Camino de Santiago 
 
St. James (Santa Iago), preached Christianity in Spain, but when he returned to Judea he was executed by Herod and according to Christian tradition his body miraculously returned to Compostela. This town then became one of the most famous places of pilgrimage in the world. The vow of making a pilgrimage to Compostela to honour St. James is still carried out to this day and you may wish to visit one of the numerous websites now dedicated to giving information and tips on how to carry out a sucessful pilgrimage or you may merely wish to walk a little of the way by Casa Lavender which is 1.5 km from the monestary at San Salvador de Valdedios, marker 373 on the Camino del Norte.  
 
 
Food, drink and where to eat 
 
Fresh fish is abundantly available at most restaurants, especially at Tazones, a picturesque little fishing village best visited on a Sunday, booking in advance advisable. Sunday is still a big spanish tradition, wearing your best clothes, getting together with all the family and generally having a bit of a party. Its truly something very special to watch and enjoy, the oldest and the youngest in a family incredibly at one with each other. 
 
Nearby there are several parillas where you can eat huge platters of barbequed meat or indulge every day in a four course meal which will only set you back €7 and usually includes bread, desert and wine! Most restaurants only serve spanish cuisine, but if you fancy somethhing a little different Villaviciosa has a lovely little italian pizzeria, Gijon has several restaurants with forgeign cusine including an indian called the Taj Majal and Oviedo has a couple of chinese restaurants. 
 
However you should not leave Asturias without trying the local fabada, which is a bean and bacon stew, washed down with a local glass of sidra (cider). Villaviciosa is the heart of the cider making industry for spain. El Gaitero has a factory here which you can take a tour of and exports its sparkling cider worldwide. The locals tend to drink the non sparkling type though and it is poured in a very special unique way, bottle held high overhead and glass low, two whole arm lengths apart! Stand well back!