Span Day 14 - Even MORE relaxing ... AGAIN!
Trip Start
Jun 25, 2008
1
20
77
Trip End
Sep 01, 2008
Barcena de pie de concha,
Spain
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Martin mentioned that the grass can use some mowing every two weeks,... so ... ol' Styrsky here busted out the lawn mower and gave it a whirl! Ah, the memories that were brought back. When I was just a wee' lad, I'd mow the lawn several times each month for my grandparents. As I mowed the lawn today, I couldn't help but think of those hot summer days sweating away for a nice lunch and some bucks. Good times.
I struggled to get the lawn mower going. For the first ten minutes I tried to start it ... but realized later that the spark plug wasn't fully inserted
An unlikely thing to see me doing!
. : ( Fixed that and was up and running. I think its the first time the kids have seen me mow a lawn. I had them each give me a hand. Wrapped up just as the rain started coming down.After that, another BBQ (their BBQ is semi-protected from rain) and then ate a wonderfully large Spanish lunch right on Spanish time at 1pm. Then we all went down to the playgrounds and Janice and I traded time on the internet. Sprinkling a bit. Not enough to need an umbrella, just a coat.
By the time we got home, it was nearly 7pm. I had a date with Mariangeles across the street for her to teach me how to make the famous Spanish Tortilla. I walk across the street to the bar and Mariangeles welcomes me back to the kitchen where she is chopping up fresh squid for a special calamari dish she is preparing for Sunday. She informs me that they only serve one bit of food each week, ... right around noon on Sundays. (I make a mental note to show up tomorrow around noon to try the fried calamari.) After cleaning up the squid guts, she walks me step by step through the making of a Spanish Tortilla (fluffy eggs and potatoes). Very easy to make and TASTY! Its a staple in the Spanish diet. While she makes it, I'm astonished as to how much oil she uses. I mean, I'm no health nut, ...
The kids are in awe...
but when I see how much oil goes in to this small dish ... I'm stunned. No wonder all this food tastes so great! The food takes about thirty minutes to make and the whole time we chat away. Half way through, she asks me if I'd like to see her make some Arroz con Leche. I agree thats a great idea ... and thirty minutes later, I walk out with a homemade Spanish Tortilla AND Arroz con Leche. YEAH! Thank you Mariangeles. I was in heaven just sitting in this little kitchen watching her cook away. And it was a perfect compliment to our planned meal of leftover soup and bread.As soon as I came home, Janice tells me that another neighbor had come by. Apparently she had heard that we were in search of Arroz con Leche (Janice had asked around this morning to see if any of the local restaurants had it on the menu this weekend). Well, this neighbor had made us a batch too! When she brought it by, she had a bonus for us ... she had leftover stuffed peppers that she left with us to feast on. Special local peppers (not spicy at all) stuffed with cheese and fried with a batter of some sort. Good grub. So, we feasted like royalty today. Its so awesome to be made to feel so welcome and at home. We love this place! ... It also turns out that the woman who brought us the food says that she is an expert on Spanish cuisine and welcomes and questions we have about food. I may just have to take her up on the offer in the coming days.
After our perfectly time Spanish dinner (9:30pm) we end the night by playing the board game that Inigo and Jaione gave to us (Ella won! And video attached to show one of the cute little sayings required when playing the game) ... finally, some more watching of tennis and the Tour de France and Olympics and soccer highlights ... and now, time for bed for the kids (11pm).
