I think no one should visit Asturias looking for sheer fun; this is not Ibiza. Neither you will find “glamour” here; this is not Venice, either. But it is worth the visit. The landscapes are great, if you dare leave the broad roads and explore the countryside. It is not hard to find tiny villages which maintain traditional arquitecture (“paneras”-barns on pillars), and traditional crops (apple trees and corn). As for the cities, don`t miss Uviéu, if you like art; this is maybe the only city all over Western Europe which reached its best in the IX th century – this means, the monuments, the city walls and the organization of the streets downtown were raised in that time. Asturias was by then an independent kingdom, and you can still see the treasures of the twelve Asturian kings in La Cámara Santa (the holy chamber) as much as their graves, by the cathedral. As an abstract, the appeals to come here are:
-Wildlife and landscapes; You can enjoy trekking, climbing...even caving (in the limestone caves in the East) See Somiedo at
http://www.iespana.es/imagenlmrv/somiedo/index.html
and la Senda del oso (the bear path) at
http://www.ctv.es/teverga/frames.htm
-Food; not only fabada is great. Try fabes con almejes (beans with clams), escalopines al cabrales (steaks with blue cheese sauce) and, as a desert, frixuelos (pronounced “freeshoo-elos”, crepes)
-Tradition; craftmanship (“Llamas del Mouro” pottery, “Taramundi” handmade jacknives) and popular music (including folk festivals in summer and bagpipe parades from time to time)
-Art: Prerromanesque buildings are (in my opinion) awesome. There is not any equivalent display of art from that time (IX th century) anywhere in W. Europe See it at http://www.ctv.es/USERS/acabiedes/home.htm
Here I leave a couple of interesting links
http://www.asturies.org/belenos/memoriacelta/
Memoria celta is a site about Asturian inheritance in four languages. It deserves an exploration
http://www.infoasturias.com/ Infoasturias supposedly provides information about turism
http://www.asturies.org/viesca/gaita/ A great site about the Asturian bagpipe
http://www.siemprenorte.com/Castros/histdes.htm
A bit of information about the most famous Asturian hillfort (castro) from the Iron Age

Bienveníu Cristobo,
Can you recommend a good book in Spanish or English about the history of Asturias? I am particularly interested about the early celtic and roman settlements. I have found a couple of good websites in the Internet, some are downright fantastic, but I would like to read a book if there is one that you can recommend to me.
Gracies

Cristobo - you are a super ambassador for Asturias! The links and photos, especially the pic in a different thread, are incrediable! Am looking forward to your response to Booklady - then I'm running out and getting it!

Oh, c`on, you`re pulling my leg! This is quite flattering.
I always enjoyed when foreigners discovered Asturias, I`ve felt it as a victory over the media and the stereotypes, since we are such an "invisible" land, and no one cares much about us.
As to books over Asturian history, I`ve tried it, really, but I give up. I have even asked a true historian, but she says our "dear" scholars from Oviedo University aren`t able to write a word worth to be read.
A few years ago there was an interesting display in Xixón about the asturi, our far ancestors, and the Roman conquest. In that occasion, a handbook about the matter was published, and everyone agrees it is the best ever made about it. I don`t know if you can manage to find it: "Astures: Pueblos y culturas en la frontera del Imperio Romano. Catálogo de la Exposición" In any case, DON`T BUY anything from Mr.Santos Yanguas. You`d waste your money. AS far as I know, no English-speaker ever bothered to write anything concerning Asturias, except James Fernandez Mackintlock (or something like that) from Chicago, due to his Asturian-Irish ancestry
I hope all this can help you See ya!

Well, wait a minute
I hope no one regards this like spamming (I don`t get a buck out of it), but...
You can check my site, in it you can download free a book about Asturian mythology, comparing it with lots of ancient sources and other traditions from other European countries. To a certain extent, it is a History book.
http://www.geocities.com/mouguias
you can download the whole of the book in the Spanish and French version, or ch. 1 and 3 in English

Cristobo, I wonder if you could tell us the origin/reason for pouring sidra at arm's length? There sure is a lot of cider on the ground in Asturias. We were in Ribadesella on the day of the international canoe races this summer--not a good day to see the town, but a great day to drive along the river, traffic jam and all, to see the race. The town smelled of spoiled cider, and it was the rowdiest party I've ever seen in Spain, mostly kids in their early 20's drinking too much and falling down. Anyway, I'd love to hear the origin of the long distance cider pouring.

The reason why they pour it at arm`s length is easy: otherwise, it would get flat inmediately. Instead, you can drink it as some sort of "champagne", full of bubbles...if that is the accurate word.
I don`t know who first did it, nor why did he (or she) had such an idea, but I know it is quite a recent tradition, from the early years of the XXth century I believe.
I regret you didn`t enjoy at the piraguas from Ribadesella. So far I had heard say only that was a great feast...mainly from people in their early twenties...
See ya

Let's make sure and continue the stereotypes...that way, when I go to Asturias, it will be as pristine and beautiful as the last time I went...I love Asturias. Of course, one of my favorite refranes asturianos is:

"Con fabes i sidrina non fai falta gasolina..."

Watching the sidreros do the aeration-pouring thing is truly amazing! In the words of Victor Manuel: Asturies, si yo pudiera cantarle... I love Asturias!

I just wanted to follow up and say that I am so glad that I visited Oviedo for the Day of the Americas celebration. In fact, I immediately wished I had planned for time in Oviedo and exploring Asturius. There's not alot of detail written about the area but I was enchanted by the city, the food was great (not to mention the incredible cheese) , the countryside was very traditional, and the people were very friendly. This is an area that I would absolutely love to explore in depth. Oviedo was definately not spoiled by mass tourism and it was just so very clean and charming.

Thanks for all of the posts on this thread prior to my trip.