Leon

I sat down to map out a realistic itinerary to Santiago last night. My guide book regularly has 25 and 30km days which are just not feasible for me. I want to get to Santiago no later than June 30th because it may take 2-5 days to find my way home on standby and my son may be coming home from Iraq on leave as early as the 5th of July. No way do I want to miss that homecoming! So I decided to take a train through the industrial sections of Leon as I had done for Burgos, and this will enable me to make that goal. I was able to see the cathedral and basilica in Leon.(The stained glass windows in the cathedral were breathtaking.) But my heart is just not in the cities and I am very excited to soon be in Galicia. The photo was taken outside a bar in Leon. I thought it was an interesting contrast of peregrino and football fan marketing. Capitalism makes strange bedfellows sometimes! Speaking of capitalism, we had an actual fast food American style lunch today. Not in McDonald's although there was a Micky D's in town (advertising McAuto which is, I guess, a drive-through). It was like a Subway but with Spanish style bread. You actually went through a line and paid for it and got a Coke and French Fries--fast! Sooo American! It downright made me homesick. Seriously, I am homesick. Being away from my home country and my hometown gives me such a different perspective on my roots. And I'm not just talking about fast food. But that story can wait until I get home.
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