Spain Vacation: Day Eight; Vall de Nuria

Pari woke me up, it was barely light.  I bounced out of bed and she was already back in her room asleep.  A quick bag check and I was off to the metro, then to the train.  I was bound for Vall de Nuria, the beginning of the Pyrenees Mountains in Northern Spain.  After over 2 hours on the train, I was at my destination.  After some difficulty finding the trail head, I was off!

It started out a bit uneventful with a massively steep climb.  I was leap frogging with this pair of inexperienced hikers from just south of Barcelona, name Raul and Silma.  They spoke no English so our communication was limited to the occasional nod. As soon as I got the the top of the first steep incline, the hike showered me with amazing landscapes.

As I got up on the top of a bend, I saw a large animal, motionless on the ground.  I approached it to realize it was a young horse.  When I was about 15 feet from it, the horse awkwardly bounded up and galloped off to meet up with another older horse that I had not noticed.  It startled me a bit but seeing wild horses was pretty amazing.  Sadly, they raced off before I was able to get a picture.

The next encounter with wild animals was not far off.  About 30 minutes later, I heard a massive crashing around the corner.  I continued cautiously on the path to be surprised by 3 mountain goats!  Two of them were younger and the older was a female that had no horns.  The jumped down the side of the cliff as if it were stairs.

The views were amazing.  Waterfalls off in the distance from the melting snow. amazing views of the mountains, etc.  As I climbed higher into the mountains, there was snow on the ground and I was getting cold.  My shorts and sandals were not getting it done.  I also has very little food and was having difficulty keeping my blood sugar up.  About an hour from the end of the hike, my sandal sole broke apart.  Now it was flapping against the snow and tripping me up.  At this point, the pair of hikers past me for good.

I was barely able to catch the final train back to the city and just before the bad weather rolled in.  I had a 2 hour layover for one of the trains and ran into Raul and Silma again.  They asked if I wanted to sit with them in the cafe and wait for the train together.  I accepted.  We even sat together on the 2 hour train ride back to Barcelona as well.  We talked as much as we could but it was really like playing a four hour game of charades.

I got back to the apartment around 10pm and told Pari about my adventure (and my shoe) while we eat some lentils and rice.  Then I was beat so I had a donut and went to sleep.

Spain Vacation: Day Seven; Going to school

Tuesday, Pari had a obligation to cook for Zahid's school.  Once a month, each parent gets assigned to cook lunch for the kids.  This day happened to fall when I was visiting.  There are some general guidelines for ingredients but beyond that you can make whatever you want.  The guidelines for this meal were potatoes, vegetables and eggs.  We ignored the eggs.

We arrived with a sack of vegetables, a few potatoes and no clear plan.  I rarely cook for kids and have never cooked a meal centered around a group of kids.  I decided to make a potato soup, which was pretty easy.  Then we planned to make a stir fry but it looked like we did not quite have enough vegetables to feed a room full of kids. Pari also mentioned that you often have to "hide" the vegetables for the kids to eat them.  That does not a stir-fry make.

With the vegetables sitting there, completed, I was running out of time.  I noticed a bag of large leaf lettuce we got and immediately went to lettuce wraps filled with the stir-fry and quinoa we had.  A layer of quinoa, a layer of stirfry, some lemon zest, rolled like a burrito in a leaf of lettuce.  It was an interesting concoction but it worked.  It was foreign enough for many of the kids to think it was cool.

That evening, Pari went to work and I went walking around town again, camera-less.  After she got back from work, we planned my big trip for the morning.

Spain Vacation: Day Six; Gopal

Monday, Pari, Zahid, Azaam, Pari's friend Chris. and I all went to Gopal.  It is a vegan deli that has a plethora of different burgers to choose from.  They also have same cakes, donuts and other random items.  We feasted.

Chris had to get to work a bit earlier then Pari so she left after we ate.  Pari, the kids and I took our time walking back to the apartment.  On the way, I spotted a bakery that offered vegan goods. Despite having a sack full of donuts and cake already, I had to indulge more.  I grabbed 4 mini cupcakes.  They were expensive so I did not go overboard.

That evening, I ventured into the city alone.  I was a little concerned being on my own with my camera so I left it at the apartment.  I walked down to the port and watched the hundreds of sailboat in the bay.  I saw a huge tour ship dock and looked a dozens of shops before heading back.

That evening, Hocine made some Algerian food for us.  It was really good.  I do not have much experience with Algerian food so this was a nice treat.

When Pari got back from work, we ate snacks.  Lots of snacks.  Then stayed up really late talking.  It was a a relaxing day.

Spain Vacation: Day Five; Equipo B

Sunday, Pari generally travels across the city to a squat called Equipo B.  She used to live there years ago but has since gotten her own place.  At Equipo B, Sundays is pizza day.  They make pizzas for anyone who wants them and asks for super cheap donations.  The folks who live there have made an amazing brick oven in the back yard where they make pizzas to order.

This sunday, they were light on help and asked if Pari and I would come help cut and prepare the veggies.  All of the pizzas are vegetarian and many are vegan.  A couple of the guys who live there asked if I could make a vegan cheese for the pizzas.  I hesitated but said I could whip something up.  I did and they loved it.

When Hocine and Azaam arrived, they brought some American BBQ sauce.  This is a rare commodity in Spain.  They have some BBQ but I was told it was more like ketchup.  As I suggested that we make some BBQ pizza (a southern common flavor) they poked fun at me for being American.  I made one anyway with some vegan cheese and they scarfed it down.  It quickly became a running joke between me and the Equipo B family.

Maik, one of the Equipo B residence and I, agreed that the following week we would make seitan for the pizzas.  Seitan seems to be much more common in Spain then in the US.  In the US it is largely a vegan food but their it seemed far more "normal".  We were both excited to see each others recipes.

There is another squat next door to Equipo B.  I visited there briefly to see a cave they had under the house.  I was pretty skeptical at first but when I went in it was impressive.  There is a fresh water cave that comes from the mountains right under the house.  This one an amazing sight considering we were in the middle of the city.  I would make plans to return to the cave on the following weekend pizza day.

It was a pretty amazing day.  The squat was fantastic.  There were orange trees in the back yard along with some other fruit that was pretty tasty but no one seemed to know what it was.  They had a great view of the city from their roof and it was even very kid friendly.  It was a phenomenal day and made me happy I was open to meeting some new folks and seeing a bit of the city.

We left about 9pm and took the bus back to Pari's.  I had counted roughly 35 people who had arrived for pizza and they said it got busier after we left as they served pizza until around 11pm.  After her kids went to sleep, Pari and I planned out a trip to the mountains that I would take in a couple of days.  It would be a solo trip.  I was excited and looking forward to getting to see some wildness.

Spain Vacation: Day four; Collserola, Punk and Indian

Most of my vacations in recent years have had me spending the majority of my time in the wild.  I tried to focus on being open to more of a city trip this time because I did not know the language well, had to reliable transportation, and was lone for much of the time I would be in the outdoors.

Saturday morning came, my friend Pari and her son Zahid, offered to take me to a local mountain that was on the public transportation.  I readily accepted and we were on our way to Collserola.  It had some panoramic views of the city of Barcelona.  Sadly, within minutes, Zahid was bored and wanted to go back.  Pari and I forced the issue a bit and had the three of us continue to trek further but our time was limited. 

We did see some very strange tree bark that I had never experienced before and there were an abundance of wild flowers.  It was certainly a nice walk and it gave Pari and I a good opportunity to catch up after nearly 10 years.

Once we got back to the city, Pari and I went to meet a couple of her friends.  They were some punk kids that she thought I would get along with and might know of a show that I could go to.  They were super nice and as it turned out, the band I wanted to see, Crosta, was playing later in the week.

We stopped at the market and grabbed some vegetables before she and I headed back to her apartment.  I sat around and did nothing while she made some great dinner.  Spinach and potatoes, Indian style!  After awhile, Hocine brought home some treats.  They were some sort of almond based sweet.  Pretty yummy, I gobbled them up as a bedtime snack.

Spain Vacation: Day Two & Three; arrival and history

Up early, packing, making sure I did not forget anything, the morning was a bit stressful.  It seems that I get a little anxiety about forgetting things for a trip.  The irony is that I never bring anything.  I literally brought a few sets of shorts, shirts, clean underwear, camera, headphones, water bottle, toothbrush, and a book.  That is it.  I am not sure what I could have forgot, but I still worry.

Overall, the day was pretty uneventful.  I connection flight was slightly delayed but it was not a big issue.  The flight was overnight and when I arrived in Barcelona I jumped on the bus and headed to meet my old and good friend Pari.

Fairly tired, I had a quick bite to eat at her apartment.  Pari cooks at home most of the time and she makes some great Indian food.  We gobbled it up and I took a quick nap to try to burn off a bit of jet lag.

Once I work up, Pari headed to work and I went out for a 5 hour walk around the city with her partner, Hocine, and her two kids, Zahid (age 5) and Azaam (age 1).  We went to the park where the Pari and Hocine first met.  It used to be a squat house that the city evicted and eventually leveled.  Then the squat community turned the rubble of their former house into a park.  A couple of year later, the city leveled the park as well and made their own park.

This park had a lot of history for the people who lived in this area of the city.  Now it is a spot where many kids play football (soccer), the pickpockets greet the tourists who wandered to far, and the community enjoys a beautiful garden.

After Pari got out of work, we met her at Maoz Vegetarian, a falafel place in the city.  It was a great meal to have after a long day that mostly felt like a blur.  I was on vacation, across the world, enjoying what was offered and taking things as they came.  I knew it would be great.

Spain Vacation: Day One; home already?

My first day of my recent vacation was a simple at home day.  I had some errands to complete prior to my trip to Spain and Ashley and her daughter Kaleigh came over for dinner.  It was a relaxing day that did not at all seem like a waiting game for my up-coming trip.

For dinner, I made some pasta with some super cute mini bow-tie noodles Ashley and I found.  It was a great dish, somewhere between pasta salad and a heartier dish.  It had a nice flavor and I had some left over to take on the trip with me the following day.

As a child, I remember one of my best kitchen experiences was making home-made potato chip with my dad.  I thought it would be fun for Kaleigh to have that experience too.  She thought it was pretty cool but she might have been a little young for it to hold her attention well.  She did eat them up though!

After dinner, Ashley wanted to make some sweets.  Who am I to object?  She wanted to make my S'mores Cookies.  Kaleigh had the idea that she wanted to use some food coloring.  We ended up with some suspect looking, wonderfully tasting cookies.

This was a great start to a great vacation.  It is nice to be able to surround myself with people that I care about and care about me before leaving them for new experiences.

Recipe: Mango Vinaigrette

I have been eating a lot of salads recently. I have been packing them up and taking them to work.  I rarely eat salads in the past but they have felt good a refreshing recently.  I am not going to fight it as it allows me to be creative with some dressings.  Recently I noted that I had a mango ripe and ready to go.  I took advantage!

Mango Vinaigrette

1/4 cup of mango
1 1/2 tablespoons of oil
1 tablespoon of red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon of sugar
1 teaspoon of salt

Add all ingredients to a blender and puree until smooth.

I poured this over a salad with avocado and fried mango.  It was a very summer-y salad.  Light and refreshing.  Perfect for the coming warm weather.

Dinner at the Crack House

It has been awhile since I have had dinner with my pals Adrienne and Nate of Crack the Plates.  We prioritized making it happen before I leave for Spain, and Wed night worked out well.  We have all been super busy and it was hard to find the time.  In fact, they doubled up on the hosting because I have just been so busy with the new house.

Adrienne made one of her oldest recipes.  It was a basic non-chicken noodle soup that was hearty and comforting.  We also had some great hummus and arugula sandwiches.  It seems that arugula may be a favorite at the Crack House, which is fine by me as I enjoy it as well.  After dinner Adrienne brought out a plate of nuts and fruits that we promptly gobbled up.  It was a great night with friends.

Yellow Coat of Spring

I have lived all over the country.  I have seen all sorts of weather and environments in the area I have lived.  Nothing is quite like the couple of weeks in Georgia where the state turns yellow.  Pollen season.  Until I moved to Atlanta, I never had allergies, now they get worse each year.  In fact, this year I fought them off hard and still had to take a sick day from work, as I was out of commission.  Luckily, I have good people around me.  Ashley made me soup!

I gobbled it up while resting on the couch.  I am much better now, but it was a brutal week.  She also had all sorts of fruit and nuts out that I was snacking on.  It was really nice and this soup helped em get back on track.