I walked 18 km into Leon. It seem to me the longer the town's name is the smaller the town. León: short, name big town
I made it into the city by 1:00. A helpful pilgrim information kiosk gave me a map and info on the three albergues in town.
I followed the map but to what do my starving little eyes find, a Donner Kabab restaurant! You think in a big city I would be scoping out a nice place to get a fancy meal. Nope. A big city to me means Donner Kabab and Cheeseburgers. Every small town has pilgrim meals of local food and bocadillos (sandwiches). It's starting to get boring. When I am in a place where I can get a Donner Kabab, I am a happy camper. This one was a chicken donner wrap which came with a free coke.
I chose not to stay at the €5 parish one but to splurge on the €10 hostel in the center of the old part of the city. The hostel is an albergue in the summer and university housing the rest of the year. It was so cute. It had TV rooms, sitting rooms and a large yard with outdoor seating. My room was two sets of bunk-beds with a bathroom attached. The bathroom was small with only half a tub and you could rest tour chin on the sink when you were sitting on the toilet.
There were really two things I planned on seeing in León: the cathedral and the church of San Isidoro with its Pantheon of the Kings.
The church is not the highlight San Isidoro; It is Pantheon of the Kings. The Pantheon of the Kings is a hall where the kings of León, and their families, have been buried for thousands of years. The earliest tomb I remember seeing there was from ~150AD. The ceiling of the Pantheon of the Kings is one of the best preserved representations of 12th Century Romanesque paintings. Unfortunately in this area there is no photography allowed so I borrowed these photos from the church's website.
The church also has a collection of ancient religious texts and a treasure room of items donated to the church. I was surprised how legible the text was on books that were 600-700+ years old.
1. San Isidoro coffer (1063-1065)
2. Scandinavian little idol, small cylindrical box of reindeer horn dated in the second half of Xth acentury.
3. Chalice of agate, donation of Doña Urraca in century XIth century, and paten.
Images from:
http://www.sanisidorodeleon.net
The old medieval wall behind the church
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