It was originally conceived as a safe house for orphaned children of miners. However, during its long drawn-out construction, it was surprisingly transformed into a Universidad Laboral, a grand self-sufficient utopian city closed in on itself.

Brilliantly designed by the famed architect Luis Moya, the cluster of spectacular buildings is spread on a 100-hectare farm fitted out to train various generations of working-class children as highly qualified professionals.

Today, the colossal Laboral Ciudad de la Cultura is a destination to seek, where visitors step into a different dimension.

But beyond this tragic yet noble tale of its early beginnings, this center by periphery of Gijón, Asturias, is a modern-day envy of others, for it is a university town, bursting with arts culture, creativity, talent and skills. As we visited during early summer, there were a few professors and students. The missing usual individuals only served to magnify the grandeur of the buildings even more.

We soon learned, had we chosen to follow the school calendar, we would have encountered students reviewing their lessons on the spread-around park benches, artsy individuals carrying huge canvasses of their latest obras, other apprentices in shabby suits rushing to their presentations, while there were some in nurses’ uniforms, businessmen lugging around their briefcases, and even executives leading their teams.

Our first stop was the Recepcion de la Laboral, or The Laboral Reception. Here, we were treated to a historical overview of the City of Culture and how it continuously aims to unite artisanal craftsmanship with modern technology. Guests may likewise purchase tickets to the guided tours — though we did not opt for it, as we had an experienced individual in our travelling group.

La Plaza, or The Square, 150 meters long and 50 meters wide, served as its beating heart. Here, we imagined educators and pupils gathered at this preferred meeting spot, as a gateway for easy access. It reminded us of the Saint Mark’s Square in Venice, one of its obvious inspirations, we were later informed.

One of the most popular sights is the Teatro de la Laboral, or La Laboral Theater, originally planned to be the assembly hall for students. It has since become the first autonomously-owned theater in the region and now carries over 1,300 seats — and that’s not considering the meeting and conference rooms, or even a dedicated rehearsal space. We could just imagine listening to all the various musicians and performers, all under one roof, eager to showcase to the world their prowess. If visiting in-season, definitely catch a show.

This brought about a query: what is a university town without its learning facilities? And there are plenty! Let’s circle back.

The Centro Integrado de Formación Profesional, or Integrated Profesional Training Center harkens back to their age-old mantra and commitment to train students from the working class. Now, families in the mechanical, wood and furniture manufacturing industries keep this institute in high regard.