Last Days, Last Post, and Happy Birthday to Our Sam Man

Our last days here have been full of all kinds of wonderment.  First and foremost, Sam turned three (although he insists that he’s still two).  Here’s the beautiful boy on his birthday.

April 20, 2011

Last week all of Spain celebrated what is called Holy Week (Easter).  During Holy Week most everyone goes on vacation and so we did too.  We headed north for the Picos de Europa and wow wee what a gorgeous land it is up there.  I felt more at home here than anywhere else in Spain.

The limestone mountains are high, jutting gray rock that fade into the clouds in some places.  The streams cut steep defiles through the mountains and they are so clear, ice blue that I wanted to drink from them.  Purple heather was beginning to bloom and coloring whole mountainsides a soft rosy color.  Between the rock and water, it is green, a fresh spring green dotted with villages and wild flowers (primrose, orchids, gentians, saxifrage, Solomon’s seal…). In the villages, there are roses, calla lilies, orchards, gardens and lemon trees growing in people’s yards. The people of the Picos are tough, hard workers.  They are farmers who have been doing things the same way for decades.  The woman are sturdy and dignified, commanding respect and the men are romantic looking figures in caps, wool sweaters, wellies and crooks shepherding sheep, goats, or pretty brown cows down roads and through fields.  The cows wear bells around their necks that clang in the distance, a friendly sound in the mostly empty green pastures and mountains. 

The Roman bridge in Cangas de Onis, the town we stayed in

Primrose

Gentians

Lago de la Ercina

Wild daffodils

The roads!

Columbine

A wild hyacinth

Throwing rocks

Orchid

Taking a break

Love the cow bells

Ice blue water

Happy boys

There are caves everywhere and some, like this one, are used to age blue cheese,

a speciality of northern Spain

A short distance from the mountains is the northern coast of Spain.  It’s also breathtakingly beautiful.  We visited one beach with rock arches that frame the crashing wave behind it.  The beach also has soft sand beaches that invite running and skipping and twirling.

On our last day we went to a town called Fuenta De, which has a teleferico (cable car) that goes way, way, way up high.

The view from the top looking down to where we started from

Walking along the high peaks

Down in the meadow

It was a wonderful end to a very exciting part of our lives.  I have thought many times that we have been blessed on this trip, not only for the opportunity and for the good luck we’ve had along the way, but for the time we’ve had together as a family. 

That said, the day after tomorrow the boys and I fly back to Easton to our own house, garden, river, family and friends.  And we look forward to resuming our everyday adventures.  Best wishes to all.

Favorite Places

Hola!  Time is going by and the boys and I will leave Spain in less than two weeks (David will stay here until mid-May).  Here are the places that I loved most in Madrid over the last few months:

1)      Plaza Mayor – I am drawn to this plaza with all of its arched doorways leading to other parts of Madrid and the lively street performers.

2)      Parque del Retiro/Botanical Garden – This park attracts all kinds of people, including musicians.  It’s got a pretty little lake flanked on one side by a massive monument of marble lions and bronze mermaids.  There’s also a botanical garden next door to the park that the boys and I enjoyed running around in this spring.

3)      Paseo del Prado – This is a beautiful street with some of the most gorgeous buildings and fountains in Madrid.

4)      Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza – I liked this art museum best of the three I visited including The Prado and The Centro de Arte Reina Sofia (the MoMA of Spain). 

5)      Lago – We spent many days walking near this lake close to Casa de Campo.  It has a huge fountain in the center, two fabulous playgrounds nearby and nice restaurants by the water.

Outside of town, within easy travel distance from the city, our favorite places are:

1)      Segovia

2)      Manzanares de Real/La Pedriza

3)      Toledo

4)      Cercedilla/Cotos

We've spent a lot of our time in the neighborhood near our apartment.  I described in a previous blog, the big project along the Manzanares River close to where we live (http://brandesspainadventure.blogspot.com/2011/01/out-and-about.html).  Almost everyday we have walked along bridges and walkways to see the project, along with many other people.  It is almost finished now. Here are some pictures:

A view of the project from a historic bridge

The boys on the bridge

The O man

Another view of the project

We’re renting a car tomorrow and heading to the mountainous north of Spain into the wild county for a week.  Can’t wait!

Tapas in Madrid

Dinner in this country starts round 10:00 or 11:00 p.m.  We haven’t ever adjusted to that, so instead we go for the tapas, which are served earlier at any of the many bars crammed in the city.

We go out with the kids occasionally, although it can be difficult for them to sit still for the hour and a half or so that it takes to have a meal (even just tapas).  But most every Thursday night, Dave and I hire a babysitter (two of Dave’s students alternate (thank you Shannon and Megan!)) so that we can go out and eat some tapas, which includes a huge array of things.  Each bar uses has a speciality or two.

We’ve had some bad things, but very few.  The standout of bad would be callos.  It’s an oily stew with tripe (and other, um… parts) and I think it might be something you have to grow up with to appreciate.

But for the most part, the food has been excellent with the seafood as a general highlight.  I eat as much fish and shellfish here as I can because it’s better than anything I’ve had elsewhere.  

Here are some pictures of some of the things we eat most frequently:

Serrano ham and manchego cheese to start out is typical

Paella

Chiperones (squid)

Croquetas (Owen's favorite)

Chipitos (Cuttlefish fried in butter)

Gambas (delectable)

Olives, always

So much wine and it's so good

Lastly, friend Mike Jordan, who knows more about good food than anyone I know, has lived in Madrid before.  Just in case you’re in Madrid for tapas sometime, here’s the advice he gave Dave and me, which is better than anything else we’ve found:

“With regard to tapas places, my favorites are always the old traditional ones -- marble walls stained with decades of pork fat dripping down them, stainless steel bar tops, food piled up where you can see it. Following are some places I like.

• There are a couple of very good bars (especially for seafood tapas) on Calle Postas between Sol and Plaza Mayor; both are on the left-hand side as you're walking towards Plaza Mayor; both are small, kind of grimy looking, lots of napkins on the floor (always a good sign).
• Cafetería at Preciados 38 (near Callao Metro stop) -- very good food, especially the mollejas (sweetbreads -- trust me, they're great)
• Restaurante/Cafetería El Prado on Calle de Silva, between Santo Domingo Plaza and Gran Vía (near Santo Domingo and Callao Metro stations) -- old school tapas joint.
• Paraíso del Jamón (San Bernardo 8, just off of Gran Vía) - good stuff, relatively cheap
• El Brillante C/ Eloy Gonzalo, 12, 28010 Madrid, Spain -- also old school, great tapas. A block from Quevedo Metro station. The canned seafood they sell there, believe it or not, is absolutely exceptional -- try some of the mussels. They also make fresh churros and porras (fat churros) all morning -- you can watch them pumping into the vat of oil. Great with chocolate or café con leche.
• Mesón el Pobre, Calle Cardenal Cisneros, 40 -- very good food, used to be cheap (haven't been there in a long time)
• La Trucha - right off of the Plaza de Santa Ana. It is expensive, but has some of the best seafood tapas in Madrid -- especially their smoked fish. If  you go, do not pass up the chopitos (inch-long whole fried squid) or chanquetes (even smaller fried cephalopods).

As for dishes

• Tortilla de patatas -- a must.
• Albondigas, or meatballs in a brown sauce, are very good, and kids tend to like them.
• Fried calamares are excellent.
• The aforementioned mollejas - lamb sweetbreads -- are delectable.
• "Embutidos" are sausages -- chorizo (my favorite - made with smoked paprika), salchichon (salami-like product), lomo (cured pork loin), morcilla de Burgos (sausage made of blood, rice and onion -- don't knock it till you've tried it - it is excellent)
• Jamón -- quintessentially Spanish. Be aware of the different varieties (i.e. prices) -- serrano, ibérico, pata negra, etc. They can get VERY expensive.
• Montados - small sandwiches -- good with a caña. Try off-beat things like boquerones (picked smelt)
• Pimientos de padrón -- roasted peppers. Some are hot, others aren't -- and you don't know till you pop it into your mouth
• Ensaladilla rusa -- potato salad. Does nothing for me, but the Spaniards love it.
• Chopitos - small whole fried squid
• Sepia - cuttlefish, often served stuffed and baked
• Cheese - manchego (which you probably know) and cabrales - the most famous Spanish blue from up north.
• Just try everything; the "callos" notwithstanding, you'll find you like most of it.”

He’s right about the mollejas by the wayJ

Solo Trip to Granada (and the Alhambra)

I took a two day trip by train to Granada.  We decided that I should go alone, since the boys sat through a five hour train ride just last weekend back and forth to Tarifa.  We didn’t want to ask them to do that again so soon (although Owen said he was up for it!).  As it turns out, it was good that they stayed in Madrid with Dave – there was a lot of walking up and down on cobbled streets.  That’s something I enjoy, but not so much for Owen and Sam.

The town of Granada, which is set against the Sierra Nevada Mountains, has a strong Islamic influence.  It’s a bustling, lively place with all kinds of interesting people from all over.

I wanted to visit mostly to go see the Alhambra, the famous red palace and fortress that sits on top of a hill overlooking Granada.   To get there, I walked through a stone arch which led out of the noise of the town and into a cypress and elm forest, where the sound of water and birds are everywhere.  The forest, called the Bosque Alhambra, surrounds the Alhambra on all sides. 

The Alhambra is magnificent with gorgeous Islamic architecture, tiles, and elaborate engravings.  There are also many beautiful gardens with fountains, orange trees and all kinds of flowers.  My overall thought while I was there was that a lot of consideration had been put into the visitor’s senses, from the sounds of water and the scent of flowers, to the layout and colors of the buildings.  There is a subtleness and careful balance to all of it that is delightful.

On the second day of my trip, during a late lunch in town, my itouch (with all my pictures) was stolen off my table by a gypsy.  She needed it more than I did, I’m sure.  And the only real loss for me is the pictures, not only of this trip, but of our time in Spain.  Even so, Dave still has a lot of pictures on his camera.

The one picture that I do have from the trip (that I emailed to Dave while I was there) is the view from my hotel room, which was right beside the Alhambra gardens:

The rest of the pictures I have here, represent my strongest memories of the Alhambra and they are borrowed from Google images.

View of Granada from the hilltop

The Alhambra

Orange trees everywhere

Beautiful tiles

Gorgeous engravings

Forces of Nature in Tarifa

We took a trip to the southern most coast of Spain last weekend to a town called Tarifa where the Mediterranean Sea meets the Atlantic.  It is located on the Cota de la Luz (coast of light), across the Straits of Gibraltar facing Morocco.  We could easily see Morocco from the shoreline. 

The moon, which was full and looked huge, was a perigee full moon (closest to the earth since 2008).  Because of this, the tides in Tarifa were very high. 

People were celebrating Carnival, which is a three day party before Lent, when everyone dresses up (including the kids) and stays up all night with lots of music and revelry.

The place is very windy and is known for its windsurfing and bird watching.  Dave says it’s one of the top three places in the world for seeing migration (spring migration is full swing).  Because of the strong winds, there are many windmills in Tarifa.  Dave is doing research on how the windmills might affect the bird populations in the area.  He spent much of his time there talking shop and watching hawks and eagles with his friend Luis, who is collaborating with him on the project.

We all enjoyed the beach and the beautiful Moorish old parts of Tarifa.  I hope to make at least one more visit before it’s time to come home.