Granero del burro

Las Catedrales beach in Galicia

Cathedrals beach or la Catedrales is probably the most famous beach in Northern Galicia. It is about half an hour from Granero del Burro and is situated about 10 kilometres to the west of Ribadeo. It has been declared a Natural monument by the government of Galicia.

It is characterised by it natural arches and caves and is worth visiting at both low and high tide. At low tide you can walk down the steps and wander along the beach. There are lots of caves to explore and you can see the famous percebes (goose barnacles) clinging to the seaward facing side of the rocks. At high tide, and particularly when there is a big swell, it is fun watching the waves crashing onto the rocks.

There is a very nice wooden boardwalk which snakes along the coast. You can walk down to some of the rock formations jutting out into the sea and watch the waves crashing onto the rocks. There are also some nice views along the coast to the Barreiros beaches. When you have finished your walk you can have a coffee or beer in the cafe or lunch in the restaurant. It is very busy on Sundays in the Summer!!

Cheese fair in Taramundi, Asturias

Every year there is a Cheese Fair in Taramundi on Easter Saturday. This year it was its 17th year. Cheese producers come from Asturias, Galicia, Cantabria and Castilla y Leon. There are a variety of home produced sheep, cow's and goat's cheese all of which you can taste and buy. In addition to cheese there are local breads, cakes, cider and of course knives. Taramundi is famous for its knives!

The fair takes place in the sports hall which was a good job as it was an awful morning. It was quiet to start with but by 1 o'clock there was a good crowd of people. You can have a typical lunch as well in one of the open air restaurants that come with these events. Octopus, Chorizo, boiled Ham, Pork ribs, Sausages are all typically offered and washed down with a few beers or wine. There was a young lad called Pablo looking after tables - very keen for about 10 years old!!!

After lunch you can go and visit the 'Castro' in Taramundi. It is an ancient fort which dates back to Roman times and has been carefully excavated and restored. It is one of the most important ones in Asturias. You could also visit Mazonovo and Teixois which are very close to Taramundi. A great day out if you are visiting Granero del Burro during Easter.

Carnaval 2012 in Ribadeo, Galicia

February once again saw all the festivities surrounding Carnaval which taked place on Shrove Tuesday. As always , the weekend before, everyone goes out dressed up and this year was no exception. The Saturday night in Ribadeo was exceptionally busy with more folk than ever dressed up. There was a Marilyn Monroe, pirates, men in drag, firewomen, mediaeval men and women, animals and lots more. Click here for lots of pictures.

At the weekend there is also a huge parade for people of all ages in Foz which is along the coast to the west from Ribadeo. Click here for a YouTube clip. The self catering accommodation at Granero del Burro is a great base from which to enjoy all the festivities of Carnaval.

The Parade in Ribadeo was bigger than in previous years and the weather was once again kind. There were people of all ages from the toddlers dressed up as the seven dwarves to the more senior folk in the charrangas (musical groups). These are a few selected pictures of the parade.

And here are 2 of the pesky dwarves!!!

Self catering holidays in Galicia, Northern Spain

The nice thing about a self catering holiday in Galicia, Northern Spain, is that you can come here at any time during the year and find something to do. Take today for example. 15 degrees, beautiful sunshine, not a cloud in the sky and views to die for. Granero del burro is open all year round so you can take advantage of a self catering break whenever you want.

Ribadeo in the sunshine is a beautiful place and only 20 minutes from Granero del burro. It has a nice marina where you can walk or sit and watch the world go by, as well as great views across the estuary (riá de Eo) to Figueras and Castropol. Figueras is unique in that it has a ship building business located there. The shipyard is almost as big as the village!

Ribadeo town itself is split into two - the old part and the more modern part. The main square and the back streets down to the port are well worth a visit and have lots of old and beautiful buildings. The Town Hall (ayuntamiento) is also a nice old building and is next to the beautiful, but decaying, Torre de los Morenos. It is being restored at the moment.

Stop for a coffee in the square before having a wander round the streets and a look in the shops (there are plenty). You can have a drink in one of the 60 or so bars in the town and there are plenty of places for lunch or dinner. La botellería is a very nice place to try for lunch or dinner (closed on Mondays).

A few days ago on the 6th January it was Reyes Magos - the three kings. This is when people give each other their Christmas presents (traditionally) in Spain. On the evening before there are parades in towns and cities when the Three Kings are paraded through the streets on floats. People on the floats throw sweets into the street for the children. It is normally a mad frenzy of sweet hungry kids!! There was a nice parade in Ribadeo this year with music and decorated floats. You can take your holiday to coincide with this if you want.

Property for sale in Galicia

A fantastic property has just come on the market for the incredible bargain price of €18,500. It needs completely restoring, but the quality of the stone is remarkably good. A very nice home could be created for around €100,000 depending on the quality of the specification required.

It has fantastic views from its elevated position and comes with 9,000 square metres of land. It has a very attractive horreo (grain store) and inside the house there is an old bread oven and a blacksmith's forge. For full details and more pictures click here.

Los Arándanos Restaurant - near Teixois, Asturias

Los Arándanos is a wonderful restaurant in the Asturian countryside near Taramundi. It is about a half hours drive from the self catering accommodation at Granero del burro. If you like remote restaurants with fantastic views then this is the place to go. From Taramundi take the road to Teixois, and then take a right up the hill before you get to Teixois. Climb up the hill for several kilometres and then take a left up a track to the top of the hill. The restaurant is as high as you can go! Click here for directions.

Los Arándanos means 'Blueberry' and as the name suggests the restaurant focuses very much on this. They have 10,000 square metres of land in which they grow five different varieties of Blueberry. They also manufacture their own products from Blueberry juice to jams and pickles. You can order online here.

The food is fantastic and needs to be experienced to be fully appreciated. Click here to read a review of the meal experienced a few weeks ago.

Los Arándanos is closed from the middle of December until Easter but will open for large parties.

 

Gastronomy month in Asturias

Between the 28th October and the 27th November, the 4th Oscos-Eo gastronomy festival took place. Over 5 weekends there were gastronomic events 5 different areas of the Oscos-Eo region. Restaurants put on special menus and offered competitive prices for fantastic food (and drink in some cases). La Cerca in Santa Eulalia de Oscos took part over the weekend of 5th, 6th and 7th November.

One of the restaurants taking part was El Pajar. This is a lovely restaurant which forms part of the Casa Cachón complex. It has wonderful views out over the 18th hole of the golf course and has a pleasant atmosphere. On the weekend of the 25th, 26th and 27th November they offered a menu for €25 including wine. The Mussels were fantastic!!! They also have an a la carte menu with 2 particularly notable dishes. One is the Squid Truffles (in their own ink) and the other is the Duck Liver, Goats Cheese and Quince dish. Both are worth a try.

The Hotel has 12 bedrooms which you can book here. There is also a 9 hole golf course and a swimming pool. Non residents can use both. There is also a small golf driving range. It costs €20 for a round of golf in Summer and €10 in Winter. It is in a small village called Tol which you can get directions to here. It is about 30 minutes from Granero del burro.

Santa Eulalia de Oscos

Santa Eulalia de Oscos is a beautiful village in the Asturian hills about 45 minutes away from Granero del burro. It is one of the 3 'Oscos' villages - San Martín de Oscos and Villanueva de Oscos are the other two. It is well worth a visit as there are many walks from there and the drive to get there passes through some spectacular countryside. In particular the views from La Garganta back to the coast are wonderful.

In Santa Eulalia itself you can park at the top of the hill and there is a wonderful bar on the left. In it there is a shop where you can get your daily supplies as well as buy some walking boots. Have a look at the typical tables that pull down from the wall on each side of the door as you go in.

At the bottom of the hill is a fantastic restaurant called La Cerca. It a parilla (grill) and serves fantastic food in wonderful surroundings. The Caldo Gallego is typical food of the area (despite its origins in Galicia).

San Lucas fiesta in Mondoñedo - October 2011

This annual fiesta takes place from Saturday until Thursday of the 3rd week in October. It is a very traditional fiesta and is based around a horse fair. The horses and brought to Mondoñedo from all over Galicia, including off the mountains. This year on the Sunday there was a demonstration of horses doing 'tricks'.The main horse fair is on Tuesday and includes competitions and horse racing.

In addition to the horse fair the streets of Mondoñedo are packed with stalls selling everything from Octopus scissors to horse saddles and tractors. It is truly an event that has to be seen to be believed. As always there is music and food and the Octopus that you can eat in the 'restaurants' is famed for its quality. Try the Churrasco too (grilled Pork ribs).

The full Mondoñedo programme can be seen here.

Mondoñedo is about 20 minutes from Granero del Burro.

 

Interesting birdlife in Asturias

October is always a good time to get out and about to see what birdlife there might be. The Autumn migration can always turn up a few surprises. A couple of recent days out provided very fruitful. A walk around the Eo estuary between Figueras and Castropol at high tide was very productive. There were a pair of Kingfishers flying up and down the shoreline and perching on the rocks. It is always unusual to see Kingfishers doing this as in the UK they are normally just seen on freshwater rivers and lakes. There were also Bar Tailed Godwit, Grey Plover, Greenshank, Curlew, Dunlin, Common Sandpiper, Little Egret, Mediterranean Gull and Peregrine Falcon.

Another day out around Penarronda beach proved to be very rewarding as well. In the fields above the beach there was a Crested Lark as well as plenty of Spotless Starlings. These are joined in the Winter by normal Starlings and this is a good place to see them together and check out the difference. There were also 3 Wrynecks in an adjacent field, all sitting on fence posts and looking great in the Autumn sunshine. The Zitting Cisticolas were very much in evidence - they are always much easier to see in the Autumn. There was also a Cetti's Warbler calling.

Both of these places are less than half an hour from Granero del Burro.