August in Northern Spain - Week 1

We are spending most of August in Northern Spain.  Our plan was to avoid the heat (which we failed to do as high temps hit all of Europe in July this year) and the influx of tourists to Tavira.  The weather on the coast of Northern Spain is generally quite pleasant in summer, with most highs below 80 degrees.  

The drive between Tavira and our AirBNB in Oviñana, Asturias was over 600 miles.  So we decided to make it a two-day drive, stopping overnight in Salamanca, Spain.

Salamanca

Today, Salamanca is primarily known as a college town, with the University of Salamanca being the oldest university in the Hispanic world (founded in 1218).  It was also the site of a key battle in the Napoleonic Wars with the Battle of Salamanca being a decisive victory for Wellington over French troops in 1812.  

​We arrived for our quick overnight stay on a Sunday afternoon in summer when most students were gone.  The town was very quiet.  

Oviñana, Asturias

Why Asturias, you ask?  Other regions of Northern Spain are more well-known.  Galicia, in the northwest corner of Spain, includes Santiago de Compostela and its famous Camino.  The Basque region, in the northeast corner, includes both Bilbao and San Sebastian.  But we discovered Asturias in a 2018 episode of the TV series, Parts Unknown.  In this show, both Anthony Bourdain and Chef José Andrés (who was born in the region) toured the area and sampled its wonderful fare.  We saw a beautiful area which is not well-traveled, even by Spaniards, but does have a hearty, rural culture and rugged, scenic landscapes.  We decided to make Asturias the primary destination for our summer Spanish travels.  

We were very fortunate to find a wonderful dog-friendly AirBNB in Oviñana, right on the coast of central Asturias.  Our place is a three-minute walk to headlands which overlook the Atlantic Ocean and the Asturian coast.  Not surprisingly, one of our first quests was to find a beach where we could take Ryder on daily walks.  We visited four beaches, and luckily, the one closest to us (a seven-minute walk down and 15-minute walk up) from our place was the best.  

Another reason for us wanting to go to Spain was to sample some new cuisine.  We aren't exactly tired of Portuguese food, but we certainly were looking forward to trying some new fare.  Being a more rural region, Asturias has lots of country food (stews, preserved meats) to go with fantastically fresh seafood.  In our first week, we got to sample lots of new and interesting dishes.

We are loving our first week in Spain.  A five-minute walk from our place is a "beach cafe" or chiringuito ​which serves bar food and drinks.  It also has live music many nights and is a great place to end the day.