Day 20 Astorga

View entering Astorga, the town cathedral prominent.
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Leaving Leon was easy --in the pouring rain we got a taxi to the bus station, and paid €3 each for a two-hour bus ride to Astorga.

My friends Diane and Megan had lost their luggage enroute to Leon from Philadelphia, but they had their backpacks and hiking clothes so decided to start their camino anyway.  They replaced a few things at El Corte Ingles, and off we went.  I decided to start them in Astorga since we had stayed an extra day or 2 in Leon.  It is a long walk through congested city streets to get out of the Leon, and I wanted their walk to begin on a less negative note.

Would you like chocolate with that?

First view of Astorga.
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So we reached little Astorga, originally the Roman town of Asturica.  Arriving, it almost looks like you´ve reached a section of Disneyland, because the first thing to catch your eye is the Palace for Bishops, designed by the famous architect Antonio Gaudi.

It was a short walk to the albergue, which would be Megan and Diane´s first stay in one, and I hoped it would not be too bad.  Luckily, it was just fine.  I had some "second sightings" of pilgrims I had met earlier along the way.  In fact, I saw Rob and Tom from Wales, (father and son? no, uncle and nephew, I think it was) who had eaten dinner around the same table with me when we all stayed at L´esprit de Chemin" in St. Jean Pied de Port, France - the night before I took my very first hesitant steps on the camino.  Rob and Tom have walked all this way, no buses.  I was quite impressed.  (Megan was impressed with Tom.)  Also in Astorga were Ann and Zach from Wisconsin, their ponchos dripping from the rain.

Palace of Bishops designed by famous Spanish architect Gaudi.
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A walk through the town showed me that this was no ordinary town in Spain.  We passed no fewer than FIVE stores specializing in chocolate!  We had to stop and buy some right away.  It improved our spirits immediately. (Plus, the rain had stopped...)  My piece was easily as good as Godiva´s "Extra-dark Truffle," my current all-time favorite.

We went to see both the Gaudi castle creation and the Astorga cathedral, both impressive, though quite different as you can see.  Later, we took advantage of the excellent dinner offered to pilgrims by the Restaurante Gaudi, a 3 star establishment.  It was nice to eat with linen napkins and tablecloths, especially for only €10 including wine and coffee.

The entrance to the albergue we stayed at in Astorga (there are three others.)
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The next morning would be Megan and Diane´s first walk, and the weather held up fine most of the day as we headed to El Ganso, 15 kilometers up the hill towards Mount Irago.

For more on Astorga and Gaudi, see these links.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astorga_(Spain)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaud%C3%AD