I stopped into two bars for water today on my way from Mansilla to Leon and serendipitously heard two almost identical conversations. Both were English-speaking Spanish pilgrims speaking to North Americans comparing Leon to Burgos. One guy said oh Leon is a much better city, it's a place where real people live and work and Burgos is just a touristic city and is too proud, and the other guy said, oh Leon is a rough and tough city with not much beauty and Burgos is like a jewel. Hearing them back to back like that made me realize how often I've heard divergent opinions on the same walk, or town, or meal. Just like real life I guess.

Walking into Leon was gritty, not dissimilar to walking into Burgos. Miles and miles of the necessary decor of the outskirts of urban life: factories, warehouses, building supply stores, metalworking shops, auto dealerships, billboards, interchanges, power lines, abandoned buildings, empty lots. Then as I got into the city, apartment blocks and and bars and cafes and fruit shops and butcher shops and bakeries. I didn't get as far as the cathedral and plaza mayor yet; my hotel is about 1 km from the center. That's for tomorrow.

Some people hate this part of the walk. I get it, they're enamored of the serene countryside and the charming little villages. But as I said in a post a while back, I embrace this. I don't want to walk in a Disney set, I want to traverse a real country and see its blemishes as well as its glory. I actually love it.

I was in the zone for part of the day again today. Leaving Mansilla in the cool fresh sunny air felt great and I hit my stride. And felt that way for about eight miles. Then fatigue and aches and pains set in during the last three miles. But now I'm happily ensconced in a nice hotel, horizontal. Though I have the desire to explore the old part of the city and the cathedral, there's no way this body's gonna do it today. But I'm staying here tomorrow so I'll have a look around.

Passed a milestone today, less than 200 miles to go. According to the guidebook it's 193 miles to Santiago. I might just make it.