de león hasta siempre!

the view from the camino yesterday (friday)

our truckstop hotel in hospital de órbigo
the beginning of the walk this morning (famous bridge at órbigo)
near the end of this morning´s walk (you can see astorga in the background with its famous cathedral)

Our last day in Astorga we ended up going to the corte ingles which is a huge department store that can be found all throughout Spain (6 floors and a parking garage). It is truly a mall in itself. After this we went back and ate dinner prepared by the nuns again (incredible food). It was sad to leave león for the camino once again after such an incredible two day stay.
yesterday we began what is considered the longest stretch of the camino de santiago. We left leon in the morning and hiked all day through fields of wheat, corn, cattle, and mud. It was an incredibly straight route which was made tricky by thick mud coating the road. The views were incredible. For most of the time it was possible to see for miles and miles. The wind was incredible, and it definitely made it difficult to continue sometimes. We passed through several small towns that are still rural farming centers. For the first part of the day we traveled in two distinct grops (one 2km ahead of the other), but we all ended up meeting up at lunch and ate sandwiches together. For the second half of the day I stayed back with the main group and was able to help keep everyone going. In total we walked about 30 km (18 miles) for the day. The truckstop-hostal that we stayed in was more than sufficient for our level of fatigue. We were fed seafood for dinner, and we were all able to sleep incredibly soundly. This morning we got up and left orbigo by way of the famous bridge which has been cited in legends involving a young man and a reluctant woman who he attempts to woo by defeating all of the worthy knights in Europe in a grand tournament of jousting. Too bad for this fellow- she still didn´t muzzle up to him. today our walk was through some small villages and over some incredible hills. We made it to Astorga despite the cold atlantic storm that we encountered (10 degrees C). After dropping our stuff of a the hotel we walked around the city for a bit before eating lunch together in a plaza in between rain showers. This afternoon we toured the cathdral of astorga and a Gaudi designed museum. We have another full day of hiking tomorrow, and I look forward to sharing more with you guys! God Bless!