DESCRIPTION
El Valle de San Jorge (Saint George Valley) is a region with its own personality within the Llanes municipality. Presents, first, an extensive plain scattered with abundant villages, brown rocks, flowering meadows and leafy cornfields. And beyond, in second line, the blue Cantabrian Sea, where we see lying along the ocean to the mouth of the river Bedón, the picturesque Valle de San Jorge, with its green meadows, clean streams and populated places: Llames, Garaña, La Pesa, Villanueva, Silviella and Piñeres de Pria, Nueva, Ovio, Picones, Cardoso, Hontoria, Villahormes and Naves, half-hidden among the barely unbroken foliage of its oaks, poplars and alders, chestnut and walnut trees, cherry and apple orchards, orange and lemon trees. To the southeast, the admirable plateau of El Llano is like the first step of the immense scale of mountains of the Sierra del Cuera, with its villages of Los Carriles, Llamigo and Riensena, which will end up in the Picos de Europa. The Mediodia peak, like a lighthouse crowns the whole Valley, bounded on the east and west by the Guadamía and Bedón rivers, and crossed by the San Cecilio and Ereba rivers.
HISTORY
History lovers will enjoy the numerous houses of "Indiano" (those who emigrated to America, that got homesickness and managed to return with fortune and contributed with their capital for the benefit of the people). Today, schools, supplies, bowling alleys and pipelines, roads etc. are preserved. The Garaña Palace, built by the Marquis of Argüelles in 1883, the seventeenth century palace complex of La Espriella in Villahormes. The palace of Count de la Vega del Sella eighteenth century, contains within its walls the Tower of Aguilar de San Jorge, medieval tower, dated in 1032 as Castro Aguilare, the Chapel of Christ XVII-1st half of XVIII century, the monastery of San Antolin Bedón, the origins of the monastery, always shrouded in legends, dating back to the eleventh century, with reforms in the XII and XIII and is one of the best examples of Romanesque architecture in the region, as well as numerous churches and hermitages dotting the entire Valley. The prehistoric cave El Penicial, of the Asturiense time, deposit investigated by the Conde de la Vega del Sella.
Their various towns and villages to humanize and cultivate it landscape endowing it of an identity and an eminently rural flavor, with their brokers, their granaries, their hermitages, its stables, its bridges, its caleyas (streets unpaved and in poor condition), their murias (stone walls), paddocks and many other elements that immortalize the living and popular culture of stonemasons, teyeros (person who makes or sells tiles), cheese makers, farmers and artisans of the Valley
COASTAL LITTORAL
The Valle coast is flanked by two natural monuments: at the east by the inner beach Gulpiyuri and at the west by the Jesters of Pria. Among them the beaches of Guadamia, La Canal, Cuevas del Mar, Puerto Cerrau, San Antonio, Salmorieda, La Huelga and San Antolin. Family beaches and karstic complex for curious, natural beaches, rural beaches, surfing beaches, beaches of cinematic scenes ... all have something in common: a fine white sand and crystal clear turquoise sea. Taking advantage of old rural roads the coast of the Valley is crossed by the Coastal Path, a cyclist and pedestrian route that has an excellent communication with the towns it goes across and with their respective train halts. It represents a magnificent complement to the Camino de Santiago del Norte, which runs through the middle of the Valley and has important religious landmarks all the way, especially the pilgrims hospital in Nueva town.
FESTIVALS AND FOLKLORE
The wealth of customs and folklore make our parties have a great popularity. Today in the pilgrimages religious and profane mixed, while retaining as ancestral customs as the "hoguera" or the offering of the "bouquet". Get the party started with a morning stroll around the village enlivened by bagpipes and drums. At noon the Mass with the procession, and accompanying the venerated image, the girls dressed in the typical costume of village (authentic cultural and artistic jewel), singing songs to the sound of tambourines. Religious ceremonies conclude with the offering of the "bouquet", pyramid of rusks of bread, decorated with flowers and ribbons that throughout the procession carrying on their shoulders four young men dressed in their traditional dress. Another frequent act at these parties is the auction of the "bouquet". In some festivities take place also popular "chocolatadas" (party or gathering at which one drinks hot chocolate), soups, etc., which often put an end to the verbenas (open-air parties). Special mention "Bonfire" ancient pagan custom that has been incorporated into religious holidays. Originally "Bonfire" was an oak that burned before the holiday to ward off evil spirits. Today the "Bonfire" marks the beginning of the holidays, young men and women of the town march to the neighboring mountains, where cleared and cleaned the trunk of a eucalyptus keeping only the branches at the top, this trunk in many cases exceeds 30 meters height, is later hoisted in the square, bowling or "prau" (meadow) where they will take place the pilgrimage and verbenas and accompanied by waiters dressed for the occasion. (the trunk remains there, it is not burned)
As a sign of identity of folklore of the Valley is the Dance of San Juan, one of the most beautiful of Asturias, noble, dignified, harmonious and smiling, in which the dancers weave and unweave geometric figures is as if a snake will wrap of a ritual and archaic way.
It is very difficult, if not impossible that can be given in another valley so much richness and variety of festivals:
HOLIDAY CALENDAR
March 1: Holy Angel in Ovio.
March 7: Carnival in Nueva.
March 22: Carnival in Llames.
April 23: San Jorge in Nueva.
April 27: The Flower in Pria.
June 14: San Antonio at Riensena.
June 28: St. Peter the Apostle in Pria.
June 24: San Juan and San Julian Nueva.
July 15: The Carmen in Hontoria.
July 22: St. Mary Magdalene in Villanueva de Pria.
July 26: Santa Ana and San Juanón Naves Nueva.
August 3: Santolaya in Villahormes.
August 5: The Hayfield Nueva.
August 9: San Julian in Los Carriles.
August 13: San Antonio in Villahormes.
August 31: San Ramon in Garaña.
September 2: San Antolin in Naves.
September 8: The White Nueva.
September 9: Our Lady of Loreto in Llamigo...
September 14: The Christ (declared of regional tourist interest).
October 15: Santa Teresa Nueva.
November 29: San Saturnino in Llames de Pria.
December 4: Santa Barbara in Ovio.
December 6: The Immaculate Conception in Pineres de Pria
GASTRONOMY
Sea products
As open sea Valley, the Valley of San Jorge is known for its Cantabrian seafood dishes: andaricas (crabs), spider crabs, bugres or lubricants (lobster), octopus and rock fish both baked and grilled, the popular Xaragu, red mullet, scorpionfish, the pixin (rape: monkfish), sea bream, sea bass or fish stew.
Land products
From our gardens come the verdinas, small beans, prepared with compango (a kit of assorted meats, sausages, bacon, to be cooked with the beans in the "fabada") and "fabada" style bean stew or cooked with game or seafood. Also a number of dishes that originate in maize which came from America: the exquisite tortos, which may be accompanied by Cabrales cheese, picadillo (sausage stuffing) or fried eggs and borona preñada ("pregnant" cornbread), which requires long, slow cooking in the oven and it is composed of a mass of cornmeal into which sausages, ribs, pork shoulder and anything that falls. To all this is added, as the traditional stew, here presents an exclusive variant, the "pantruque", kind of bun made with cornmeal. Forests, erías (extension of arable plots) and pastures of Sierra del Cuera provide select hunting, with exquisite pieces such as wild boar or roe deer, and excellent beef, sheep and goat. Our cider with two llagares (cider factories) own manufacturing and our rich desserts, pancakes, rice pudding, French toast, donuts, fried milk, etc. As a postscript are our cheeses, smoked Pria, goat Cuevas del Mar, Los Carriles cheese, or Bedón's cow, goat and cottage cheeses.
* Translator's notes in brackets
