Travel stories
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The enchanting Plaza Mayor of Salamanca
Less than 2 hours by high speed train from Madrid, across the barren plains of Castilla y León, I arrived in the city of Salamanca. Nicknamed the Golden City (La Dorada), this university town practically glows thanks to the unique ochre stone of its buildings. (The golden sandstone is quarried from the nearby village of Villamayor.) Entering the historic area it’s easy to see Salamanca is very beautiful. Besides the radiance of the stone, there is an insane amount of intricate carvings on the buildings – on facades, rooftops, window ledges, cornices and columns. Everywhere. More than pretty stonework, the city is brimming with history so I signed up for…
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A look at year 3
It is coming up on three years since my first post. I am inclined to review or reflect on another passing year. Unlike any performance review I had to conduct at work, my “reviews” don’t take any set form. The first year marked highlights and the second marked 100 posts. Looking back on this third year, a clear theme emerges. I have been fortunate to travel and it’s been all about Spain. As I do like creating lists (like delightful things about winter), the list in my notebook that has become longer and longer this year is “Things I love about Spain”. There could be many sub-categories, be it architecture,…
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Literary figures in barrio Las Letras
Let’s take a tour through Madrid’s literary district, Las Letras. The area was home to several famous Spanish writers in the 16th and 17th century and today celebrates the country’s rich literary history. On my first trip to Madrid I sipped my very first vermut the bustling Plaza Santa Ana where we will begin our tour at the monument of Frederico Garcia Lorca. He was a well-known poet and playwright in the 1920s and 1930s in Spain and part of a movement exploring avant-guard forms of art and poetry. He was assassinated at the beginning of the Spanish Civil War in 1936 at the age of 38. The monument is…
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Historic taverns in Madrid
On my recent visit to Madrid I was on the lookout for painted red doors and bronze plaques. These are markers of a historic Madrid tavern. Stepping into one of these classics is like stepping back in time. Back to another century. Businesses over 100 years old, centenarios, are celebrated in Madrid with a decorative bronze plate on the ground at the entrance. It’s not only restaurants and taverns, there are also historic hotels, pharmacies, and shops selling shoes, capes and hats. There are around 150 of these centenarios in Madrid. This could have turn into a prolonged treasure hunt, but I was mostly interested in the eating establishments. I…
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Madrid is always buen rollo
I bought a T-shirt in a Madrid store called dear tee. The collection of shirts had fun prints, all designed in Madrid, made in Portugal. The white shirt I settled on is emblazoned with Madrid is always buen rollo. I didn’t know exactly what buen rollo meant when I chose it. It sounded positive. The salesperson explained the best translation was “good vibes”. It fits. The T-shirt, yes. The expression, absolutely. In the short time I have spent in Madrid, I got that feeling. Good vibes. Is it always good vibes? Well, close enough. Printed words on a T-shirt are allowed to exaggerate for impact. Madrid is a big city.…
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Menú del Día, it’s a wonderful thing
I do love the tradition of vermut in Madrid. A close second (if I had to rank them) is the tradition of the menú del día. A weekday lunch. It’s not like any lunch I ever had during my working days, but in Spain, having a three course meal in the middle of your work day is not unusual. It’s a tradition. This hearty ritual serves up a starter, main, dessert, bread, and a drink. All for one fixed price. Only Monday to Friday. The service is quick. The options are plenty. And the good places get really, really busy. So when I first stepped into Restaurante El Bierzo (in…
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Firecrackers and Flowers
“El jueves es el noche de San Juan,” my Spanish teacher informed me a few weeks ago. She explained that she would be going to the beach Thursday evening for bonfires and a dip in the sea to cleanse her soul. Every year Spaniards flock to the beaches to celebrate the festival of San Juan on the night of June 23rd. I love learning about holidays and festivals in Spain. I am in awe of how many there are. During my trip in October I came across two statutory holidays (Spain’s National Day and All Saints Day), a “mini-Semana Santa” in Málaga, and an autumn festival in a small mountain…
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The beautiful rice of Valencia
I have been daydreaming about rice. Not any rice. The rice of Valencia: Arroces. Each grain infused with a most flavourful broth. It’s texture deliciously chewy. Every chance I had to choose a rice dish on a menu del día in Valencia, I did. Still, this did not satiate my appetite. It only made me want to eat more rice. Rice is a huge part of Valencian culture. The tradition starts in the rice fields on the outskirts of the city. I took a short bus ride, 10 km south of the city, to visit the Albufera Natural Park. The large park is home to wetlands, bird sanctuaries, beaches, sand…
