We left Albergue Los Templarios at 7:30 this morning and walked through Terradillos de los Templarios (pop. 78).An interesting piece of artwork adjacent to the 13th century Knights Templar church of Iglesia de San Pedro.
Iglesia de San Pedro contains a Gothic crucifix but is rarely open. The church is built of brick rather than stone, as this area has very little local stone. The Knights Templar were a medieval military order responsible for protecting pilgrims. While the order was popular and successful for almost 200 years, grand master Jacques de Molay was arrested in 1307 (on Friday the 13th, possibly the origin of this superstitious date) and burned at the stake for heresy and a variety of trumped-up charges. The order was disbanded in disgrace, though many think the charges had more to do with politics than any actual wrongdoing.
The path initially took us through grain fields, far enough away to not see or hear vehicle traffic.The path joined a small paved road.We walked less than a mile on the paved road, which we shared momentarily with a large truck…… then returned to the dirt path.We made our first stop in Moratinos for breakfast.A favorite stop, when it’s open!We continued walking past the 16th century Iglesia Parroquial de San Tomás, which is also never open to see inside.Pretty scenery on the way to San Nicolás de Real Camino.We stopped here for orange juice and a rest stop.The Iglesia de San Nicolás de Bari was also under Knights Templar control until the late 12th century and is always locked up tight.Adjacent to Iglesia San Nicolás de Bari is Albergue “Laganares” where we stayed on our first Camino in 2014.The Spanish Broom formed an effective barrier from most of busy highway running parallel to the final 4 miles into Sahagún.Walking past the historic monument as we left Palencia and entered Castilla and Leon.The dirt path ran parallel to the highway into SahagúnThe Camino path crossed the highway and continued through a small park including Ermita Virgen del Puente. We continued walking along the highway to cut our walking distance by a half-mile going directly into Sahagún.Going ” our” wayOn “our” shortcut into SahagúnWork was underway to build barriers throughout the town to control the bull runs for the upcoming festival (11-14 June) as we crossed the train tracks into Sahagún.
Looking at Sahagún today you would never guess its great significance in medieval times, second in the kingdom of León only to León city. King Alfonso VI was educated in Sahagún and sought refuge there while warring with his brother and richly rewarded the city when he emerged victorious. He invited the Benedictines of Cluny to run the monastery, and the city became a center of Cluniac development. The city thrived with a diverse populace including Muslims and Jews. Sahagún’s historic architecture illustrates the Romanesque-Mudéjar style, which incorporated Islamic decorative motifs and was built primarily out of brick rather than stone.
We were able to checkin immediately upon arrival at Hostal San Juan at 11:30.
After settling in our room, Jim ventured out to restock our snack supply and scout out options for our main meal.
Our choice for lunch turned out to be a good one. Jim had gazpacho and he and Linda selected two different dishes to share.
Jim’s gazpacho was “muy sabroso” (very tasty).We shared this salad of fresh lettuce, assorted nuts, dried fruits, very thin sliced ham, grilled goat cheese generously drizzled with a rich balsamic house dressing.This dish included two fried eggs over easy, over very thin sliced ham over grilled goat cheese and french fries. This is definitely a dish we will make back home.
Our room includes a variety of supplies to make breakfast and/or sandwiches and including hot drinks and juices. A shared for guests kitchen includes all the ingredients and appliances to make your own at your convenience throughout the day.
After recovering from our walk, savoring our lunch and completing our “daily duties”, we hung out in our room or the shared kitchen to complete our day in Sahagún.
Jimandi 