Our Arrival in Oviedo

The drive from Valencia to Oviedo is a long one, so it’s lucky that the Spanish countryside is so beautiful. We needed seven hours to reach Salamanca, where we grabbed a beer in the massive Plaza Mayor, and spent the night. Before leaving the next morning, we had time to explore the cathedral, which must be the only church in the world that has a space-walking astronaut sculpted into its facade.

Arriving in Asturias

From Salamanca, we took the highway through the high, dry plains of Castile and León. As we progressed further north, the terrain became more hilly and we soon found ourselves in the mountains. The poetically named Embalse de los Barrios de Luna (Reservoir of the Neighborhoods of the Moon), awaited us at the end of one of the many mountain tunnels, offering up a gorgeous panorama. The sparkling water below us in the mountain’s valley was breathtaking, especially after the hours spent driving through arid plains.

As we passed into the Principality of Asturias, we were greeted by the clouds which would be our constant companions during for the next three months. But the abundant rain makes for a verdant landscape, and the downhill drive into Oviedo seemed to pass in a heartbeat. Without much difficulty, we were able to find our apartment, which was within sight of the train station, and ten minutes from the city’s historic center. Perfect.

Ready for Three Months in Oviedo

The move from Valencia and the long drive were exhausting, but we were anxious to go explore Oviedo and Asturias. From August to the November of 2010, this blog was updated almost daily with our experiences, and impressions of the city and its people — impressions which would evolve a lot over the course of 91 days. Make sure to follow us on Twitter for real-time updates on what we’re up to, now. Hope you enjoy our pictures and anecdotes from Asturias!

And if we have any Ovetense readers, please leave comments with your insider tips on restaurants and other interesting things to do!