Back from Asturias, a trip to the Pitiusa islands and home again for a quiet Easter

Me in the old town of Ibiza last week overlooking the port at dusk

Hi again

Today is Easter Sunday and time to write my blog post about our trip to Ibiza and Formentera, known in Spanish as the Pitiusa Islands (from the latin word for pine trees). We are alone at home, just the oldies as Suzy has gone away for Easter to the Murcia region camping with her boyfriend Gaby. Oli has gone off for lunch outside with her beau, as it is a beautiful day. But more on Easter at home after I have told you about our trip to Ibiza and Formentera.

Suzy camping in La Manga in Murcia this Easter

No sooner had we arrived back from wonderful Asturias last Monday then we were off again. We had just 3 hours at home to change the contents of our suitcases and have lunch with the family. We had no time unfortunately to wind down and get Asturias out of our systems before going to the other side of Spain to a completely different terrain. A terrain I never really fell in love with unfortunately although tourists and travellers from most of Europe seem to adore Ibiza. It has its nice points of course but I just couldn’t get out of my head the look and feel of a party island seemingly owned by the ghastly discotheque Pacha, one I wouldn’t set foot in for all the tea in China.

The omnipresent Pacha logo you see in Ibiza. It is the name of a discotheque which seems to "own" the island and give it its clubbing image.

I knew very little about Ibiza and now some more, but not a lot as I wasn’t there for long enough. I know it is some 85km from the mainland (Valencia) and has about 85.000 inhabitants. It belongs to the autonomous region of the Balearic Islands, Ibiza being the closest to the mainland. They speak their own language, similar to Catalan, which differs very slightly from island to island.

The map of the Balearic Islands.  Ibiza and Formentera are known as the Pitiusa Islands.  Ibiza is closest to the Spanish mainland.

I wasn’t going there for a holiday but was on a site inspection trip as the Yoigo Summer Party this year will be in Ibiza with a possible excursion to Formentera. I took Eladio with me as I hate going on my own. We were to be joined by Bea and her sister Gloria from my events agency Quintaesencia. We arrived in the early evening to quite good weather despite the bad forecast for the peninsula. Throughout our stay we were lucky with the weather. It was mostly sunny and didn’t rain and the temperatures rangeed between 18 and 23 degrees. That meant we had to wear a light coat most of the time, whilst the British and German tourists seemed to go around in their shirt sleeves!

We stayed in a hotel near the town of Ibiza so as to be central. The choice was Ibiza Gran Hotel, yet another luxurious but soulless establishment with very masculine rooms even though they were superb. How I missed La Casona de la Paca when I saw it. I always imagine that these big hotels are designed by men and just do not have the loving touches of places like La Casona de la Paca. It was pretty empty as the season hasn’t really started and we found out later that most hotels only open from May to October.

The rather soulless Ibiza Gran Hotel where we stayed in the centre near the port

We didn’t go out for dinner on the first night as we had a date in our room with the final episode of our current favourite series, La República, the continuation of our beloved La Señora. Unfortunately I fell asleep exhausted after so much travelling just at the most important moment and had to suffice with a laconic explanation from Eladio.

The characters from our favourite TV series La República which we stayed in to watch at the hotel on the first night

I was up early the next day as it was the TeliaSonera Q1 report day and I had a conference call with Stockholm at 8 am. It was good news for Yoigo as we had reached 2.5 million customers and continued to report positive figures. I was happy with the media coverage later. I had to liaise with my PR agency in order to prepare the internal and external release and listen to the ensuing media conference. Thus at about 10 am Bea, Gloria and I set off to inspect some of the possible locations on their list for hotels and our events. We were to be driven by Juanjo, a young local taxi driver who had been an indoor soccer player before and was now married to a Brazilian girl. Juanjo proved to be a mine of information re locations.

First we had to visit the hotels and this was going to be difficult. There was nowhere on the island we could get 200 or so rooms in the same hotel and finding 2 similar hotels near to each other was not easy too. I think we have sorted it in the end but it’s still touch and go. The added difficulty is that most hotels prefer bookings for a full week and if you only want one night, which is our case, this would make it difficult for them to sell the other rooms that week. Also you can only buy a certain quota direct from the hotels as the rest are sold by the tour operators. For one of the hotels we visited we had to wear building site helmets because it was still being built! This was real site inspection I can tell you!

Gloria, Bea and I had to wear helmets to inspect a hotel which was still under construction!

That morning we also went to see some possible locations for lunch and dinner on the first day. These included Ibiza’s most popular partying places such as Nassau Beach Club and Blue Marlin. Juanjo took us to a much quieter place in Cap de’s Falcó. Lots of the places we saw were located on delightful little coves which Ibiza’s coastline is full of.

At the Cove called Cap de's Falcó.  Ibiza is full of them and they are very pretty

Eladio joined us for lunch that day at Sa Caleta, the beach or rather cove being called Playa des Bol Nou. It was tiny. The lunch was big though and the rice we had out of this world.

At Playa des Bol Nou where we had lunch at Sa Caleta

In the afternoon we explored the old town and walked up to what is known as Dalt Vila, or “upper town”. This part of the town is walled as it was once a fortress and the views walking up are superb. It was dusk when we went and the light was perfect for photography. The picture illustrating this blog was taken on that walk.

View of the port of Ibiza at night from Dalt Vila

I especially love the very Ibizan type church as you walk up and I think you see it on lots of the local post cards. Here is one photo I especially like of this little gem. I’m afraid I don’t know the name.

Bea by a beautiful Ibizan church in Dalt Vila

Eladio joined us later for an impromptu dinner just off the very pretty Plaza de la Villa. We would have preferred to go to El Olivo which was full and opted in the end for La Oliva, a nice enough little place where we were able to eat outside.

Dinner at La Oliva in Dalt Vila just off the Plaza de la Vila

It was run by French staff as so many boutiques and restaurants seemed to be. Ibiza is full of Germans, British, Italians and many other European nationalities and everyone seems to get on. In a way that fascinated me about Ibiza but also annoyed me as it seemed not to be a Spanish island anymore. I shouldn’t be surprised as I have seen that so often on the Spanish coast. But you know what? I didn’t see that in Asturias which is an unspoilt part of Spain.

There seemed to be more foreign newspapers on offer than Spanish ones in Ibiza and that annoyed me.

The next day we went visiting more hotels this time in Santa Eulalia a part of Ibiza I found quieter and prettier. Apparently it is where families prefer to go. Here we had a bit more luck as two superb hotels very near each other seem to be willing to reserve the rooms we need. Changing the hotel location meant looking for different venues for the lunch and activities so we had to start all over again to find new places and here Juanjo came in handy. He introduced us to a place called Pura Vida with its own little beach or cove called Playa Niu Blau. Gery the owner, the son of Germans but brought up in Ibiza, was most facilitating and it seems we will do business with him. I certainly liked the place.

The Niu Blau beach at "Pura Vida". I liked it.

As we were in or near Santa Eulalia we decided to visit the famous Hippy Market in Es Canar with a view to include it in the Summer Party activities. Here we had a field day buying cheap cotton garments from people of nearly all nationalities, again, except Spanish.

At the Hippy Market in Es Canar

Later that morning Eladio joined us for lunch at the Port of Santa Eulalia and here we just chose what seemed to be on offer, a modest little place called El Corsario Negro which doesn’t seem to have any reference on internet.

Lunch at El Corsario Negro in the port of Santa Eulalia

Most meals in Ibiza are served with bread, olives and garlic mayonnaise known in Spain as “ali oli”. This is typical of other areas in the Mediterranean in Spain too. Here is an example of what this looks like. Add a glass of red wine and you are in heaven.

The typical garlic mayonnaise, olives and bread that are served at all meals in Ibiza.

Bea and Gloria were leaving for the mainland after lunch but Eladio and I were staying another night as I had to go and see Formentera the next day. However that afternoon was free of work and we used the time for resting in the hotel. Later on I took Eladio to the old town and this time walked right up to the top where the Cathedral is. The walk is very steep but the views are magnificent and this time I was seeing them in daylight although it was somewhat cloudy and the visibility was affected

A view from the highest point of Dalt Vila in the town of Ibiza

On our way up still in the lower part of the town I spotted 2 beautiful Ibizan type blue chairs in the street outside an art gallery so I snapped at them with my camera. The gallery assistant came out crossly to tell me that it wasn’t allowed to take photos of the chairs. I was a bit stunned and retorted that they were only chairs and didn’t have image rights and that if she didn’t want people to photograph them she should either put them inside or put a sign up. And here are the chairs in question.

A forbidden photo of some very ordinary but attractive blue chairs outside an art gallery.

That night there was to be no fancy dinner out. It was the night of the final of the Spanish King’s Cup and Barcelona were playing Real Madrid at the Mestalla stadium in Valencia and the whole of Spain was watching. So I had no choice but to order room service and semi watch it with Eladio in our room. The match was tense and boring with no goals scored. Suddenly by mistake Eladio switched the television off and when he switched it back on again he (or we) had just missed Cristiano Ronaldo’s winning goal which gave the Whites as the Real Madrid players are known, the coveted winners’ cup. The cup however was to be struck with misfortune the next day as the Captain Sergio Ramos dropped it from the celebration bus in front of cheering crowds in the Spanish capital. The cup was run over by the bus and the photo of the happening has hit the front pages of many newspapers the world round.

The Real Madrid King's Cup that fell off the celebration bus and got run over by the wheels.

The day after Real Madrid won the cup, Maundy Thursday was our last day in Ibiza. Maunday Thursday too by the way was HM The Queen of England’s 85th birthday. So here’s a toast to Her Majesty from these pages.

HM Queen Elizabeth II was 85 on Maunday Thursday, our last day in the Pitiusa Islands.

Our flight was at 19.30 in the evening so we had all day to travel to Formentera, look for places and travel back on time to catch the plane. After packing and checking out of our hotel we walked to the port which takes some 15 minutes. We bought tickets for the 10.30 ferry which would disembark in the port of La Savina in Formentera some 25 minutes later. Unfortunately we could not go on deck as the sea was too choppy. I was worried about Eladio as he can get sea sick very easily but he seemed to bear up ok thank goodness.

Eladio getting off the ferry from Ibiza which brought us to Formentera

I was eager to see Formentera as I had been told it was beautiful with its white beaches and crystal clear blue sea. However last Thursday was not the best day for viewing the island as it was cloudy with blustery winds. I had read up a bit about the island, enough to know that it is 6km from Ibiza and that you can actually only access it on public transport by ferry from the bigger of the Pitiusa Islands and that it has just under 10.000 inhabitants. I also read that it is famous for nude sunbathing something that doesn’t bother me a bit. It is quite small with maximum distances between points never being more than about 12km.

A map of Formentera. Now you can see where the places I mention are.

We had to hire a car as there was really no other transport unless you wanted to hire a bicycle or moped as most the people coming off our boat did. There were only tiny cars on offer and we got a funny bright yellow little Chevrolet which served its purpose beautifully. The car hire firm told us to fill the tank with 10 euros saying that would be more than enough. We were a bit sceptical and filled it with 20 euros and when we returned it there was still plenty of petrol left. So yes Formentera is very small and for me a little claustrophobic to tell you the truth. And is it beautiful? Well yes in parts like nearly everywhere in the world I suppose.

Eladio with the little yellow Chevrolet we rented in Formentera

So what did we see and what did we do from 11 in the morning until 5 in the afternoon when we took the return ferry to Ibiza? My main mission was to find a suitable place for a possible lunch the day after the Summer Party and of course the place had to be nice, by the beach and big enough to cater for some 200 people. The first place I visited I had found on internet and it turned out to be the best by far. It’s called Gecko Beach Club and is on the Platja de Migjorn. It is a wonderful little hotel too owned and run by an Anglo Australian couple.

The rest of the places I was to visit were all on the other side of the island on the beaches on the northern tip, Platja de Llevant and Platja de Illetes and in between two very lonely looking lagoons which I think were part of the National Park area of Las Salinas. None of them were up to scratch so I decided that our place was definitely Gecko Beach Club. Now that my “work” was over, we had time to explore the island before lunch and catching the ferry back.

On the Playa de Levante, deserted last Thursday.

We drove to the “capital” called Sant Francesc Xavier as we thought we ought to see it. It is inland and was pretty empty, rather small and dusty so we drove on.  Our destination was Cape Barbaria, the most southern point of the island but we got lost in the process and somehow ended up at a very nice looking cove called Cala Saona. We stopped here to take a look and asked another couple to take a photo of the moment.

At Cala Saona

Finally we found Cape Barbaria but it was so windy and blustery we hardly dared get near the cliff overlooking the sea. In any case it was impressive and of course you know I love cliffs and capes.



Eladio at Cabo Barbaria, the southernmost point of Formentera



From the cape we drove east towards Es Calo where we had been recommended the restaurant El Pascual for lunch. The recommendation was perfect and came from the car hire company. We just couldn’t resist the baby squid on the menu and they came along with the proverbial “ali oli”, bread and olives too; Delicious.

Delicious fried baby squid at El Pascual in Formentera

Soon it was time to leave and hurry back to the port to leave our little car and catch the ferry back to Ibiza. Again the sea was choppy and we couldn’t go on deck to take what would be wonderful photos on a calm day with good visibility. Maybe I will be able to do so when I go back in the summer. Soon we were in the port of Ibiza and it was time to pick up our luggage from the hotel and take a taxi to the airport. Our lovely working trip was coming to an end.

Getting off the boat from Formentera in Ibiza.  Goodbye Islas Pitiusas

At the airport of course we bought some “ensaimada” a local pastry typical of the Balearic Islands. This time I asked permission to take the photo! We were to eat it the next day for breakfast on Good Friday together with the very English hot cross buns I had stocked up on at the English shop in Pozuelo and at Quicksave in Santa Pola.

We bought one of the blue boxes at the airport containing an "ensaimada", typical pastry from the Islands

We arrived in Madrid to torrential rain and we had to share that day’s Daily Mail to cover our heads getting off the plane. I had meant to give it to my Father but it was useless now. It was great to be home and to see Oli and have a nice dinner prepared by Olga. That night, still bruised from my fall in Cudillero, I slept perfectly but then it was my own bed and that for me is the most comfortable one in the world.

We were home and Easter was in full swing although it didn’t feel like it. Suzy was away and Olivia was not with us for most of the time. She did though go for a walk with me and Norah in the morning and we went on a different route, through the paths along the houses in the urbanisation where we live and believe it or not we got lost!

Oli and Norah on a walk with me on Good Friday

Easter when I was a child used to be exciting or at least my Mother made it exciting. We celebrated the Russian Orthodox Easter which is slightly later than the other Christian religions. She would prepare a feast of paskha (a sort of soft cheesecake) and kulich (bun cum tall bread with icing on the top) and painted boiled eggs all of which were to be eaten after the Easter service. The service would take place at around midnight and we would be woken up at around 11 to go to the church and found it all very exciting. The service itself was the most important in the Russian Orthodox calendar. I remember holding a lit candle like everyone else and as I write this I can even remember the smell of incense which I loved. The participants would leave the church and walk all around it chanting Xristos Vaskresi (Christ has risen) over and over again. Afterwards we would return home to the feast my Mother had prepared.

I have not brought up my children to celebrate Easter in the same way of course and now we only celebrate it with the token hot cross buns and chocolate Easter Eggs. As an ex colleague wrote in his blog about Easter in Finland which inspired me to write the above, I don’t know what either have to do with the crucifixion or resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The chocolate Easter eggs we had today.  Easter wouldn't be the same without them.

The Easter break has been very quiet without the girls and without Olga. I have cooked for my men and spent the time writing my blog and going for walks. Eladio spent part of the time chopping down a dying elm tree in the garden. Soon the rush will start again and life will be as normal. No more trips or holidays for a while I’m afraid but then I can’t complain as I’ve had my fill for now.



Eladio was busy with chopping down a dying elm tree in the garden this Easter weekend

I hope you all are having or have had a good Easter break. Until next week

Masha

PS you can see the full set of photos of our trip to Ibiza and Formentera here.

Asturias “Patria Querida” beloved Asturias, a natural paradise. Along the coast from east to west, from Cuerres to Puerto de Vega

In the port of the picturesque fishing village of Cudillero.

Hello everyone,

I have been very erratic about my blog posts recently and for the last two weeks I have not written on a Sunday as I usually do. That’s because of my travels, first to Sweden and Finland and now nearer home to the north of Spain to Asturias. Well I’m back now from Asturias and from the Balearic Islands too (a separate blog post will be coming on that later) and this is my first day at home for quite a while. It is Good Friday, one of the quietest days of the year in Spain where “Semana Santa” or Easter is still taken very seriously with its famous religious processions. I’m afraid they have been much affected by the torrential rain which has hit the peninsula as it so often does at Easter.

A map of Asturias  

Asturias is often called Asturias Patria Querida (beloved Asturias) from the kingdom’s well known anthem which apparently comes from its mining origins and I have come back absolutely enamoured with the region. The slogan for attracting tourists to this region in central northern Spain is “paraíso natural” which means a natural paradise and I couldn’t agree more heartily.

Beautiful Asturian countryside as seem from Somao

Asturias has certainly got its act together and for me is one of the most beautiful areas of Spain to visit. There is hardly any visual contamination with hated billboards, the towns are clean and pretty with few exceptions, the countryside is breathtaking with its natural beaches, stunning cliffs and views and capes, green fields, characteristic “hórreos” or graneries and pretty houses.

This is a typical Asturian "hórreo" or granery as seen in Somao

The houses I like best are the “Indiana” ones, built in the colonial style of the beginning of the last century. The “indianos” were Spaniards who emigrated to Latin America, mostly Cuba and came back rich. With their riches they built these beautiful houses many of which have been turned into small country hotels. We would buy one to retire there but however much I love the area, this is just not possible as Asturias is the wettest area in Spain. We were however very lucky as for the four days we were there we had glorious sunshine throughout.

One of the many "indiana" colonial houses in the small inland village of Somao

The gastronomy on offer is out of this world too. If you haven’t tried their famous “fabada”, seafood, steak or the characteristic cider that is poured from over the head, then I suggest you don’t leave it as many years as I before you visit Asturias. Also beware the portions are enormous. Often when we saw the first course it was so big we would end up cancelling the second. It is very normal in Asturias for a huge pot to be put on the table for the guests to serve themselves.

Fabada is Asturias' most typical dish and I love it. We had this at Eutimio in Lastres

Pouring cider at Casa Lim in Avilés

Our trip to Asturias was our Easter holiday which we always take a few days before to avoid the crowds. We chose Asturias for two reasons; one I didn’t know it very well and Eladio hadn’t been for many years and also because we wanted to use up our Parador hotel points and make use too of a free night with an NH hotel. Thus we planned our trip to stay one night in the Parador in Gijón, the second night in Avilés and the last two nights at a place that my friend and TV news presenter, Ramón, had highly recommended, La Casona de la Paca in the picturesque fishing village of Cudillero. I had wanted to visit Cudillero ever since some friends commented on pictures of mine of Robin Hood’s Bay on Facebook saying that it reminded them of Cudillero. They were right as it turned out.

The clustered houses around the port in Cudillero, very much like Robin Hood's Bay

We left on Thursday 14th April and drove via León where Eladio’s family are from. True to custom we stopped for lunch at the Parador in Benavente. In the mid afternoon we checked into the best room the Parador in Gijón had to offer with views of the lovely Isabel La Católica park which is just a few minute’s walk from the sea front. As soon as we had unpacked and taken possession of our lovely room we set off to explore the area.

Our room at the Parador in Gijón, the best the hotel had to offer, thanks to an upgrade

We walked through  the lovely Isabel la Católica park and were impressed to see so many ducks, peacocks, geese and swans, both black and white. We tried to take photos of the peacocks which amazingly for me had their feathers on display, something I have never seen but they made it difficult for us as if they knew we wanted to take a photo of their magnificent feathers.

Eladio in the enchanting Isabel la Católica Park in Gijón. 

From the park we walked towards the seafront. There are two other major towns in Spain, San Sebastian and Santander which are on the sea with superb beaches and Gijón is a rival to them both. However Gijón is not quite as beautiful probably because the houses in front of the sea are not as well kept or as pretty. Even so we loved the Playa de San Lorenzo.

By the Playa de Lorenzo in Gijon

We explored the Cerro de Santa Catalina (fortress) with its amazing views out to sea and then walked down towards the port which was vibrant with life and people enjoying a walk or a drink by the sea. From there we walked to the Plaza Mayor (every town in Spain has one and it means “main or major square”). Enticed by a sign in a small restaurant offering octopus, we went in to dinner. The sign said “hay pulpín con patatines” (there is small octopus with potatoes). The Asturians add “in” at the end of many words which is a diminutive and is rather charming. However I did not like the pulpín con patatines and the restaurant turned out not to be a very good choice. It was our only bad choice throughout our stay so it didn’t really matter in the end.

Octopus and potatoes served here.  I love the "in" at the end of the words, so typical in Asturias

The next day after a scrumptious Parador breakfast (they really are the best) we set off east of our route before heading to Avilés in the west later on in the day. Thanks to Miguel at reception, the same man who had given us the best room in the hotel, we left the Parador map in hand with a great schedule ahead for our first day.

Eladio enjoying breakfast at the Parador in Gijón.

I was desperate to visit the cliffs from the Spanish TVE series called La Señora. They are where Victoria, the rich daughter of a mine owner would meet her forbidden love, Angel, the village priest and the backdrop of these cliffs is paramount to the series. They are called Castro Arenes and are a kilometre or so away from the small village of Cuerres to the right of Ribadasella in my map above in the eastern part of Asturias. When we found the cliffs I was ecstatic. We had them almost to ourselves and were able to explore and photograph them to our hearts content. I loved them and will carry their image forever in my heart.

Eladio and I on the Castro Arenes cliffs near Cuerres  made famous by the TV Series La Señora which we so love

From Cuerres we drove west towards Lastres, recommended to us by Miguel. Lastres is a pretty fishing village made famous in Spain through another TV series called Doctor Mateo which I have never watched but will be doing from now on.

Eladio in the port of Lastres, another pretty little fishing village we visited in Asturias

We parked by the port and took photos of the houses clustered around it and then made our way up to the centre of the village where we spied Eutimio, a restaurant recommended to us by Miguel. Here we tasted the typical Asturian bean stew called Fabada which is posted at the beginning of this entry. Eutimio and Lastres were a great find during our visit to Asturias.

The Eutimio restaurant in Lastres, a great little find

Our next port of call was to Luanco via the pretty village of Ribadasella and Candas where Andrés and Pili have often been on holiday. Luanco, a small sea side town is where Eladio used to go as a priest in the summer to fill in for his friend the village priest, Luis, when he went on holiday. The church is very beautiful with stunning views of the sea. Here we enjoyed a coffee and a cup of tea whilst contemplating this peaceful sleepy but very pretty little town.

Luanco

From Luanco we drove to our next destination which was Cabo Peñas (Cape Peñas), the most northerly point in Asturias. It was windy and the air was cold but the views were stunning. I just love capes and cliffs and this cape was well worth visiting.

Me at Cabo Peñas (Cape Peñas) the most northerly point in Asturias

From Cabo Peñas we drove to Avilés where we were going to be staying the night at the very promising sounding hotel NH Palacio de Ferrera. Avilés, also on the sea and to the west of Cabo Peñas is an industrial town in Asturias and not very famous for its beauty. However it surprised me pleasantly. We were staying in the centre of the town, in the Plaza Mayor and I must say the historic centre of Avilés is really very beautiful. The hotel was fine as hotels go but I was disappointed when I went in because the outside is a wonderful old palace but the inside is nearly all modern and very characterless. We paid for an upgrade and got an enormous room but it was completely soulless.

We walked along timeless streets with lovely names like “la cámara”, “galiana”, “la fruta” and had a great if noisy dinner at Casa Lin, an old cider house, so typical in Asturias.

Calle La Cámara in Avilés, a pleasantly surprising old town

The next day we were up early and eager to get to our next destination, some 20km away to Cudillero, the picturesque fishing village I mentioned earlier. Here we were bowled over by our hotel, the charming “Indiana” style house called “La Casona de la Paca”.

The splendid Casona de la Paca where we stayed in Cudillero.

It was much more our style, a rustic charming country house with exquisite decor, wooden floors, thick white linen on the beds, wonderful old furniture, and lots of light thanks to the glass in the walls on the ground floor and flowers, lovely flowers everywhere.

The ground floor at Casona de la Paca, elegant and lots of light coming from the glassed walls

The garden was equally delightful. La Casona de la Paca has just 19 rooms and I had booked ours on internet. It turned out that the two best rooms can only be booked direct so the owner, Montse, offered to change our room on our second night to try out the “special” room overlooking the front lawn. Both rooms turned out to be absolutely delightful.

The gardens at the Casona de la Paca hotel were very pleasing too

The hotel is not actually in Cudillero but in nearby El Pito and is a steep 15 minute walk down the hill before you reach the clustered houses of this curious little fishing village. We didn’t mind though as we are great walkers. As I walked down I wondered how we would ever get up again!

Eladio in Cudillero after our walk down through the clustered houses to the port

The houses are in need of repair if you look closely but from a distance they are very unique. Later I heard only the oldest inhabitants live in them.  Noone would want  to now explained Montse  as what would you do if you suddenly realised you had run out of bread?   Walk all the way down and up again?   I suppose she is right. We walked around the steep streets and came to the square by the port, the heart of Cudillero which is full of seafood restaurants. It was too early to eat so we walked to the port and all around it which was a good hour’s walk with wonderful views just everywhere. The picture illustrating this blog is of me by the port and in front of the village houses, a very typical picture to take in Cudillero.

Resting at the end of the very long pier in the port of Cudillero

Such a long and hearty walk deserved a good lunch and there was a host of places to choose from in the square by the port. It was difficult to decide but lured by a menu of “mariscada” (seafood platter) at 60 euros for two, we decided upon a pretty little place called Isabel. We couldn’t have made a better choice. It was funny to see later during our meal that Isabel was completely full whilst the two restaurants next to us were practically empty.

It's thumbs up for the Isabel restaurant in Cudillero where we had a great seafood platter (mariscada)

The walk back up through the village and to La Casona de la Paca did a great trick of working off some of the seafood platter but even so we decided on a well deserved siesta in our delightful little room afterwards.

Our first room at La Casona de la Paca in Cudillero

Our day did not end there though as there was more to see in the afternoon. Montse had recommended we visit the nearby Cabo Vidio, another cape which of course we were keen to visit. We loved Cabo Vidio with its stunning views

Eladio and I at Cabo Vidio (Cape Vidio) near Cudillero

Here Eladio uprooted some beautiful pink rock flowers we had seen growing everywhere and now they are planted in our garden. I do hope they survive. They are a wonderful souvenir of our memorable trip to Asturias Patria Querida.

The typial pink rock flowers we saw everywhere and which Eladio brought back for our garden

From the top of the cliff we spotted a windy path down to a small cove and decided to venture down. For the record it took about 20 minutes down and another 20 minutes to walk up again. It was well worth the effort as the beach called Playa de Peña Doria was small and charming and we had it to ourselves at sunset. We shall carry Playa de Peña Doria in our hearts now as well.

Eladio walking down from Cabo Vidio to the Playa de Peña Doria

Dinner that night was at the much recommended El Pescador restaurant some 500m from the hotel, ideal to walk back from after a copious meal. And copious it turned out to be too. The place is also a restaurant but the decor is just too over the top for me; too chintzy and precious. However the food is literally amazing. It was here we had to cancel our second courses as the first courses were just so enormous. For the record too we only managed half of a first course. I had a wonderful seafood salad and Eladio tried the “pote asturiano” (Asturian stew).

The seafood salad I had at El Pescador in Cudillero.  I could only eat half of it and had to cancel the second course!

Sunday, Palm Sunday, was our last day in Asturias and we meant to pack in as much as we could. After a magnificent breakfast at La Casona de la Paca, we drove to the nearby Playa de Aguilar, a natural beach a bit off the beaten track. We were there early enough to have it nearly to ourselves and to take in the wonderful air and views.

We loved the Playa de Aguilar near Cudillero and Navas de Muro

Our next stop was a small village inland called Somao recommended to me by my friend Ramón because of its famous “Indiana” houses. They were indeed splendid. We enjoyed our stop here taking in these marvellous houses and wondering why houses like these are no longer built, instead of the modern atrocities you see so often everywhere today.

The most spectacular "indiana" or colonial house in Somao

From Somao we drove back to the coast to a small fishing village called Puerto de Vega recommended to us by Montse. Puerto de Vega was the furthest west we went on this trip. It was very pretty but a bit sleepy. Here we took a walk around the port and ventured out to the very long pier from where we were to see the now familiar sights of waves hitting the characteristic rocks of this area.

At Puerto de Vega, the furthest west we went

Our main destination on our last day was to Luarca just a few kilometres away from Puerto de Vega.  Luarca is one of the most famous holiday spots in Asturias. All Spaniards know that the Nobel laureate for medicine in 1959, Severo Ochoa was born here.  I didn't but I do now. 

At the pretty seaside town of Luarca

It’s a very pretty town and was full of life on Palm Sunday as the locals went to have their aperitif in the port after church. We decided on an attractive place called El Mesón de la Mar and were not disappointed. Here we were to try our last fabada in Asturias. Of course, afterwards we went back to our hotel for a lovely siesta. Montse had moved our luggage into the “special” room and we were delighted. It was much bigger with a little lounge and a balcony all the way which overlooked the front of the house.

The special room we changed to at La Casona de la Paca

Our last expedition turned out to be the most lasting experience of our stay in Asturias. Montse had recommended we visit the Playa del Silencio (beach of silence) and see it at sunset when it is apparently at its best. We drove some 15km towards Castañeras and soon found this jewel of a place. We were overawed with its beauty, with the views from the cliff and with the lovely little beach itself. Again it took some 15 minutes or so to walk down and another 15 minutes to walk up again.

The Playa del Silencio (silence beach), probably what we will remember most

When we walked back up again to the top it still wasn’t sunset. We spied a path up the hills over the cliffs and decided to explore. That was when our adventure began. We walked up the steep path and down into a field. To carry on we had to cross a small river, an adventure in itself! From there we walked up another path which took us to the top of an unexpected cliff with a hidden beach below which we called “la playa de nadie” (noone’s beach) as it was inaccessible on foot. There was life there though as we found a herd of goats on the hillside above this little beach.

Only goats could get to the beach below, inaccessible by foot

We carried on up and up and I suddenly understood what makes mountaineers tick. I just had to see what was coming next and didn’t mind going up and up and faster and faster. I was hungry for more and more beautiful views. And I got them and they were spectacular and I felt on top of the world. Asturias is a true natural paradise.

One of the spectacular views on our adventurous walk near the Playa del Silencio

Sunset was coming and we had to get back on time to see it at the Playa de Silencio. So we hurried back and were just in time to capture the moment; another moment I am taking back with me from our trip to beloved Asturias.

Sunset at the Playa del Silencio. There are no words to describe it!

Fully satiated with the beauty of the Playa del Silencio and with our wonderful walk, we drove back to our hotel. On the way we stopped to wash the car and unfortunately left the sun roof slightly open. Luckily not much water leaked. That night, our last night in Asturias, we had our last great meal in dinner at the Arbichera restaurant across the road from our hotel in Cudillero. There is no mention of this place on internet but I can tell you the food is out of this world and the owners very friendly and helpful. I think I must have had the best piece of steak I have ever eaten!

We were supposed to enjoy our last night at La Casona de la Paca and our great new room. However misfortune was to strike. After we had packed and gone to bed I got up in the dark to go to the bathroom. The floor was tiled and I didn’t realise there was a step and thus fell flat on my face, hitting my head, my knee and my foot. It was so painful I cried and could hardly get up. Eladio was distraught and we didn’t really know what to do as we were so far from any hospital. I was cold and trembling and Eladio was worried. I then remembered that on the back of our health insurance card there was a special number to call and we did and we spoke to a very efficient doctor who asked all the right questions. I didn’t seem to have broken anything and hadn’t lost consciousness nor was I feeling sick. He thus prescribed an ibuprofen and said to be on the lookout for any unusual symptoms. Luckily it was nothing more than a nasty fall and although I hurt all over I was able to sleep and the next morning felt quite ok if a bit sore.

The bathroom where I fell on our last night at La Casona de la Paca in Cudillero

We were up at the crack of dawn the next day as we had a long drive back to Madrid but not only that we had a plane to catch to Ibiza and had to be at the airport at 16h. I’m glad to say we made it. We drove home in a bit of a rush but were back at about 13h, on time to change the contents of our suitcases and to have a lunch with our lovely family. For once we were all together, but not for long as just a few hours later we were off again. But that story will be told in the next chapter of this blog.

I hope at least to have shared with you some of the highlights of this great trip. Asturias has made a mark on me and I know we will be going back. You can see the whole set of photos of our stay here on Facebook.

And that folks is the end of my blog post on our trip to Asturias. The next one coming up will be all about our next trip to Ibiza and to Formentera, known as the Islands of Pitiusa.

Cheers for now

Masha