Karen and Brent's trip to Spain

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Location: Hope Valley, RI, United States

Tuesday, April 11, 2006

Goodbye to Spain

Sunday was our last full day in Spain. We got up late and checked out of the hotel and walked 5 minutes up the hill to the Pizzeria for breakfast. Lucca (Steffi's brother) greeted us along with our new friend Carlos. We sat down and ordered breakfast and waited to Luigi and Steffi to meet us. They had a busy Saturday night at the restaurant and Luigi intimated that he was short delivery people. Steffi had to get ready for lunch at the restaurant, so we said our sad goodbyes and made them promise to visit Rhode Island this fall. Luigi drove us to the airport and we were headed back to Barcelona.

Of course our trip back to Barcelona could not be without incident. Since we had such good luck with the airport bus going to the airport, we decided to use it coming from the airport as well. The problem was when we asked other passengers where to get off for our hotel they told us a stop a few miles from our hotel. With our backpacks loaded down with bottles of wine and olive oil for the trip back, I felt like I was in the military loaded down with a month’s rations on my back.

Vespa held together with a trash bag

Since it was Sunday everywhere in the city was closed. No matter, we were tired and decided to lounge in the hotel bar. Glasses of
cava (Spanish champagne), strawberries and cheese (including a VERY strong local goat cheese) made for a very elegant end to our trip.

Wild flowers in Puerto Sherry

What is elegance without a bit of annoyance? When we checked into our room, we couldn’t get the lights to work. I tried every switch I could find. I tried every combination of turning switches on and off to no avail. These lights were not going on. Karen was finally so annoyed that she called the front desk. That is when I saw the slot. Giving it a try, I put the key card in the slot and hit the switch. Let there be light!

The infamous light switch code is broken

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Cadiz
Saturday was for walking a sight seeing in Cadiz. Although technically a peninsula, it is served by road traffic with only one small bridge. Most tourists arrive by boat. We took the the El Vaporcito (the little steamship) from Puerto de Santa Maria to Cadiz. The trip was about 45 minutes and cost less than $5 roundtrip. The funniest thing on the boat was the vending machine. It sold Baccardi. Just what we needed at 10 o'clock in the morning. The boat ride provided a spectacular view looking back to Puerto de Santa Maria and Puerto Sherry.










Cadiz gardens

There were also a ton of small fishing boats out in the ocean. Once we got into the port at Cadiz, El Vaporcito was dwarfed by the commercial barges, freighters and criuse ships.

Once off the ship, you are immediately accosted by tour bus operators and taxi drivers. We took a quick right when everyone else went left and immediately were lost. Luckily, the island (peninsula really) is small so we just kept the ocean to our right. Although Spain's plazas almost rival Italy's (almost), we found their parks lacking. Other than Parc Guell, the park's were dusty with little landscaping and upkeep. Cadiz is the exception. The trees are beautifully kept up (there are 2 huge rubber trees in Cadiz) and there is an amazing botanical garden.

From there we stumbled upon a local wedding. We never saw the bride, but the women were all dressed up. Maybe it was just the day, but the women all looked rather dour and the men happy: hmm... Anyway, as we walked around Cadiz, it was funny to see people going to the wedding waiting waiting at bus stops. You'd never see people so dressed up on a bus in the US.

Our friends Steffi and Luigi told us that is we went to Cadiz, we had to visit a gelato shop there. Gelato in Cadiz? Everyone knows that only the Italians can make gelato. Well, two Italian ex-pats settled in Cadiz about a year and half ago and took over a delapidated store front and now serve the best gelato this side of Florence.

Try the pistachio

Leaving the gelato shop we continued our walk around Cadiz and found what Karen called the "El Cid Fort." We had just seen the Charleston Heston and Sofia Loren 1961 epic movie "El Cid" on DVD and I have to admit the Santa Cantilina Castle on Cadiz does bear a striking resemblence to the castle in the movie. The real castle from the movie is in Peniscola on the Costa del Azahar. Santa Cantilina Castle was built after the late 16th century sacking of the city.

The "El Cid Fort." Note the boats stuck in the mud at low tide.

Today, it is next to the city's best beach and serves as a marina for the still vibrant fishing industry.

Fisherman works on this boat

The finest views of Cadiz are certainly had at the top of the tower in the cathedral. There is narration (on Bose speakers, no less) in several languages from the top of the tower. You can see for several miles in all directions (better to spot the invading hoardes). The cathedral actually ran short of funding and was not completed until several decades after its initial construction. this account for it combination of Gothic and Baroque archtechture.

After our quick ferry ride on the Little Steamship back to Puerto de Santa Maria, we went back to our hotel.

The BIG GAME of Barcelona vs. Madrid started at 10pm local time (only in Spain does a sporting event BEGIN at 10pm). We watched the first half hour in our hotel and saw the great Ronaldinho score Barcelona's only goal on a penalty kick in a 1-1 tie. We were beat from a long day, but I convinced Karen to go out to Puerto de Santa Maria that night. She wanted to see flaminco the whole trip and southern Spain is renowned for its flaminco. However, you can be steered to tourist rip offs for flaminco if you are not careful. So we went to a local place for our flaminco. It was held in what seemed like the combinaltion between a church and a community center. People of all ages were in the audience and each performer sang one or two songs. I think it was a showcase for local talent because the skill level varied wildly from the amatuerish to the polished and professional. The last singer we saw was amazing. She had a voice like an opera singer and commanded the stage like Evita. The song must have been a traditional song because everyone (except us) knew the words and as she took each chorus to its cresendo the crowd roared "Ole!"

Emboldened by the crowd, I decided to try and order a Tinto from the bartender. In addition to being a drink with wine and soda, tinto also means red wine. Not know how to differentiate I received red wine from the bartender, of course. Karen saved the day by ordering a 7Up and we made our own Tinto at our table.



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Monday, April 10, 2006

Sherry
Puerto de Santa Maria is a major sherry producing region in Spain. Real Sherry is only made in this region.

Karen and Maria (our tour guide at Terry)

Sherry imported into the US is always sweet. But most Sherry consumed in Spain is dry. When settlers from the UK arrived in the area back in 18th century they made invented the process of making a wine that would not go bad on long sea voyages. This process involves the aging of the wine in huge barrels. Five percent of the wine evaporates annually, leaving the cellars with with black stains on the walls.

At the end of the tour we tried to drink some sherry, but it was tough since it was only noon (6am EDT).

Terry (the bodega we visited) is also known for its pure bred horses.

After the tour, we decided to explore the downtown of Puerto de Santa Maria. Of course, by the time we got there, the tourist office was closed for siesta.

A quick word about siesta. We were warned that trying to find food or shops open in Italy during siesta (about 1-4pm, depending) would be difficult. However, Italy has adjusted to the American workday (to Italy's detriment, in my opinion) and you can easily find places open during the traditional siesta hours, especially in the big cities. Spain is another story altogether. Almost all stores and offices close down for the siesta. After 4 or 5, most open back up until 8 or so. The reason for this is the extreme heat during the summer in Spain. You don't want to be anywhere except in a cool bar or at home during the sizzling midday heat. Spain holds to this schedule religiously and if you happen to need something besides food during these hours, you are out of luck.

Karen and I wandered Puerto de Santa Maria and saw the bull ring, the downtown river walk and lots of clothes hanging out to dry.

Statue outside the bull ring (I'm rooting for the bull)

Hungry, we started to look for a place to eat. Crowded with Brits looking for fish and chips, Romerijo is the most popular restaurant downtown. Next to is was a little hole in the wall called Teleshawarma. We read about this place in our Lonely Planet guidebook as a great vegetarian restaurant. The proprietor is from Greece and did not speak English. No worries, there are pictures on the menu. We tried to order some felafel, but no way. The owner told us (I think) our order was wrong and brought out what she thought we should be eating. "Soya vegatariano" I protested. She dismissed me with a smile and a wave of her hand. We shouldn't have worried. She brought out the felafel and a bunch of other dishes including some eggplant that was the best I have ever had outside of our own kitchen. One of our best meals in Spain.

Keep reaching for the stars with your feet on the ground

After lunch we went to sit on the beach for a couple of hours before dinner (what a life!). Karen had to point out to me, otherwise I would have never noticed, but most of the women on the beach were topless. That fact is not advertised or flaunted, it just is. Anyway, I made sure my eyes stayed on my book, assuring that every part of me that went to Spain came back to Rhode Island.

We had another late dinner at Pizzeria Blanco. This time Karen and I were introduced to the Spanish drink Tinto. Tinto means red wine in Spanish, but it also means this drink, which is a very hearty red wine with a sweet soda (like 7Up) added. I compare it to a wine cooler, only good. I can see myself drinking a few dozen of those this summer, Very refreshing. One more word about Spanish dining. No one in Spain eats before 9pm. They say if you go to a restaurant to 7 or even 8, you will dine with tourists and it is true. Even at 11:30pm, hungry diners were streaming into the restaurant to get meals. And these aren't gaggles of kids out for a night on the town. Young families with infants, couples and adults with ederly parents were some of the groups still lingering over their meals with us well past midnight.

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Sunday, April 09, 2006








Guests arrive at a wedding in Cadiz






Jerez
People who know me have heard me complain about faceless corporate America and globalization killing unique regional products and eccentricities. Let me tell you something corporate America does right. Boarding the plane from the back. I thought it was just a one time thing when Alitalia had an all passengers going to Barcelona board the jet at the same time. When it happened again flying from Barcelona to Jerez, I realized I had stumbled onto a trend or cultural phenomenon.

Luigi and Steffi at Peurto Sherry

At the risk of sounding like an American elitist, I will simply say that it is a huge pain in the ass to try and board the back of a jet when everyone else is already on board. We already have assigned seats, what is the mad scramble to get on the plane? It's not leaving until everyone is on board.

Our friends Luigi and Steffi moved from Italy to Warwick, RI to open resaurant Nonna Cherubina, the finest Italian restaurant in a state filled with excellent Italian restaurants. Over the years, Karen and I visited their restaurant often and Steffi taught Karen and I to make Lemon Chelo, an apertif. We were surely disappointed when they closed the restaurant (now opened under new ownership as Lucce) to move to Spain to work with Steffi's brother at his four retaurants.

Pizzeria Blanca Paloma

When we arrived in Jerez, Luigi picked us up at the airport and drove us the 30 minutes to Puerto de Santa Maria. Puerto de Santa Maria is famous for the Columbus visiting the city prior to his a couple of his voyages. The ship the Santa Maria was built there and one of Columbus' first mates was from the city. With all that history there is very little in the way of statues or landmarks in the city to commemorate this connection. In fact, there is a huge statue of Columbus in Barcelona, but that city doesn't have any direct connection to Columbus.

After driving through Puerto de Santa Maria, Luigi drove to to Puerto Sherry where we sat at the restaurant and enjoyed the view and caught up on eachother's lives. Steffi and Luigi's
apartment is near the restaurant in Puerto Sherry and right across the street from the ocean. In late March the temperature was 75-80 degrees and it was sunny everyday. I can see why southern Spain is the number one destination for tourists from the rest of Europe.

View of the beach from the retaurant in Puerto Sherry

After lunch we checked into our hotel, the Puerto Sherry Yacht Club. Since it was between Holy Week and Motorcyle Week, the hotel was not busy. Our room was huge by European standards with two queen sized beds and a private bath. The five minute walk past the marina to the restaurant and five minute cab ride to Puerto de Santa Maria made its location very convenient.
For dinner we went to Blanca Paloma in Puerto de Santa Maria. Luigi and Steffi work here, but took the night off (mostly) to have dinner with us. The restaurant is huge with over 100 tables inside and outside (compared to about a dozen tables at their Warwick restaurant). There are lemon trees in the back and I picked a lemon to enjoy with my agua naturale. In Spain, you have to specify mineral water or you will get agua con gas (seltzer).

Girls in Puerto de Santa Maria watch boys play soccer

Karen was facinated with the pizza delivery boys, who rode motorcyles with 6 to 8 pizzas on a run. They were zipping in and out of the restaurant to make deliveries all night until after midnight. My gnocci was excellent and we enjoyed a bottle of Sicilian wine. It was great to have a full meal instead of a meal of appetizers (tapas).


The dryer must be broken

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Couple in Plaza del Catalunya
Culture
By the third day in Barcelona we were ready for some culture. What is a trip to Europe without cathedrals and museums? Picaasso lived in Barcelona for several years before moving to Paris. The largest Picasso museum is in Paris, and some of his most famous works like Guernica
reside in Madrid. However, the Picasso museum in Barcelona has a huge collection (3,500 hundred pieces in their permanent collection) that focuses on Picasso's early work (including his school age drawings) up to his blue period and rose period. The museum is housed in 5 mansions in an area of the city that dates to the 12th century. Although Picasso is most noted as the founder of modern Cubism, he was actually a child prodigy. A quote from Picasso (paraphrased here) says that he knew to paint like Rafeal by the time he was 10 and took the rest of his life to learn to paint like a child. This would seem like bragging, until you see his early drawings and paintings that show he had the master's touch at a very early age, he was simply stating fact. As for the last part of the quote, by seeing Picasso's early work and then his more famous work, you clearly see his effort to deconstruct to his work to its simplest componants. In my opinion, this desire for art to be in its simplest form led to his criticism of Barcelona's other favorite son, Gaudi (more on him below).

Gaudi's famous Sagrada Familia church

After a breakfast of Churros con chocolate (Barcelona's famous breakfast of hot chocolate and deep fried cookies - ours were too greasy to eat) we did some walking, and walking and walking.

From the Picasso Museum we walked to the waterfront to see Bacelona's most famous tourist attraction, La Rambla. La Rambla is a giant tourist trap with open air markets selling everything from soccer jerseys to parrots to pornography. It is lined with tourist restaurants whose wares are hawked by aggressive waiters. It is also a known haven for pickpockets. What's not to like? We bought some donkey stickers for $3.50. The bull is the symbol of Spain and the donkey is the symbol of Catalan independence. You see a lot of cars with donkey stickers in their windows in Barcelona. You also see lots of funny T-shirts with donkeys beating up bulls.

Do the kids who ride this know they are making a politcal statement?

We did stumble on an amazing outdoor food market on La Rambla, however. It was massive (almost as big as Philadelphia's famous market). Fruit, vegetables, meat and fish were all on display. We could not believe the prices. Two pineapple for about $1.25. A pound of strawberries for about 85 cents. We should have skipped the Churros con chocolate.

After La Rambla, it was time for more culture. So we walked to La Familia, Gaudi's famous unfinished church. Little did we know that the walk was over 5 miles. and we had already put 3 miles on our sneakers. Gaudi worked on the church for the late 1800s until his death in 1926. His crypt is on site. Since then, it has been worked on intermittently through private funding and museum admissions. It is not expected to be finished for 50 years! Commenting on the length of the project Gaudi said "My client" (God) "is in no hurry."

La Familia under construction

La Familia was crowded with school kids so we high tailed it out of there for some more hot Gaudi action. Parc Guell was built in 1900 by Gaudi and financed by his patron. It was a commercial flop and abandoned in 1914. The Parc is on a hill on the far edge of Barcelona, so we expected some peace and quiet.

As a fan of extravagent failures, I wanted to see it myself. Apparently no one told the hoardes of cigarette smoking and soccer playing teenagers that this was a flop.

Parc Guell entrance

It must have been a day off school for kids, because everywhere we went there were kids with parents, groups of kids and teenagers. The Picasso Museum, La Familia, and Parc Guell were all inundated with kids.

Parc Guell

One kid at Parc Guell kept yelling "Happy Hour" in his Catalon accent. No matter where were on the grounds, we heard "Happy Hour" every couple of minutes. I don't know if he liked the sound of phrase, was calling for his newly nicknamed amigo or was advertising a local cantina, but suddenly I was thirsty.

We went to a little hole in the wall off La Rambla. No tourists, no English, just old formica
counters and soccer on the TV. We ordered tapas and the fried eggplant was excellent. We also had sangria for the only time on the trip. It was good, but we really didn't see that much sagria in Spain. Maybe Spainards only drink it in the summer. Maybe it is more popular in other areas of Spain. Maybe only tourists drink it. Anyway, we went to bed early since we had an early flight to Jerez.

Karen at Parc Guell (Note view of Barcelona)

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Saturday, April 08, 2006

Day 2

Our second day in Barcelona was a real challenge. We had unexpectedly been moved from our apartment in the Marina district to the city center. Karen wanted to stay in the Marina district because Barcelona is notoriously loud, especially late at night. The woman who moved us to our new apartment assured us that the apartment was soundproof and we wouldn't hear anything. After being up for 36 hours, we wouldn't have heard Al Queda testing explosives in the next room. However, we had booked a driver to take us to a winery the next morning at 11:30 am and he had our address in the marina. Since neither Karen or I wear a watch and we left cell phones at home, we had no way to tell what time it was. When I woke up and walked down the street to find the time I saw a clock that said 10:30. Thinking we had some time, I went back to the apartment and got Karen and we hailed a cab to meet our driver. What I did not realize is that Barcelona had just moved to daylight savings time and it was actually 11:30. We were late.

We tried using a pay phone to call the driver to tell him we were late, but could not get it to work. It wouldn't take our Euros or our phone card. Even if we could call an operator, what would we say? We wandered around until a city worker showed us an Internet cafe. For about $1 an hour you could get Internet access. I emailed the driver's company and asked them to send him over. No luck. The guy at the Internet cafe only spoke Catalon (although he was listening to Dire Straits on the radio). Finally, I was able to get him to show me how to use the phone and we got the driver to meet us 2 hours late.

Our nemesis (left)

I arranged for us to have a driver take us to a Cava winery outside of Barcelona. Cava is Spanish champagne and the grapes are grown in the Penedes region. Cordoneiu is the second largest cava producer in Spain. They make 350,000 bottles of cava a day using the traditional French process. Our tour guide Vincent has worked at Cordoneiu since he was 15 when he started at the winery sweeping floors. He took Karen and I and a couple from Scotland on a tour of the winery. The caves under the winery house the cava while it is aged.
some tunnels are over 500 yards long with pallets of bottles stacked floor to ceiling.
Wine has been produced in this area since the 1500's and cava since the end of the 19th century. Condoneiu is the second oldest family run business in Europe. Vincent told us that the winery hosts many special events and that Friday the president and members or Real Madrid would be dining at Cordoneui.

Vincent at work (above right)

Like any good tour, the Cordoneiu tour ends in the gift shop. We were surprised to find that Cordoneui does not ship, so anything we wanted, we would have to take with us. Since Karen and I enforce a strict policy of 1 bag when we travel, we could only
buy 3 bottles. One bottle of brut (dry) cava, one bottle of semi sec (semi sweet) and one bottle of their new pinot noir cava. Only the pinot noir made it home with us. We drank the rest during our trip.

Cordoneiu poster (left)

When we were leaving our new friends from Scotland told us they had taken the train from Barcelona and walked a mile to the winery. Total cost - less than 5 Euro. Oh well, I guess that our driver's story about how his grandfather used to drink brandy with raw eggs in the morning was worth $350.

Karen at Cordoneiu (Right)

Still thirsty for wine, we walked to Plaza Santa Maria for some wine at a wine bar offering 350 different wines. We were greeted with a plate of olives (of course) and ordered some fine local wine. Since there was no place to sit outside and the bar was smokey , we left quickly for dinner. But not before Karen bought a couple of scarves in a local shop. I would tell you more about them and their history, but the shopkeepers did not speak English and I was thinking more about dinner than scarves (as usual).

We had dinner at Origen 99.9% Organic. The restaurant was not organic and the food was nothing spectacular. The most noteworthy things about the restaurant was our waitresses who is a musician (Bass) from Cuba and the apertif that made grappa taste like watered down light beer.

posted by One Love Farm | 6:23 PM | 0 comments