As we descended steadily down the good mountain road we passed the sign to Tieno and breathed a sigh of relief that we were spared the tortuous journey over the top. The same AS road continued all the way to Oviedo and then turned into a motorway all the way to Gijon. With reminders of Ferrol, we felt the same sense of trepidation as we wound our way round a largely industrial town and doubled back to find the Parador next to a large football stadium. A further moment of panic subsided when we saw the entrance to the car, with huge relief that we did not need to your the streets looking for a parking spot.
The hotel was rated 4 star, but was no better than that at Ferrol, leaving us to wonder how they assess their stars. The room was smaller than average, but comfortable and looked onto a park. We soon found our way through the park and onto the beach at the far end and started to forgive the hotel for its location. A wide promenade and wide, sandy beach lay before us and at one end a crowd had gathered along the railings overlooking the beach. We joined them and discovered 2 games of beach handball in progress. At least, we later discovered it to be beach handball because we did not have a clue at first. Why did the goalkeeper leave the court every time a goal was scored? Why did people keep leaving and joining the match? All was revealed later on a web search and we returned a few times to watch this international competition continue through the weekend. What a great spectator sport. I cannot think of another game where you score 2 points for a spectacular goal but a mere one point for a boring one.
Parador menus are somewhat similar at each hotel, with some small regional variations. This one was fairly uninspiring, which was a shame since we had booked for half board. Nevertheless we mostly enjoyed at. When we checked in and were asked to choose breakfast and dinner or lunch times, and chose 15:00 for lunch each day, the receptionist smiled and said “ah, you are following the Spanish style”. It did work this time, with just a top-up of Rioja and crisps required in the evening.