Something Close to Our Hearts.......

Vino! (vino tinto to be more precise)

I know this looks like a random set of wine bottles….and it is. The reason for this post is to tell you the wine in Spain is pretty damned delicious! These wines were purchased at the grocery store and averaged 4 Euro/bottle (about $6) with some very respectable wines costing no more than $4!
What could be better, you ask? Over here (Europe in general) there are no added sulphites (a preservative) so those middle-of-the-night headaches and following-day hangovers are nonexistent. A bottle with lunch? Sure, why not?! You never feel drunk or tired…..or maybe I’ve built up tolerance…..

El Jardin

Before coming to Spain we were told by other friends who had been here that Carlos is an avid gardener, they weren’t kidding! With the exception of the land that the house and pool actually sit on, the remainder of the property is a collection of every conceivable tropical plant from cactus, agave and succulents to a poinsettia, roses and numerous other flowering plants and vines that I cannot remember the names of.
The rain has certainly made things pop!






















There are also lemon, lime, orange, pomegranate, almond and olive trees and gorgeous, magenta bougainvillea climbing on the walls near the sun room and pool. All of these plants are set in borders and beds divided by stone walkways and gravel paths. It’s all very beautiful to look at but the work it takes to maintain this place is enormous, I don’t know how Carlos does it.









When Carlos found out that I was a “farmer” (ok…someone lead him astray on that one!) he got very excited in the hopes that I would do some gardening while I was here.

I have to say that I have always loved to look at pretty gardens but the thought of having to develop and maintain said gardens makes me anxious. BUT! Since I have so much time on my hands here and the weather is so nice (at least for the past couple of days) I have been working in Carols’ garden for a couple of hours each day (with a little help from Christopher). This also allows us to work on our tans!

The thing I have to worry about the most in the garden is trying not to get stuck by the thorns on the cactus. I will say they are very easy to cut with a saw; the problem is picking up the pieces. (I’m pretty sure he gave me carte blanche to do what needed to be done out there….I guess I’ll find out when he gets back……..)
All of these photos were taken in the garden today. The weather is perfect for early spring crops so we also planted some lettuce and scallions.

what to do on a sunday....

even though nobody under the age of 80 ever goes to church, spain is still a "catholic" country. i say catholic in "quotes" because somehow they manage to balance the pragmatism of life (read: gay marriage) with the comfort that the routines and traditions of the church brings.

but on sundays, there ain't nothin' to do in spain because it's considered a day for the family. the two things that are reliably open are churches and bars. the bars have people coming and going but the churches .... well, like i said, nobody goes. an occasional restaurant will be open but it's only 1 out of 10. we had to hunt for a while today to get some lunch -- but when we did, it was this lovely pizza joint literally on the beach and we were sitting in glorious sunshine drinking cañas with a bacon and onion pizza.



today was the first day of sun in like a week, wow, so we set off north along the coast. first stop: agua amarga. it's a charming little town tucked away and difficult to reach (in short, unspoiled). sleepy, sure, but it was a sunday so i have no clue what normal life is like. the picture to the right is the center square with their christmas pitaca all strung up (and a bit battered by the recent winds). we'll have to go back!

last sunday was a total bust for us so this time we decided to jump into the coche for an adventure! don't you love the car? it's an ato. or asti. something like that. very small and way too crunchable but perfect for its economy and easy parking. the wheels are smaller than most things at crate & barrel.


the rest of the day was driving up the coast to carboneras, mojacar, puerto del rey, villaricos, and finally vera. each place slightly more bland and touristed than the previous. the town of mojacar is for the brits because an entire strip mall was nothing but bars or restaurants (all closed, of course) with names like the rusty nail and pete's tavern. we took that as a sign to keep on driving!

the real gem of the day was the drive itself. do you see the hairpin turn in that road? i tried to photograph the views but the camera couldn't take in the entire panorma. [be sure to click on these pictures if you want to see them in their full glory.]

tomorrow is monday which means life returns to normal, except that it's the 28th. december 28th is the spanish version of april fool's day. tom and carlos have laid the groundwork for us to hoodwink their friends in a big way and tomorrow is when i have to deliver the news with a straight face. poor antonia, she will undoubtedly want to kill me when she finds out the truth. stay tuned for an update and if you don't ever hear from me again call the police.

Our Christmas Ham

No, not Jon or Mia but Serrano!
This Spanish delicacy is actually more staple then delicacy. Most homes have one of these babies right on the kitchen counter and now, so do we! (You may even be seeing one in Hudson.)

Jamon Serrano literally means “mountain” ham. After these hams (the rear leg of the animal; the fore leg is also cured but goes by the name Paleta Serrano) are cured in salt for a couple of weeks, they are hung to dry for a period of up to two years, usually at higher elevations where the air is cooler, hence the name Serrano.



Jamon Iberico is a similar version (also called Pata Negra-literally “black foot”) but made from a pig that’s native to Spain. The use of the name jamon iberico is regulated by the Spanish government as it’s part of their (food) heritage; only the specific breed of credo negro –“black pig”- can be used for this type of jamon. The most interesting part of the jamon iberico is the pigs are fattened (finished) on only acorns for the last few months of their lives, their weight doubles during this time. These hams also cost about double that of a Serrano. We hear they taste very different….you can bet we’ll be sure to check it out before we leave.

Once the curing process is over, these hams are ready for sale. Where does one buy one of these, you ask? …..at any grocery store, butcher or AlCampo/Carrefour-the European versions of Walmart. There are walls of them…usually near the cheese. A complete gourmand’s dream!
The proper way to carve these hams is not for the faint of heart as the leg is anchored to the special carving stand with a big screw and the hoof is staring at you the whole time you’re slicing it! It looks a bit like a medieval torture device.




With the help of YouTube (gotta love that modern technology) we were able to figure out the special carving technique. When carving a little at a time you start with the “thin” side of the jamon--before flipping it over. When carving the entire thing at once you can start with either side.
You first need to remove the thick layer of rancid fat (appetizing isn’t it?!) to expose the actual meat. The meat is then sliced is thin pieces about 3-4 inches in length. The texture is velvety and the taste is buttery. If sliced thinly enough (a bit heavier than Italian prosciutto) it melts in your mouth. It is served in everything from tapas (with bread, cheese and olives) to panini (with manchego!) to wrapping it around asparagus and melon or…OMG! fresh figs!…or just slicing and eating right off the leg.



When finished carving, cover the leg first with a reserved piece of the fatty layer (to help preserve the moisture in the meat) and then the entire leg with a dry kitchen towel and set it aside until you need it again.
It’s very simple and rather brilliant.
I originally thought we would never eat a whole ham while we are here but……we’ve had this ham few days and it could quite possibly be 1/3 gone!
Bueno Probecho!

Christmas Lunch in Las Negras

Just a little sampling of meal time here in Spain.
Our form of tapas...plates of nibbly bits (Mediterranean style) and a little (ok! a whole bottle) of slightly sweet Italian lambrusco.


The day eventually turned to overcast skies but even with that we eat well...and the views are pretty wonderful.

Have I told you we can see the sea from here?

Christmas Morning in Las Negras

It's not raining!!! We've had 7 of the last 8 days of rain...and gale force winds. Again last night I thought we were in Kansas and the house was going to blow into the sea. (Have I told you we're near the sea?) The wind was that bad.

This morning we awoke to bright sunshine and 70 degrees! Daisy and I took a walk in the rambla then I took a run into town and back. It was so gorgeous I had to walk back toward town so I could climb to the ancient ruins of a windmill and take this fabulous photo.

The darkest mountain to the center-right of the photo is the mountain that Las Negras is named for.

Oh Tannenpitaca!

One thing I have not seen here are any Christmas trees lighting up residential windows so I’m pretty sure they don’t do the tree thing. (There aren’t any left to cut anyway.) But since we’re Americano (NORTE Americano-there is a difference!) we couldn’t resist our own tradtion and decided to put up a tree. Tom and Carlos have a tree they said we could use but we felt like we should try and be a little more “native “. We decided to give the holiday tree some local flair.
This plant is called a pitaca. It is in the agave family (like aloe and where tequila comes from), the tips of the 6 ft tall, silver “leaves” have a spine that will pierce you to the bone and the blossom spike (the last burst of life the poor plant has at the age of three years) is 25 ft tall. These plants dot the landscape and are protected-if not federally then by the locals. You can’t cut a living blossom spike but once the spike is spent its fair game.



There is a small “grove” of these pitaca in the rambla right next to the house and after studying them during a few of our hikes we decided one would make a lovely Chanukah Bush! With a bow saw and some brute strength we cut a choice specimen.

We had big plans for our pitaca! We were going to paint it white, place it in the courtyard and cover it in white lights but, it’s rained so much there was no painting it and we didn’t dare use Tom and Carlos’ indoor lights out in the courtyard. We did however, enjoy it’s grandure in the courtyard for a few days which involved passing it over the walls of the house as we could not get it through a doorway of regular width!


After a few days of seeing our sad pitaca undecorated and out in the rain, we decided we could better enjoy it if we brought it into the sunroom (back up over the roof and through double doors).
Since there was no time to paint it we tarted it up with colored lights and a few ornaments annnnd….made a tree skirt out of cacti trimmings from the garden.


So here you have it…our lovely Christmas Pitaca. The photos seriously don’t do it justice. It’s stunning!


And right out that arched window behind the tree is the Mediterranean Sea…have I told you we’re near the Sea?

Feliz Navidad!

Feliz Navidad!

Even though we’re in the desert it’s Christmas time here as well. How do we know? Well, we’ve been to the mall and we've seen the decorations, in most towns they string lights across the road that read “Feliz Navidad” and today, Christmas Eve, there was a line out the door at the butcher shop. Plus, when we were in Almeria yesterday they had outdoor speakers mounted all along the main shopping street playing Christmas tunes from many lands, including Elvis!

This is the Feliz Navidad sign that hangs over the road at the entrance to Las Negras...for some reason they do not have it lit tonight.








They do, however have a number of these diddies lit....













We understand Christmas Eve in Spain is when people get together to have family and friend time so I’m not really sure what happens Christmas day…. You see, the Spaniards follow the nativity instead of Santa so on King’s Day (January 6th -which commemorates the arrival of the three wise men to Bethlehem) is when children put out a shoe in the hopes of the wise men leaving them a present.

Then on January 7th…the big sales start at the MALL!!! Crazy sales like 70% off! There is also an 18% VAT added to things like clothes. When we, as turistas, leave the country with new merchandise the VAT is returned to us at customs so it’s like 88% off of clothing! Muy Fantastico! We plan on shopping!

Did You Know...

If you double click on top of the photos in this blog they will expand so you can see more detail?
Fantastico!

La Rambla

In Spanish, the name rambla means an intermittent water flow, and is derived from the Arabic 'ramla' which means 'sandy riverbed'. However, La Rambla is most commonly known as the tree lined pedestrian walkway in central Barcelona. It’s the center of tourism and social time there.


Some Spanish cities have ramblas similar to Barcelona’s and we’ve discovered they were originally a dry sandy riverbed-that actually carried runoff during the heavy rains. We understand the modern pedestrian walkways were constructed over these old riverbeds and they now have drainage built under them.

Las Negras has a rambla too! But it’s the original dry riverbed that is still necessary for runoff from the surrounding mountains.


Tom tells us this rambla is said to run every ten years. A few weeks before we arrived there were heavy rains and the rambla (which runs right next to Tom and Carlos’ house) had two feet of runoff in it. It was dry when we arrived but with all of the rain we’ve had in the past few days we have seen a trickle in it.

It is the perfect place for an easy desert hike and it happens to be Daisy’s favorite place to run. (Here we can let her off leash!) She runs circles around us and after about a 30-45 minute hike she naps and is ready again in a couple of hours.

The hike through la rambla is beautiful! From a distance it can look like a wasteland but up close it is teaming with life. Even though we have seen a few small birds (and one time Daisy flushed some partridge) and we hear there is wild boar (although we haven’t seen them), there doesn't seem to be much in terms of fauna. I’m not sure if there is more fauna at other times of the year but this time of the year it is mostly flora….wild thyme, sage and lavender everywhere!


There are not that many cacti but the few that are here are mostly spineless. Other then the areas near houses there are NO trees. Twice now I have heard that 500 years ago a squirrel could travel from this coast to Madrid (five hours by car) without touching the forest floor….not any more.



A bit up the rambla it splits in two. At the divide you can climb up a slight hill to a plateau where there is evidence of a local shepherd; sheep “berries” on the ground and a holding pen/corral built into the rocky hillside. I’m not sure what those sheep eat up here and I certainly could not tell you where they get a drink but the views of the Sea are fabuloso!

So Get this........

At noon today it had been pouring rain for close to 20 hours, we were cooped up and needing to get out. I decided to take Daisy for a walk...in the pouring rain. I'm from hearty Dutch stock and used to the cold, upstate NY winters so why not? I found an umbrella and off we went.
Since there are no cars around here, Daisy went off leash. (I'd seen Tom do it and she had seemed good about it). She LOVED it! She ran her skinny self all over the place but watched where I was and followed me at a distance. When I turned a corner or turned around I whistled and she followed. We had a good time. She returned tired and soaking wet. I returned and did my little work out in the home gym. I thought my workout was done for the day. I was mistaken......

This afternoon we were still feeling cooped up so we went out again. This time no rain. Christopher came along too and we went a bit further to the top of the hill that's to the north of the house. Daisy went of leash again and this time she went a bit too far......At one point she decided she would no longer listen to anything we had to say and went off to do her own thing. I did everything I could to coax her but she would have none of it. She would not come when called or whistled to.

I chased her stupid ass all the way to the Sea!


There is a road that comes into town that has a few cars on it and all I needed was for her to get hit. At one point she was running down this road with me in hot pursuit. We ran through private gardens, deserted lots, rustic, wild hillsides, around the community tennis courts and finally onto the beach. Once I got to the edge of the beach she disappeared over the dune. I couldn't find her.

It's a small town (but it was a long run from half way up the mountain to the shore!) and Tom says occasionally she gets out but always knows her way back. I was a nervous wreck!

After searching the beach for a minute and not being able to find her I headed home. I wasn't a block from the beach when she came prancing toward (and then around!) me. I told her to find her own way home as I was done with her.

I went towards home, she kind of kept her eye on me but took off in the opposite direction. At this point I gave up. Closer to home Christopher was waiting on the street (I had the house keys). I was over it so we went back to the house and left the front gate ajar so she could get in if she decided to.
She found her way back through the fence and barked at the back door a few minutes later.
She's just hateful!
Needless to say...she and I arent' speaking right now.

I had wanted to start my running program but thought it best to wait until I had my full lung capacity (still coughing a bit). But I guess I can start tomorrow, I got a good run in this afternoon.

Little Missy will now be on a leash when we leave the compound!

Its clementine season!

I know what you’re thinking…..Yeah, so what, its Clementine season here too, Christmas brings these tasty little oranges.
Here’s the difference….These are grown right around the corner and a box doesn’t cost $8. This entire bowl was about two bucks!
The only thing better are the mandarins at Christopher's parent's house.

Nuestra Casa

So you have an idea of where we’re staying…..here are a few photos of the house.
It’s basically a big square with an open “quad” in the center. Each of the four sides of the building is a separate apartment. We’re in one (Tom and Carlos’ place) and each of the other three are the units that are rented out during high season. It’s now the quiet time of year so we have the whole place to ourselves. The quad is incredibly nice to live with, it keeps the wind off of you (most of the time) but it allows you to be outside with full sun and complete privacy. (The white glare in the upper part of the photo is the Mediterranean). On the far side of the house, away from the afternoon sun, there is an enclosed terrace with views of the sea.



This is the lovely pool. It’s a bit too chilly to swim but it’s out of the breeze. I can see sun bathing on our future.



The views behind the house are of the surrounding mountains and neighbors. Of the two neighboring houses in this photo, the doomed roof on the left is an actual observatory with a roof that opens and pivots so the working telescope can follow the stars. The yellowish building on the right is the original farm house for the area. It is still a functioning home for weekenders from Madrid.

Lazy Daisy

meet daisy .... one of the calmest, most gentile dogs you'll ever meet. she enjoys long walks on the beach and heavy petting.

seriously.

always up for a game of tug-of-war or a hike up the rambla, she'll do a great job of keeping us company.

but she's lonely so we're going to get a few puppies to keep her company. maybe a cat or three, too.

boy, will tom and carlos be surprised when they get home!

Tuesday, December 15, 2009...We went to the MALL! (and then some).

Carlos and Tom took us into Almeria today for a little tour.
Almeria is a large city of 170,000 people; it is also the capital of the province of the same name. We went to get the lay of the land…find the train station and a place to get a haircut, check out cute boys…and go to Al Campo, Europe’s version of Walmart (which was actually in the mall). Al Campo would put Walmart to shame with its uber-fresh fish department (an entire Marlin on ice!), wines, cheese, Serrano hams at one end of the store and towering shelves of electronics, not-so-stylish house wares and clothes at the opposite end.
While at the mall we went to Hollywood Hamburguesas for an American style lunch. As we sat there eating a plate of cheesy bacon fries (served by a Moorish hunk named Omier-yikes!) we seriously could have been anywhere in the US (except the Spanish signage announcing the Christmas sales gave it away).

At the time I thought lunch was going to be the highlight of the day but I was mistaken. When we left Almeria we drove the coastal road home instead of the highway. There were some pretty sights to see along the way but the best of all where the beaches in San Jose, the next town to the south of Las Negras (about a 15 minute drive).

The town of San Jose reminded me a little of the photos I’ve seen of Capri, Italy: white dwellings rising up off of the shoreline and stacked on top of each other up the surrounding hillsides, all hovering around a cove/marina. We were told the place is a mob scene of families and screaming children from June 15-end of August. This time of year it’s so serene and pretty much deserted.




If you drive past the town, following the signs for the beaches you will hit a dirt road that stretches for two miles though the natural park. The only buildings along this road are the original farm houses (maybe only 2 and even those are not lived in). All you can see is the gorgeous, rustic topography with the coastline stretching out along your left and the beautiful beaches in the distance. Oh and there was a shepherd walking his flock of sheep through the land. The entire package seriously almost made me cry.




Photos could not do this place justice. These are among the most beautiful sights I have ever seen, ranking right up there with the coastline of County Kerry in Ireland. Anyone who comes to visit us will be going here. I didn’t even get photos of the best views so I had to pirate them off the internet.

The Schedule

everyone is asking if we've adapted to the spanish lifestyle yet. what they mean is the times at which you eat your meals and go to bed. imagine:

2:00 lunch starts, followed by a nap (or just lounging in the sun since, you know, it's 60 degrees here)
4:00 lunch/siesta time is over and shops open back up

9:00 dinner starts
11:00 dinner ends

1:00 the earliest you'd find an average person going to bed.

can you believe it?

it's actually not that hard, especially when you wake up at 10am every day.

December 13....Sunday's in Spain

Today we learned what Sunday’s are all about…..taking it slow, bar hopping and tapas!
This morning I slept until 11am! I have not done that ever. I know it had a lot to do with the jet lag and being sick as well as the late nights (evening get-togethers start at 9 with beers, then progress to dinner before moving to a new venue for cocktails and breaking up very late…in the early am hours of your choosing..1, 2, 3 or later). I’m not sure how I’m going to adjust to Spanish time…..

Tom and Carlos took us for a walk-about in town this morning, showing us the beachfront, scuba shop, promenade and little hole-in-the-wall bars where you get your Sunday beers and tapas. The great thing about tapas is they’re free! (and tasty!) Basically you order a caña of beer (a caña is the size of the beer-about a half pint or less) and ask the bar-keep what they are offering for tapas. Each establishment has their specialty.
Traditional tapas were had at our first venue…slices of bread topped with wedges of cheese, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with oregano; salty, golden potato chips dressed with oily anchovy fillets (excellent with beer!), etc. And here’s the thing that has Christopher most excited thus far….Just about every bar will have an entire leg of Serrano ham leaning on a special rack from where they’ll shave off a few pieces to serve with bread, olives and olive oil. It’s really fantastic!
For every beer you order (about 1.5 Euros each or $2.25) you get a free tapa. You can sit and have 4 beers and go through the better part of the bar’s tapas menu and be completely stuffed for $10! However, you tend to bar hop, having one beer per stop…not only for the change of scenery but for the variety and a chance to run into your friends.
This is a very small town and since Carlos was once the mayor we ran into many of their friends...or Carlos just popped his head in their open kitchen door or window to shout hello at them!

Today, the four of us discovered there was a tapa contest for restaurants/bars that are located in the natural park of Cabo de Gata (where we’re located). A few of the restaurants/bars from Las Negras were participating and we got to rate their tapas on a scale of 1-10.
The second place we encountered today was participating in this contest, their tapas where very neuvo in style. They were good but tended to be rather sculptural (stacked food) and each had the same sweet salsa (a kind of tomato chutney that actually tasted like duck sauce). Although we thought they were a 10 for presentation the flavor was a bit odd to serve with your beer. Overall they were just ok.
The next bar we went to (which was the third of the afternoon) was also participating in the contest and they served a more traditional style in terms of presentation and flavor. One tapa was almost like a chicken stew while the other was squid in a tomato based sauce. Both were very good, BUT! here was the trouble…..we had three tapas to try at each participating restaurant/bar! With each tapa comes a beer! We’d already had one beer at bar number one, three at bar number two and we were headed toward the third beer at bar number three when we had to call Uncle! Even though the beers where light and almost pilsner in style, we were stuffed and pretty tipsy. As the day went on we kept trying to get our caña of beer to be served to us smaller and smaller just so we could finish judging the contest but it was of no use. We were done. We’re not talking a lot of beer here but when you add that many together…ay, dios mio!
We headed home for siestas (at 5:30pm!) and other then a little social time late into the evening (and I think we had a very late dinner too) we were done for the day.
Once again I did not have my camera. So sorry! I KNOW we will head out for tapas again and I’ll be sure to bring it along.

Something of Interest...

Today, Tom explained to us where tapas came from.
It seems at some point many years ago (couldn’t tell you when) people were tired of the flies bombarding their open glasses of beer(or wine).

A bar-keep designed these little snacks, served on slices of bread so they could be placed over the opening of the glass to help keep the flies out. Hence tapa = top/lid (maybe not a literal translation but you get the idea).
Not sure that it was the smartest idea in terms of practicality (wouldn’t flies be equally if not more attracted to the snack?) but civilization is sure glad they did! And we love the price!

Saturday December 12...Meeting the Friends and Neighbors

Since I feel a bit behind with these postings (I would like to do this daily and write about our experiences as they are fresh in my mind) I will say my illness has continued to get better with lots of sleep and lots of Nyquil and Theraflu so I won’t bore you with the details and a daily run down. Christopher is now in the middle of a cold that seems to be more head congestion then what I’ve experienced. He hasn’t had the sore throat like I did-Thanks Dios!


Today is a gorgeous, sunny day in the upper 50’s. This is me and Daisy the Dalmatian (Sorry Phineas!) getting to know each other in the rodaso colored courtyard of the casa….


(We’ll get Christopher in the photos soon!)


Tom and Carlos invited five of their friend for a BBQ today. It was the perfect way to meet this very fun, close knit group who have careers ranging from rock star (a band called el lunatica) to attorney to property manager to tomato industry heiress. It also got us to jump right into the Andalucían dialect, which I am told is one of the hardest to understand. Having only been casually dating Rosetta Stone for a few weeks I was able to understand close to nothing. All I heard this day was Spanish flying around the room at break-neck speed. Now that I’ve been here a couple of days and have had a private lesson with a lovely, 70 year old lady named Juana (more on that later) I can totally see how this may prove to be a difficult dialect to learn especially after studying Central and South American Spanish (gracias Jocelyn Blvd Boys!). But I digress….

The BBQ was fabulous! Carlos made large plates of tapas consisting of frozen foie gras shaved over small rounds of toasted bread, a special, local tomato (kind of funky with its bumpy shape and purple/brown mottled color) that’s chunked up raw and served with chopped garlic and olive oil, the most exquisite squid that was braised in olive oil, bay leaves and pepper corns (heaven!), pollo y pimento salad on toasted bread, a traditional Spanish tortilla of fried potatoes (not browned) and egg and finally, toasted hunks of baguette that were spread with a salted tomato puree and drizzled with olive oil at the table. Tom added his American touches to the BBQ with cheeseburgers on sesame seed buns! It was perfect.
We drank a light, Italian asti spumanti, cañas of beer (not to be confused with coños!) and their friend Antonia brought a homemade wine she called vino de hombre or “man’s wine” due to its high alcohol content. It was a beautiful, clear garnet color with the slight hint of licorice (and it was strong!).
By the end of the afternoon it was time for a siesta as we were all very full and very tired from the drinking.

Through all of this, Christopher’s Spanish came right back to him and he was able to carry on conversation with the best of them. Although by the end of the afternoon he said his head was full and it was getting harder for him to keep up. I sat, listened, smiled (and looked pretty!) and was able to catch about every hundredth word. It was a good time.
I had not yet thought about getting out the camera so there are no photos of the party…I’ll try and do better in the future.

Where are we?

So many people have asked…. “Where exactly are you guys in Spain”?
I didn’t really answer that question in the first blog post so I’ll try and do it here.
The easiest way is with this map…..

Do you see that pink "A" on the south eastern coast of the country? That’s it.

The town is called Las Negras and it is named for the black mountain that borders the northern end of the town/cove. There are 250 permanent residents here in the winter but the population swells to over 8000 come summer tourist season.

In driving time, Las Negras is 10 hours from Barcelona, 6 hours from Gibraltar, 5 hours from Madrid and 4 hours from Seville. It is in the province of Andalucía and is in the only desert climate in the European Union with 360 days of sunshine a year (I think they’re fibbing about that one!)
This time of year the days are in the 60’s and the evenings are in the high 30’s/low 40’s. It completely reminds me of Palm Springs in terms of the flora and landscape. As we look out our windows away from the Sea, we are faced with towering mountains. It’s really gorgeous!

An Observation.....

Something I noticed after making my first set of postings….writing the postings in word and copying them over to the blog makes for a huge run-on paragraph! So Sorry! I’ll try and figure this thing out for future postings.

December 10, 2009 Flight Day!

Well, as luck would have it, just as we finished closing up the house and sat down to lunch at the new Mexican café at Taste (which is fabulous BTW!), I started to feel the aches of the flu setting in. By the time we drove to Newark airport, made it though security and into el lounge de presidente de Continental, I had more aches then a WWF wrestler, the chills, a wickedly sore throat and a headache. I was convinced it was N1H1 or Ebola. Luckily we were able to stop at a CVS along the way and get Theraflu and Nyquil. I downed a Theraflu in the lounge and seriously contemplated taking a cocktail of the two PLUS an Ambien as we boarded the plane.

Do you see this photo?


It’s sad little me, patient zero, seated all by myself (the photo reminds me of Beaker from The Muppet Show). Christopher took this shot from his seat a few rows ahead (we chose to sit apart because he needed an aisle seat and I needed a window seat). My quarantine didn’t last all that long as I did end up with a row mate, but only one.
After taking only an Ambien and a Theraflu just after takeoff, I awoke on the approach to Madrid feeling worse than ever. Planes and drugged illness do not mix! The chills were back and the aches were worse since I hadn’t moved in 7 hours.
We made our way through customs and into the bright, sunny Spanish morning (about 38 degrees) so we could board the free shuttle that took us to the Iberia terminal #4 a couple of miles down the road. Even in my weakened state I found the architecture of this terminal just amazing! Unfortunately I did not have the wherewithal to grab my camera for some photos.
Christopher let me sit with the bags as he forged his way through this immense terminal trying to find a self check in (we were changing airlines at this point; our bags had been checked through but we weren’t). He returned having successfully checked us in and now we faced the fact that we had five hours to be wandering around the terminal. I was not up for that, but I was desperate for a cup of hot water so I could feed my Theraflu addiction. We decided to take a drastic measure and try to sneak into el lounge de presidente de Iberia. We had no status with that airline but thought the platinum AmEx card that got us into Continental’s lounge would be the key to this lounge too. We knew it was a long shot but it certainly wouldn’t hurt to ask and, if playing dumb didn’t work, we could play the N1H1/Ebola card.
We approached the frosted glass doors of the lounge (doors that are meant to keep the hoi polloi like us from even peaking inside), they parted and we saw a large desk of gate keepers that were frantically trying to calm the 10-12 upset passengers that stood in front of them (seems that a flight to Heathrow was cancelled or delayed due to weather). Schadenfreude crept onto our faces and we slipped by the lot of them and into verboten territory.

Within minutes I fed my addiction and this is what I looked like:



I was awakened by a cleaning woman trying to use a dust mop around my feet. She looked sorry for me and told me in Spanish that I understood! (it must have been the drugs), that there were beds at the other end of the lounge. I thought I was hallucinating but ended up wandering down there to find what was called the “relaxation room”. It was dark and quiet and there was a free bed! While I napped (at this point I think I was still trying to figure out if it was sickness fatigue or residual Ambien that was kicking my butt) Christopher guarded the bags and played games on his phone (and kept a watchful eye for a sign that we would get booted from the sanctuary!) I awoke with enough time to grab a sandwich (LOVE the free stuff in the presidente lounges!) and head to our gate.
We boarded a very empty flight for the last leg of our journey.
An interesting observation….
On the flight from Madrid to Almeria I realized how barren and desert-like the Spanish landscape was. From the time we crossed the Spanish coast line until we landed in Madrid and again from Madrid to Almeria the landscape was the same. It reminded me of Palm Springs. It’s beautiful but its desert.

Our final segment…
It was an easy hour’s flight from Madrid to Almeria. The runway at the Almeria airport runs parallel to and only 200 yrds from the Mediterranean which made for a beautiful landing. We walked across the tarmac and into the luggage claim area and waited for our bags. We had all of our bags but one and the last bag to come shooting through the breeze flaps was a sorry, broken, taped together bag with a belt and boxer shorts hanging out the sides……it was ours.
The wonderful ground assistant helped Christopher start the paperwork for the damaged bag. In the end he’ll get a new suitcase.
Remember how we said we were bringing our phone so we could hook it up over here and you could call us just like we were at home? Well, the phone was in that suitcase and it was destroyed! (we’ll get a new phone too) The only thing missing and/or broken was that phone. So…..you can’t call us but you can still send emails.
If you do call you’ll get our answering machine, leave a message and we’ll get it via email.
Another interesting note……
On our approach to Almeria we could see what looked like large factory buildings. These buildings turned out to be tarped, hothouses for growing tomatoes. It seems that Almeria grows 60% of the tomatoes that are consumed in the EU. This (now ecologically sound) enterprise has turned a depressed part of Spain into one of the most prosperous.

Carlos and Tom met us at the airport and drove us to their home (our new abode for the next three months) at which point I had to take to my bed for the night…..the chills had settled back in and I was now desperate for a NyQuil! Tom and Carlos made dinner for Christopher and spent the evening catching up. I was in bed hoping for a great night so I could be in full swing tomorrow!

Welcome

Welcome to this little blog about our time here in Spain. At the prompting of a friend (or two) I’ve decided to keep this journal of our discoveries. This will allow friends and family to see what we’re up to and give me something to do while Christopher slaves away with work! I’m not sure how this blog will develop or how often I’ll post my ramblings but check in and see where it takes us.

If you're wondering who Tio Cochinillo is it's Spanish for Uncle Piggy....