Exploring the magical city of Oviedo, the jewel of northern Spain.

By Beebe Bahrami

Jetlagged but finally at our destination, Miles and I checked in at the Hotel Favila, dropped off our backpacks, splashed our groggy faces with cold water, and joined the swelling crowd for the evening stroll along Calle Uria. The critical mass carried us past the magical forest of Campo de San Francisco Park. Men and women were paseando through the park, dressed in the year’s colors of brown and violet, fuchsia and black, and wrapped in Kashmir shawls and suede jackets. We went on toward the medieval neighborhood with its towering Gothic cathedral and golden arched passageways.

We were in Oviedo, the capital of Spain’s northwestern province, Asturias. Oviedo has become something of an annual pilgrimage for us before we venture into the enchanting coastal wilds of the province. Oviedo is enchanting in its own right. This green city casts a spell through her intimate avenues of sandstone, marble and carved wood, her jovial residents who help the visitor without a moment’s hesitation, her golden cider bars, her Celtic and pre-Romanesque motifs, and her fresh, locally grown/caught/hunted food. A university town, Oviedo is surrounded by rolling green hills and mountains while the Atlantic Ocean is only a forty-minute drive away. (more…)

Though considered mild by most standards, the end of the winter in Buenos Aires is greeted with a jubilance that could only be seen in Argentina

By Madi Lang

Imagine a 50 year-old taxi driver in a beat-up but recently washed taxi. He’s pulled over to the side of the road and has nodded off under a dark, gray sky; a hallmark of a Buenos Aires winter. He has abandoned his thermos and mate; little green yerba leaves and lukewarm water have spilled onto the empty passengers seat. His body is bent over and his arms are folded to protect him from the freezing air. His head rests against the cold window where condensation accumulates as he breathes gently onto it. He only wakes up to cough, and then curses at the disturbance.

Suddenly, a ray of sunlight pierces through the window and the taxi driver bats open his tired eyes. Without a moment of hesitation, like a bear awakening from his hibernation, he squints, smiles and unfolds into a full-body stretch. He revs the engine, dusts off the dashboard, and begins the first day of the rest of his life with a renewed energy and a refined sense of hope.

This is how spring arrives in Buenos Aires. (more…)