A Celtic symbol, representing the eternal cycles of life. The Celts evidently originated in central Europe and populated the British Isles, Britannia and northern Spain etc.
Friday, June 27, 2014
June 27: awesome map
I started in Leon, went north to Oviedo, and now heading southwest to Santiago. The La Plata route is seen in the south.
Thursday, June 26, 2014
June 23: Story of Camino de San Salvador
When the pilgrimage to Santiago first started, it was devised in part as a substitute for the pilgrimage to Bethlehem (occupied by the Moors) and as a way to populate with Christians the remaining portion of the Iberian Peninsula not occupied by the Moors. Much of the Christian goods were evacuated from the churches in the south of Spain. A good portion of the Christian artifacts ended up in the Oviedo Cathedral. So the word went out that "Whoever goes to Santiago and not to Oviedo, visits the servant (St. James) and not the master (Jesus)." Hence the pilgrimage first to Oviedo, then on to Santiago.
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
June 22: The Cathedral of Olviedo
I asked someone passing by why the cathedral looked small. She said it is missing one of its two towers! She said that they ran out of money when they were building it and so just settled on a single tower. That is my favorite church story here in Spain.
June 21: A good pictorial of the route from Asturious border to Olviedo
I had no idea that some consider the route part of the Via de la Plata. I guess it makes sense as the Romans mined the Northern mountains.
June 21: At the Asturious border, trekking gets bad
The waymarkings are terrible: misleading and dangerous descents. The secondary route on the road has no shoulders.
Monday, June 23, 2014
June 21: First peaks rock offering
With red ink, some Italian posted on this rock a picture of a snail with the words "step by step." They posted this throughout the Camino San Salvador too. A Spaniard named Jose loved hearing the story but added his version: "poca a poca pero seguido" or "bit by bit, but continue FORWARD"!
June 21: Designation Pajares
Leaving Pola de Gordon, there are two different ways to get to the summit of Pajares. One is to take the highway which does two peaks of 2400ft elevation gain. Or take waymarkings over the peaks and add a third higher peak to the day. Of course I chose the scenic route. It also meant I followed some bad waymarkings to a town off the route.
Friday, June 20, 2014
June 20: El Polo de Gordon
I asked some local, who happened to be parking his family van complete with child car seat, where a restaurant was to eat. He invited me to his house for lunch. He was eating rice and pork ribs.
Habitually I declined. Because where I am from, NO ONE invites a total stranger (albeit a peregrino) to their house to feed them. If you are invited, you are an idiot to accept because by definition there is some insidious hook in there.
I did express my heartfelt thanks because I know it was genuine. But I don't eat ribs. Plus I needed to figure out where I was sleeping tonight. Local restaurants or bars are loaded with this information. Also I was exhausted from walking 35km and didn't feel like talking to anyone.
The reason for the story is that this is just another reason I love Spain and the Spaniard, especially small town Spaniards. City dwellers universally seem to be a sad lot.
June 20: map of (PART OF) the Camino de San Salvador
Unfortunately, the map doesn't show the route all the way to Oviedo. That is because Oviedo is in the province of Andalusia. It is kind of stupidly comical that the Tourist Office in Leon has a map and guide book that cover the first 80km of the Camino de San Salvador and simply ends there at the border with no mention of the remaining 40km to Olviedo.
June 20: the attack of the flies
Most of my trek involved getting bombarded by flies. It was as if it were perfect conditions for the hatch. A river and heat. There are a number of stressors on a trek I am particularly sensitive. Apart from blisters on the bottom of my feet or rain/scorching sun, bugs (flies, mosquitos and bed bugs) are probably the worst. Today I seriously considered packing it in. I kept telling myself if I walk long enough, the conditions will change where I am no longer dealing with the flies. In fact I did gain elevation and the flies let up some. The other fact is that its June in the mountains and this is just a fact of life.
June 20: Camino de San Salvador- Oviedo
The split from the Camino Frances located where the Parador Hotel is in Leon.
Thursday, June 19, 2014
June 19: Spanish protest
It always intriques me to see the Communist symbol flying. It is something that I have never seen in the US.
June 19: Leon
The plan is to walk the Camino Salvador from Leon to Olviedo. From there, I plan to walk the Camino Primitivo from Olviedo to Santiago. The Camino Salvador got its historic notoriety when Olviedo served as one of the main repository for church items that were evacuated during the Moorish conquest of southern Spain. It became an important way point on the pilgrimage to Santiago. The Camino Primitivo historic notoriety is that it serves as the oldest route to Santiago, as the Moors initially occupied much of what was the Camino Frances.
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
June 17: Parador breakfast
The Parador gives a free breakfast to the first 10 pilgrims. It is kind of a reputed Camino institution. So i show up an hour beforehand. A Parador employee led us through the kitchen to a room. They gave us coffee and some churros. That was it. For some reason i had it in my head that it was to be this grand American style buffet, eating along with all the other Parador paid guests. But it was anything but. We ate by ourselves. We ate whatever the cook felt he could spare. It definitely was not American style, but Spanish all the way. Spanish breakfast is basically coffee and toast.
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