Cangas de Onís is a city imbued in history, in fact, it was the first capital of Asturias when this was the Kingdom of Asturias. All this history is alive in the numerous monuments of the town. Although the most emblematic is the Roman Bridge, today I shall tell you about: Palaciu Pintu.

The Palaciu Pintu is in the centre of Cangas de Onís, next to the market square, where there is a market every Sunday and I recommend you visit it.

This building dates from the 20th century, although it is built on something a lot earlier from the 17th century. The colourful façade of the palace gives the palace its name: Palaciu Pintu – the painted palace.

This building lays between the Church of Cangas de Onís and the statue of King Pelayo.

I recommend you visit it by day and at night, because the building changes depending on the angle and in the different light.

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria is over 530 years old, although it wasn’t until 1478 that it was founded as a city because originally it was a military base. The following link provides more information on the history of the city. (Click).

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria has many tourist spots. Below is a selection of these attractions and I shall talk about them in forthcoming articles:

• La Playa de las Canteras (Quarry beach)
• Alfredo Kraus Auditorium.
• Santa Catalina Park: between the Playa de las Canteras and the Puerto de Luz (Port of Light), you will find one of the many museums on Las Palmas: the Science and Technology Museum.
• Vegueta – Triana.
• Plaza Santa Ana.
• Cristopher Columbus Museum.
• Calle de los Balcones. (Balcony Street)
• San Telmo Park.

These are some of the many tourist attractions this capital city has to offer. I recommend you visit it and if you mingle with its people… you’ll appreciate Las Palmas de Gran Canaria from a different perspective.

About a year ago when I first started this blog, I wrote about a couple of places on The Island of Gran Canaria: La Playa de Maspalomas y San Juan de Arucas.

Now that Turismo Natural is almost one year old, we return to The Island of Gran Canaria, as I just recently spent my holidays in Palmas de Gran Canaria. Of course, I shall suggest different places you can visit if you have the chance to travel to the island.

In the following articles you will find out about: beaches, natural monuments, cities… This island is quite complete, which means we can do different types of tourism.

Gran Canaria, baptised as the miniature continent, is a volcanic island which has a 236km coastline, of which some 60km are beaches, and part of its interior was declared a Biosphere Reserve in 2005 by UNESCO.

With so many kilometers of beaches… perhaps some might think that Gran Canaria is only sun and beach. Not so! Gran Canaria is much more than that: in every corner of the island, there is something different to find. These differences together with the people from the island, make Gran Canaria an island which has its own unique personality, and that is what makes it so special and explains the large number of tourists that go there.

I have passed by Ávila several times either because of sport or work and I have often wondered what there might be beyond these city walls as I drive by.

I finally found the moment to pass through this immense wall and visit every nook and cranny of this city and also film the video included in this article to show you what this marvellous walled city is like. This city was also declared a World Heritage in 1985.

If only the walls could speak! How many stories they would tell! The wall, by the way, is in perfect condition.

The cultural legacy that Ávila holds is of great importance, given that Ávila is: culture, history, art, architecture… This is all possible thanks to the co-existence of different cultures, typical of Spanish medieval cities: Jewish, Mudéjar (Moors) and Christian.

Ávila is a city to be visited with time to spend the entire day there, which means you’ll be able to see the wall in the different times of day. It really is worth the visit.

Pedimos disculpas, ya que hoy no hemos subido información de ningún tipo.
Estuvimos realizando una actualización que consideramos imprescindible para ustedes, consiste en la localización de los temas escritos; de modo que puedan saber donde se encuentra tal sitio , tal monumento, tal ruta,…
Esperamos les sea de gran ayuda esta nueva actualización y puedan organizar sus viajes de una forma más cómoda.

Oviedo is an Asturian city which I have talked about before in this blog. It is a culturally and historically rich city, proof of which is the church of Santa María del Naranco.

Santa María del Naranco is set in the hillside of Mount Naranco, amongst beautiful scenery and amazing views of Oviedo, just like San Miguel de Lillo.

This pre-Romanesque monument was ordered to be built by king Ramiro I in 842 AD. It is believed that because Santa María del Naranco does not have an apse, but holds the king’s throne instead, it was used as a country palace or recreational royal residence.

It is also believed that in the 12^th century, when the apse and some of the naves in San Miguel de Lillo collapsed, Santa María del Naranco was made into a church.

Santa María del Naranco was declared a World Heritage by UNESCO in 1985.

A while ago I talked about some of the places in Galicia and its gastronomy and about Santiago de Compostela in the province of La Coruña with the motive of the Holy Year.

Today I shall talk about a historic event that took place in La Coruña, capital of the province that shares its name. It was an event that marked the lives of the people of La Coruña.

It was back in 1589 when the English troops breached the city walls and began their attack. The attack was led by a soldier who managed to reach the highest part of the wall with his country’s flag in his hand. But his victory was briefly lived because he was killed by María Pepita.

According to tradition, María Pepita followed her heroic act with a shout of “Quien tenga honra, que me siga” (Whoever has honour, follow me!), which totally demoralised the English and caused them to retreat.

If you are interested in this personage, you will find a monument raised in her honour in the Plaza de María Pepita where you’ll also find the town hall.

The Royal Palace of Madrid has its origins in the 9^th century when the Muslim kingdom of Toledo built a fort which was later used by the kings of Castilla and on which the Fortress was built in the 16th century. It was destroyed in a fire in 1734 and Philip V of Spain wanted the new palace to be built on the same spot.

Today, the Royal Palace of Madrid is the official residence of His Majesty the King, although it is only used for State ceremonies. The present Royal family of Spain have lived in the Zarzuela Palace since 1962, Alphonse XIII being the last monarch to have lived there.

The Royal Palace of Madrid is a beautiful piece of architecture in the centre of the city and surrounded by wonderful, generous gardens: to the west is the Campo del Moro, in front of the palace lays the Plaza de Oriente Gardens and to the north the Sabatini Gardens.

This palace is open to the public, so apart from being marvelled by the exterior, do visit it inside.

There are quite a lot of artists (musicians, artists, photographers, etc.) on the promenade between the Royal Palace and the Plaza del Oriente, making them another tourist attraction in themselves.

A while ago I talked about Oviedo, the capital of the Principality of Asturias; today I shall talk about a pre-Romanesque church called San Miguel de Lillo which lies within the city surroundings, in the hillside of Mount Naranco. This mount is also home to another monument of special interest, the church of Santa María del Naranco, but I shall keep that for a separate post.

As mentioned, San Miguel de Lillo is a pre-Romanesque church and its construction was ordered by king Ramiro I in honour of Saint Michael Archangel in 842.

In 1985, it was declared World Heritage by UNESCO.

There is a fantastic aerial view of Oviedo from this church, and from where you can spot other important sights of the capital such as Oviedo Cathedral or the Calatrava building, Espacio Buenavista.

It is just a few minutes from the city centre and yet it is in the middle of the countryside. You’ll certainly enjoy the architecture, history and surroundings of this church.

A while ago I talked about the capital of the Principality of Asturias, Oviedo, so today I shall talk about one of the most important monuments of this city: the Cathedral of San Salvador, Oviedo although I shall also write about the other equally important monuments of the city in future posts.

Oviedo Cathedral is not yet another monument; it is representative of Oviedo and, I would add, of Asturias too as it is the only cathedral in the Principality of Asturias.

This monument is a must-see for visitors to Oviedo. It is a privilege to visit such well-conserved architecture. It is like travelling back in time, as we forget about the world around us as we step inside.

As a final point, I’d like to mention a part of the cathedral: La Cámara Santa (the Holy Chamber or Chapel), which dates from the 9^th century. The Holy Chapel was declared a World Heritage by UNESCO and inside you can see: the Cruces de la Victoria y de los Ángeles (Victory Cross and Angels Cross), symbols of Asturias and of the city of Oviedo respectively, the Caja de las Ágatas (Agates Chest) and the (Arca Santa) Holy Ark.

One last point before I finish: every year the plaza or square of Oviedo Cathedral holds concerts of all kinds of music during the Fiestas de San Mateo (Feast of Saint Mathew) holidays, making this a very popular spot.