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We are a commune of inquiring, skeptical, politically centrist, capitalist, anglophile, traditionalist New England Yankee humans, humanoids, and animals with many interests beyond and above politics. Each of us has had a high-school education (or GED), but all had ADD so didn't pay attention very well, especially the dogs. Each one of us does "try my best to be just like I am," and none of us enjoys working for others, including for Maggie, from whom we receive neither a nickel nor a dime. Freedom from nags, cranks, government, do-gooders, control-freaks and idiots is all that we ask for.

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Friday, September 25. 2009

Tapas and Old Barcelona

As a guy who loves history, I always thought of Spain as a backwater and it was never on top of my list. Darn nice country to visit, though.


Got some tapas when we got lost, before we figured out where the heck we were in the old medieval part of town. We ordered mostly seafood tapas - all sorts, including Cuttlefish of course. The Spanish love their seafood. A nice Spanish rosso, too.


Yes, you can smoke in the restaurants:



A few more photos below -

Pleasant cafe/tapas joint:


 




 It turned out we were right down the street from the Cathedral, which is undergoing restoration:



A splendid side altar in the Cathedral:



 The cloister:



 


 


Side streets in the old city:


 


 


 


 


A shop in the old city:



 

Posted by Bird Dog in Our Essays, The Culture, "Culture," Pop Culture and Recreation at 15:09 | Comments (8) | Trackbacks (0)

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BD, as I'm sure you learned in your trip, Barcelona was at one time the center of quite a trading empire. Not so large as Venice, but they gave the Genoese a run for their money. Lots of influence throughout southern Italy and Sicily, plus north Africa in the Middle Ages. It's a wonderful place. As for tapas cookbooks, one of the first is still the best - Tapas: The Little Dishes of Spain by Penelope Casas.
#1 Skookumchuk (Link) on 2009-09-25 16:01 (Reply)
How do the natives pronounce the name of their city? With a 'th'?
#2 Cris on 2009-09-25 16:36 (Reply)
Just put a "th" everywhere.
#2.1 bd on 2009-09-25 16:45 (Reply)
Years ago I saw the photos of a tour that some Argentine friends had taken of France and Spain. The photos of Spain enchanted me the most, perhaps because of all the castles. That the photos were taken in the European winter may have biased me.

Count me as another Gaudi afficionado.
#3 Gringo on 2009-09-25 18:02 (Reply)
Being forced to be part of others smoking experience in a restaurant would ruin my meal.
#4 Rick on 2009-09-25 21:10 (Reply)
Jeez that fork must be four feet long. Is it a two-hander?
#5 buddy larsen on 2009-09-26 00:58 (Reply)
Nice memories. I was in Barcelona twice, a few days at a time, and stayed in hostels near the cathedral. A really lovely place, Spain. Lots of pickpockets, though. I think people in my party got hit both times, and I had a guy trying to open my purse in the subway. I heard the zipper and pulled my purse away. I so wanted to yell at him, but the only appropriate word in Spanish I could think of was "bandito!" Not sure that would have had the desired effect. LOL
#6 Gina on 2009-09-26 02:20 (Reply)
I had one of the best meals during my travels in Spain in a working mans eatery somewhere in Barcelona. I happened to arrive just as the mid-day meal was about to be served. Each person got a single paella pan about 9 inches in diameter with a ton of sea food in it. Served with an old fashioned glass coke bottle of the local house wine. Next, time for a siesta.
#7 JimK on 2009-09-26 15:09 (Reply)

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