The Fallas festival

We arrived in Valencia during the Fallas Festival. Throughout the city people in various neighborhoods had built over 600 Fallas creations -very elaborate and beautifully finished statues made of papier mache and other materials. Some are beautiful, some comical, some Disney and other fictional characters and some quite crude "political" commentaries. All of these were burned up on the last night of the festival, our second night there.. The Fallas festival originated in the 16th century when carpenters started to burn wood scraps in the streets out side their shops to clear out the winter debris, celebrate spring and honor St. Joseph, the patron saint of carpenters. People in the neighborhoods started making statues from the scraps and burned them in the marshes, We enjoyed the Fallas experience. Besides statues and fires, noise seemed to be the major element - fire works were going off and bands were playing all day and almost all night.  Hard to see how any of this connects to St. Joseph. I need to do some research on this.
Each year the best sculpture creation is kept and put in a museum, all others are burned on the last night of the festival. The smaller Fallas creations (generally less than 12 feet tall) were burned at 10pm with fireworks and bands. These were for the children and a little beautifully dressed "Mary" lit the one that we watched burn near our hotel.The larger creations can reach to 30 feet tall. We watched the midnight burning from our hotel window - just a side view. The noise went on til long after midnight.. While we stood watching the fireworks ashes were falling all around us.  Our guide had assured us that firemen were posted around the city to guard against buildings

catching on fire but we didn't see any sign of them.  Nevertheless, everyone, was playing with fire, even little kids, but no one seemed to get hurt.

Gothic glories

I love Gothic cathedrals. In Spain the examples we saw had a little different but still beautiful look because of the Moorish influence.. Here are three details, from different churches, that I really like.

walking on Nabu

Didn't know I would make it to planet Nabu (Starwars II) on this trip. Absolutely beautiful plaza in Seville where Nabu scene was filmed. Seville is 52 miles from the ocean but a port city because its river is navigable all the way to the ocean.
Lunch at small restaurant, not sure what we ordered. Got cheese and bread, always a safe bet. Looked around in grocery store, Kay, the friend I traveled with,

wanted to buy a bargain jug of olive oil, 5 gallons for 18 euros but couldn't figure out how to get it home.
W e saw Columbus' tomb in the ornate Cathedral of Seville, DNA proof it's really him or at least a few bones of him. Bits of him also possibly in two other locations. Sorry about the side view picture. Forgot to flip it before I pasted.

one of my personal favorites

The Cathedral of Cordoba is the most amazing huge (over 6 acres) building and one of my favorite places on the whole trip. Built on the foundation of a Christian church from about 300ad, the mosque was started in 723ad and added to three times as the Muslim population grew. Built with rows and rows of Roman (curved) arches (doubled for more strength like aqueducts), red and white bricks and sandstone in the arches. The builders incorporated some older columns from earlier Roman ruins. About 1200ad the Catholics took over and built a Gothic cathedral inside the mosque. The present bell tower was build around the original prayer tower. Two fabulous organs, beautiful carvings in the choir, on and on and on.

Top picture shows one of the two organs in the choir of the cathedral. The bottom picture is a sampling of the rows and rows of columns and arches.

Happy Easter

In honor of the day I'm including pictures of the interior and exterior of the church of a 13th century monastery in Portugal. While I loved the service at our church this morning, surrounded by family and friends, I find it fun to imagine what it might be like in a church like this. If you look at the top of the building in the exterior shot you can see the Moorish influence in this very Gothic structure. Hope you all had a blessed and fun Easter.
My daughter and son-in-law had Easter dinner at their house this year and, after being assured by my grandkids that they really wanted to do it, I hid the plastic eggs for their Easter egg hunt. They told me to make it hard this year since they range in age from 11 to 14 now so I did.  It turned out to be hard enough that even the adults got involved.  Eventually all 48 eggs were found. I had to help them spot the last two. Who knew I was such a good egg hider?

an introduction to tapas

On Sunday, March 13 we drove into Spain on our way to Madrid. No border checks thanks to the EU. As we rode along in the bus we spotted several storks nesting on power line poles. This picture is from a quick lunch stop restaurant - nothing architecturally outstanding, but I like the view of the old walled city, a ruin now, on top of the hill.  Many of these dotted around Spain. Also note the word Tapas on the awning.  We were to discover, over and over again, that tapas are bite sized goodies served at the beginning of a meal. They come in an endless variety - shrimp, pieces of ham, toast with a tomato paste, chips, nuts, olives, the list goes on and on.  Most of the meals we had started with five to six tapas, then salad, then soup, then the main course and dessert. Usually I was feeling full by the end of the tapas. But of course I wouldn't want to insult the chef so I ate it all. Did I mention I gained 5 pounds on this trip?

On the Atlantic coast

Here we are, two intrepid travelers, on the "Wild Coast" of Portugal.  We saw the western most point of Europe which is in line with NY City. They joke that on a really clear day you can see the Statue of Liberty. Bought my first souvenir in the town of Cascais. Portugal is the producer of cork to the world and the rooster is a very important symbol so my first souv (for my son-in-law who collects corks) is a wine cork with a rooster on top. Here's the rooster story as it was told to us: Hundreds of years ago a handsome young man stopped in his travels to spend the night at a local inn.  A barmaid there became enamored of him but when he (being a virtuous man) spurned her advances, she tried to get revenge by taking some silver from the dining room and planting it in his luggage while he slept. In the morning when it was discovered that the silver was missing the barmaid pointed the finger at the young man. Of course the silver was found in his luggage, he was accused and hauled off to the magistrate.  By this time the magistrate was sitting down to his midday meal which included a roast rooster. (I don't know how they knew it was a rooster.  Since they like to leave the heads on fish, maybe they left the comb on the rooster.) Anyway, he was about to cut into the rooster when the young man, loudly protesting his innocence, was brought to him.  The dubious magistrate asked the VYM if he could prove his innocence to which he replied. "This will prove my innocence. When you cut into that rooster it will stand up and crow." The magistrate stabbed, the rooster stood up and crowed (I'm not sure about you but that would put me off chicken for a long time.) and the virtuous young man was proved innocent. And that's why the rooster is important in Portugal. I have no idea what happened to the barmaid.

experimenting with a picture

I'm trying to download a picture to go with this blog. This is my first attempt to include a picture with my blog.  It's showing up on my screen and I would appreciate it if anyone reading this will let me know if they can see the picture.  A side note here: I'm happy to report that every plane I flew in on this trip had winglets. We flew into Lisbon to begin our tour and the first impression from the air was white buildings and red tile roofs - very pretty. Once on the ground the scenes got much more colorful. The first day we toured the Moorish Alfama Quarter, Jeronimo's Monastery and more. Because I was usually busy walking and taking pictures I didn't always make as many notes as I should have. This should come as no surprise since people who know me well realize that I can barely walk and chew gum at the same time. Anyway, I'm pretty sure this picture is from the church at St. Jeronomo's. Throughout the whole trip I was intrigued with the Moorish influence on the architecture and I think this is a beautiful example.  After the first full day of sight seeing we had a lovely dinner (the first of many which led to me gaining five pounds on this trip) and were entertained by singers and guitarists playing Fado - a traditional Portuguese art form.  I didn't understand a word of course but it was very beautiful and moving, rather like listening to an opera in Italian. More about Portugal tomorrow.

a fabulous trip

I got back late last night from a two week trip to Portugal and Spain. I intend to blog for the next couple of weeks about some of the specific experiences I found most interesting and, if all goes well I will include some pictures. But this evening, while I'm still jet lagged, I'll just comment on a few general observations. First the Spanish word for restroom is aseos.  This proved very helpful to know and only took me about half the trip to figure out. I never claimed to be a linguist. I didn't ever learn the Portuguese word, just followed the crowd off the bus. I've never claimed to be a linguist. Second, I'm pretty sure the Spanish invented steps and they are very proud of this invention. They use steps everywhere. If someone tells you that the aseos is to the left when you go into the roadside restaurant they really mean it's to the left and down three flights of stairs. If your guide tells you that you are going for a walk in a famous park assume that the walk will be mostly up and down steps - many, many steps. Third, most of the cork in the world is grown in Portugal and cork can be made into an amazing variety of items including purses, aprons and shoes.  Who knew?

wild geese honking

This morning, as for the last several mornings, I heard a great clamoring of geese as I was waking up.  So much honking quacking barking, squawking. It sounded like a goose revolution. It was a nice morning so I walked out on my balcony to see where the geese were.  From the noise they were making I was expecting at least 100 of them.  I looked down at the river, still hearing the same volume of sound, spotted the geese and counted seven of them.  It got me thinking, if seven geese can make such a clamor what must the noise been like when the first Indiana citizens lived here 200 years ago.  Add to the geese the birds chirping, bugs chattering and frogs croaking and I wondering if they got any sleep at all.  Could explain their irritability with the Indians.

Laughter really is the best medicine.

I belong to a small group of ladies at church (usually four or five at a meeting) who meet twice a month to discuss scripture, sometimes based on the previous Sunday's sermon or some other source, It's called a Connections Group. There are a few of them in the church. We always start out with the best serious intentions in the world. We read the scripture together, discuss our insights about it, then try to apply it to our lives. And that's where things usually start to fall apart. For some reason there always seems to be something funny in the life examples we come up with. Ultimately we seem to do more laughing than anything else in these meeting. And that's a good thing.

getting ready to go

I've traveled enough now that I'm pretty good at getting organized and getting stuff packed in a timely manner.  For instance for my upcoming trip I'm on track to have everything neatly packed and ready to go by Thursday morning.  Unfortunately my plane leaves Wednesday afternoon.

To wine or not to wine?

That is the question.  Some months ago Doctor Oz said that one glass of red wine every evening can have real health benefits.  It sounded way more fun than exercise to me so I went right out and bought a bottle.  I have continued this pleasant habit pretty regularly ever since but I ran out of wine a couple of weeks ago and didn't get a chance to buy more. No big deal except that I heard another report on a TV news health segment that drinking just one glass of wine can have negative health effects.  I don't remember the details but it didn't sound good. I began ti panic. Did this mean I shouldn't drink wine any more?  Then the report went on to say that, while one glass of wine could be harmful, if a person drank one glass an evening for six evenings that is good for you. No one said what to do on the seventh night. Maybe two glasses?

"Wit" and "Being Mortal"

I saw a great play this evening at First Presbyterian Theater.  "Wit" is the true story of a very smart woman, a professor specializing in 17th century English Poetry, who is dying of cancer.  It was a brilliantly performed play, sad, funny in spots, gut wrenching in others.  I'm glad I saw it but I don't think I want to go through it again.  Coincidentally, I've started reading a book for a discussion group at church which also deals with death.  The book is "Being Mortal" (subtitle "Medicine and What Matters in the End") by Atul Gawande. I'm just getting into this book but Dr. Gawande's contention seems to be that doctors and other care givers spend a lot of time and effort trying to "fix" problems in aging, sick patients without facing up to the inevitability of death.  Interestingly, that was exactly what was played out in "Wit". The professor suffering from inoperable, incurable  cancer was put through eight months of extreme  essentially experimental therapy so the doctors could see how she would react.  She was basically their lab rat.  Scary, isn't it?

something to watch for along the river

I saw an interview on TV this evening that has made me curious.  An enthusiastic young lady was explaining to a local news reporter that a citizens' group is working to raise money for three new projects to be built along the river. Since I can watch a stretch of river from my balcony, I'm always interested in what might be happening in or on it.
The first idea is a "Blue Map" on the river to help kayakers (and presumably canoers and other boaters) know where they are on the river. This sounds reasonable to me. I'm sure boaters I saw will really appreciate it.  I know when I paddled a canoe seeing a map that told me I was almost at the end would have been really appreciated.
The second plan is to have low income people construct beach ball sculptures along the river banks. Really??? Beach ball sculptures? I'm having a little (ok a lot of) trouble envisioning this.  Maybe I misunderstood the kind of sculptures they are planning. I heard a commercial on TV the other day asking people if they are ready to play a new 'horse'. I thought they were talking about betting on horse races but when I listened more carefully I realized the word was 'course' and they were talking about playing golf.  I can't think of anything that rhymes with beach ball though. But why can only low income people build these sculptures?  It might be fun. I'll wait and see on this one.
The third idea is an "Immersive Cinema" experience. Evidently you attend a movie outdoors, not knowing before hand what movie you will be seeing and, during the movie, characters/actors from the movie will be roaming through the audience so you sort of become part of the story. This could be fun I guess but I'm just getting used to the theater with the big reclining seats.  I think that's more my speed.
I don't think I'll be sending a donation to this group anytime soon but I will watch with interest to see what develops.

It's fun to shock your grandchildren.

On Wednesdays and Thursdays I pick up two of my granddaughters after school, and sometimes, if I have some shopping to do, we'll go to Target and while there I usually buy them some little treat - a Starbucks drink or a bag of chips or something similar.  Today was one of those days. As we were driving home after the trip to Target, I mentioned that I hadn't heard a "thank you" from either of them yet.  I like to encourage good manners. They dutifully said thank you (the oldest with a bit of attitude) to which I responded "You're welcome." The oldest, still in 13 year old mode, said "I didn't hear you say 'You're welcome.'" So I repeated it and she repeated her comment, supposedly still not hearing me. So, calling up memories of my best teacher voice times ten, I shouted as loud as I could "You;re welcome!" They were so shocked they were speechless. But, once they figured out that I wasn't really angry, we all burst into fits of giggles. It's a good thing to shock the younger generation sometimes.

Who wants to be a billionaire?

Well I do of course. Not enough to do anything about it except to very occasionally play Power Ball, but, you know, if some one wanted to hand me a huge wad of cash or bearer bonds I wouldn't refuse.  But this morning on the news they announced the Forbes list of the world's richest people. They were all umpty-billionaires of course.  I was nastily amused to learn that Trump wasn't anywhere near the top. But I got to thinking, when I was young a million dollars seemed like the ultimate fortune,  If you were a millionaire that was something. Now, mind you, I still think it would be nice to have a million dollars.  While that doesn't seem any more likely really than a billion dollars dropping out of the sky at my feet I do believe that some of my friends are worth a million in cash and other assets. I'm not going to go around asking them of course but it is easily within the realm of possibility.
I was interested to see that one of the top five richest men on the list was a Spanish man who appears to be about my age. Maybe I can meet him when I go to Spain next week and he'll fall madly in love with me and shower me with riches.  Hey, the odds are as good as winning Power Ball and a girl can dream, right?