Have you ever anted to visit a quiet spanish city? Try Astorga. Founded by the romans, many archaeological rests all around the city remain us of its past. It is also worth visiting its Bishop�s Palace, a marvel by Gaud�. Or the Chocolate Museum, the first in Spain. There are much more secrets tu know about Astorga. Ask me if you wish to know

(Getting to Astorga takes 3 hours from Madrid, by the A-6 railroad)

I visited Astorga twice last year and I have to agree that it is a splendid place. John Future, you forgot to mention the outstanding cathedral with its impresive retablo and that the former Bishop's House also houses a very nice museum of the Camino de Santiago and is well worth a visit. I enjoyed the museum there better than the one in Santiago de Compostela.

John you are right about the chocolate, Astorga is quite famous for chocolate, but you forgot to mention a couple of other edible delights from Astorga. The cocido maragato is fantastic, even if it is a bit backwards. Additionaly, it is hard to leave Astorga without buying at least one box of thoses cookies made by La Viuda de Alfonso

All this and much more in Astorga, if you enjoy history and culture you'll find plenty to do and see there. Not only is Astorga located on the Camino de Santiago which has kept it in constant contact with the rest of Europe for more than a 1000 years, it is also famous for ther Maragatos, an ethnic group who settled here. As many of you know the citizens of Astorga are quite proud of their historic roots, and they are collectively refered to as Maragatos in honour of the clan that help shape this settlement.