Hello world! By world I mean the two family members that actually follow this blog.......I hope all is great! Normally Cat writes the blogs bc she keeps her journal on her computer and it's easier just to modify it for public eyes rather than write a fresh entry, BUT we both agreed that my point of view should be considered as well. With that said.....
I LOVE ESPANA! I love everything about it: the people, the culture, the food, the nightlife, EVERYTHING! We have been here for about three weeks now, and we have already made some great friends and unforgettable memories. In this entry I'll tell you about this past weekend(May 28-May 31). We spent Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday in the Pyrenees Mountains at Pepe's vacation home.
On Friday we hopped in Pepe's Beamer and headed an hour or two north(I was told this--I was sleeping the whole time.....it could have been 10 hours) to the mountains. Truly some of the most beautiful landscapes I have ever seen. His vacation home is located in the Cerdenya Valley. Surrounded by never-ending, rolling, green hills and snow-capped mountain ranges, I wanted to jump out of the car and start prancing around singing like in the Sound of Music.......thank God I didn't. Little towns and churches dot the mountains, and every open field is either filled with cows, horses, or flowers. As soon as we stepped out of the car, the smell of the valley hit us. It was the smell of nature(manure), and it was great.
Pepe's home, a re-modeled water mill, is beautiful. Five or six bedrooms, four or five bathrooms, pool table, ping pong, foosball, big wine cellar, huge windows everywhere with breathtaking views. It's pretty much like any old vacation home that you or I would have...................right. I woke up every morning to the smell of the cedar walls and horses walking on the dirt path just outside of my window......
Friday night we arrived just in time for dinner. His mother cooked us all a delicious Catalan meal consisting of two omelet/quiches, different types of dried ham, excellent cheezes, and bread with salt and tomato grated on it(a common appetizer here that Cat and I love). We washed it all down with a delicious '96 Rioja that Pepe's father opened for us. For dessert we had 4 different flavors of homemade ice cream. I was in heaven. After the meal we finished our drinks while Pepe's father played us some classical Spanish guitar by the fireplace. Como romantico. That night we shot a little pool before heading to bed fairly early(1 AM).
Saturday we woke around 11 and had breakfast. Lots of breads, jams, pastries etc. After we showered up, all 6 of us loaded into Pepe's father's old school Army Jeep. It was actually used in the Vietnam War! Pepe drove us all over the countryside on dirt roads and small paths. Halfway through the ride I looked over at Cat and we both realized how lucky we were. What a once in a lifetime experience! Pepe even let us both drive for a little bit. Normally that wouldn't be a big deal, but both Cat and I were stick shift rookies. Our friends are quite brave(foolish).
Watch John's Driving Experience Here! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Il3v4JFXxZA
Watch Cat's Driving Experience Here! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMZmGxJ7OKc
Luckily we survived the trip and made it back to the house around 3 for lunch. Pepe's mother made us boutifarra(sausage) for lunch. It was delicious. After eating Pepe and Uri decided to take the Jeep out for another spin while the rest of us relaxed. About three hours later they returned.....covered in mud...without the Jeep. HAHAHA They got it stuck in a river and had to walk back to get another car to pull it out. After they left we continued shooting pool, playing the drums, napping. Another hour goes by and they return again.....covered in mud...without the 2nd car. BOTH CARS WERE STUCK! Shocking bc you would think the '94 Honda Civic they took would have had the power to pull a heavy, military Jeep out of a muddy river. Pepe's father came to the rescue this time with the BMW and they finally returned in time for dinner with all three vehicles. During their third trip Cat, Karen, Alberto, and I went to the grocery store for some dinner and post-dinner supplies. As we were pulling in the driveway we saw Pepe, Uri, and Pepe's father all drinking beers next to the cars. They looked exhausted. Pepe was sprawled out on his back in the driveway. It was hilarious.
For dinner we enjoyed a pizza/pie thing topped with onions and leeks courtesy of Alberto, and more dried hams, cheezes, and breads. For dessert we had more ice cream and some chocolate popsicle things that we bought at the store. It was all excellent. That night we all stayed up late playing pool, ping pong, foosball, and drinking games. We taught the Spaniards how to play a traditional drinking game with cards called "Circle of Death." They seemed to enjoy it.
On Sunday we woke around 1 and had more bread, pastries, etc for breakfast. Pepe's mother bought a new pastry that I was particularly fond of this time; it was a two layered, flaky pastry topped with sugar and filled with strawberry glaze. Basically a super poptart. After showering we cleaned the house up a bit before lunch. Mrs. Rodes served a pasta dish with ham and a sauce similar to alfredo as the first entree. Massive portions of tender chicken and potatoes were served as the second entree. Again, delicioso. She was even kind enough to write down some of her favorite traditional Catalan recipes for my recipe book that I am keeping on our Eurotrip.
After lunch Pepe's parents, Uri, and Karen all had to return to Barcelona bc of something called "jobs." I don't know what they were talking about but I hope I never have to get one. Pepe, Alberto, Cat, and I rode to a nearby city, Puigcerda, and walked around. We stopped at Alberto's summer home on the way. It's a beautiful, massive country style home surrounded by giant fields. We got the tour, had a beer, fed some horses, then went to walk around the city. It was a small, mountain town with pastry shops and small pubs on every corner of the cobblestone roads. Located in the city center, Torre del Campanario, is the tallest structure in Puigcerda. It's a bell tower that stands about five or six stories tall, and it was constructed in 1177. The town is enchanting, but you can definitely see signs of tourism taking over the area. While window shopping, I noticed some tennis shoes that were around 400 euros!
From Puigcerda we drove about 5 minutes up the road to France! The only way I could tell we were in France was when Pepe said "ok, now we're in France." We stopped and snapped some pictures just to prove we had been there before driving towards Pepe's home for dinner. Along the way, we stopped by an old church sitting by itself on top of a hill in the middle of the valley. It was about 1500 sq. ft and probably built before 1000 AD. I had another "am I really here?" moment as we sat and looked over the whole valley as the sun was setting. It was amazing. We stopped in another small town before driving back to Pepe's for dinner.
His mother left us some of her homemade Gazpacho(I have the recipe!). It was excellent. Being the culinary experts that we are, we made some frozen pizzas and brownies to go along with it. Buenissimo! That night we chilled and played some hearts before zonking out.....we were all exhausted.
On Monday morning we drove to Andorra(3 countries already in only 3 weeks!) to try and get our passports stamped. Because of our visa situation, it would have been nice to get the Andorra stamp, then return to Spain without getting re-stamped so we would technically still be "in Andorra." It basically would have allowed us more days within the Schengen zone, but Andorra apparently does not give official stamps anymore.....oh well. The ride to Andorra was probably the most beautiful car ride I have been on in my entire life. On the way back we stopped at a small, rural town to buy some local nut bread before heading to Pepe's. We cleaned the place up and headed for Barcelona. It was a great weekend!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3q_iqrvnC_4
