Mallorca

Last week was time for our final break from school. When we planned our vacation, we chose Mallorca (one of the Balearic Islands), which is just off the east coast of Spain (about 130 miles SSE of Barcelona). We were hoping for some decent weather and we got beautiful days in the 60's with lots of sun. And, even though it was shockingly also in the 60's in San Sebastian, the Mediterranean sun just felt warmer.

We stayed in Palma de Mallorca, the capital, which is just beautiful:

Our hotel was slightly outside the city center, which meant we spent a good amount of time riding the local buses, but it was worth it. Here is the pool at our hotel with the sea just behind it:

Unfortunately, the pool was not heated yet, so we weren't able to swim, but being there with very few tourists was well worth it. Some long-time readers may recall that we took a break from school last February and traveled to Portugal where we found masses of tourists in both Lisbon and Porto despite the fact that it was "off-season". In Mallorca, everything was mellow and other than the fact that several of the restaurants that we wanted to try were closed for vacation, we felt it was a perfect time to be there.

Mallorca has a fascinating history, which includes the Phoenicians who arrived on the island around the 8th Century BCE and, of course, the Romans, who founded the city of Palmeria (modern-day Palma) around 123 BCE. The Moors conquered Mallorca in 902 CE, and the city of Palma (Medina Mayurqa) flourished under the rule of the Emirate of Cordoba for 100 years during which the Moors improved agriculture with irrigation, and developed local industries. Other Moorish kingdoms ruled Mallorca until it was retaken by King James I of Aragon in 1229.

The oldest remaining buildings in Palma are the Arab Baths, which you can still visit:

Between 1300 and 1310, James II built an impressive round fortress, the Castell de Belver, on a hill just outside the center of Palma. We were amazed that such a structure, which is one of the few round castles in Europe, could be built at that time in only 10 years. The views from the castle are outstanding:

Even more impressive, the Royal Palace of La Almudaina was rebuilt around the same time from a previous Moorish Alcazar. This Palace, which was used sequentially by the rulers of Mallorca, Aragon and Spain, is still in use today. It has a truly impressive main hall that retained the arches of the old alcazar:

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And outside in the courtyard of the Palace:

And, of course, there is a giant cathedral, which we chose not to visit for 8 Euros a person since we see more than enough churches and cathedrals for free (there is even one in San Sebastian). But, the building is very impressive from the outside:

We very much enjoyed our time on Mallorca. And our trip coincided with the super full moon, as you can see in two photos. We were able to relax, enjoy the good weather, eat well (of course) and drink very good local wine (a favorite pastime when we travel). On our last day in the city, we ate in a small restaurant run by a chef who previously worked in a one-star Michelin restaurant. Our 3-course lunch was fantastic and only cost 15 Euros a person! Even with wine it only cost about $50 for a meal that easily would have cost 2-3 times that in the US. Spanish lunch is truly one of our favorite parts of living in Spain.

Hasta pronto,

Jeff and Shana

A Movie in Spanish? Not Quite

Since the beginning of 2019, we have been going to the movies most Thursday nights here in San Sebastian. Thursday is when the main local theater shows movies in their original version with Spanish subtitles, as opposed to dubbed into Spanish. As is normal for Spain, movies are much cheaper than in the states - only about $16 for both of us. (The price is even cheaper on Wednesdays, but there are hardly any movies in English scheduled then.)

This past Thursday, since the English-language movie we had yet to see did not appeal to us much (Mary Queen of Scots), we decided to go see La Clase de Piano, a French movie. Of course, since we don't speak French at all, we would be reading the Spanish subtitles for an entire movie. We thought this was a good test of our Spanish for several reasons: (1) the movie had a lot of music in it, so there was less dialogue than in other movies; (2) the story was familiar (kid from a poor family with a great talent gets a chance to show his genius - very Good Will Hunting-like); and (3) subtitles are much easier than "regular" Spanish because they often have to be shortened/simplified so the viewer can keep up with the pace of the dialogue.

So, how did we do? We were very happy with our ability to understand virtually all of the subtitles. There were a couple of scenes with very quick back-and-forth dialogue, which was a bit difficult, and there were some technical musical terms that we missed, but overall we felt we understood 80-85% of the dialogue/subtitles. We still don't think we are ready to see a movie in Spanish, but a foreign movie with Spanish subtitles does appear to be within our grasp.

By the way, the movie was not great. Not worth seeing in any language, unless perhaps you really like classical music.

Hasta luego,

Jeff and Shana

Pintxos in Logrono

Regular readers of our blog know that we love the food here in Spain. So, when Shana read that there is a pintxos contest in the Rioja region during February, we decided we had to go. We chose Logrono, the capital of the region, because it had over 50 bars participating in the contest and it is easy to get to, just 2 hours and 15 minutes by bus.

Each bar that participates in the competition creates a special pintxo for the contest. Although we only were in Logrono for 22 hours, we managed to try eight of these unique pintxos (and, of course, we had a glass of wine with each). We arrived Saturday evening in time for a dinner of four pintxos. First, we tried a vegan skewer that was tasty, but definitely paled by comparison to later offerings. Also, the bar seriously lacked atmosphere.

The second pintxo we tried was a vegetarian take on a dish that usually features cow intestines. Instead of intestine, it was made with a rice noodle in a vegetable-based sauce. Not only was the dish fantastic, but the little bar we had it at was playing really great blues music. We could have stayed for hours, but there were more pintxos to try.

Next, we tried a really simple toast with cheese, mushrooms and peppers. While its ingredients were simple, it was presented beautifully and tasted great.

Finally (at least for Saturday), we tried a quesadilla de chorizo, which as you can see was fried. It was probably our favorite pintxo of the night even though the competition was stiff.

The next morning, we woke up just in time to grab breakfast (nothing exciting) and head off for our 11 am visit to Bodegas Franco Espanolas. The winery is right across the river from the old part of the city, and on our way there we walked across a beautiful, old stone bridge:

The wine tour itself, which was in Spanish, was very nicely done, and the winery had interesting relics of its more than 100 years in business, including old photos and a petrified vine that is more than 100 years old:

We left after tasting a couple of glasses of ok wine, and headed into the city for a lunch of more pintxos before heading to the bus station for our trip home. Lunch was also four very good pintxos including caramelized pork gyoza:

A yummy bread ball filled with pork (again), and a really good sauce:

 A rabbit salad on a rice cake that did taste a bit like chicken, but also a little bit different:

And, finally, a toast with more pork, and a really nice cream sauce (sorry, no picture).

If you are thinking that all we did in Logrono is eat, you are mostly right, but we did walk around a bit (mostly looking for the next pintxos bar), and saw this statue dedicated to the pilgrims who walk the Camino de Santiago, which goes through Logrono:

All-in-all, we had a really nice, if brief, time in Logrono. We were impressed with the quality of the pintxos and thought that many of the ones that we did not get to try looked delicious as well, as did the "normal" pintxos in the various bars we visited. This was the 18th year of this contest, so there's always next year. Also, this year's contest was part of a series of events focused on using all of your senses to experience the Rioja. We are definitely planning to return to Logrono to eat more, but perhaps we'll also take advantage of our other senses later on this year.  

Hasta Luego,

Jeff and Shana

Day-tripping to the Border and into France

This afternoon I skipped my usual Wednesday afternoon yoga class to head to the coastal town of Hondarribia (the Basque name, but in Spanish it is called Fontarabia) with a local friend, Andoni (Basque for Antonio or Anthony) and a new American friend from school, Connie. Just a little day trip to enjoy the first truly sunny day we've had in a while. Per today's Diario Vasco, January was the second rainiest and coldest month this century, so when sun was in the forecast I figured I should take advantage of it. And it was a truly beautiful day -- in the low 60's.

Hondarribia sits on the border with France and has well-preserved remnants of the old medieval town. It is quiet during the winter months but comes alive during the summer when it is filled with visitors enjoying the beach. The buildings have colorful shutters and the squares are charming.

After wandering through the tranquil city center we took a little boat across the Bidasoa river to Hendaye, the city on the French side. I thought we had only been in Hendaye to take the train to Paris, but back in 2011 I think we drove through the town to visit St. Jean de Luz and Biarritz. It is always a pleasure to walk along a beach when the sun is shining and the dogs are out playing in the sand and sea. 

We returned on the same little boat and continued walking through the town, where we ran into an old friend of Andoni's -- Fermin Muguruza, a Basque rock musician and co-founder of a well-known ska punk band. Now I have to check out his music.  

We returned through the mountain roads, instead of the highway, and enjoyed the views and sunset. It was a pleasure to practice my Spanish with Andoni and to help him with his English. 

Today was a reminder that we should always be open to new friends and new experiences. 

Hasta pronto,

Shana