Eat, Drink, and Get Married- Twice!

It has been a really long time since I've actually written! I always think that during summer I'll write more, but it never happens. Oops.

But anyway, on to the real reason I'm writing: weddings!

Giving Barcelona a Second Chance

This Semana Santa, or Holy Week (spring break) I decided I wanted to try Barcelona again. I've been before, two years ago, but it was a whirlwind fast trip as we passed through on our way to Italy. This time we had plans to stay for five days and I wanted to see EVERYTHING!!

Eskamelo- taking a hike with Eskimos and camels

Just kidding. Eskamelo has nothing to do with any of those things, that's just what the name makes me think of! It's actually a peak in the Sierra de Cantabria (Cantabria Mountains) which runs along the northern edge of La Rioja. Héctors dad gave us a book with a bunch of different hikes you can take in this mountain range, so we decided to do the Eskamelo one last weekend to take advantage of the spring weather while it lasted.

  A nice map of the peaks you can find in the Sierra de Cantabria. 

Eskamelo is the second from the left. (source)

Hiking, or trail blazing??

Spring has come to Spain! I'm not sure if it's going to last very long but for now, we have to take advantage of the sunshine as much as we can. Last weekend we went on a hike to celebrate the end of the rain! Unfortunately the air has been really hazy so the mountains were difficult to see, but it was refreshing to get out in the fresh air and shake the winter out of our muscles.

A town called "Bowls"

A traditional Spanish tazón, or bowl. We visited a town called Tazones. 

It's just one more of Asturias' creatively named towns. (source)

Birthdays and Bodegas

This weekend it was my friend Steph's birthday and so my friends who are spread out all over Spain reunited in Logroño for the weekend to celebrate. On Friday we went out to dinner and surprised her with cupcakes and trick candles!

Let it Snow...

The cold is just now arriving to Spain. Up until a couple of days ago it has still felt like summer to me, but it is finally winter! We heard that it was going to snow up in the higher altitudes this weekend, so without hesitation we decided to head up to the mountains for some play time in the snow. And we weren't disappointed!

We started out in a very small town called Lumbreras headed towards another small town; Villoslada. We didn't make it quite that far though! 

To the end of the Earth and back

Back before Christopher Columbus set sail for the new world and proved that world was in fact round, people thought that the world was flat. They made pilgrimages out to the end of the earth, and when they arrived, they would burn all of their clothes to signify a new beginning. To this day pilgrims still struggle out to this spot to gaze over the sea in the same place where hundreds of pilgrims have stood for hundreds of years.

Last weekend, I went to the End of the Earth, or in Gallego, Fisterre, or in Spanish, Finisterre. (It comes from Latin: Finis-terrae) It's the westernmost cape in Galicia that was thought for hundreds of years to be the end of the Earth. (Galicia an autonomous community in Spain that is right above Portugal.)

Day hike in the Picos de Europa- Ruta del Cares

 A few weekends ago, with a beautiful day ahead of us and no plans, Héctor, a friend, and I decided to go hiking. We decided to do the Ruta del Cares, which is one of the most popular hiking trails in the Picos de Europa.  It's no surprise; the views are breathtaking the whole way- the path is cut into the side of a canyon with a sheer drop on one side and the mountain on the other. At the bottom of the canyon flows the Cares River (Río Cares). 

The Lakes of Covadonga

Ever since moving to Asturias I have wanted to go visit the famous Covadonga because it played a very important part in Spanish history. (Quick language lesson- Covadonga comes from two words, cueva-cave and hondo-deep meaning "deep cave") Legend has it (loosely told) that in the year 722, Don Pelayo was living in the Asturian mountains with his army when the Moors came for them. In the cave now known as Covadonga, the virgin then showed herself to Pelayo and told him that she would protect him and he would win the war. When the Moors came, their arrows bounced off the mountains and Pelayo and his army were able to overcome them. The winning of this battle began the reconquest of Spain, and Don Pelayo is known as the First King of Spain.

Sleeping Dragons and Inland Beaches

Two weeks ago I discovered a hidden dragon lair in Asturias. 

Cabo de Peñas & Luarco- More hidden gems

A few months ago, my boyfriend came to visit and brought his car. Since we had the liberty of being able to visit several places in one day, we decided to do a lap around the villages close to Gijón and see what they had to offer.

abandoned buildings by the highway 

Lost in the Basque Country

When my family came to visit over Christmas in 2011, we spent a few days in the French Basque country. We rented a tiny little farm house in the middle of the countryside. From this area, we were able to drive around and visit several small towns right along the edge of the border between Spain and France.

Countryside!

Before we got to this little house, we had been visiting cities non-stop, from Madrid (plus a hundred museums there), to Toledo (more museums) to Burgos. We were wiped out, and getting tired of the city life. It was time to relax a little bit and get a taste of small town life in southern France.

Asturias's Hidden Gem: Cudillero

The center of Cudillero

A couple of weekends ago my boyfriend and I were in Asturias for the weekend with no plans. I've been wanting to go to this tiny fishing village called Cudillero for a long time, so we decided it was the perfect day to go! So the both of us and a friend of mine got up early and caught the train out to this coastal gem.

Taking a Snow Day

Being from Colorado and growing up in an area where it snows a lot means that when I leave for a place where it doesn't snow, I miss it a lot! Since the city I live in now, Gijón, is on the coast, I probably won't be walking to work in the snow this year.

But a couple of weekends ago I got lucky and got to make a trip to the snow! We went to an area in Soria called Piqueras, and even though I have a sprained ankle and can't hike far, we made the best of the trip with lots of snowballs. I also taught my boyfriend how to make a snow angel...he'd never heard of one before!

Home Sweet Home...Gijón Version

Hi everyone, I'm back!! I know it's been an incredibly long time since I've written anything, and I'm sure most of you forgot that I even had a blog! Lets just skip over all of my excuses and just say, I'm glad to be back. Also, I forgot how hard it is to keep something like this going. I've been gone so long that I'm not even sure how to begin! But let's begin with the most recent. 

This year I moved to a different city, this time on the northern coast- right on the beach! It's called Gijón, and it's in the region of Asturias. This map shows the region, not the city. (source)

Lessons Learned in Barcelona....

In Spain, Easter is quite the party. At my school, I had a two full week vacation! I spent the first part of my vacation relaxing in Logroño and then I headed out for the first leg of my vacation...in Barcelona! I've never been to Barcelona but we only had a couple of days to visit. (After that we headed out to Rome, Florence, Pisa, and Venice.) I'm going to have to go back sometime because it's such a big city and there's so much to see. But, we did see a lot for how long we were there. I also learned some very important lessons.

Pamplona...Much more than corridas de toros

A couple of weekends ago, a few girlfriends and I went to visit Pamplona for the day. I have been wanting to visit for a while, and while I've driven through a couple of times, I've never had the chance to actually wander around in the city and see the sights. We started off the day getting "breakfast" and drinking coffees, of course.

Got caught in the running of the bulls!

(Quick, someone take the picture before we get in trouble for being on the statue!)

Nacimiento Del Rio Urederra- The Birth of the Urederra River

Today, a big group of friends and I all went on a hike by the river Urederra. It's about an hour and a half drive from where we live, in the neighboring province. My friends went back in October, but I wasn't able to go that day, so I'm so glad that I finally got the chance to go! It is about a 5 mile hike round trip, following the river up to the place where it is "born" or where it comes out of the mountain. This hike is full of breath taking waterfalls and crystal clear blue water - I think pictures may describe it better....

Felices Fiestas Part 1: Madrid

Puerta del Sol- everyone together now!

Since I found out that I was accepted into this program to live in Spain for a while, my family has been really excited to come out and visit me...and they finally made it! I know I'm a little late on the uptake, but this is part of our journey, starting on Christmas. The three of them flew into Madrid on Christmas day, so I took the bus down to meet them. We rented a piso for a couple of days and from there we discovered Museo del Jamon, the Puerta del Sol, the Palacio Real, Parque Retiro, Plaza de Torros, and way too many museums!