Turn to Wonder: 39. La Isla to Villaviciosa

Today started as with most days on this Camino -an early rise in the albergue and heading out into the pre-dawn darkness to walk until a village with an open bar/cafe presents itself for breakfast. This happened after about five kilometres in the village of Colunga.

A number of other pilgrims found the same bar, in fact this party had stayed the night in the hotel attached to the bar in Colunga.!

Today’s stage wound through misty valleys a few kilometres inland, in fact there was only one brief sighting of the sea a few kilometres before our destination.

These raised grain storage houses are a feature of Asturias and Galicia, designed to keep grain safe from vermin and dry from the rain (of which there is a lot in this region).

A renovators delight!

Half way through the stage is the pre-Romanesque church of San Salvador de Priesca, consecrated in 924. Apparently, it has some ancient frescos inside but it was locked so, as they say, ‘no cigar’.

This region is the heart of apple growing in Spain and there were thousands of trees in the fields lining today’s stage.

Asturias is also famous for its sidra, which traditionally is poured from a high bottle into a low glass to aerate the cider before it is drunk.

It turns out that Villaviciosa is the apple and sidra capital of Asturias and that today marks the opening of their weekend long apple festival!! More of that in a moment but first another old church, the twelfth century Iglesia de Santa Maria de la Oliva, built in the time of transition from Romanesque to Gothic design, and featuring elements of both.

So, to the Apple Festival. Everywhere here today there is evidence of the significance of apples to this town. Our hostel backs on to the central square and already the bands and musicians are warming up. I think it could be a long night of festivities.

In the central market there are thousands of apples set up on racks for what looks like a judging competition.

And then, there are rows and rows of bottles of local brews of sidra, no doubt there will be much pouring, sampling and judging of this too!!

Here’s a little piece from the local Asturias Tourism Office. It gives a sense of how these folks feel about their sidra.

Asturian cider isn't just any drink, it's the lifeblood of a culture, the pulse of a land. Its low alcohol content and its totally natural fermentation make it a drink of conviviality, with a strong social and gastronomic spirit that has taken it to the top of the Asturianía. When it's poured, we're witnesses to a hypnotic choreography. And as the stream crashes against the glass, the cider comes alive, and there's no turning back. We drink without hesitation... it's light, effervescent, and fuels conversation, joy and laughter. From this point on, time's marked by empty bottles. The ‘culetes’ or ‘culinis’ keep coming, our appetite grows, and it's impossible not to order some ‘tapines’.

As I said, it could be a looong night!!