The new Radio Times (16-22 August) has Ian Rankin as the subject of its “What I’m Watching” column:
“Since The West Wing and Green Wing ended I’ve not really got into a series in the same way…I spend almost as much time listening to radio. I wake up to Radio 4, but the radio in the bathroom is tuned to BBC Radio Scotland [he lives in Edinburgh]
Ah, that explains it…
In need of peace and quiet? Want to be surrounded by woods and mountains, but not too far from lovely beaches? Fond of cheese and beans? Spanish-speaking/in possession of a good Spanish phrasebook/travelling with a Spanish-speaking child? Then, my friends, go here and, if I may make another suggestion, you could always stay here.
We had a lovely time. Too short really, but such is the nature of life with teenage children – short family holidays=good, long family holidays=absence of friends, gossip, OMG-ing and LOL-ing. Anyway, Brian and I can’t afford to be churlish, Daisy having interpreted for us the entire time we were there as we have, shamefully, about six words of Spanish between us. I’d definitely recommend Asturias though. It has a tourist industry, but one that seems to be aimed at the Spanish rather than at the Brits. We were not the only British tourists in Espinaredo, there was one other couple staying there. However, Edinburgh reserve fobade me from exchanging more than a single “good morning” with them until such time as we’d been neighbours for about 50 years.
We visited Covadonga (churches and Visigoths), Cangas de Onís (lovely market, Roman bridge and our first meal out) and Oviedo (cathedral, Asturian bagpipes and shopping), walked in the surrounding countryside (where we spent a lot of time choosing the perfect spot for a, strictly hypothetical, skinny-dipping picnic). Tuesday was the festival of Our Lady of the Snows, which meant music, dancing and drinking til the early hours (although we stopped long before the locals). We spent a day at the beach, near Llastres and had a lovely dinner here on our last night.
Photos to follow.
…well, I hope it’s sunny, anyway.
Off to Asturias for a week. I’ve never been there before. In fact I’ve never been to Spain at all (I know!!) so I’m all excited.
Hasta luegos amigos.
