A Royal Weekend in León: Part 1

León has been on our list of places to visit since we arrived in Spain. Phil and I have heard great things plus it’s only an hour and a half drive (3 hours by train) from Gijón. León is not in Asturias but located in the autonomous community of Castilla y León (a bit likeContinue reading “A Royal Weekend in León: Part 1”

Florence! Steak and David

Florence is beautiful; the architecture, the art, the food, and there are so many restaurants to accommodate the so many tourists. We thought that going in late September, after school started, outside of the peak summer season, would find the city slightly less congested. Alas, it was not to be. This did not prevent usContinue reading “Florence! Steak and David”

Sunrise in Gijón

Shortly after we moved to Gijón and had witnessed some lovely sunsets, I told Phil that we need to get up early and watch the sunrise (Amanecer in Spanish). We are not necessarily waking up before sunrise kind of people, so aiming to see the sunrise at least once, was a fairly reasonable goal. MyContinue reading “Sunrise in Gijón”

Having drinks and climbing mountains; A Typical Asturian Weekend

I intended to post this on 9/22/21 but did not finish it in time before Phil and I left for a week’s trip to Italy, so the timeline mentioned is a week off. Posts coming soon about the Italy trip! Recently, Phil and I attended a meetup group in the nearby town and capital ofContinue reading “Having drinks and climbing mountains; A Typical Asturian Weekend”

Group tours: They can actually be pretty fun.

Phil and I have been on very few group tours, only three to be exact, including the one I’ll be telling you about here. The first was a free tour of St. Peter’s Basilica in 2004, that we happened upon, while in progress. The guide was so informative that we booked his evening walking tourContinue reading “Group tours: They can actually be pretty fun.”

Happy [belated] Assumption of Mary Day!

If you’re a good catholic, you probably know that August 15th is the Assumption of Mary (and a holy day of obligation). I was raised Catholic but am no longer practicing therefore, by definition I suppose, quite a bad Catholic. Either way, I was unaware that August 15th was Assumption Day and in fact, aContinue reading “Happy [belated] Assumption of Mary Day!”

So, we walked 20 kilometres the other day

That’s twelve and a half miles! I mean, we didn’t run a marathon or anything but that’s a whole lotta steppin’. After Spanish class we ate an early lunch and then set out for Parque Arqueologico-natural de la Campa Torres. We knew it would take us an hour and forty minutes to get there onContinue reading “So, we walked 20 kilometres the other day”

Day Trip to Cudillero

I have had such an exciting couple of weeks! First, my cousin Hannah, who lives in Denver, made the trip out to visit us. After showing her the best of Gijon, we ventured out of town for a day trip from Gijon to Cudillero, a small, seaside village in Asturias that is known for fishingContinue reading “Day Trip to Cudillero”

Sometimes You’ve Got to Walk and Smell the Roses

Walking. We do it a lot and, with no car, it is our primary mode of transportation. It’s a good thing as it allows us to explore the nooks and crannies of the city we would not necessarily see in a car or on a bus route. It also allows us to eat bread, cake,Continue reading “Sometimes You’ve Got to Walk and Smell the Roses”

The Introvert Joins Meetup: A tale of Strength and Triumph

A few weeks ago, Phil and I were sitting outside of a cafe, drinking beer, and enjoying the sunshine when he started looking through the local Meetup groups in Gijon. Most groups are still meeting virtually but he found an outdoor yoga class that was meeting in the park. At that point, I hadn’t beenContinue reading “The Introvert Joins Meetup: A tale of Strength and Triumph”