HAM:  Not your ordinary, every day ham!

Ham is revered here in Spain.  They worship the Holy Ham. You will see shrines to it everywhere.  They have shops and restaurants dedicated to this culinary delight.   Some of these establishments have names like The Jewel of Ham, The Salon of Ham, The Palace of Ham and my favorite, The Museum of Ham. But it is not just your everyday ham, it is Iberico Jamon, the creme de la creme of ham.  These little piggy beauties are raised eating black acorns and the taste, texture, sight and aroma all reflect this unique diet.  The legs of ham hang from the ceiling and the walls and their hammy scent is thick in the air.  It is quite the sight to see the butcher or designated restaurant server deftly slicing the ham to perfection, so that it melts in your mouth, as you savor with all of your senses its exquisiteness.  Don’t miss the “Ham” experience when you are in Spain.  As our “swine” guide and friend in Spain always says:  “Yummy, yummy pig’s bummy!”

One of our favorite "Danny" jokes on the Camino:

ANNOUNCEMENT - From the BBC

The English are feeling the pinch in relation to recent terrorist threats and have therefore raised their security level from "Miffed" to "Peeved." 

Soon, though, security levels may be raised yet again to "Irritated" or even "A Bit Cross." The English have not been "A Bit Cross" since the blitz in 1940 when tea supplies nearly ran out. Terrorists have been re-categorized from "Tiresome" to "A Bloody Nuisance." The last time the British issued a "Bloody Nuisance" warning level was in 1588, when threatened by the Spanish Armada. 

The Scots have raised their threat level from "Pissed Off" to "Let's get the Bastards." They don't have any other levels. This is the reason they have been used on the front line of the British army for the last 300 years. 

The French government announced yesterday that it has raised its terror alert level from "Run" to "Hide." The only two higher levels in France are "Collaborate" and "Surrender." The rise was precipitated by a recent fire that destroyed France's white flag factory, effectively paralyzing the country's military capability. 

Italy has increased the alert level from "Shout Loudly and Excitedly" to "Elaborate Military Posturing." Two more levels remain: "Ineffective Combat Operations" and "Change Sides." 

The Germans have increased their alert state from "Disdainful Arrogance" to "Dress in Uniform and Sing Marching Songs." They also have two higher levels: "Invade a Neighbor" and "Lose." 

Belgians, on the other hand, are all on holiday as usual; the only threat they are worried about is NATO pulling out of Brussels. 

The Spanish are all excited to see their new submarines ready to deploy. These beautifully designed subs have glass bottoms so the new Spanish navy can get a really good look at the old Spanish navy. 

Americans meanwhile and as usual are carrying out pre-emptive strikes, on all of their allies, just in case. 

And in the southern hemisphere... 

New Zealand has also raised its security levels - from "baaa" to "BAAAA!". Due to continuing defense cutbacks (the airforce being a squadron of spotty teenagers flying paper airplanes and the navy some toy boats in the Prime Minister's bath), New Zealand only has one more level of escalation, which is "I hope Australia will come and rescue us". 

Australia, meanwhile, has raised its security level from "No worries" to "She'll be right, mate". Three more escalation levels remain: "Crikey!', "I think we'll need to cancel the barbie this weekend" and "The barbie is cancelled". So far no situation has ever warranted use of the final escalation level.

(by John Cleese) 

Peppers

Oh those Padron peppers—be still my heart!!

Peppers are abundant in Spain and the variety is a delight to see.  Red, green, yellow, deep dark purple to name just a few.  My favorite peppers are the Padron Peppers also known as Fire-cracker peppers, because you never know when you will get an explosion in your mouth!  So you live dangerously eating pepper after pepper, enjoying their delectable flavors, not having a care in the world that you will hit the “hot” one, but when you do, look out!  Be sure to have a lovely glass of wine next to you to help alleviate the pain and suffering of your tongue and mouth.

I have seen these peppers at home in California and have purchased them before.  They are amazingly simple to prepare.  Below is my recipe.

RECIPE: Padron Peppers

Wash and thoroughly dry the whole peppers

Toss with olive oil

Heat up a cast iron skillet until HOT

Scatter the peppers into the bottom of the skillet and stir quickly

Remove from skillet once seared and slightly wilted, toss with salt crystals and enjoy!

"Las Tunas"

Music of Santiago de Compostela  

No, it is not that heavy, mercury-laden fish. In Spain, it has a long tradition stretching back into the Middle Ages.  Music is the essential character of the “Tuna.”  University students long ago would play for food, music and/or money.  Their songs were shared in the local taverns or under the windows of potential lovers.  Ah, the times they have so changed (remember the sixties?).  

Anyway, fast forward to the 21st century and drop yourself into one night in Santiago.  You have walked the Camino into the city, you’ve had your dinner and then begin to hear their serenade.  You walk across the plaza outside the cathedral to the sounds of Guantanamera.  Is this Cuba?  You walk under the arches and see a collection of musicians playing identifiable, and unidentifiable, instruments.  A crowd gathers and you are in the moment.  Maybe you dance. It is magical.  While you might be tired, the camaraderie and excitement keep you amid the merry-makers, and so, you stay.  This magical moment swirls around the arches and the moment becomes your moment.  

It is so special and should not be missed!  Next time you are in Spain…maybe on your own, maybe with us, be sure to find them. Next year, we enter Santiago de Compostela via the Portuguese Way to hear our “Tunas” again.

Olive Oil:  A Spanish Love Affair

Traveling for the last few years throughout Spain, I have come to treasure Spanish olive oil.  Not all olive oil is the same, and you have an enormous variety to choose from.   The Spanish health regulations define three grades of olive oil:  Virgin Olive Oil, Refined Olive Oil and Olive Oil.

Virgin is oil expressed from olives by methods that do not modify it’s basic properties.  

Under Virgin classification there are three properties:

*Extra:  this oil exhibits the best taste characteristics and has an acidity level of no higher than 1%

*Corriente:  this is average oil with a good taste and an acidity level no higher than 3.3%

*Lampante: this is a strong oil that possesses little taste or has an acidity level above 3.3%

Under Refined Olive Oil is virgin oil where the taste or acidity level make it unsatisfactory, but once refined the results are a marked improvement.  This is a healthy and very usable product, it just lacks the full taste of virgin olive oil.

Under Olive Oil is a blend of both refined and virgin olive oil. This is the overall market standard.

One of my all time favorite Spanish olive oils is Nunez de Prado, and we had the unique opportunity a few years ago to visit an all organic olive oil production plant.  It was not only a treat to see, but a culinary delight to taste.  Their Flor de Aceite (flower of the olive oil) is hand-labeled and numbered to enhance traceability.  Check out the article in the Olive Oil Times under The Nunez de Prado Obsession with Perfection.  You can purchase this product in the US at Whole Foods Markets or if you are lucky enough to travel to Spain, you can buy it at your local El Corte Ingles.  I always travel with plastic wine bottle bags that are insulated and sealed to carry a few of these precious gems home with me after each Spain trip.  Remember, you need to pack it in your checked in luggage, so be very careful to make sure it is wrapped generously to avoid breakage.

BUEN PROVECHO!!

RECIPE:  Braised Lamb Shanks in Port Red Wine Sauce

Delicious Lamb Shank in Dublin, Ireland

Irish food of today is not your Irish food of yesterday.  There is a worldly quality to the cuisine that seems to be everywhere nowadays. However, the old traditional foods of yesteryear are still prevalent and available to indulge in.  Take for instance, Braised Lamb Shanks in a rich red wine sauce--amazingly delicious and fairly simple to make.  We had this yummy concoction in Dublin just the other day and I can't stop thinking about it.

If you love food and travel, you might consider dining with us on our next travel adventure at www.knowingthewaytravel.com

Cheers!

Braised Lamb Shanks in Port Red Wine Sauce

2 Tbs. olive oil

4 lamb shanks (frenched, if you like)

3 onions sliced thinly

6 cloves of garlic, chopped

2 Tbs. butter (Irish is the best)

2 Tbs. brown sugar

1/2 cup red wine

2 1/2 cups port

1/2 cup basalmic vinegar

1 1/2 cups beef stock

Parsley, thyme and bay leaves

Heat oil in a large pan and brown the shanks on all sides until golden.  Remove from pan.

Reduce heat and sauté onions and garlic with the butter and sugar until golden and caramelized.

Deglaze the pan with the red wines scraping the bottom of the pan.  Cook until most of the wine has been reduced.

Add the port, balsamic vinegar, stock and bring to a boil.

Reduce heat and add the parsley, thyme and bay leaves and simmer the shanks for 2 to 3 hours or until super tender and the sauce has been reduced to a glaze.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with mashed potatoes, carrots and sauce.  

Enjoy!!

It is time for another Buen Camino!

Barcelona to the Camino.  

You're making your final preparations before your voyage - you wind up at work and finish what cannot wait, you pay a few, final bills, you make your list, pick up a few things you'll need for your trip, pack your bags, repack your bags because they are overweight (as usual), and print your boarding passes. The ritual is well-known, somewhat stressful and always exciting. 

Where are you headed? 
Are you with us? Then you are headed to the north of Spain. You're about to embark on a tour through Barcelona, Oveido, Zaragoza, and Bilboa, just to name a few places. You will walk along the same path that thousands of pilgrims have walked before you, and descend into Santiago de Compostela.

I'm not sure exactly how I would describe walking the Camino. It is different for everyone. I wouldn't describe my experience as spiritual, but rather, contemplative. There is something about the open road before you, with only your feet to carry you, the arrival and rest at the end of the day, the silence, the time alone, that I loved more than I thought I would. It is also something that I look forward to again, although, you can never recreate an experience, so I'm open to the possibility that I will chat and laugh and make new friends, not think about the past or the future, and enjoy the present. 

The first time I walked the Camino, I had heard of it, of course, but I wasn't particularly interested in doing it. I only went because I loved traveling with Rick and Monique (if you've done it before, you know what I'm talking about!). This year, I'm super excited to walk it again, and this is something I find difficult to articulate. It is like describing why something as bitter as coffee is so delicious. It is something that only coffee-drinkers understand - that acquired taste that only comes from experience. 

This year we will walk on four different roads, all of which will lead to Santiago. Next year we will walk the Portuguese way. The year after? Who knows. We often talk about the south of Spain, a wine tour through the south of France before heading out onto the Camino, or coming in from Italy. 

Which "Way" would you like to go?
Head to our website, send us your thoughts.

Until then,
Buen Camino!

GUINNESS - It's Just Better in Ireland

Monique, Rick and I in Dublin, Ireland, enjoying a pint (after 15 hours of traveling).
Want to join us on one of our adventures? Check us out at www.knowingthewaytravel.com

Caveat:  I'm not a beer drinker. I'm not a connoisseur who will tell you about the nuances of micro-brewed IPAs made from cornhusks and blueberry stems. It's not my thing. But I will tell you:  Guinness in Ireland is awesome.

A lovely pint at Gibney's in Malahide.
Eat the Fish & Chips.

Starting in Dublin and Malahide (just outside of Dublin), and moving on through Kilmore, Kilkenny, the Hook Peninsula, Our Lady's Island, New Ross, Wexford, Waterford, Dunmore East (just to name a few), I've discovered one thing:  I like Guinness. A lot. But only in Ireland. (I can hear myself say this aloud, and it makes me cringe a little).

I don't know what it is exactly because I've had it back in the States and I didn't like it. Is it the creaminess? The lack of a bitter aftertaste? The heaviness? The way it's poured? Transported? All of the above? I can't answer these questions, but apparently I'm not the only one who likes it better here.
Scientists at the Institute of Food Technologists completed a study that found the majority of drinkers liked Guinness better in Ireland than in any other country.

I do know one thing:  I like Guinness. A lot. But only in Ireland.

New in Cuba - April 2016

New in Cuba

April 2016 - The Plaza del Carmen in Camaguey, Cuba and the famous Norberto. 

You can see both him and his statue in the park daily. 

Everyone I meet who finds out that I guide tours in Cuba always asks me, "What are the new changes in Cuba since we've normalized relations?" My answer, "Not much." That's because we haven't normalized relations; we are attempting to normalize them. Big difference. 

"Oh, but now that things have changed, I can legally travel to Cuba." No. Wrong. If you couldn't legally travel to Cuba before, you still can't. The embargo is still in place, and tourism for American citizens is still illegal. What did change was that the people who could travel legally before have to do less paperwork now. You, as an America, cannot just go to Cuba. There are exceptions to this, such as people-to-people tours. You know...like the tours we do at Knowing The Way Travel :)

I just got back from Cuba with an amazing group of people - we went from Havana to Camaguey, with stops in between to places such as Remedios, Santa Clara and the Che Memorial, and Playa Bonita. 

So...what's was going on in Cuba?

Everyone was talking about Rápido y Furioso (The Fast and the Furious 8) which was filming around la Habana. Here is a sample of that conversation:

"Did you know that the Fast and the Furious was filming in Cuba?" asked every Cuban I know or met.

"Yes."

"Yes, with the big one. He's here," they said.

"You mean, 'The Rock?'"

"Sí, sí, da' Rock," they responded.

For someone from San Francisco, a place where films and tv programs are shot all the time, the filming was just an inconvenience that caused traffic jams, but the Cubans were very excited to have the filming take place there.

There was a lot of talk about how many foreigners were now visiting Cuba, and hope about what changes will come with the increase in tourism, new government policies and when the embargo ends. I would describe it, not as change, but as waiting for change to happen.

Argentina & Uruguay 2016

The military coup against the Argentine people on March 24, 1976 launched the Dirty War leading to the death and disappearance of tens of thousands of the nation's populace.  Another facet of the coup was the stealing of babies from their mothers - sometimes killing the mothers - and sending them out for adoption.  The Mothers campaign raised the world's attention to this reprehensible facet of the Dirty War and indirectly the war against the people itself.  our trip to Buenos Aires took us there at the time of the commemoration of that sad chapter in the nation's history.  March 24, 2016 was the 40th anniversary of the coup.

We arrived several days in advance of the rallies that brought - perhaps - a million people out into the streets.  Our activities had included a talk with the journalist and professor Sergio Ciancaglini, who covered the trials against the generals responsible for the Dirty War.  Sergio provided a sweeping view of the nation's history and the recent chapters in Argentina's story.  We also met one day with economist Alan Cibilis, who shared an update on the nation's state of affairs. Interesting President Obama was in BA for a meeting with the new president Mauricio Mecri. The presidents left the city for a golf date on March 24th.

As we walked among-st the crowds, we enjoyed the camaraderie and noticed the many families that came out with their children.  It was a peaceful affair.  We observed organized groups come from throughout the city into the Plaza de Mayo.  That evening the jubilant crowds continued marching in the streets.  There were no acts of violence or disturbance that day.  It will a demonstration of a people dedicated to NUNCA MAS. 

Parque la Memoria is dedicated to those who lost their lives during the military rule.  We visited the park and walked amid a vast array of warning signs depicted the horrors of dictatorship and its consequences.  Our leader, Delia Marx, lost a family member.  Many Argentines lost loved ones.  Our day took us to the notorious EX ESMA museum that is dedicated to remembrance.  The Dirty War is Argentina's holocaust of recent times and there are many facets of this ugly period. 

Our trip to BA explored a vibrant city of culture with its museums, markets, barrios and array of sites and sounds.  We enjoyed tango, visited a cooperative, a foster home and walked the many neighborhoods of the city.  Our journey took us up the Parana River to the Ibera Wetlands (an amazing oasis, isolated and rife with flora and fauna), the Jesuit Misiones, an amethyst mine and the incomparable Iguacu Falls.  Our journey was over the course of five days by bus, four wheeler, vans and our return via air to BA.  A short ferry ride took us the Colonia and Montevideo in Uruguay.

While many travel to Argentina to see the beauty of Patagonia and the vast coastal stretches reaching towards the end of the continent, our journey was immensely different.  We experienced the La Plata region unlike any other.  Then again, we are life long learners, travelers seeking to appreciate a world of diversity.

Spanish Tortilla, (Monique-style!)

We are getting ready for another exciting adventure in Spain walking the Camino.  This year we will be visiting Barcelona (the Catalan Way), Zaragosa, Bilbao (the Northern Way), Oviedo, Lugo (the Primitive Way) and then we begin our journey on the French Way into Santiago.  We will walk four different ways on this trip.  We are looking forward to this great opportunity and once again enjoying all the beauty that Spain has to offer along the way.  One of the best ways to enjoy Spain is through their food:  tortillas, paellas, tapas, flans, tinto de verano, etc., etc.  Since I love to cook, I am always experimenting with new ingredients to an old recipe.  Below is my recipe for tortilla using yams instead of potatoes.  Enjoy!!  Buen Camino!

Spanish Tortilla with a twist

3-4 large yams, peeled
1-2 onions, slices
6 slices thick bacon
5-6 large eggs
salt and pepper
olive oil

Cut the peeled yams in half lengthwise.  Lay the flat side down and slice the yam thinly.  Make sure to separate the pieces that stick together.  It is not necessary to slice paper thin, and it is best not to use a food processor for this task.  Place in a bowl.

Slice the onions in half moons.  Add to the yams and toss with salt and pepper.

Fry up the bacon to render the fat and semi-cook the bacon.  Drain off the fat, wipe the skillet clean and pour in olive oil to cover the bottom of the skillet. Break the bacon up into small pieces and toss with the yam and onion mixture.

Heat the oil and gently place the yam/onion mixture into the skillet, spreading evenly over the entire skillet.  Turn down the heat so the mixture does not burn.

Leave in the pan until the yams are cooked.  Poke with a spatula and if they break apart, they are finished.

Drain the mixture in a colander over a bowl to catch the olive oil drippings.  In another bowl mix the eggs.  Once the yams have drained, add them to the egg mixture and toss gently.

Reheat the olive oil from the drained mixture and add the yam/onion/bacon/egg mixture to the skillet.  Spread out evenly and allow the egg mixture to cook around the edges.  Once this is done, place a large platter over the skillet and very carefully flip the skillet over and the tortilla will fall out.  It will still be runny inside, but the bottom and edges should be solid.  Add more olive oil to the skillet and gently slide the tortilla back into the skillet to finish the cooking on the other side.  

Once cooked through, remove from heat and slide the tortilla onto another clean platter.  Allow to rest and serve room temperature with garlic mayo.  To make the garlic mayo, roast a head of garlic, wrapped in foil, in the oven until soft, squeeze the cloves into a bowl, mash well and add your favorite mayo to the mixture.

First Post!

Colonia, Uruguay - March 31, 2016

Welcome to our first blog post!

I write our first post from a small cafe in Buenos Aires, having just visited the Recoleta Cemetery (for the second time :), and waiting for the taxi that will take me home.

We've had an amazing two weeks in Argentina and Uruguay. The photo is from the town of Colonia in Uruguay while watching the sun set over the Río de la Plata. A few minutes later, our group turned around, sat down on the patio of a small bar/cafe and discovered the beauty of a Gin con Pomelo (gin and pomelo juice :)

Rick, Monique and I have absolutely fallen in love with Argentina and Uruguay - so much so, that we immediately started planning another trip (hopefully for early 2018) that will include Patagonia and Chile. Of course, we will be going back to Iguazu Falls and the Ibera Wetlands.