Oviedo

Friday morning, Kimmy and I headed to Oviedo. It’s the capital of the province of Asturias, about 20 minutes from the coast and the home of Mary Kay, Diego & Oscar! The area is an eclectic mix of Spanish, Celtic and Dutch backgrounds, so at times, it looked very similar to Ireland. There are also lots of Celtic symbols in the culture (including bagpipes!) but they also wear the wooden shoes like the Dutch and speak Spanish (although they have their own dialect, as well).

When we arrived, Diego picked us up from the station and drove us to their apartment. We set up our beds and unpacked a bit and then headed out to meet Mary for lunch. The three of us ate at one of their favorite restaurants; a place that serves traditional food (like Fabadas, which is basically a bean stew). After our 2+ hour lunch (typically Spanish in that respect!), we walked around the city and eventually met back up with Diego and Oscar. We drove to the top of a hill to see Oviedo’s version of the statue of Jesus with his arms spread wide on a mountaintop. It’s not quite as famous as the one in Rio de Janeiro…

On the hilltop...it was a little windy!

We had Diego´s “Asturian Big Mac” for dinner, which is grilled ham and cheese and then a mix of tuna, lettuce, eggs, olives and mayo in between another piece of bread. It was delicious! After dinner, we watched an Asturian film…at least there were subtitles! :)

Saturday, Kimmy was feeling under the weather, so Diego, Mary, Oscar and I went on a driving tour of the region. We stopped in a little village and ate some traditional pastries (no complaints here) and then stopped in a store to see the traditional cheeses of Asturias. We stopped for lunch at a roadside restaurant and then continued on our journey. We headed up the mountain to see a cave where they built a shrine because the Virgin Mary appeared to the first king of Spain before a battle. Since the Visigoths beat the Moors in that battle, they also constructed a church. There is a waterfall that trickles down the mountain and falls into the lake under the cave-the view was stunning.

Afterwards, we headed to the coast. The Cantabrian Sea was very pretty, although a little windy…definitely would not be going for a swim at this time of year!

Cantabrian Sea

Sunday, I wasn´t feeling well, so I passed on the morning stroll and slept until I had to pack for the bus. The five-hour journey home on the bus and through the mountains was less than entertaining on a queasy stomach! Oh well, at least I got to watch Sahara in Spanish-Matthew McConaughey looks good in any language.

All in all, a very relaxing and enjoyable weekend. Many thanks to Mary, Diego, Oscar AND Kimmy!