Lonely Planet doesn’t even
mention Oviedo! Probably because
it doesn’t have a beach. That’s
too bad for Oviedo, but good for us.
It is the most livable place we have seen in Spain and we liked it even
more than Leon, despite the gloomy weather. It is large enough to be interesting with great architecture
and its share of narrow, winding alleys.
After a false start – the internet wasn’t working in our first hotel –
we splashed our luggage through the rain and settled in a nice hotel just a few
steps from a market and around the corner from a laundry. Chores must get done, even in
utopia.
The World Heritage Site brought us to Oviedo but it was the city’s
charm that made us smile. It is a
great walking town where church bells ring out every 15 minutes and serenade
the hour. Fountains burst from
every roundabout and a surprise awaits around every corner. It might a giant cider barrel or a cute
street sculpture like an old-time photographer, even a life-size statue of Woody
Allen.
It rained off and on during most of our stay but we managed to
squeeze in a 5-mile walk to the 9th Century church of Santa Maria
del Naranco and San Miguel de Lillo, the castle of King Furela I. Neither is very large – San Miguel is
actually tiny – but they would have been impressive to the poor peasants in
their mud and wattle huts. It
couldn’t have been much fun living in medieval times, even for the king.
The Fountain of Foncalada is smaller and even less impressive
looking than the castle, but it is the oldest pre-Roman public work in
Europe. It remains stubbornly
rooted right in the middle of the modern town. The Basilica of San Julian de los Prados with its statue of
King Alphonso II makes up another part of the World Heritage Site. Alphonso put Oviedo on the map,
literally. He made it the capital
of Asturias and encouraged “caminantes” to pass through on their way to
Santiago. Unlike the elaborate
Gothic cathedral in Leon, the basilica is of the older, simpler Visigothic
style.
We hated to leave. Much
like in Luang Prabang, Laos, there isn’t much to do in Oviedo. But it’s a great place to do it.
