We spent three days crossing the provinces of Asturias and Cantabria in Northern Spain. In Asturias we discovered another from of Cider that was different than the Norman and Breton ciders we had grown fond of in France. While the visits were short we enjoyed the two cities we stayed in.
We were really enjoying Santander and were somewhat reluctant to leave even though we need to get moving towards Galicia and Portugal, so we compromised
Yesterday was a day that we had low expectations for and it turned out to be a great day. The walk to the market was strenuous but the return was fun because of the moving sidewalk. The drive over to Gijon was quick and easy. The campground lunch was cheap and we learned about another kind of cider, and it ended with us meeting a great couple that we spent several hours talking about travel and life in general. Because we had so much fun we decided to extend here another day.
The view going up to the cidery was beautiful, though I didn’t get to enjoy it much as the road was a bit narrow and the drop offs caused a few gasps from Ton.
The plan was to visit a local cidery that had good reviews to learn more about cider and have a lunch. It didn’t open until noon so we planned to sleep in. Yesterday afternoon there were a couple of pieces of construction equipment on site in the afternoon and it was a little noisy. Today about 9 am an entire road construction crew showed up to begin resurfacing the roads. On top of that they were doing a lot of maintenance on the shrubbery around the pitches so our quiet morning was interrupted by the sounds of heavy equipment, and power tools around us.
We headed over to the cidery a little early to get away from the bustle of the campground. It was a nice drive up into the mountains, though the last couple of km’s were on pretty steep roads. The place occupies multiple buildings in a small village. We wandered around for a while until we found the restaurant. We asked the first person we saw if they were serving lunch, she said yes and pointed us into the dining room. When we entered, there were a couple of waiters scurrying around, but when we asked about lunch we were told no. So we were a little confused, so we moved on. Ton said that there was supposed to be a store on site so we went off looking for it, and eventually found it. In the store we found a helpful person who told us that the tour we were hoping to see was only done on the weekend this time of year, and that the restaurant should be open. We bought a couple of bottles of cider from her, and then debated whether to go back up to the restaurant or give up for the day.
A sample of the sausage aisle in Al Campo.
We decided that we would use today to go shopping instead. We found a giant Al Campo supermarket where we killed about an hour shopping around, before heading back to the campground/construction site. We were both famished having had a very light breakfast expecting a huge Spanish lunch, so Ton whipped up a wonderful early supper and we settled in for the day.
No one does ham like the Spanish.
Yesterday far exceeded our expectations, and today missed our expectations. I guess that is life on the road.
We were really enjoying Santander and were somewhat reluctant to leave even though we need to get moving towards Galicia and Portugal, so we compromised by deciding to go to the market here, and doing our driving in the afternoon.
Our destination for the morning the market in downtown Santander. We didn’t realize it involved a 4oo foot climb and then descent to get here.
They have one of the old markets here in town that includes fresh fruit, meat, and fish stalls. Ton really loves these markets, so we decided to head there for the morning. Ton always asks how far things are away when we are walking, and Google maps told me it was 1.8 kilometers which is not too bad.
What Google maps didn’t show was it was 1 km straight up a steep hill, and .8 km down the same steep hill. It was a pretty invigorating way to start the day, but we eventually made it there.
A meat stall, you can tell this is Spain by all of the hams hanging. The Spanish love their ham.
A lot of these old cast iron marketplaces have been turned into major tourist attractions, with more tourists than locals looking at the wares for sale. But the one in Santander is not on the tourist itinerary. I would guess we were the only non-locals in the place. It is a little worn down, but we did enjoy browsing around looking at the different cuts of meat, and interesting vegetables.
Cheese selection, luckily for us you can tell the type of cheese by the animal on the label.
On the way down the hill I had noticed on one road they had embedded escalators in the sidewalk to move you up the hill, so on the return trip to François we rode most of the way up the hill on an out door escalator. Ton thought this was brilliant.
Thanks to the city government of Santander for the moving sidewalk on our return trip uphill.
Our destination today was based on traveling a good distance, and we selected a campground based on convenient access to the freeway. Greta struggled to find the entrance to the campground, but after some circling and a short dash down a narrow ally we arrived, just in time for a late Spanish lunch.
Todays 3 course lunch set us back €10 each. Again when asked what we wanted to drink with it we asked for red wine expecting a glass, and again today we received a bottle. So for €20 for the two of us we received a 3 course meal consisting of a seafood soup, or a ham salad as the starters. Calamari or a pork cutlet for the main course, and cheesecake or ice cream for desert, plus a bottle of water, a bottle of wine, and a coffee. I’m not sure where you could get a deal like that at home.
The starters for our €10 lunch.
This is cider country also, and while we were eating we noticed everyone else had cider with their meal. In Asturia you pour the cider by holding the bottle at arms length from the glass as you pour it. We were guessing it was to aerate the cider, but it just might be a cool thing to do.
A couple of local ciders.
Ton found a cidery near the campground we can visit, so we decided to spend another day in the area to check iy out. In the evening we went down to the bar at the campground where I tried pouring the cider at arms length, most of it made the glass.
As we were walking back to François for the night we ran into an Irish couple we had exchanged Holas and then Hellos with earlier. They waved us over for a chat, and the next thing we new it was 11pm, and we had made new friends while solving many of the worlds problems.
We enjoyed our break in Orio but it was time to move on. After a couple of days of debate we decided to head to Santander as it looked interesting to both of us. The drive was uneventful, though the Autoway thru the mountains was very impressive with several long tunnels thru mountains.
Ton loved the colors in this little lagoon.
Our parking app warned us that the very well located aire here fills up early, and they were right. When we arrived there were only 2 spots available out of 24. After a quick break to finish our coffee we headed into town.
A statue to Neptuno Nino (baby Neptune) off the beach in Santander.
In a country of great beach side promenades, we think Santanders might be the best we have seen. The area behind the beach that is usually filled with hotels and expensive condos is a park here. So not only do you have the view of the beach but you have trees and various art projects on the shore side of the promenade. Combined with glorious weather this was one of the best walks we have taken.
One of the 4 beaches we strolled along today.
At the end of the beach on a bluff overlooking the harbor is an old royal palace with its grounds intact. We climbed to the top to take in a super view of the coast with cliffs down to the sea, and long beaches in between the cliffs. Ton mentioned that this place does not seem to get the international visitors that the Mediterranean beaches get and she can’t figure out why, though I suspect it has something to do with the weather.
More days like this and all of the foreigners will show up in this part of Spain too.
Having put in a good walk we decided we would treat ourselves to our first big meal of the trip, and settled on a 3 course set piece lunch. At first we were dealing in Spanish, and when he asked us what we wanted I answered in Spanish that I wanted a beer and Ton wanted a red wine. The waiter came back with a small beer for me, but a full bottle of wine for Ton! He must of knew it was mothers day in the US. Later in the meal Ton saw a cask on the wall and asked me what I thought it was and I told her it looked like vermouth. The manager/owner saw our interest and confirmed it was vermouth and asked if she wanted one. Ton laughed and pointed at her wine bottle, so he decided to pour her a sample which was half a wine glass. When all was said and done we had a three course meal, a beer, a vermouth, and a bottle of wine for €40, which was the advertised price, so all of the alcohol was included for no extra charge. This is the Spain we remember and love.
The old Royal Palace overlooking Santander.
After lunch was done we weren’t up for much besides a rest, so we headed back to François for a well deserved siesta. While I was resting both of the boys called Ton to wish her a happy mothers day.
