July 11, 2019 – HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRACE!!
We woke up this morning kind of tired. Our room is awesome and big, but it overlooks a busy street and apparently a loading dock for a major department store in Europe called El Corte Ingles which is down the street from our pension. (By the way, a “pension” is a type of guest house. This term is typically used in Continental European countries. These small businesses may offer special rates for travelers staying longer than a week, may be located in historic buildings, can be family-run, sometimes include some breakfast and are generally cheaper than other lodgings, such as hotels, although they offer more limited services.)
It has been warm, so we have been sleeping with the windows open for fresh air and the workers were unloading and yelling… loud! I think one of the workers (or another person yelling at the workers) was drunk because he went on and on. It was funny, but annoying when trying to sleep. We brought earplugs so I guess we will have to get those out and put them to use. Wayne generally sleeps through it all.
When we got up and moving, we headed out on a power tour of Oviedo’s sites. Our first stop was a beautiful park right in the center of the city and across the street from our pension. The Parque San Francisco and Campo San Francisco is a garden with wide avenues, peaceful paths, giant trees and beautiful monuments where you can enjoy the scent of plants, the sounds of fountains and the pleasant company of many birds and ducks. This garden belonged to the San Francisco Convent and in the 19th century it became a large public garden of 90,000 square meters (22 acres) in the very center of Oviedo. Amidst oak, elm and chestnut trees, there are numerous monuments, statues and arches, including the Romanesque main façade of the old San Isidro church, an 18th century Neoclassical couch called the Silla del Rey and a piece dedicated to the splendid writer Leopoldo Alas Clarín, who lived in Oviedo. It was so lovely and a nice start to the day.
The Fuente de Foncalada is a fountain of potable water located outside the city walls of Oviedo; it was built by King Alfonso III of Asturias in the 9th century as a source for his people. This building remains the only surviving civil architectural item for public use of the Early Middle Ages and is considered the oldest civil monument in continuous use in Spain. According to recent archaeological works, it was a monumental building for baths, also equipped with an important religious symbolic charge, with the waters identified for potentially healing properties. There are many inscriptions that completely cover the front of the monument and inside, including the Victoria Cross, and the Alpha and Omega.
Under the cross, two inscriptions appear whose translations are as follows:
(HOC SIGN) OR TVETVR PIVS, HOC SIGN VI (NCITVR, INIMICVS)
This sign protects the godly.
This sign defeats the enemy
(SIGNVM SALVTIS PO) NE DOMINE IN FONTE (ISTA VT NON PERMITAS) INTROIRE ANGELVM PERCV (TIENTEM)
Lord, put the sign of salvation in this fountain so that you do not allow the striking angel to enter
These texts are consistently used by the monarch Alfonso III and recorded in his palaces, castles-fortresses, etc., which helped confirm the dates. There are other remains of inscriptions but their degree of deterioration is so advanced that it makes reading and interpretation difficult.
The Cathedral of San Salvador of Oviedo was founded in 781 AD by King Alfonso I, and enlarged in 802 by his son Alfonso II. The present edifice was begun by Bishop Gutierre of Toledo in 1388, and the tower added by Cardinal Francisco Mendoza de Bobadilla in 1528. The Cathedral today displays an array of architectural styles, from Pre-Romanesque to Baroque, including Romanesque, Gothic and Renaissance parts. The chief feature of the cathedral is the “Camara Santa” (English: Holy Chamber), with its venerable relics. The Holy Chamber is the only surviving portion of the ancient medieval church. It was built to keep such relics and treasures as the Cross of the Angels, Victory Cross and the Agate Box. The Agate Box is a coffer which was made by the disciples of the Apostles and said to contain the most precious relics of the Holy City and taken from Jerusalem to Africa. It was brought to Oviedo in the 16th century
We also visited the Archeological Museum of Asturias and it was quite interesting. The museum is housed in the 16th century Benedictine monastery of Saint Vincente. Saint Vincente was built in 761 and was built in the Romanesque style. The permanent exhibition narrates the history of the Asturian region from prehistory to the High and Late Middle Ages, through the material culture preserved in the museum, giving us a view of the different peoples that have inhabited the territory over its many centuries of history. We really liked that the floor of some of the exhibits was were made of glass and you could see and walk over some Roman ruins and remains of beautiful mosaic floors that were under the floor of the monastery.
Next, we visited the Museum of Fine Arts of Asturias (Museo de Bellas Artes de Asturias). It is situated within three buildings: the Palacio de Velarde, the House of Oviedo-Portal, and the House of Solís-Carbajal. The museum has over 10,000 inventoried works of art with 350-400 displayed at any one time. The ground floor of the museum also had a glass floor that showed an ancient Roman water aqua duct system that once existed beneath the building.
Usually, I am doing all of the talking and communicating when checking into our accommodations or to pay to get into places as Wayne does not speak/understand as much as I do…this time he went in and spoke to the man at the desk to get into the museum. It was free to get in, but all of the museums like to catalog how many visitors come and where the visitors are from, so he was telling Wayne something and rattling off rapid fire Spanish. Wayne asked him if he spoke English and the man got annoyed and rolled his eyes at Wayne and said no… How rude! (When he said “No”, Wayne said “great” and proceeded to tell him what a jerk he was in English. Just kidding.) We went in and enjoyed some of the art for about 45 minutes, then had to get out because they were closing for siesta… I think that is what he was trying to tell Wayne. We planned to go back later, but never made it.
It was time for lunch so we went to the Calle Gascona, which is a popular pedestrian street with multiple restaurants. We decided on a restaurant with an outside patio and checked out their Menu del Dia. We were both pretty hungry so we were going to have our large meal now.
We decided to try the local favorite in Spain, Sidre or Cider. More than 80% of Spanish sidre is made in Asturias and it is thought to be the highest cider drinking region on Europe. Drinking sidre is an important part of the culture and is surrounded by history and tradition. Sidre production in Spain dates all the way back to the first century, and it was recorded here by early Roman settlers. Spanish sidras are very different from the more famous Irish varieties; firstly, they are not sweet, and secondly, they are not sparkling. They have a sharp, crisp tang that really allows you to taste the natural apple flavor. To make the sidre, apples are harvested in September and October, during the autumn season, and are left to ferment for around six months. The sidre is fermented only with the natural yeast found in the apples, and no extra sugar is added. When the sidre is almost ready (January), it’s time for the espichas, festive events where family and friends gather to taste the first sidre of the season, straight from the barrels. The sidre has a very dry taste, is quite cloudy, and still has sediment in the bottom, unlike the clear ciders you may be used to.
The pouring of sidre is also of great importance in Spain wrapped in tradition. The amber liquid should be poured from a great height, allowing lots of air bubbles into the drink. The glasses used for drinking sidre are special. They are small and made from very thin glass. Only one or two gulps are poured at once, which apparently you are supposed to gulp down all at once. This allows the drinker to enjoy the full flavor of the drink. I made the mistake of sipping mine… and when our server came around again, he poured my remaining sidre on the ground because I guess it is not good anymore?? I thought it was strange… haha! But I was not upset about it though because in my opinion, sidre is absolutely disgusting… and we ordered a whole bottle, which came with our meal. Oh well, drink up…waste not, want not. I found out later that you are also supposed to leave a little drop in your glass, a ritual that Comes from Asturias Celtic heritage, which returns to the earth a part of what it has given to you. The server will come around again and repeat the pouring process to give you another gulp. You are also supposed to leave about two fingers’ worth in the bottle at the end, for the same reason as above.
For lunch, we chose different items so we could try different things. I chose Fabada Asturiana, which is a bean stew (that I have had before with clams). This stew had blood and chorizo sausage instead of clams though. It was very good. Wayne chose a seafood dish for his starter. For the entrée I chose Merluza a la Sidre which is white fish, clams, onion, garlic, tomato, potatoes, apples and a bit of cider, cooked in a ceramic dish, then baked… yum! Wayne had Cachopo, which is deep-fried beef cutlets stuffed with ham and cheese and served with roasted red peppers and french fries. We were also served water and bread. For dessert, we had arroz con leche (rice with milk, cinnamon and caramelized sugar on top), which was the best we have ever had. It was a fantastic meal and we were so full.
We were able to catch a short siesta before work. We had some fruit later that night… we were still too full from lunch. It was another great day!
Remains of Romanesque Facade of the old San Isidro church 
Parque San Francisco 
Parque San Francisco 
Back of the Fuente 
Fuente de Foncalada 
Wayne admiring some old wooden doors in the areas outside the Cathedral 
Ancient tools and weapons 
Wayne was fascinated by the Iron Age section of the museum.
These are actual tools from the bronze age.
An actual stone cast used to make bronze blades. Wayne’ favorite part. 
In the bronze age people would bury relatives in the mines as offerings for the ore taken. Over time, the bones turned green as the absorbed copper ore. Note the green shade of these skeletal remains 
Prehistoric section of Archaeological Museum 
Beautiful Roman mosaic floors 
Beautiful Roman mosaic floors 
A medieval tomb 
Ancient Roman cannon balls 
Archeological Museum in the old section of the Monestery .
Loved the original walls and ceilings
Art gallery of photographs taken to document local life in 1925. Fascinating the massive technological and societal changes that have occurred in just 100 years. 
This one spoke to me…don’y know why exactly…maybe because I’m a mom of three?
(Side note from Wayne – And apparently she always wanted Connor to be a girl….sorry Connor. The truth needs to be told. Nice doll dude. hahaha This is how I check if Connor reads this stuff.)
We loved this painting of the oxen being yoked to pull the fishing boat onto the beach after a day of fishing. 
This painting from the 1800’s really capture what little boys look like playing at the beach, then and now. Looking at the expressions on their faces and imagining them running and having fun made us think of Mike and Con…and Cait if the painting had a blonde girl. 
A neat old Asturian bench 
Our server pouring our sidre.
Lunch…please note that Wayne gulped down his sidre.