sure that I have gone far enough and really come to peace with the matter. I also need to  clearly formulate what I want to say to St. James when we reach Santiago. We will reach the Cruz de Ferro on Sunday. That seems like another divine coincide. It certainly wasn't planned.

We stopped for cafe con leche at Virgen del Camino with Margie and then our paths diverged again. We went on to Villadangos del Paramo (a real clue today was still on the mesa), and Margie went to Vilar de Mazarife. She was along a quiet path, and we were along sendas next to the highway, safe, for the most part, just busy. There was nothing but an albergue at her destination, whereas we have a church and the most famous depictation of St James as 'Matamoros'.

We did pass a major traffic accident, no one hurt from what we could tell, but obviously the first car stopped suddenly, and the second hit the first and the third the second.

We also passed a multitude of bodegas. No matter how many you pass it is always a pleasure. It was like a day in the shire.

Once again we were fooled by the yellow arrows upon entering Villadangos del Paramo.  While it is true that every road leads to Rome, that is of little value when your hostal is on the other road.  But we don't feel too bad as a lot of people showed up at the hostal walking upstream rather than down.

Summary - another walking on the flat along the highway day after a great day in Leon.  The end of the mesa is in sight with more interesting scenery to come. Time to start refocusing on the real purpose of the journey. Wish we had had an opportunity to say goodbye to Richard.

Distance today - 22km
Distance total - 503.5km

Day 24 - Leon

Last night with had dinner with the German contingent.  We were looking at the menus at various restaurants when Lynn noticed someone furiously waving from inside.  We went inside and the Germans were starting their first course, and telling us how good the food was.  Supper was actually quite good and the company was excellent. The Germans said they are proud to be in the company of their fast Canadian friends.

The hotel is really nice, with air conditioning, a balcony, a fridge, and the best bathtub yet for soaking your hot, swollen, and sore feet (a wide ledge to sit on).  We checked into the hotel in one building (which was actually a hotel with the proper name this time, not a bar) but stayed in another building with no hotel reception desk down the street.  It was very quiet, charming, and we had a great sleep. We've finally gotten over worrying about bed bugs since our dinner with Chris!

Today we visited the Gothic Cathedral.  This cathedral, built in the 13th century is a magnificent example of Gothic architecture.  Built over a period of only 50 years, it features a 30 metre high vaulted ceiling and almost 1,800 square metres of stained glass, most 13th and some 16th century.  It is patterned on the cathedral in Reims, France.  The idea was to let the light of Christ shine in, which it does in abundance. Letting this light in actually compromises the structural integrity of the building and part of the nave collapsed in the 17th and 19th century. The cathedral is so beautiful that neither pictures nor text can do justice to it.

While we were visiting the Cathedral a fellow was tuning the organ in preparation for the Leon international organ festival. Wouldn't that be an event to attend!

We then walked around Leon. We walked along the lovely gardens along the river Bernesga, visited the garden of San Francisco park,

viewed the old town walls, built to protect the town when it had 5,000 residents, visited the beautiful Romanesque Basilica de San Isidoro, strolled through the 'Romantico' neighbourhood, and wandered around the 'Humedo', the city's old town.You could easily spend a week exploring Leon.

Leon has so many tourists walking around that the city looks much larger than it's population of 130,000.

Tomorrow is back to the Camino. We thought we had finished the mesa at Leon, but it turns out we will not be through it for another two days, until Friday the 13th of September. However, unlike our 'rest day' in Burgos, this time, just not wearing our hiking boots for a day was a good rest. We're sure we covered the 'average' 22 km today anyway.

Day 23 - Mansilla de las Mulas to Leon

We had dinner last night and breakfast with the ladies from Canada staying at our hotel.   They are Natalie from Saskatoon, Maureen from Vancouver, Melony from Calgary, and Denise from Collingwood. Natalie is the catalyst and these ladies have been walking about 200km sections of the Camino from Puy (a total of 1500km when complete) for many years. This year they are going from Carrion de los Condes to O'Cebriero. We had a lovely dinner together in the courtyard of the hotel, which is covered in grape vines loaded with green grapes, and swallows flying about. Very charming. It might not pass inspection, however. We asked Xaviar, the hostelier, if he made wine with the grapes, but he said no.

The ladies know Richard, who we mentioned went on to Leon due to injury, and they informed us that what really did him in was not the original problem he has been coping with all along, but he twisted his ankle while sightseeing in Sahagun on Sunday.

The breakfast was the usual but Xaviar tried his best to make it special, and was very accomodating in fulfilling special requests. He put on a CD of Gregorian Chants which really added to the mood. He had a certificate on the wall attesting to the fact that he walked the Camino himself last year.

The walk out of the town was uncomplicated and as soon as we entered the countryside, we noticed the fog hanging over the fields.  This gave the morning a close, quiet feel.

The walk was similar to that of entering Burgos, with increasing traffic as we approached Leon.  The walk at first was on a trail near the highway, then a bit of road walking,  then on a senda, and finally the hustle of the city.  The walk into Leon was on less busy roads than we had entering Burgos.

In fact Brierley, in his guide which is the bible for this walk, was suggesting it might be best to take the bus to Leon because of the danger of walking on busy highways and the trouble following the Way because it was poorly marked. We were very pleasantly surprised to discover that neither were the case.

We met Margie on the way into Leon at the information booth, and hope to run into her later.  The group of Canadian woman are staying at the same hotel as we are so we expect to see them later today. We haven't seen Jack et al lately, and we haven't seen the Australian fellow travelling with his brother since Los Arcos, ages ago. The one brother must have gone back to Australia already. Hope all is well with the other fellow. Lynn would love to see him again.

The old city in Leon is quite interesting, with very narrow streets.  Despite the fact this is the historic district of town and there seemed to plenty of cash spending tourists on the street, the shops still shut down at 2:00 for siesta.

Summary - a non eventful, boring, but safe from traffic walking day.  We expect tomorrow to be busy and interesting as we have a day off in Leon and plan to visit some religious sites and the contemporary art museum.

Distance today - 20km
Distance total - 481.5km