From Foncebadon to Ponferrada ( 27.1km )

I start the day early even though it is realy cold outside. The first stop this morning is at Cruzz De Ferro ( iron cross) at Monte Irago. Tradition has it that pilgrims lay down a stone at this sight which they have brought from home or collected somewhere else. A prayer often spoken is ," God, may this stone be a symbol of my efforts of this pilgrimage and may it be on the side of my good deeds when the scale of life decides about my good and bad doings."  For many pilgrims the ritual also symbolizes the act of laying off a weight on one's soul.

I have a strange feeling of sadness and happyness laying down my stone - turn around and move on!:)

After a few more ups and downs the most challenging decline of the whole trip (15 km ) is coming up which leads through some small mountain villages. I use the first one  - El Acebo - for my breakfast stop. It's somehow mean: you can see Ponferrada all the way in the valley already but you are many km away.

Ponferrada is the last bigger city before Santiago de Compostella . It has many things in common with my home city Gladbeck and not only size wise and crises wise : at the end of the 80s and with the decline of the mining industry the city fell into a deep crisis.

But much better than my home town Gladbeck the politicians here made smart investment in infrastructure and even settled down a branch of a university. The center piece of the city are the ruins of the old Castello of the Temple Order Knights. Around it a vibrant, culturally inviting city with an old and new part opens up - maybe I should send the maire of our city over here so he learns what to do better!!