The Puerto Moneda, where the Camino enters the historic center of old León.

There are several long expanses of the original Roman wall around the city. This portion shows both the outer (to the right) and inner walls.

A welcome sign for a pilgrim in need of supplies . . .

Rising like an oasis, El Corte Ingles is a *huge* department store that carries! well, everything. Groceries, sporting goods, clothing, pharmacy, electronics, phone and SIM card renewals – if you need it, they have it. Locations in every major city in northern Spain.

Entering El Corte Ingles. Need it? It’s here.

A glass of toro and a tapas. Perfect.
Tapas are always served on a slice of toast. The idea is to place the tapas on the wine glass to keep out the flies. What keeps the flies off the tapas?
Go away.

The Dalai Lama says, “Gibralter libre, baby!”

A gate in the old Roman city wall behind the cathedral in León

I happened upon this news conference pertaining to yesterday’s murder of León top official Isabel Carrasco. I delayed visiting the interior of the cathedral, and then lost my opportunity. The cathedral closed in the afternoon as the entire city leadership gathered for Carrasco’s funeral mass.

A stream of local and national dignitaries stream into the cathedral for the funeral mass of Isabel Carrasco, the head of the province of León. She had been murdered the previous day, apparently for personal reasons, not political.

This was originally a Roman market square near the city wall. Now, it is the Plaza Santa Maria del Camino. Behind me is the biggest albergue in León, home to more than 100 pilgrims every night.

To end a good day, I had dinner and a nice bottle of Toro with friends Andy (Australia), Sue, Damian, his wife Linda, and his daughter Seraphina.

Off to sleep as the moon rises over the Plaza Mayor.