Many of us travelled to Santander in Spain via the Brittany Ferries ship the Pont Aven having met up at the Boringdon Hall Hotel near Plymouth. Others of the group preferred to drive to Spain through France, taking in Le Mans and the subsequent Classic event.
We arrived at the port of Santander around lunchtime and met up with others of the group at the Yepah! surf bar which overlooked the stunning Asturian coastline, where we were surprised to discover speakers pumping out reggae music. We then drove on to our first stop, the Artiem Asturias Hotel near Gijon for the first two nights.
Most of our hotel stays were two nights, some of us spent the rest day driving around the local area to see the sights, others chilled out in the hotel. Some visited the nearby town of Oviedo and the museum dedicated to local boy, Fernando Alonso.
From there we moved on to the Parador de Corias (a former monastery) for one night. No-one admitted to any dirty habits, so we moved on to the Hotel Monumento San Francisco in Santiago de Compostela, a former convent, a short walk to the cathedral. Sant Iago being Spanish for Saint James.
The Parador hotels form a chain of mostly historic and important buildings owned and operated by the state, mostly former monasteries, castles, and fortresses.
Travelling in this area you see a lot of road signs warning you of the presence of the “pilgrims” walking one of the seven Camino de Santiago (The Way of Saint James). It seems that there are fewer true pilgrims these days, more people seem to be walking the Camino for a physical challenge and/or maybe to raise funds for charity. However, it led to a great atmosphere as these groups finished their walks at the cathedral as we sat back and enjoyed another beer in the sunshine in the Plaza Mayor (main square). We also had a tour around the magnificent cathedral.
Another highlight was the street barbeques, on which sardines were being grilled, and fireworks being let off. Many of the locals, including an intrepid member of our group, were jumping through bonfires, all in celebration of San Juan (Saint John the Baptist).
Next day, we drove across the border into Portugal where the roads were in a worse condition.
Our lodgings were now to be the Monverde Wine Experience Hotel, an hour from Porto. Very modern rooms with “mood” lighting, good beds and marvellous views overlooking the vineyards as we enjoyed our pasteis de nata. We had our first wine tasting and a very nice Alvarinho was included. We learnt that Vinho Verde should not be referred to as green wine but rather considered to be a wine making region, such as La Rioja, or Burgundy.
The next day we all went off to Porto for a boat cruise on the river Douro. The three boats we commandeered were managed by two brothers who provided a great service i.e., there was plenty of food and Vinho Verde, with music and dancing as we cruised down the river.
We then moved off to the parador at Salamanca with views of the cathedral. Salamanca is an interesting town, the sandstone buildings are beautiful, it boasts one of Europe’s oldest universities and is a visit for many Douro River cruise boats. We had a guided tour of the town and university, starting in the Plaza Mayor and our young guide was very keen, so much so that our one-and-a-half-hour walk ended up being two and a quarter hours. We have, of course, remembered every word and all the dates!
After two nights here we moved on to the Hotel Torremilanos, near Aranda de Duero. Since the early 20th century, they have produced wine, mainly red, from the Tempranillo grape, on the premises. And yes, we had another wine tasting.
One evening saw us go into town for another tasting, this time in the cellars of a wine boutique. Prior to this we had a tour of the town tunnel network which is still used to this day to store wine given that the temperature is a constant 12 degrees centigrade unlike the streets where the annual temperature can vary between freezing and 40 degrees.
The lady who ran the shop was our sommelier and she was determined to turn us all into masters of wine. Or so it seemed. We were polite but had to wait to be allowed to taste any wine, so long were her skilful and fulsome introductions to them. Some were worth the wait, four different vintages of the same wine. When she encouraged us to enjoy the accompanying bread and cheese, it made the reds taste even better.
Dinner in a nearby restaurant included suckling lamb, after which we found ourselves in the street with a local hen party. A raucous rendition of La Macarena ensued, and British/Spanish relations were cemented.
The next day we drove to the Parador at Cangas de Onis in the Picos de Europa. Another former monastery, and yes, this was becoming a bit of a habit.
This was to be the last night of the main tour although some people stayed on for a couple of extra days. This town had an almost alpine feel to it with a prominent Roman bridge.
Thereafter people made their own ways back to the UK, be it by ferry or driving through France.
The roads we drove included stretches where the surrounding mountains overhung the road, some ran very straight for miles, one stretch that was particularly memorable was the drive down the side of the Douro valley in Portugal, the scenery, vineyards, and Port houses were beautiful. We also drove through several national parks.
Several people made videos of the driving via their sunglasses, and we enjoyed spirited, and respectful, driving which gave us an opportunity to enjoy our cars as they were meant to be and the reason we bought them in the first place.
We encountered various out of the way places, remote castles and viewing points, local bars, and cafes where some tourists fear to tread. Some of the group drove in small convoys, others went on their own and we then met up in the bar at night to discuss our experiences. Nowhere, despite all the recent media coverage, did we encounter any animosity towards foreigners.
This trip was excellently organised by our own R8 member, Paula Fearn and her husband, Graham. Paula’s attention to detail is astonishing as is her tenacity to ensure that everything goes as well as it possibly can, including the tours, wine tastings and relevant group transport.
A wonderful time was had by all, and we returned with some wonderful memories of our time together.
