{"id":785,"date":"2026-04-24T18:44:31","date_gmt":"2026-04-24T22:44:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oldgriffy.com\/?p=785"},"modified":"2026-06-16T09:57:35","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T13:57:35","slug":"april-24-mansilla-de-las-mulas-spain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oldgriffy.com\/?p=785","title":{"rendered":"April 24, 2026: Mansilla de las Mulas, Spain"},"content":{"rendered":"

I met some delightful people in El Burgo Ranero<\/strong>. Great breakfast at El Costa delAdobe. Sat for a long time talking with Stephan, a former international pilot with American Airlines and living in Shelby North Carolina. We told each other stories from our travels in China, India, and the continent of Africa.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
The Proprietor of the Restaurant\/Bar\/Albergue.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
The most popular cafe in town<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
A Great Breakfast.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Stephan from North Carolina.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Mansilla de las Mulas<\/strong> is renowned for its well-preserved 12th-century medieval walls, considered the best in the province. Key structures include the stone city walls (up to 14 meters high), the Santa Maria Gate, the 13th-century San Mart\u00edn Church, and the medieval bridge over the Esla River.<\/p>\n

Medieval Walls (Murallas): Built during the reign of Fernando II in the 12th century, these limestone walls span much of the town and feature battlements and fortified, cube-shaped towers.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Medieval Wall<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Medieval Wall<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Conception Gate (Arco de la Concepci\u00f3n): Known also as the Santa Maria gate, this is the best-preserved entrance to the walled town, featuring a distinctive pointed ashlar arch.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Conception Gate (Arco de la Concepci\u00f3n)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Church of San Mart\u00edn: A 13th-century building constructed in the Mud\u00e9jar style. It was later modified in the 16th and 17th centuries and now serves as a House of Culture. Thanks to Wikipedia for the following: \u201cMud\u00e9jar style is a unique 12th-to-17th-century Spanish artistic movement blending Islamic decorative traditions with Christian European (Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance) architecture. Created largely by Muslim craftsmen (Mud\u00e9jars<\/em>) for Christian patrons, it is defined by intricate brickwork, glazed ceramic tiles (azulejos), complex geometric plasterwork (yeser\u00eda), and ornate wooden ceilings.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Church of San Mart\u00edn<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Medieval Bridge (Puente Medieval): A crucial historic crossing over the Esla River used by pilgrims on the French Way.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Medieval Bridge (Puente Medieval)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Convent of San Agust\u00edn Ruins: While largely destroyed, the remains, including the Villafa\u00f1e Chapel and a fa\u00e7ade with decorative friezes, date to the early 16th century. The site now houses the Ethnographic Museum of the Leonese Peoples.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Ethnographic Museum of the Leonese Peoples<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It\u2019s sad that the Camino is the only thing keeping this little village alive. Much of it is run down.<\/p>\n

ADDENDUM<\/strong><\/p>\n

First Light
\n<\/strong>When I left after breakfast a priest was handing out a poem in the reader\u2019s language. It was long, but here\u2019s one verse:<\/p>\n

Pilgrim, whose voice is calling you?
\nWhat hidden force leads you on?
\nThe force that draws me to it
\nOnly the one above can know.<\/p>\n

Morning Mojo\/What Not to Miss, <\/strong>Memorialize
\n<\/strong>These will appear in the journal above.<\/p>\n

High Point of the Day
\n<\/strong>My long conversation with Stephan. I found if a Camino conversation lasts over fifteen minutes, it gets deep fast. Everyone is looking for something.<\/p>\n

I am out with lanterns, looking for myself.
\n<\/span>\u2014Emily Dickinson, a letter to a friend<\/p>\n

Examination of Conscience:
\n<\/strong>It\u2019s hard to tell yourself to stop being concerned about yourself, or your schedule, and take the opportunities for listening to others.<\/p>\n

Guided Prayer\/Thought:
\n<\/strong>\u201dLord, help me listen.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I met some delightful people in El Burgo Ranero. Great breakfast at El Costa delAdobe. Sat for a long time talking with Stephan, a former international pilot with American Airlines and living in Shelby North Carolina. We told each other stories from our travels in China, India, and the continent of Africa. Mansilla de las […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":193664754,"featured_media":790,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_wpcom_ai_launchpad_first_post":false,"_jetpack_hide_featured_image":false,"_jetpack_featured_image_duplicate_dismissed":0,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1393,1379,1380],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-785","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-camino-2026","category-personal","category-writing"],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pgfYCB-cF","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":761,"url":"https:\/\/oldgriffy.com\/?p=761","url_meta":{"origin":785,"position":0},"title":"April 23, 2026: El Burgo Ranero, Spain","author":"Old Griffy","date":"April 23, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"El Burgo Ranero, a quiet Camino de Santiago village in Le\u00f3n, Spain, features humble, traditional mud construction (adobe) that reflects its history. 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