"Astorga" Astorga by pfsmalo

Astorga is another town where the "Camino de Santiago" runs right through the middle of it effectively joining up by the same path all the churches in it. Astorga has real Roman links with different sites in town that can be visited and has its own Roman museum. It also has a chocolate museum as it is classed as a historic centre for chocolate and is known as the "chocolate capital of Spain". Our friend Mister GAUDI has had his hand in another masterpiece of nonsense here in Astorga, the Bishops Palace, a rather modern version of a medieval fortress.

Two Maragatos strike the time since 1748.

Astorga is considered the beginning and the capital of the area known as the Maragateria. From Astorga up to Pontferreda the area is simply littered with pretty little villages and friendly people. Of course it helps that the "Camino de Santiago" runs right through here, the road follows the pilgrim trail and is also known as LE-142. The Maragatos are supposedly a mix of the Moors and the Goths, hence the name.

See some of these villages in my Castrillo de los Polvazares pages with a map of the Maragateria.