Astorga

I loved Astorga. It's where the Via de la Plata from Seville joins the Camino Francés. At one time there were 20 pilgrim hostels at this spiritual intersection. I stayed at the Albergue San Javier, which was one of my favourite refuges along the whole route. A welcoming man dressed in dazzling multi-coloured clothing and with a beard and a bicycle pointed me there. It's in an old part of town in the shadow of the cathedral (1st pic) and Gaudi's Episcopal Palace (2nd pic). It was some sort of feast day - I forget which one - so the streets were brimming with life. The albergue - a beautifully restored old building - was warm and friendly, with a kitchen and log fire. I recalled what this area used to be like in the 8th century: a battleground between the Moors and the Spanish king Alfonso I of Asturias.

Despite the cathedral's magnificence, what lingers most in my memory is the Museum of Ham (Museo del Jamon) shown in the 3rd pic.

Leon

I arrived in Leon early on the afternoon of 3 December - it was only 19 km from Mansilla - and left at lunchtime the next day, so had plenty of time to explore the city. I spent the night in the Hostal San Martin which was cheap, clean, and situated at the top of a winding staircase in the old quarter close to the cathedral.

Leon, former capital of the kingdom of Castile and present day capital of the Castilla y Leon region, has a population of 140,000. It was originally called Legio Septima in Roman times - because the 7th legion was stationed here. It's a lively, relaxed place full of good tapas bars and restaurants. I didn't eat out at many restaurants on the Camino - but here I did, and the salads, and steaks with deep-fried potatoes, were exceptionally good.

I paid a visit to most of Leon's famous buildings and monuments: the Guzman Palace (see 1st photo), former home the Guzmans, one of Leon's wealthiest families; Gaudi's neo-Gothic Casa de Botines (there's a similar Gaudi structure in Astorga - but that comes later!); the wonderful Romanesque Basilica of San Isidoro - apart from the cathedral, this was my favourite building, with its amazing Puerte del Pardon (Door of Forgiveness) and its royal burial vaults (Pantheon Real) containing the tombs of 11 Spanish kings, 12 Spanish queens and 23 Spanish princes, and its extraordinary frescoes; and the Renaissance Convento de San Marcos with its intricately carved 16th century facade adorned with scallop shells and other pilgrim motifs. This monastery - former home to the Knights of the Order of Santiago - is now a luxurious parador hotel, but the museum part you can look round, and I passed a long time in there. The 2nd photo shows the cloister garden. The 3rd photo, of the pilgrim statue, was taken in the Plaza San Marcos in front of the monastery.

Then of course there's Leon's crowning glory: the stunning 13th century Gothic cathedral with its breathtaking stained glass windows, its cloisters, and its towers and steeples - all of which are individual and unmatched.