Day 24 – Oviedo 2nd Day

July 12, 2019 – We had big plans today physically.  We planned to walk a lot so we were up and out the door early.  We stopped at a café to fuel up on some tasty café con leche and an egg sandwich.  Why can’t I make coffee like that?

We took off from Oviedo and walked…and walked…straight uphill.  It is a good thing we have been walking a lot… Our goal was to walk to 2 churches that were from the 800’s.  As we climbed out of the city we walked through quiet neighborhoods and then along the road by green parks and some small forests.  We slowly made our way up mount Naranco where finally came to our first destination, Santa Maria del Naranco.

Built first as a recreational palace, Santa Maria del Naranco is situated on the southern side of Mount Naranco facing the city of Oviedo, and was originally part of a series of royal buildings located in the outskirts. It was built in the year 842 on the orders of Ramiro I of Asturias and consecrated in 848.  It was built in the Pre-Romanesque Asturian architecture. Its character as a civil building changed in the 12th century when it was converted into a church dedicated to St. Mary.

We found a small lush trail that led through the forest to the next church. Walking through the forest you can just imagine being back in the middle ages and meeting peasants along the way, maybe a Friar or an occasional knight moving between the churches. 

San Miguel de Lillo was also completed in 842 and consecrated in the year 848. It was originally dedicated to Saint Mary until this worship passed to Santa Maria del Naranco, leaving this church dedicated to Saint Michael. It originally had a basilica ground plan, three aisles with a barrel vault, although part of the original structure has disappeared as the building collapsed during the 12th or 13th century. Today, it conserves its western half from that period, together with several elements in the rest of the church such as the fantastic jambs in the vestibule or the extraordinary lattice on the window of the southern wall, which was sculpted from one single piece of stone.

Both of these churches have been UNESCO world Heritage Sites since 1985 and are currently under renovation.  Unfortunately, we were not able to go inside, but they are so beautiful on the outside. (We have supplemented our exterior photos below with some interior photos from the interwebs.) These are the kinds of churches we enjoy visiting even more than the grand cathedrals as they are truly ancient, simple in design and function, and served the average people of the time. There is something very pure about that.

Wayne told me that there was another church so we continued on up (and up….and up) a beautiful little path through the lush forest… I don’t know where he gets his energy… We walked for another hour which was longer than he thought we needed to hike so we stopped and he look at google maps. After a bit of scrolling around on the map and getting his bearings, he announced that there was not another church.  He said that he really did think there was.  HMMMM…he really loves to hike and is usually very good with research and navigation so I still wonder if this wasn’t all a ruse to get me further up the hill.

We were almost to the top of Mount Naranco, and all along the way the views over Oviedo were absolutely gorgeous, so we continued on uphill to the summit. The elevation at the summit is 2,080 feet (Oviedo is 700 feet) and at the top is a large, 115-foot-tall, statue of The Sacred Heart of Jesus overlooking the city.  The elegant structure of Jesus was erected in 1950. With his arms open towards the city, Jesus seems to be embracing Oviedo, protecting it. Underneath the statue is a version of the famous Cruz de la Victoria or Asturian cross, which is featured on the flag of Asturias. The plateau that the statue sits upon is surrounded by a wonderful viewing area, where you can enjoy the panorama as far as the eye can see.  The statue, and the view over the city, was beautiful and I’m glad we made hiked even if Wayne’s story to get us up there remain somewhat suspect.

We weren’t very smart when we left for our hike as we did not bring any water.  However, as we descended the mountain, we came across a natural spring in the forest that had a spigot, and a sunken patio (which was used for laundry) and beautiful view. The fountain is called “Fuente de los Pastores” or Fountain of the Shepherds. We both had a big drink of water there as Wayne assured me that its source was an underground spring which naturally filtered the water and it was safe to drink.  And if it is not, I had Cipro, just in case.  HAHA! We had no problems and our later researched found the fountain is famous for its purity of water, so there you go!

As we popped out of the forest we came across a simple little roadside cafe and decided to stop to further hydrate with a cold beer.  Of course, the roadside cafe had a gorgeous view over the city and the beer tasted so good. 

When we finally got back in down to Oviedo, we stopped at our car in the parking garage to get a bottle of wine for dinner, the wine opener and some olives for later. Then we continued on to one last church to have a look.

San Julián de los Prados, also known as Santuyano, is a Pre-Ramirense church from the beginning of the 9th century.  It is one of the greatest works of Asturian art and was declared an Historical-Artistic Monument by the Spanish Ministry of Culture in June 1917 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998. It is a beautiful old church and a current parish of the Roman Catholic Church.

By this time, we were pretty exhausted, and it was getting time for Wayne to start work, so we headed back to our “home”.  Along the way we stopped at a fruiteria for some white peaches, grapes and fresh yogurt and another store for jamon, bread, cheese, waters and spoons for our yogurt.  We were tired but unfortunately we didn’t have time for a siesta today.

We stayed in tonight and later had a picnic dinner on our terrace.  It was an accomplished day and we are probably going to sleep hard tonight.

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