Asturias is a province, not a city; but according to Asturians, Asturias is Spain - everything else is just reconquered country. More on that in a minute. First off, Asturias is green, a lot like western Oregon with a very similar climate. It is on the northern shore of Spain and is beautiful. In 711 AD, the Muslims invaded the Iberian peninsula. By 722, they had made it all the way up to Asturias with little resistance. They awed their opponents with their advanced civilization. By the time they reached Asturias, only a small band of Christian freedom fighters stood in their way of domination of the entire peninsula. This band was led by the famous king Pelaya, who today bears the title of 1st King of Spain. He was actually only king of Asturias, but his heroics at 
the Holy Cave of Covadonga assured his place in the hearts of Spaniards. With their backs against the wall (literally the wall of the cave in which they´d barricaded themselves), Pelaya claims to have been visited by the Virgen de las Batallas. She encouraged him to lead his men to victory against the enemies of the Faith. There, at Covadonga, the Christians had their first victory against the Moors. The Moors retreated claiming that the climate was too cold in Asturias anyway, and that the band of Christian warriors was too small to worry about anyway. This victory is viewed as the beginning of the Reconquest, which lasted almost 800 years and ended with Fernando and Isabel´s conquest of Granada in 1492, which finally brought the peninsula (minus Portugal) under the control of the Castilla-Leon and Aragon in what is today known as the country of Spain.
Today, we visited the cave at Covadonga. There is a small chapel inside with an altar to the Virgen de las Batallas and the tomb of Pelaya. (I´ve seen 3 different statues of him today in 3 different cities in Asturias). Our hotel is right on the beach with a beautiful view of the Cantaberian Sea. Naturally, tomorrow is Sunday. Until next time.
the Holy Cave of Covadonga assured his place in the hearts of Spaniards. With their backs against the wall (literally the wall of the cave in which they´d barricaded themselves), Pelaya claims to have been visited by the Virgen de las Batallas. She encouraged him to lead his men to victory against the enemies of the Faith. There, at Covadonga, the Christians had their first victory against the Moors. The Moors retreated claiming that the climate was too cold in Asturias anyway, and that the band of Christian warriors was too small to worry about anyway. This victory is viewed as the beginning of the Reconquest, which lasted almost 800 years and ended with Fernando and Isabel´s conquest of Granada in 1492, which finally brought the peninsula (minus Portugal) under the control of the Castilla-Leon and Aragon in what is today known as the country of Spain.Today, we visited the cave at Covadonga. There is a small chapel inside with an altar to the Virgen de las Batallas and the tomb of Pelaya. (I´ve seen 3 different statues of him today in 3 different cities in Asturias). Our hotel is right on the beach with a beautiful view of the Cantaberian Sea. Naturally, tomorrow is Sunday. Until next time.
2 comments:
So do you do any work? Or do you just get to hear all these cool stories and see all these cool places? Sounds like a posh way to get some masters credits to me:-) I'm so glad you get this great experience!!!!
Yes, we have to do interviews and read some books, and will take a test afterwards as well as work on a couple of projects once we get back.
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