Planes, Peace and Plenty

After a brief look at the variety of aircraft at Gijons equivalent of the Fairford Air Show we decided to escape the crowds and the 31 degree heat and have another  day of culture.

We went to the Museu del Pueblu d'Asturias (museum of the Asturian people) with the added bonus of free entry on a Sunday.

Firstly, it was lovely and cool indoors - ahh! Secondly, it is set out on 3 floors and depicts Asturian life through the ages. There are display cabinets with some wonderful items in; kitchenalia, farmhouse equipment, toiletries. We also spotted a few things that were familiar to us.

A beautiful carved leche (milk) jug - got one of those at The Mill!

A bread proving chest - this is my kitchen work surface at The Mill!

My bathroom - yep, got one of those at The Mill! 

Can you see a theme here?? We giggled to ourselves as we spotted more and more of the items that we are using everyday! Yep, I'm living at St Fagans/Beamish!

Outside there are some great old horreos, an outdoor bowling alley, stables and an entertaining area. It was at this entertaining area that we stumbled upon a party, a gathering of some kind. It turns out that this was a peaceful get together against the arrival of the war planes at the air show.

Shanna was given books, there was balloon modelling and face painting - a certain seven year old was happy! There was free food and music (and two other people were happy!). So we stayed a while, had some refreshments and then went off to the rest of the museum.

There was an example of typical living quarters and then a lovely old Grand House built in 1757. This had been turned into a bagpipe museum which was interesting but we would've both liked to have seen the house as it would have originally been. 

I think Mr Bell was particularly taken with the cider press!

Now that could result in a lot of cider!

It's a place that is well worth a visit. Another tick in the box for us.

Why do cows have bells?

'Cos their horns don't work! 

Just a little joke to cheer you up on this wet Asturian morning - yes it rains here too!

Until next time...

Food! Glorious Food!

I thought I'd do a foodie post as something a little bit different.

There are some great Asturian dishes to be eaten here. 

An easy way of eating out is by choosing the 'Menu del Dia' (menu of the day) which is normally a 3 course set menu with water/wine/sidre and bread. They cost approx €10 per person which is great value.

Fabada is the regional dish of this area. It is made from beans (fabes) stewed with chorizo, blood sausage and bacon fat. It is on every restaurant menu you come across. It's also quite delicious. We have eaten a fair amount since being here!

The Cabrales cheese is a must for all fromagists among us. It is named after the town where it is produced. It is a blue goats cheese and is aged in caves. It is very pungent and can dry your mouth out in an instant! Every August there is a festival to celebrate this cheese and I'm sure we will visit and tell you about that later. 

Sidre has been produced here since medieval times. It is similar to a rough cider or scrumpy. It is poured from a height to aerate it and is drunk in inch sized measures albeit in a half pint glass. 

It varies from producer to producer. We have sampled 'cheap n cheerful' from the Supermercado which is quite acidic and also had a few bottles from a local chap in the village who produces around 1000 bottles a year for his own private consumption. We have to admit, the small scale sidre was better! Hic!

We have eaten a fair few dishes on our days out and also whilst being here at the Mill.

Nathan has picked Padron peppers and cooked them accordingly (fried for a few mins and then sprinkled with salt). It's like Russian roulette as you may get a hot one among them.

We have foraged on the beaches and ate    llamparas (limpets), mussels and oysters. Well, Nathan and Shanna did - I passed and had a beetroot and feta salad! Lol

We have done lots of one pot cooking on our gas burner fashion out of a hollowed out tree trunk. 

Tonight we had Spag Bol!

There is also lots of produce almost ready for picking in the garden.

Tonight for pud we are roasting marshmallows! Shannas fave!

Fear not people ! Us Bells won't starve!

A spot of sightseeing

Yesterday we took a trip to Oviedo. It's only about a 40 min drive so no real trek. It's considered one of the most beautiful cities in the area so we had to check it out! 

After a 'Nathan style' route march in the wrong direction, lasting about an hour, we were pleased to find the Gothic Catedral de San Salvador. It's a starting point for the Camino Primativo to Santiago de Compostela and a beautiful one at that!

The inside of the cathedral is very ornate - lots of gilding and stained glass windows. 

This tells the story of Our Lord reading from bottom left to right moving upwards. I'm afraid the pictures taken on my phone are not very clear and we were not able to use flash but I have taken some clearer ones on my camera which I will post when I'm able to. Apologies!

Shanna lit a candle to remember those no longer with us.

Entrance and stairs leading to the museum.

A bit small but a panoramic shot inside the cathedral.

Mary Magdalene.

The Holy Shroud and some of the ancient relics in the Holy Chamber.

I would recommend this as a must see for anyone visiting the area.

We had a wander around other parts of the city but we definitely need a second visit! Standby for part two.

Busy doin' nothin'

When we're at El Molin its peaceful. There's no television, no Jeremy Vine on Radio 2, no computer games. It means that we have to be inventive and find ways to amuse ourselves. 

We make aeroplanes out of old beer cans.

We fashion boats from corks and race them.

We read, colour in pictures, play hangman, look at maps and plan our next trip out. There are stars to spot in the pollution-free night sky and glow-worms to find (yes, it's a glow-worm, although not the best picture).

Of course, we are embracing the Spanish lifestyle and there are always afternoon snoozes to be had - including the pets!

Mostly we just relax, enjoy our surroundings and embrace life and all the ups and downs and twists and turns it brings us. And breathe...

El Molin de Riu Tendi

Our stay in the holiday let came to an end but we were lucky to be offered accommodation in an old mill house. The chap that owns it is a third generation horreo (grain store) builder. He has great carpentry skills and has lovingly restored this mill back to working order. At full pelt it generates enough power to crank up the electricity. It's like living in a bygone era - think Little House on the Prairie meets The 1900 House! 

It's in a beautiful setting, peaceful and quiet aside from the sound of the water and the birds tweeting.

The house on the left, mill in the middle and horreo (grain store) on the right.

There's also a fab garden with lots of plums, apples and veg growing. 

The Mill itself!

We have all had fun exploring what's on our doorstep. Shanna especially loves spotting the different wildlife and insects that are around. Here's a few pics of what we've spotted so far.

We also have bats that are living in the mill house. We have yet to spot the deer or wild boar that occasionally visit! If they do, Hiawatha, I mean Shanna, will be on standby! 

Until next time! Hasta luego!

Onwards and upwards!

Hola amigos!

We have been offline for a while due to comms issues but fear not, we are alive and well! 

As some of you may or may not know, the sale our UK house fell through. We found out as we sailed into Santander. Disappointed is an understatement but we are here and we are getting on with starting the next chapter of our lives. We have sobbed, shouted, sulked and swore but this will get us nowhere so it's onwards and upwards for us! Time to pull  up our big boy pants and get on with it!

We intend on living here regardless. The good thing is that it's a buyers market here. Property stays on the books for years without much interest. The norm is to rent long term so this is our plan and this will afford us time to look around and find a place that best accommodates us.

We love the pace of life here, it suits us and we feel healthier and less stressed (aside from the obvious hiccup!) so Asturias will still become our home regardless! 

All the fun of the fair!

Today we travelled an hour and a half to attend a fiesta only to find it was cancelled when we got there. Sigh! Never mind, only another hour and a half back!

So, we got home, had dinner and then headed to Ribadesella to the fair. It was a bit of a sweetener as Shanna had been stuck in the van all that time. It was a typical fair with bumper cars and merry-go-rounds but no 'hook a duck' - me thinks this is a British thing! There was live music, cookery demos (with tasters - yum!) and lots of craft stalls. 

Yummy octopus!

Catching the sidre!

Shanna had fun on the trampolines and on one ride, which was almost empty, she sat next to a local girl. They were both chatting away to each other but neither knew what the other was saying - a smile and a nod of the head was all that was needed. 

Boing!

I'm driving! Look out!

Look at the size of that candy floss!

Family Time.

Today Nathan and I celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary - crystal I think. 

We had a lazy day mooching around the village, reading, playing games. This evening we decided to go out for a nice dinner together.

We drove into Ribadesella and went to Cenador de Llantares restaurant. It's a seafood place with fresh catches being served up daily.

We were given a small appetiser of gazpacho which was delicious. We opted for shared starters and had calamari, clams and prawns. All very tasty.

Shanna with her gazpacho.

Clams.

Juicy gambas!

I then chose a langoustine risotto and Nathan and Shanna shared lobster.

We all enjoyed our dinner. It was tasty, fresh and plentiful. Shanna voted to stop for an ice cream on the way back to the van. We happily obliged!

An ice cream almost as big as your face (and it had been partially licked!). Yummy!

We slowly strolled along the river, back to the van but not without having a go on the public exercise machines! We needed to burn off all that food! 

Goodnight all!