What a lucrative desire

 Happy St James's Day.  Patron Saint of Spain and holy day in Galicia. We are in Asturias.  Never mind we will think of him and press on.



We are going to the beach. Like most Asturian beaches it is not near a convenient town but down a steep road. First, however, the Hotel Rural Aguilar Cudillero. It gets 4.8 stars from over 200 reviews so it looks good.  Two days ago Sonia said ‘A place where you can breathe tranquillity, the owner is very nice and you cannot leave without trying her homemade breakfasts.’  Two weeks ago El Vicen said ‘It cannot be described in words, you feel at home, the owner is exceptional, very kind, attentive and close. The beautiful hotel. The delicious breakfast.’   Ok, I looked for a poor one to bring balance to the force.  The only two star review said Ans said ‘During our trip through Asturias we booked this hotel based on reviews from others. Unfortunately, the hotel did not meet our expectations. The directions are unclear, and the hotel is not within walking distance of Cudillero, the beach or …’  A three star review opined ‘Not bad value for money. A little neglected in cleaning the room, it may be that it is low season. The shower gel was scarce, or they forgot to replenish it. The owner is very kind. Breakfast good.’



The beach is, according to Google, half an hour from the hotel. We will pass a parking and observation place.  Six days ago Dios said ‘Beautiful, very nice especially the people, a place to rest and breathe fresh air, I recommend it.’    Tree growth does seem to have posed a few problems for ardent viewers.






The beach gets 4.6 stars. Four hours ago Emma Mtiz dismissed such optimism.  ‘The parking is beautiful, which used to be free and is now paid. I ask what type of maintenance the parking lot has, and they answer: "everything." What is everything? "Cleanliness, that it is controlled...". Ahh... I understand that if my car is hit they will compensate me. If the road gets dirty, they sweep it... Well, before it was free it was just as good, hey. It's a bloody piece of asphalt and grass. What a lucrative desire, BORING.  Edit: since I just came back for the car and it rained, they no longer work, suddenly there is no maintenance. I REITERATE!!’

Yesterday Pablo gave five stars and a warning.  ‘One of the most popular beaches on the Cantabrian coast, located very close to Cudillero. Pretty, not too big, flanked by beautiful cliffs. Lately it has become more crowded, in the past it was more familiar, to the point that if you don't go early, it is difficult to park.’







At the end of the beach os La Vida es Bella bar. It gets 2.9 stars.  Well, you just have to.   Ben gave it five nine months ago.  ‘I see a lot of negative reviews but our experience two weeks ago was good. Very friendly and hard working waitress, hamburgers were very good and nice classic rock music in background. For us, prices were acceptable coming from expensive The Netherlands.’  Yesterday Azahara gave three stars.  ‘We only had a soft drink and a coffee and they charged us approximately 5.70.  Excessively expensive since the coffee they serve is in a glass the size of my daughter's toys, the clear surroundings are beautiful, the beach is below and within sight. The waitress was friendly, the surroundings were verking is keeping busyy nice, as it is the only bar they charge more. Evidently.’  A week ago Juan Carlos gave a star - nice to see the ex-  ‘Terrible treatment and behavior, very expensive, we went in to order some sandwiches and they told us in an absolutely rude manner that they had run out, so we left without any sandwich with a couple of bags of chips and two beers at a nominal price, (we were an hour away from the car and with two small children who would otherwise stay). A place to forget.’







We will rise up the hill and back inland.







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