June 15, 2016: Belorado to Espinosa del Camino, then on to Burgos

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When I was first in Spain in the early 1970’s, this Spanish Civil War-era slogan (“They shall not pass,” referring to the Spanish Nationalist army of Franco) was on walls everywhere and indicated dislike for the on-going Franco regime. I was surprised to see it on a wall as we walked out of Belorado, and wondered what the graffiti artist wants  to halt now.
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More beautiful stone bridges
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Have a rocky outcropping in the middle of your field? No problem. Just plant around it.
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There are plenty of very old fountains along The Camino for pilgrims, though the water isn’t always safe to drink.
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Walking from  the bus station to the center of the city, we crossed a bridge with beautiful statues.
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And we saw for the first time this famous statue of El Cid.  Locals call this statue “the bat” because El Cid’s cape, shown by the sculptor as dramatically blowing in the wind, resembles a bat’s wings.
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This is the same stone bridge as above, but a different view.

 

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I was fascinated with this bridge because even though it is obviously quite old, huge heavy trucks roar across it seemingly without any worries about whether ancient bridges can withstand such weights.

 

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I posted a note about this bridge, wondering if modern bridges would stand the test of time as well as this one has.  One of my brothers objected, saying that my logic was off since the traffic only flows in one direction.  Still…it is amazing to see this juxtaposition of old and new, with the old bridge still fulfilling its function.
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Seeing towns hug a mountain like this, with the raw rock exposed right next to buildings, surprised me every time I saw it.  Don’t some of those rocks ever come tumbling down?

 

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