8:25 AM – León: view from our room in Hostal Boccalino; tower of Palacio de los Guzmanes in distance.
We went to the Hostal Boccalino restaurant for breakfast (in half board): MT coffee/Don hot chocolate; 2 orange juice; 2 tostadas con tomate (cooked with oregano) y aciete.
We departed at 9:40 am, joining the Camino route as it passed the Basilica de San Isidoro.
9:47 AM - León: Plaza San Isidoro – Basilica de San Isidoro façade in morning sun.
On the way out of town, we came to the former pilgrim hospital and monastery of Convento de San Marcos on Plaza San Marcos.
9:51 AM - León: Plaza San Marcos – MT on sidewalk in the park leading to the square, with Convento de San Marcos on right.
The huge Convento de San Marcos now houses a luxury (5-star) Parador hotel; it also contains a consecrated church and the Museum of León. Renaissance craftsmanship built and adorned the Plateresque edifice of this ancient monastery. It is the best example of Renaissance architecture in the Province of León.
Originally, a more modest pilgrim hospital and church were built here in 1168, on the Camino route outside the old city wall near a bridge over the río Bernesga. In 1172, a local nobleman founded a convent dedicated to San Marcos and turned it over to Augustinian canons; in 1180, the founding knight entered the Order of Santiago, ceding to it the convent and the church. This became the headquarters of the Order of Santiago in the Kingdom of León. That order was founded to protect pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago. However, by the 16th century the medieval building was in poor condition and was demolished. It was rebuilt thanks to a grant from the Catholic Monarch Fernando (Ferdinand) in 1514. King Fernando, who was the head of the Order of Santiago, felt the knights deserved something better. However, the new work was not started until well into the reign of Carlos I. It is known that the wall of the main façade of the convent was built from the entrance up to the church in 1537 and that the church was consecrated in 1541. Work was suspended when the religious community departed in 1566, but resumed when the friars returned to San Marcos in 1602. Building was not completed until sometime in the 18th century. Between 1711 and 1715, there was a large expansion, with another wall that went from the main entrance to the river and ended with the palace-like tower. This new wall mimicked the one built in the 16th century so that any artistic differences between the two halves of the façade are barely noticeable.
The cloister was built between the 16th and 18th centuries, decorated with medallions. The Renaissance cloister has remnants of late Gothic structure.
As part of the process of desamortización [confiscation of Mendruzábal] in the 19th century and after the suppression of convents of the military orders in 1836, the ancient complex of San Marcos experienced many changes.
The period between the closure of the monastery in 1836 and the opening of the Parador in 1964 was filled with ups and downs, as San Marcos was put to many uses. It was a secondary school, a “mission and religious correction center,” veterinary school, Jesuit mission, prison hospital, stud farm, study center of the Episcolapian (Piarist) Fathers, offices of the staff of the Army’s 7th Corps, military prison, cavalry barracks, offices of the parliament and diocese, and Ministry of War, Finance, and Education. In 1875, the City Council even considered demolishing it, but it luckily escaped. From 1936 to 1940, the Franco regime converted it into a concentration camp for political prisoners; cells, rooms, stables, cloisters, church, choir, museum and nearly every corner of the building were transformed into impromptu dungeons or jailers’ offices.
9:51 AM - León: Plaza San Marcos – MT on sidewalk, approaching museum (right) and parador (left).
9:53 AM - León: Convento de San Marcos – entrance to church (and museum) part.
On the east (right) end of the convent complex is the Iglesia de San Marcos with a museum in its sacristy. The church was begun in 1531, but not consecrated until 1541. It is in “estilo Reyes Católicos” [Catholic Monarch style] (aka late Hispano-Gothic [Spanish Gothic] style). Its portal, with a large vault, sits between two unfinished towers. The most interesting features of the complex are two niches, one in each tower, with reliefs representing the Crucifixion (right) and Descent from the Cross (left). A profusion of scallop shells covers the pediment of the church (and museum) entrance.
9:52 AM - León: Convento de San Marcos – many scallop shells over the door of the church and museum part (telephoto, 90 mm).
The huge facade is over 100 m long. It is framed by the church on the east side and a palace-type tower on the west side. The Plateresque façade is made up to two sections set on a high base. Its eastern part was built between 1533 and 1541. The western, Baroque, part with the main portal and palace-like tower was built between 1708 and 1716. Interestingly, the 18th-century part was made with extreme fidelity to the previous one, giving the impression that they were created at the same time.
The façade has many statues of knights and lords and many pilgrim motifs including the sword-like Cross of Santiago entwined with the lion of San Marcos. The far west (left) end is now a luxury hotel (Parador), with a Santiago Matamoros over the entrance. Less evident are the interesting copper medallions all along the front (just behind the dwarf hedge) with scenes from the pilgrim cities and towns the Camino passed through.
The façade is a pearl of the Spanish Plateresque. It is a single wall with two bodies and two floors, topped with openwork cresting and candlesticks [torches]. The first body has semicircular windows and Plateresque pilasters; the second has balconies with balustrades and rectangular windows between columns. In the zócalo [socle] are medallions representing figures from Greek, Roman. and Spanish history: Hercules, Priam, Hector, Alexander the Great, Hannibal, Julius Caesar, Trajan, Judith, Lucretia, Isabel the Catholic, Charlemagne, Bernardo del Caprio, El Cid, Fernando the Catholic, Carlos I, and Felipe II. In the sobrezócalo [above the socle] are heads of angels. The palace-like tower dates from 1711-1714; it is decorated with the Cross of Santiago and a lion and has four elaborate friezes.
Socle (from It. zoccolo, pedestal) = in architecture, a projecting, ledgelike foundation piece, as for a column, wall, or statue.
9:52 AM - León: Convento de San Marcos – Parador part, with Renaissance/Plateresque façade.
9:53 AM - León: Convento de San Marcos – Parador entrance.
The portal and main entrance, in the central space bisecting the two parts of the façade, is part of the remodeling done during the Baroque. It has two bodies that are Plateresque, although Baroque elements were added in the 18th century. In the first body, there is a large semicircular arch between four columns. Above the arch is a relief of Santiago Matamoros in the Battle of Clavijo. Above that, in the second body, are a Baroque balcony and a Baroque attic with the coats of arms of the Order of Santiago and the Kingdom of León. Crowning the portal is an oculus in a rosette.
9:56 AM - León: Plaza San Marcos – Santiago Matamoros above Parador entrance.
9:55 AM - León: Plaza San Marcos – pilgrim statue at base of stone cross; the sandals by his feet are part of the bronze sculpture (yellow arrow at his feet points the way).
In the Plaza San Marcos, facing the convent, there is statue of a modest pilgrim sitting at the base of the stone cross, admiring the stately surroundings while resting his weary feet.
9:54 AM - León: Plaza San Marcos – MT with pilgrim statue.
9:55 AM - León: Plaza San Marcos – Don relaxing with pilgrim statue.
From the Plaza San Marcos, we crossed the río Bernesga over the 16th-century stone bridge Puente de San Marcos.
Leon: Puente de San Marcos with palace-like tower on Convento San Marcos at other end (https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8493/8316854845_33eaafaef2_b.jpg).
We walked at least 1.5 hours still in the urban area: first León proper, then Trobajo del Camino [Brierley’s map misspells it Trabajo, but it is correct in the text] (pop 18,314), and finally La Virgen del Camino (pop 3,300).
10:32 AM – Between Trobajo del Camino and La Virgen del Camino: hobbit-like bodegas in hillside.
10:35 AM – Entering La Virgen del Camino: Bar Tierra Media [Middle Earth].
In La Virgen del Camino, we stopped at an open store for bread but ended up getting a cheese bocadillo we could split for 2€.
La Virgen del Camino grew up around a chapel from the 16th century on the spot where, according to legend, the Virgin appeared to a shepherd in 1505. Today, the spot is occupied by the modern Basilica de La Virgen del Camino built in 1961. Three shrines preceded the current basilica. The first was built between 1514 and 1516 and lasted until 1644, when it collapsed. Then a second sanctuary was begun, resulting in the Chapel and altarpiece in 1652, but before being completed, it too collapsed. Two years later, work began on a third shrine, which remained standing until 1958, when construction of the current basilica began. The basilica retains the Baroque altarpiece from the former sanctuary.
La Virgen del Camino (Our Lady of the Way) has been the patron of the city of León since 1738, when it was proclaimed by Royal decree, and was officially proclaimed patroness of León lands by Pope Pius X in 1914.
10:53 AM – La Virgen del Camino: MT at edge of town looking at sign advertising hotels in Astorga (we stayed at Hotel Astvr Plaza last year and would stay there again); yellow arrows on light posts.
After La Virgen del Camino, there were two choices of routes heading toward Hospital de Órbigo (which we would not reach until the next day). Both routes are clearly marked and converge again at Hospital de Órbigo. One option was to take the “traditional” and hillier route through the countryside toward Villar de Mazariffe. (Even though Brierley shows this as his “recommended” route, he points out that there are few facilities.) The other option is to take the shorter “road” route toward Villadangos del Páramo. (The online Galicia Guide lists this as their “preferred” route, noting that, although it follows the main Madrid-to-Astorga highway, it also follows the old Roman road and is considered the original Camino route.) We chose the route to Villadangos del Páramo, which we had also done in 2013, primarily because there are more villages along this route. It followed gravel sendas along Highway N-120.
Around 12:20, we reached Valverde de la Virgen (pop 213 or 7,275 in municipality).
12:22 PM - probably Valverde de la Virgen (on highway N-120): Almost 1.5 hours later – another sign for the same 2 hotels in Astorga; the albergue in the old building behind the sign may have been La Casa del Camino.
12:29 PM – Valverde de la Virgen: old church Iglesia Parroquial de Santa Engracia, with spiral staircase to belfry with three stork’s nests and “porch” (this old wall, attached to a modern church building, is all that remains of the original church, of which it may have been the west façade).
The Iglesia Parroquial de Santa Engracia has medieval origins, documented in the 10th century. The current church was built in 1987, preserving the tower of the old church with a curious espadaña (bell gable).
The Spanish term espadaña is bell gable in English. It is an architectural element crowning the upper end of a church wall (usually the façade), usually in lieu of a church tower. It consists of a gable end in stone, with small hollow semi-circular arches where the church bells are placed. It is characteristic of the simplicity of Romanesque architecture in Spain and is especially common in small village churches throughout the Iberian peninsula. The word belfry comes from Old French berfrei which is derived from Germanic bergan “to protect” and frithuz “peace”; that is, it was originally a watch tower providing protection against hostile incursions and sentinels were placed there to ring bells to give notice of the approaching enemy. Because these towers usually contained an alarm bell or bells, Middle English speakers thought berfrei had something to do with bells and altered it into belfry, an interesting example of the process of folk etymology.
12:34 PM (cropped) – Valverde de la Virgen: sign on side of building advertising for Richard the sign painter (rotulación = sign painting).
In San Miguel del Camino (pop 351), we found a little table on a sidewalk with nuts, candy, and fruit and a self-service sello. This year, the little old man (Agapito Trigal López) just watched through his window as we got a pear, tomato, and sellos: “Agapito Trigal López – San Miguel del Camino – Un amigo del camino y del peregrino te desea suerte en el camino [A friend of the camino and of the pilgrim wishes you luck on the camino].”
At 1:00-1:35, we stopped at Mesón El Yantar del Peregrino in San Miguel del Camino to eat our sandwich and use the baño. We bought a large bottle of water, and the bar owner gave us a bowl of (20) olives free. He also gave us sellos. While at that bar, we met an Austrian man (of Italian origin) who had got there from St. Jean in 17 days and planned to get to Santiago in 22-23 days; a speed walker, he didn’t stop to see sights in cities (he was in León only 2 hours); he said he will do that with his wife when she retires.
[In the morning, MT had put a (smaller) piece of Moleskin on Don’s tailbone, but it soon began to hurt anyway. So we stopped and pinned Lisa Gaumer’s blue cloth to the inside of the backpack belt again, but it was still rubbing raw. Don finally shifted the pack toward the right to get the rubbing part off the bone.]
We arrived at Urbanización Camino de Santiago (pop 1,165) at 2:50 pm. (According to the CSJ guidebook, Hotel Avenida III is in “Urbanización Santiago de Compostela,” 2 km short of Villadangos del Páramo; however, the web site for Ayuntamiento de Villadangos del Páramo correctly identifies this as Urbanización Camino de Santiago). We went into the bar of Hostal-Café-Bar-Restaurante Avenida II to decide whether to stop there or go on. We ordered a large bottle of water, and the bartender told us that a double room in the separate “Hotel” building was 40€ including breakfast. (We had stayed there in 2013 for 45€ including breakfast; so that sounded good.) We studied the Brierley map and Don’s lodging notes, and the bartender confirmed that there was no lodging in San Martín del Camino (pop 509, 4.7 km farther on this route) and he wasn’t sure we could cross over after San Martín del Camino to Villavante (pop 2,689) on the other alternate route. Every place was too far to add to the 22.3 km we had already walked this day. So we decided to stay at the 2-star Hotel Avenida III, where we got sellos.
2:50 PM – Urbanización Camino de Santiago: Hotel Avenida III (two buildings) in foreground and Hostal-Café-Bar-Restaurant Avenida II in background.
2:50 PM – Urbanización Camino de Santiago: Hotel Avenida III front with entrance.
2:52 PM – Urbanización Camino de Santiago: MT approaching Hostal-Café-Bar-Restaurante Avenida II across highway and parking lot.
2:52 PM – Urbanización Camino de Santiago: MT approaching Hostal-Café-Bar-Restaurante Avenida II.
3:28 PM – Urbanización Camino de Santiago: Hotel Avenida III – our room, No. 107.
6:24 PM – Urbanización Camino de Santiago: octagonal parking garage (free) behind hotel (from our window).
After a short rest, Don showered; we washed shirts and underwear and hung them on Don’s line in the window. We tried (as we did last year) to use the PC in the hallway just outside our room, but the power line was in bad shape; when we tried plugging the second PC in the hallway directly into wall outlets rather than the bad extension cord, we got power, but the screen said there was no cable connection. So we gave up on that. Don worked on his journal, cataloging this day’s photos, while MT watched an old Western [Pony Express (1953)] on TV with Charlton Heston as Buffalo Bill Cody.
The Avenida II restaurant opened for cena (diner) at 8:40 pm. We had two 12€ menus del día: 1st course: we split a tomato salad and a potato salad; 2nd course: Don merluza in butter sauce with cooked potatoes/MT skewer of “carne” [meat] and peppers with patatas fritas (we forgot again to ask for a substitute); dessert: MT coffee cake/ Don strawberry yogurt. We paid with Capital One card for the room and dinner with IVA (VAT); the total was 70.40€. We gave the waiter a 2€ tip, after he brought us an orange pen on a lanyard (like last year).
8:37 PM – Urbanización Camino de Santiago: sunset from our hotel room.
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