Reflections on Oviedo

It's been about a month now since we said goodbye to Oviedo. From Oviedo we spent a few days in Barcelona, several in Alsace, and also in Paris. I'll do some quick posts about that soon. But I wanted to jot down a few more detailed reflections about our time in Oviedo before too much time passed. It's been a bit hectic since getting back to the US, so I've already been delayed more than I had hoped.

Misadventures in Airline Customer Service (or, The In-laws Travel to Spain)

Jana's folks departed this week for a trip to Oviedo, where they are joining us for a bit of travel around Spain and France before we head back to the states. Their experience getting here was interesting, frustrating, and holds some lessons for troubleshooting travel. Here's the situation and a few things we can learn from it.

History and Public Art in Oviedo

I finally have a few minutes to summarize a morning walk to some really old churches we took a couple weeks ago and a mini-tour of the most famous public art of Oviedo. Details after the jump.

Oh $#!T and Oh Wow Moments in Galicia

We just got back from a long weekend at the beach in Galicia. The trip was great, and it can best be summarized by a series of OH S#!T and OH WOW moments. Details after the jump.

DRAMA of the Picos de Europa

Dramatic. That's the best way to describe our weekend getaway to the Picos de Europa, a mountain range a little over an hour away from Oviedo. We had views of dramatic landscapes. We witnessed the drama of man versus nature in a race over the mountains. We had a dramatic eruption of vomit one day in the back seat of the car. We had great food. We had horrible food. The high and lowlights after the jump.

Another Day, Another Party in Oviedo

Once again, it was party time in Oviedo this week. Beginning over the last weekend and culminating in a holiday on Tuesday, was the festival of La Balesquida. This festival coincides with Pentecost. It celebrates the gift of a hospital and other real estate to, essentially, Oviedo (actually a local guild), by doña Velasquita Giraldez in 1232. We did our best to take part in the festivities. More after the jump.

This Weekend is What We Were Hoping for When We Chose Oviedo

This past weekend was great. Despite the fact that the LL is still getting over her pink eye and the weather has been a bit cold and rainy, we've had the good fortune to be in Oviedo for the Festival of the Ascension. This is a long-running festival that coincides with Ascension Sunday. To celebrate, Oviedo hosts a massive celebration of Asturian culture. One of the taglines for the festival is "the country in the city." It has been fantastic and we've enjoyed the festivities. More details after the jump.