MPC Press International

On most Sunday afternoons, Max takes a 10-15 minute tram ride up the Diagonal to Club Laietà, where he plays tennis matches; his lessons/clinics are on Monday and Wednesday evenings.

But yesterday, before Max’s match, we were in for a special treat, with plans to see the final of the ATP Barcelona Open, at the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona, also not far from home.  Given world #1 Nadal’s record 8 Barcelona titles and with him at the top of his game, we were excited to purchase tickets a month ago in anticipation of watching Rafa master the clay.  And the final would likely pit him against another great Spaniard, be it second seed David Ferrer (#5 in the world) or fifth seed Tommy Robredo (#18 in the world).  What good fortune for us, being able to see these great players in their home country!

But as the days passed, Ferrer lost in the second round (after a first round bye), Robredo in the third, and Nadal in the quarters.  Even Nicolas Almagro, the steady Spanish sixth seed who beat Nadal, lost in the semis…hmmm.  So the final included the fourth seeded Kei Nishikori of Japan (ranked 17 in the world, now 12) and Santiago Giraldo of Colombia (ranked 65 in the world, now 47).

After winning the first game and breaking serve in the second, Giraldo had the edge.  FYI—telephoto lens; I guess I’m glad we didn’t pay a fortune to see Rafa up close.

But a questionable out call seemed to break crowd favorite Giraldo’s focus and Nishikori won the next 6 games to take the first set.  A change of shirt in the second set didn’t help.

Nishikori continued to dominate, handily winning 6-2, 6-2.

Quickly, we left for Max’s match, not a great distance away; we made the trek on foot.  I always enjoy the backdrop at the courts where Max plays, with Camp Nou, home of Barça, almost next door; note the Nike and Estrella billboards at the top of the 99,000-seat stadium.

Max played brilliantly, winning 6-1, 6-0; his opponent’s strokes were lovely but Max’s consistency was the deciding factor.

And here are some players from Max’s team…

Tags: Almagro, Barça, Barcelona Open, Ferrer, Giraldo, Nadal, Nike, Nishikori, Robredo, tennis

Today is el día San Jorge here in Barcelona, otherwise known as Diada Sant Jordi (Catalan), or Saint George’s Day.  April 23 is also the cumpleaños of Mom!  Saint George is the patron saint of Catalonia, as well as that of England and certain other locales.  While not a holiday here, the day has been celebrated since the 15th century we are told.

The festivities are based on a legend about Saint George and a dragon that terrified a city.  To save the town from the beast, the citizens fed the dragon two lambs every day, but the farms eventually ran dry of sheep.  So, as an alternative, a person was chosen as food in a daily lottery.  One day, the King’s daughter was picked in the lottery for the dragon’s meal.  Just as she was about to be consumed, a man (George) appeared and slayed the dragon, and from its blood quickly grew a rose.

Thus, it has apparently been a tradition for men to buy a single rose for women, in honor of this gallant Saint George.  Today, rose stands were set up on almost every corner of Barcelona, most on tables covered with the Catalan flag.  Of note, I saw a Spanish flag today for the first time in ages; it will be interesting to see if the Catalonians show any national patriotism during the World Cup this summer??

In addition, today is World Book Day, apparently not a coincidence.  April 23 marks the death of the great Spanish writer, Miguel de Cervantes (someday I need to read Don Quijote I guess), and in 1923, Spain decided to honor him on this day.  More recently, the rest of the world hopped on bandwagon to make this a global event.  April 23 also is the date of Shakespeare’s death, and possibly (arguably it seems) his birth.  While women in Catalonia receive roses on April 23, it is tradition for them to present men with a book.  Today, the booksellers of Barcelona set up shop all along the streets.

At MEM’s school, BFIS, we watched a festival this afternoon, a bit endless, as every grade, preschool through 12, put on a show.  Maggie’s and Ella’s classes danced and Max’s built human towers, popularly known here as castellers.

Maggie lower left…

Max lifting in the center…

And a recent casteller show at city hall…

Tags: BFIS, book, Cervantes, rose, Saint George, San Jorge, Sant Jordi, Shakespeare, Spain, World Book Day

After one failed attempt when we mistakenly believed it would be flowing, we successfully ventured to the “Magic Fountain” of Barcelona last week for the second time, with our visiting cousins, the Mayers.  As has become our norm, scooters were a means of transport.

MEM with cousins Stephanie and Katherine Mayer…

The fountain sits at the base of Montjuïc, below Palau Nacional (in the background), near Plaça Espanya; the actual locale is Plaça de Carles Buïgas.  A roughly 30 minute show includes sound, light, and of course, water.

The website notes that the fountains were built for the 1929 World Fair by Carles Buïgas, with music added in the 1980’s, and a major renovation before the 1992 Olympics.

The show is fun, refreshing, and enjoyable for all ages.

We took in dinner afterwards at the old bullring, Arenas, now a shopping center; in 2010, bullfighting became illegal in Catalonia.  On the top level there are multiple restaurants from which to choose; we picked La Tagliatella (so what if it’s a chain), as pasta was desired and our past experience at the Tarragona locale was positive.

Tags: Barcelona, fountain, Magic Fountain

Our resort, the Lopesan Costa Meloneras, was apparently quite typical of many in the Canary Islands (Islas Canarias)…very German, with a high concentration of British as well.  One benefit of the German factor was that when I practiced my Spanish on the trilingual hotel staff, the responses were in Spanish, not English; the personnel were never sure if I was German or English.

Also, the hotel happened to be hosting an older crowd, but rather than that being the norm, I think this was simply due to the time of year—kids are in school (or not enough research on my part, in terms of hotel selection).  Early on, I noticed a lot of men in wheelchairs or using walkers and with extensive nurse care helping their progress.  When Evelyn mentioned that she should have brought white pants because all of the ladies were wearing white pants, I instantly learned that these were not actually nurses but wives.

Thank you Vueling and other competing low cost airlines in Europe!  It is well known that the price of inter-Europe airline travel is attractive, and we are trying to take advantage of this while in Spain.  During the winter months, one needs to venture far south, out of continental Europe for beach weather, and we did just that, heading to Gran Canaria for a respite.  It seems that most of the other expats in Barcelona have pulled their kids out of school numerous times.  Not only is our attendance record too perfect (meaning we are not travelling enough?) but MEM have a combined zero sick days this school year; knock on wood.  Is that a good enough excuse for pulling kids out of school to accommodate beach needs?

As I typed the last paragraph and inserted the below photo, I remembered that minutes after snapping this shot at our hotel (on our 3rd night), Maggie went down for the count with some sort of stomach ailment/fever; notice the red under the eyes.

So, we left Barcelona midday Wednesday, March 26, a 3 hour and 15 minute flight to Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, 2,200 kilometers (1,350 miles) southwest of Barcelona and about 100 kilometers west of the coast of Africa where Morocco borders Western Sahara.  At latitude 27°, we were due east of Orlando.  (Barcelona sits at latitude 41°, on par with Cleveland.)

We remained busy for 4.5 days with buffet dining, swimming, tennis, padel, and mini-golf; in fact, Evelyn won the resort-sponsored mini-golf tournament in a playoff over Señor Gregorio from San Sebastian, making me a bit jealous and Max likely more so, with her prize being a nice bottle of champagne she kindly shared with me.  Also, at the airport, we had been given a flyer for discounted tickets at Aqualand, so we ventured there on Friday for some waterslide amusement.

Ahhh the infinity pool, facing east toward Africa…

Our “half-board” rate indicates buffet breakfasts and dinners are included, and it also means tasty food at first, but average by the end.  Still, what is there not to enjoy about chocolate crepes and chocolate croissants at every breakfast, and chocolate mousse and ice cream with chocolate sauce at dinner?  As for the main course, Max, who is not easy to please at meals, feasted on steak, Ella could eat the fried rice 7 days/week, and Maggie gobbled up the turkey.

After dinners, we took in the shows, which included Chinese acrobats, Brazilian dancers who lured us on stage with them, and Magic!  Lately there has been a significant focus on magic in our house, with card, coin, and other tricks.  So, when we heard about “Magic”, we made sure to finish dinner by 9 so as not to miss the big event.  Unfortunately, we were deceived, as “Magic” was actually a Queen cover band; not bad, but I had been ready with camera in hand to photograph our kids on stage being sawed in two.

This was our no museum/no culture trip (the waterpark for example), so there was plenty of time to read, simply lounge around, or toss the frisbee.

The boardwalk was really no different from that of other beach towns, but still very picturesque with a lighthouse overlooking the Atlantic.

On Saturday, we walked 15 minutes north on the beach to some sand dunes…

…but we forgot to bring water…

Tags: Africa, Aqualand, Barcelona, Canary Islands, frisbee, Gran Canaria, Islas Canarias, Las Palmas, magic, mini-golf

A delayed entry…on Feb 24th, we took part in a “Calçotada”, a traditional Catalan event that celebrates the calçot harvest.

Our large group of expats met at Can Carbonell, a traditional Catalan restaurant in Collserola Park, not far from Barcelona.  The website calls it a 13th century farmhouse or “masia”.

What are calçots? They are a form of scallion or green onion grown in the Catalonia region of Spain, generally milder, but much larger than the green onions we know, about 6-12 inches long, and with the diameter comparing to that of an adult finger.

While calçots have been grown for centuries in Catalonia, it is said that in the late 19th century, a farmer began covering the plant with earth so a longer part of the edible portion of the onion did not turn green. This action is called “calçar” apparently a Catalan word meaning “to put shoes on”, which makes a bit of sense in terms of covering the onion legs with something (soil).

The calçot harvest lasts from November through April, with the January-March period being the most popular for calçotadas, an event/party when calçots are consumed.

To cook them, traditionally, calçots are wrapped in newspaper, keeping them tender, and grilled on a barbecue. They are served on terra cotta roof tiles, thus maintaining warmth. The outer layers of the calçot are burnt or blackened but peeled off by diners. Before eating by hand, the calçot is dipped in a romesco sauce, which has ingredients including almonds, pine nuts, hazelnuts, tomatoes, garlic, peppers, vinegar, and oil.

The organizers of our calçotada, Mike and Suzanne Swift, with the maître d.

Of course, calçots are just an appetizer (even though most of us stomached 6-12 of them), after which various meats are generally consumed, including, chicken, rabbit, and sausage (butifarra)…and plenty of red wine, as our friend J.P. Nelson confirms.

Tags: barbecue, calçot, Calçotada, Catalan, Catalonia, green onion, Spain, terra cotta