"The Singing Canadian"...or rather, "The Canadian Criminal"

Music blaring, drinks a pouring, fans screaming in the streets, and patriotically dressed people trying to sell me noise makers and football memorabilia...just a typical day during the San Juan and San Pedro festival. Last night after I finally settled in, toured the cathedral, and did some window shopping (today I do my REAL souvenir shopping!), the festivities were starting. It was neat walking down the tiny streets and stumbling upon the different plazas because people were starting to set up for different activites. I was intrigued to find out what was going to be going on tonight. I talked to a lady at the information center, and apparently the parades, fireworks, and bull fights only happen on the weekend (which I am not here for). Oh well, not anbig dissapointmet. She did tell me however that they were going to have live music, dances, and a children's festival running all throughout the evening, and then again all day tomorrow. So, I began walking around waiting for the festival to begin. Just as I was about to tour the building designed by Antoine Gaudi, I heard cheering and applause coming from the plaza across the street. So, I abandoned my plans and went to see what all the commotion was about. To my surprise I had stumbled upon a dance competition of sorts. There were all sorts of teams; people dancing salsa, hip-hop, ballet, and freestyle. It was a really neat experience and very enjoyable to watch. When the dancing ended, the soccer match between Spain and Portugal was about to begin. The streets were filled with people! And I swear, the entire population of Leon were sittin in cafés watching the game on large flat screens set up in all of the plazas. I'm not a soccer fan, but I did walk around and watch snippits of the game in different bars. People were going crazy! Every few seconds you would hear a gasp, cheering, or someone yelling "Noo Nooo Nooooo!". It was interesting. Before I turned in for the night I had a drink at a quieter bar and enjoyed the live music playing right outside the cathedral. When I did decide to go to bed though, the game had just ended, Spain won, and bangs, honking, cheering, screaming, and whooing could be heard from inside my room. I have come to realize that whenever A Spain match is on, you are never going to be able to fall asleep. Whether they win or lose, these hard core football fans will keep everyone awake. This morning when I woke up, I felt very refreshed and I was looking forward to a day of no walking. After I left my room, I had a very nice breakfast and then wandered over to the albergue to see what time I could check in at. As I was sitting outside the albergue door waiting for it to open, the police pulled up in front of me. I didn't think anything of it at first so I just continued listening to my music. Then, two police officers approach me, take my backpack and begin searching through everything while asking me questions in Spanish. I kept saying that I didn't speak Spanish, but they didn't speak English either, so it was of no help. I had no clue what was going on, and I was quite scared. I started looking around for someone to help me but people would look the other way. Finally I saw the German couple who were staying in the same hostel as me last night and who I had talked with briefly. They started walking towards me so I thought they were going to help (seeing how they spoke both Spanish and English). But then the guy started yelling at me saying that I broke into his room this morning and stole his laptop and IPad. WTF?! He said I left rather early this morning and seemed like I was in a rush...as if I was leaving the scene of the crime. That was their evidence. They didn't actually see me in their room or in possession of their belongings, but apparently smiling at them and saying "Buen Camino" was enough for them to suspect me. I left at 9am by the way! That's not early, and I even talked with the lady at the reception desk for a few minutes before leaving. Once the police discovered the stolen items weren't in my possession, they apologized, but the German guy's last words to me were "I still don't trust him, he has it somewhere". I explained everything I did this morning, every person I talked to, and every step I took through the city. Before I was released, the German couple then asked if I would help them look with the police. Ummm, NO! After what happened here, I'm staying far away from you people (I didn't actually say that though). I felt really embarrassed after. All the other pilgrims were looking at me like I was some sort of criminal; not the first impression I was trying to make with these new people. Afterwards I didn't really feel up to doing anything; I felt kind of down and now my morning had been ruined. But, I did go for a walk around Leon, did a little shopping and sat in a cafe reading. Leon is such a beautiful city, one of my favorite places so far this trip. There isn't a whole lot to do, but wandering through the streets is quite peaceful. At one point I felt like I was in Disneyland because there were like five different Disney themed stores all along a single street. I found one store that sells gourmet donuts, so I am waiting until this evening when I will treat myself to one. With regards to the festival, there isn't a whole lot going on tonight. A few dances and a puppet show (for 3-10 year olds), and that's basically it. I'll still walk around and see what catches my eye. Sometimes they have special activities going on that aren't listed in the book. Tomorrow I start walking again! In three weeks time I will arrive in Santiago de Compostela! Wow!! Time is just flying by right now. In the begining of June it seemed so far away...now I am soo close! Hope you are all enjoying your summer. Bye for now :)