Two Weddings and a Street Party

After breakfast at the hotel with some sort of team of teenage girls (the same ones who, as I write this, are screaming, running up and down the hall, and slamming doors), we began our day by driving to Santo Domingo de Silos to see the Benedictine abbey there.  It was a beautiful drive, with lots of interesting little towns along the way.  We had some time before the next tour began, so we looked around the little gift shop.

I'm not going to worry about dressing like a tourist anymore.  No matter what I wear, I won't look as bad as this Japanese tourist.  Yes, that is duct tape on her hat.

The abbey was built beginning in the 11th century.  Each of the square posts at the corners of the courtyard contain friezes depicting the life of Christ.  Jorge also learned several things about the carvings depicting a departed saint or king (or anyone else, I guess),   If the person is shown lying on his back, it means he died of natural causes.  If there is a dog at his feet, it means he was married (no comment about the "dog" and "at his feet" part).  The number of cushions under his head shows how important he was, and so on.

I think this door carving means that this was a party room, as evidenced by the party horn
                                                       (though I could be wrong).

One really interesting thing was the pharmacy rooms, filled with decanters and containers and books from the 17th century.  We were not allowed to take pictures in there.  It looked like something out of Harry Potter.  There was even a stuffed owl.


Next, we moved on to Burgos, a city I have wanted to visit since I was here in 2007.  It has a stunning cathedral, and is a stop along the Camino de Santiago.  We saw several groups of pilgrims around the cathedral, with their scallop shells on their packs.  On the way to the cathedral, we came across this band playing in the street.  The sound echoed in the narrow streets and you could hear them from all over.

Wedding #1

                                                    

                                               The towers of Burgos cathedral

As we approached the front of the cathedral, we came upon a wedding party taking pictures with the cathedral in the background.  We went inside, and I was blown away by the beauty all around and over me.  Every side chapel had a stunning altarpiece, and we walked all around admiring everything.  I was actually successful at getting some great pictures of the stained glass.

After  Burgos, we headed back to Palencia with a plan to have an early (by Spanish standards) dinner, then see a little Visigoth church nearby.  On the way, though, we decided to look at the Christ statue that towers over the town.   The statue itself is said to be taller than the statue in Rio, not counting the mountain that that one sits on.  We drove to the top and took some pictures of the town.  Then we had our dinner at McDonald's, and went in search of the Visigoth church.  It has the distinction of being perhaps the last surviving church in Spain with its style of architecture.  When we arrived, there was a wedding just getting out.  I didn't want to be in the way of the guests, so I stayed outside, but Jorge stepped inside to see what it looked like (my guess would be "dark").  The happy couple's decorated getaway car was leaking oil, so I hope they got where they were going OK.  The guests were all boarding big tour buses, presumably on their way to the reception.

                                The little Visigoth church - and some of the wedding guests.

Tomorrow, Valladolid, then on to Mieres and Jorge's family!