The first excursion

Yesterday (Friday), we left bright and early at 9:30. This seems early to the students (and the rest of Spain) because school doesn't start until 10 and neither does anything else around here! There is construction out in front of my building and when I was leaving at 9am, they still weren't there working! Maybe the students will take a little of this Spanish attitude toward life with them - 'no pasa nada' = 'it is no big deal'. We discussed the 'sobremesa' in my class this week which is the tradition of sitting around the table and talking after the meal is over. They all said that they participate in that with their host families every night!

Robert and Marivi planned a great excursion. We are so lucky that our program coordinator here in Oviedo is also a tour guide! She knows quite a bit about Spanish culture, art and history and accompanies us on most of our excursions! First we went to a lookout point on our way to a city called Cangas de Onis. We ate a snack in this city and went to an interesting museum about the history of this region/the history of the beginning of Spain as a nation. We started out in a small, black room with several televisions. There were stars in the ceiling and a moon and a few scenes in the walls and floor that lit up as the story was being told.

Then we hopped back on the bus and went up the mountains in the Peaks of Europe to the two lakes. This was a breathtaking view after a twisting drive up the mountain in a giant bus! We ate our lunch surrounded by the two lakes, this enormous mountain range and the bells of the nearby cows. Last year, we barely saw one corner of one of the lakes because of the heavy cloud cover. In fact, I spent the entire last year not really understanding why everyone called this 'the lakes' because I couldn't figure out where another lake could be from our experience last year!

We then drove to Covadonga. We also entered both the church and the chapel built into a mountain side. It is said that the Virgin Mary appeared to Pelayo. He credits the victory of the Christians over the Moors to her.

Finally, we stopped off at Ribadesella which is a beach resort town. By then, the weather had turned cold and windy so some of the students waded into the water. I'm not sure how much the kids enjoyed this town, because they were so exhausted by then but I think I could retire there!

What troupers the students were yesterday. They did a great job of being quick to get to so many places in one day and all with out complaining!

Attached are two pictures from Covadonga and two from the lakes. Don't forget to check out Robert's website.