Spain Travel: Arrival In Oviedo The Capital Of Asturias
Spain has long been one of my favourite travel destinations
. I love the Spanish language and am fascinated with Spanish history and culture. Since 2002 I have been to Spain several times and had a chance to see places such as Barcelona, Valencia, the southern province of Andalusia, the Atlantic island of Tenerife and the islands of Ibiza and Mallorca in the Mediterranean.But there is one region in Spain that I had never been to, and it really captured my imagination: Espaa Verde, the verdant green regions of Northern Spain that encompass the autonomous communities of Galicia, Asturias, Cantabria and the Basque Country. Asturias in particular is an area I have long wanted to visit because of its location on the Atlantic Ocean and the rugged Picos de Europa mountain chain. I really love the combination of mountains and oceans, and Asturias became my dream destination for my 2010 trip to Europe.
For the past few months I had spent quite some time working with the official tourism authority of Asturias whose travel experts were extremely helpful in putting together an extensive itinerary that would expose me to all the diverse facets of this unique principality. My travel schedule would take me to important historic cities, the beautiful coastline and the imposing mountain areas of Asturias. My week in Asturias would be the prelude to almost a month in Europe that would also include a few days in Madrid, almost a week in Austria and four more days in Rome at the end of my European adventure.
A tight travel budget motivated me to search for the best available flight options and I managed to find a flight with Air Transat, a Montreal-based airline that flies to 60 destinations in 25 countries. My flight to Madrid with a return back to Toronto would cost less than CAD $500 (excluding airport taxes), an unbeatable price for a trans-Atlantic flight with different arrival and departure destinations. Asturias is located about five hours from Madrid and a rented vehicle would give me all the necessary flexibility to explore the nooks and crannies of Asturias.
My flight was reasonably uneventful, with the exception of a passenger who tried to smoke on the plane which triggered the smoke detector. During our stopover in Montreal the authorities came to talk to him and I was not sure if he was actually arrested in the end. On the positive side I ended up chatting with a father-son team from London, Ontario, who were going on a two-week trip to Spain together. Their daughter / sister was going to join them and they were looking forward to a wonderful family bonding experience while exploring the beautiful country of Spain.
Shortly before noon I arrived at Madrid Barajas Airport and picked up my rental car at the Hertz counter. Then I started my drive on the well-signed highways of Madrid and admired the mountain chains north of the Spanish capital. Further north, in the province of Castile and Len, the landscape became a lot flatter, full of wheat fields and wind farms. Spain, incidentally, is a leader in renewable energy: in Castile and Len more than 70% of total electricity demand comes from renewable energy, and world-wide, Spain is the third biggest producer of wind power. I was duly impressed.
North of Len, the landscape started to change again: mountains started appearing on the horizon and I was rapidly nearing my destination. The Principality of Asturias (Principado de Asturias) is one of Spains autonomous communities. Its central feature are the Cantabrian Mountains in the south which form the natural border with the province of Len. In the north the Asturian coastline stretches several hundred kilometers along the Cantabrian Sea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean.
The climate in this northern part of Spain is more varied and features humid and warm summers, with cold winters. During my stay in late May I was hoping to have quite a bit of sunshine, but I was prepared for the fact that I might also encounter some rain which is the reason behind the lush green vegetation in Asturias. Together with the mountainous terrain, the verdant green landscapes and the plentiful cheese and milk-producing cows, Asturias has earned the nickname Spanish Switzerland. Indeed, with my Austrian roots, I immediately felt at home in Asturias as the landscapes reminded me so much of the Alps where I had grown up.
Shortly before the Asturian border I stopped at a big dam called the Embalse de los Barrios de Luna that was embedded in the mountains. I took in the breath-taking mountain scenery and the sleek bridge that spans the reservoir. This was a foreshadowing of things to come in the mountainous province of Asturias. Finally just after 6 pm I arrived in my destination for the next few days: Oviedo, the capital of Asturias.
I would spend my next three nights at the Barcelo Oviedo Cervantes Hotel, a gorgeous newly built 5-star property in the heart of Oviedo. With its sleek modern design, its spacious rooms and luxurious amenities the Barcelo Oviedo Cervantes Hotel has become a favourite destination for business travelers and vacationers alike. Its location right in the citys centre, at just 200 metres from the famous Campoamor Theatre and the Campo de San Francisco Park, would make a perfect base for exploring Oviedo.
Trying to still take advantage of the remaining couple of hours of sunlight, I immediately embarked on a walk through the city. I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of activity in the streets; the sidewalks of Calle de Uria were full of people shopping and strolling. Then I arrived at the Campo de San Francisco, a scenic urban park right in the centre of Oviedo. Next to it I admired the late 19th century architecture on the five and six story buildings that framed the streets.
Across from the Campo de San Francisco is the Teatro Campoamor, Oviedos famous opera and performing arts venue which was inaugurated in 1892. It is also the location of the ceremony for the Prince of Asturias Awards, a series of prestigious prizes in the fields of arts, communications and humanities, international cooperation, literature, social sciences, sports, technical and scientific research and concord. The last award is given to people and organizations that make outstanding contributions to mutual understanding and peaceful human coexistence.
These prestigious awards are named after Prince Felipe of Asturias, the son of King Juan Carlos, and have been held in the Campoamor Theatre since 1990. Previous prize winners include Nelson Mandela, Bill Gates, Woody Allen, Pedro Almodvar, Bob Dylan, Al Gore, Michael Schumacher, Rafael Nadal and J.K. Rowling.
The entire downtown area of Oviedo is decorated with interesting sculptures and a sculpture of a woman nursing a baby particularly caught my attention. Across the street is the provincial parliament building of Asturias, the Junta del Principado de Asturias. From here I walked to the Plaza del Ayuntamiento, the location of Ovideos city hall and a gorgeous square with ornate brown sandstone buildings.
Through narrow streets with lots of retail stores, bars and restaurants I then strolled to the Cathedral of San Salvador de Oviedo, the citys most important church. Equipped with only one church spire, construction of this cathedral was started in 1388 and exhibits different architectural styles, from Pre-Romanesque to Baroque, Gothic and Renaissance elements. The most prevalent style is Flamboyant Gothic as most of the building was constructed between the 14th and 16th centuries.
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