Zamora, Spain, May 14 - 31, 2025 — Part 2: The City

 Part 2: The City

By Jim and Laurel

When we arrived in Zamora we knew little about the medieval fortress city, once  the vanguard of Spain’s Christian—Islamic conflict many centuries ago.  Now, after a couple of weeks of two-hour daily forays, we have succumbed to its lively, yet understated, charms.  

Each day has been a new adventure.  We began with the obvious.  From the Roman Bridge spanning the Duero River, we followed the city wall to the Bishops’s Gate outside the Cathedral (1151) and on to the Castillo (983).  From the vantage point of the castle tower we were able to take in the Cathedral’s unique, if not impressive, Byzantine influenced dome.

Other mornings we searched the city for Art Deco and Modernism buildings built in the early 1900s or we sought out a cool respite in one of the many ancient stone churches.  Zamora has the most Romanesque churches (24) in the world and many of them are living museums.

Some days, our quests were more hedonistic as we foraged the calles and paseos for churros and tapas, or a bottle of vino de Toro to accompany our standard albergue supper of a cool “ensalada  mixta” (lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, and whatever was left in the fridge by pilgrims the day before).

Zamora is a beautiful city of roughly 60,000 people and each day its streets swell and ebb with a population committed to good mix of work, commerce, and public socializing.  Museums, parks, city squares, and markets have all captured our attention on one day or another.  Even mundane chores such as shopping, taking out the garbage, hanging the laundry, or sweeping off the steps are constant reminders of just how “preciosa” this place is.  

The Zamora Castle and the view of the Cathedral from the castle tour

Exploring the streets and squares

Art Deco and Modernist buildings of Zamora 

Zamora has 24 Romanesque churches, the most in the world

Tapas and churros 

Zamora, Spain, May 14 - 31, 2025 — Part 1: The Albergue de Perigrinos

The Albergue de Perigrinos

By Laurel & Jim

It has been quite some time since we arrived in Zamora, Spain, at the Albergue de Peregrinos, to begin a two week volunteer assignment and we have not posted an update.  This radio-silence was not due to any dearth of experiences, stories or photos, rather it was a deficit of time.  Laurel described our weeks here as living the movie “Groundhog Day.”  Each day we wake up at 5:00 and begin a day of duties that continues until 10:00 in the evening, at which time we fall asleep only to wake up and repeat everything all over again.  However, just like Bill Murray, we did learn something from each cycle (sadly, not how to play the piano) and now have eked out 2 - 2 1/2 hours of free time during the day.  So here are some reports on life in Zamora as Voluntario Hospitaleros.

We arrived in Zamora as pilgrims on foot and slept comfortably that night in the Municipal Albergue de Peregrinos (Hostel).  The next morning, our stint as volunteer hosts (hospitalero/hospitalera) in the hostel began with an overlap with the out-going hospitaleras.  Chris, from Washington State, and Pam, from Alaska, adeptly showed us the ropes and advised on how to get up to thirty sheets washed, dried, and rolled up on time to pass out fresh to a new batch of incoming pilgrims every day.  In case of sun, dry them on the clotheslines on the hostel terrace; in case of rain, take them to the neighbourhood laundromat and then go next door to eat churros with chocolate dipping sauce while the driers do their work.  We weren’t sure whether to hope for sun or rain!  

Chris and Pam headed out the next morning, passing the torch on to us as they went.  We felt pretty nervous to be in charge of the place by ourselves, but we put on brave faces and told each other, “we can do this!”  Chris and Pam would be staying in a hotel in Zamora for a couple of nights before walking North on the Camino to Astorga, so we knew we’d be able to get more pointers if needed.  

The albergue is built up against the medieval city wall, on a slope, and is three stories high.  The entrance floor has a reception office, and three dorm rooms (one of which is reserved exclusively for the hospitaleros, i.e. us), as well as the outdoor terrace.  One level down houses three dorms and two big bathrooms.  The lower floor features a communal kitchen and dining room, and a non-communal washing machine.  Altogether, the albergue can accommodate thirty pilgrims, all in bunk beds.

The Albergue de Perigrinos de Zamora is nestled into the medieval city wall at the foot of St. Cipriano Church 

We received excellent hands-on training from the out-going American volunteers, Chris and Pam

Laurel handles all administrative duties, including registration, bookkeeping, and phone reception

The albergue has three floors; the middle floor has three dormitories and two bathrooms (the upper floor also has two dormitories and our room

The lowest floor includes the dining room/lounge and kitchen/laundry room.  It is the coolest spot so most pilgrims hang out here

The kitchen is well equipped and well used.  The pilgrims appreciate the spices, pots and sharp knives

Breakfast is simple and included with a donation for the bed

Bicycles and laundry fight for space on the patio

I have learned some new skills

While the laundry dries we do the shopping and odd jobs (like getting the knives sharpened)

The view from the patio reminds us that we are somewhere special

The Camino, Stage 3 — May 14, 2025: El Cubo de Vino to Zamora (34 km — should have only been 31, but we took a wrong turn!)

9 - 19°C —Blue sky, cloudy later in the day

By Jim 

During our siesta yesterday it poured buckets, which gave the walkers and cyclists who arrived later a story or two to share at the communal supper.

Our stage today was officially 31 km, so we were out of the albergue and on the trail by 6:00 a.m.  It was still dark but the moon lit our way.  At mid-morning, we walked down an escarpment and were overtaken by a vista so beautiful that we forgot how impressed we had been with the sunrise. The trail opened up onto rolling hills of crops and oak trees.  Our map promised us two towns complete with bars and a restaurant but, although the towns materialized, the services never did.  By the time we could see our destination, Zamora, we still had 8 km to go — these last two and a half hours dragged on.  A short cut that I sold to Laurel was thwarted by a farmer who proclaimed “Probido el Passo!”  Eight kilometers became ten and Laurel proved that she could still walk 34 km in a day.  It took a pizza on Plaza Mayor and a glass of vino tinto for her to forgive me.

Here ends our travels for a while as we now begin a two week stint as volunteer hospitalaros at the Albergue de Peregrinos in Zamora.

Compostela Confidential

The hot buzz on the Camino today was that a “French Royal,” a VIP if you like, was among us walking the Camino incognito.  Juergen (a pilgrim from Belgium) texted me partway through our stage and asked me if I could keep a secret because he had some “big” news to tell us when we arrived.  Our arrival and check-in at the albergue was paused while Juergen told everyone (so much for secrecy) that Charles from Montpelier, France, is Charles Prince Napoleon (Head of the House of Bonaparte — disputed).  It was quite the scoop for Juergen, who had only walked with Charles for one day and blew his cover.  Kenny (from Reno), who had walked with Charles for a week but fell behind yesterday, arrived at the albergue oblivious to the secret identity.  Quite the “Santiago secret!”  Meanwhile, Charles had been called back to France for business and will resume his Camino at a later date.  All I can say is, he was a gentleman.   When he saw Laurel and I in the pizza restaurant on Plaza Mayor he came in to say hello and goodbye. It turns out, I can’t keep a secret!

Albergue de Peregrinos, our home in Zamora for the next two weeks

The Camino, Stage 2 — May 13, 2025: Calzada de Valdunciel to El Cubo de Vino (21 km)

6 -15°C —Blue sky, cloudy later in the day

By Jim 

We were up early and on the trail before Juan Jose ( a Spanish cyclist) and Mariam and Gert (a Dutch couple) had even stirred.  While getting our bearings on the edge of town,  Kenny (Reno, Nevada) and Charles (Montpelier, France) emerged from the municipal albergue and joined us.  We walked together for a while until Laurel and I fell behind to photograph the crops and flowers.

Today’s scenery had a lot in common with parts of Saskatchewan and you would be forgiven if you mistook our pictures for Glenside or Wilkie.  The path left town with healthy fields of wheat, barley, canola, and oats rotating along the way.  

Eventually we drew up alongside a major highway and followed it (at a pleasant distance) most of the day, but the other side of the trail was dedicated to farming. Juan Jose rode past and wished us a Buen Camino and we were eventually overtaken by Jurgen, a Belgian pilgrim who we had met in Salamanca.  The Guardia Civil (Spanish Police) drove up behind us and stopped to check if everything was OK.  Near the midpoint of our walk El Real de la Jara prison came into view and dominated our vista for many kilometers.  On occasion, we remembered to turn around to look and were reminded of the snow capped Sierra de Béjar rising up beyond Salamanca.  

We arrived at the Albergue and waited in the garden for it open, soon joined by Kenny who had been checking out the town.  (Charles had decided to walked 13 km further to the next town.)  For lunch we dined on lentil stew, steak, and cheesecake at Casa Ivan.

The Camino, Stage 1 — May 12, 2025: Salamanca to Calzada de Valdunciel (18 km)

16°C — Pleasant temperature, blue sky, cloudy later in the day

By Laurel

And so we begin on the Camino!  We stayed last night at the Albergue de Peregrinos in Salamanca along with about seven other pilgrims from Spain, South Korea, Belgium, and Germany.  The albergue is nice and located immediately beside a pretty enclosed park with a view out over the city.  Yes, one of our dorm mates snored (and so did I), and the bunks were a bit creaky, but it was a great way to start us out on this Camino.  There were many “Buen Caminos” heard in the morning as we all laced up our shoes and put on our packs to head out before 8:00 am, as per the hostel rules.

There was a bit of a walk to get out of the city and a stretch beside the highway, but after that we walked on country roads through grainfields.  We met one other pilgrim walking (Kenny from Reno, Nevada) and three others staying at the same accommodation in Calzada de Valdunciel.

Our walk along the Via de la Plata will be interrupted in Zamora for two weeks as we volunteer at the pilgrims Albergue, before branching off onto the Camino Sanabres 

72 Hours in Salamanca, Spain — May 9 - 12

University Spirit

By Jim

Salamanca has been my favourite city in Spain so far. Not for its well preserved medieval core, Roman bridge, or two humongous cathedrals. Many cities have these credentials front and center on their CVs.  What Salamanca has is spirit and energy.  It’s a university town and the student population gives it life.

The University of Salamanca is a prestigious institution with architecture and history dating back to its founding in 1218 by King Alfonso IX. It is the oldest university in Spain and the 4th oldest in the world.  Today, it is home to over 30,000 students from more than 50 different countries, creating a vibrant and diverse academic community that permeates the entire city.

The entrance to the Universidad Civil is covered with an immense sandstone carving.  Spotting the “Salamanca Frog” in the facade will bring you good luck  

Medieval graffiti!   After graduation in the 1400s, students would write their names or initials on the walls of university buildings using a mixture of bull’s blood, red ochre and varnish.
 

There is no shortage of museums in Salamanca, many of which are free

The medieval facade to the entrance of the Cathedral was restored in 1992.  At this time, the artist added a modern touches: an astronaut!

The old and the new.  Salamanca’s two cathedrals sit side by side.