Sat, Jun 10 - To La Posada de Babel

There was so much food on our table when we arrived for breakfast, that I made a salami and cheese sandwich with the great bread and wrapped it up in my napkin for our lunch.  We checked out of our delightful hotel - after telling them that I had collapsed a chair in our room last night with a resulting goose egg on the back of my head!  They were very apologetic, but maybe the chair was just supposed to be decorative?

Carlos V City Gate

We crossed a bridge into the town of Viveiro which, unfortunately. we never got to explore.  I was able to see the Carlos V city gate as we passed by and out of town.  A sparkling day, great views of ocean as we drove along the north coast of Spain and soon were on the A-8 freeway and covered 185 miles very quickly.  The freeway passed over a long string of deep green agricultural valleys on high graceful bridges with bright blue rails.  We also passed through many tunnels, several over a kilometer long - a great way to not disrupt the landscape too much. 

Bob needed a break and we turned off the freeway at Villaviciosa and followed a small road to a lighthouse at Punta de Tazones, and, miraculously, found the visitor center of the Ría de Villaviciosa nature preserve along the way. The center was well-provided with displays about the wildlife of the area, although the nice girl handling the place agreed that this time of year is about the worst for seeing birds!

  We walked along the edge of a large estuary filled with mud flats, and then drove further along, seeing pretty little harbors, fishing boats, and weekend holiday parties at waterside cafes.   We ate our small, but delicious, sandwich and continued driving east catching hazy views of the Picos de Europa mountains, although coastal fog was moving in.

At 2:30 PM we exited the freeway and drove a short distance into La Pereda, a "suburb" of Llanes, a seaside resort.  We drove to our hotel, La Posada de Babel, which has a historical main house and several cottages of modern design scattered around it.  We have a large room with bedroom and living room area, plus a private lounging area outside. The hotel cat came over and visited with us as we relaxed and read.

Our Private Lounging Area

A few days ago I reset my watch to two hours earlier and now everything works out perfectly for me.  I get up at 6 AM, have dinner at 6 PM (if lucky), and go to bed at 10 PM which works well with the sun!   I think the whole thing about dining absurdly late is an affectation.  I don't know about the winter, but in summer with the sun rising at 7 and setting at 10, it would make  much more sense to go back two hours!

Church in La Pereda

La Pereda Water Spout

Bob and I walked a short ways into the center of La Pereda and saw the old public water spout and lavandería.  We returned to La Posada and sat in our outdoor chairs watching the marine layer evaporate and give us a good view of the high craggy mountains behind our hotel.

Mountains behind La Posada de Babel

  We had a very good dinner of a salad of green beans and potatoes in olive oil with a bit of crispy Iberian ham followed by hake fish with ratatouille.  For dessert we split a chocolate covered mousse on a hazelnut cookie.  And another great bottle of Albariño.