“The [220mph] Ave S103 is the kind of train that British commuters can only dream of, and forms the centrepiece of plans to make Spain a model for the rest of Europe, and the world leader in high-speed trains by 2010.”
“The aim is to have 10,000km (6,200 miles) of high-speed track in Spain by 2020, meaning that 90% of the population will be no more than 30 miles from a station through which the train passes.” Whether the train actually stops in said stations may be another matter…
Photo: 6.30 pm in the Retiro Park
El Pais thinks the crazy pollution levels we are experiencing in Madrid this week are responsible for skies like these. The government still optimistically blames Saharan dust and, against the risk of the entire city suffering collective asthmatic collapse, continues to tell us that under no circumstances should we attempt to take any physical exercise outdoors. Lovely. We are probably far better off in Madrid’s smoggy, smoke-filled bars.
About the bus: I once heard that the British are not allowed to donate blood in Spain as we are all potentially walking around full of Mad Cow Disease. Nice to know there’s still something in store if the Madrid air doesn’t polish us off first!
There was a healthly (?) discussion on the forum recently about whether or not Spanish food is oily. Quote: “the amount of oil most dishes are served with is mind boggling.” The basic consensus though, was that Spanish food is essentially oily in a good way. I mean, you can’t get enough of that anti-oxidising, extra-vigin, life-restoring olive oil, can you?
Well, my friends, I fear that some may draw the line at the Plato Alpujarreño.
Pictured above, and served up throughout the wonderful mountain range to the south of Granada, this cacophony of meat and not-very-extra-virgin grease slips down a treat. From the top we’ve got Jamon, Chorizo, Morcilla (no rice in this one, just the congealed pigs blood), a good slab of pork chop, the fried egg and, the coup de grasa, the oiliest of all oily potatoes: patatas a lo pobre.
Absolutely spot on after a day in the mountains 8) Would you eat it?
We recently asked people what they wanted us to talk about on our Notes in Spanish podcasts, and we got lots of great ideas. So, I’d like to ask the same here at Notes from Spain. After all, one of my favourite podcasts of recent months, on Ramirez Guitars, came from a reader suggestion sent in by email.
What would you like to see on this blog? What would you like me or others to write or podcast about from here in Spain? Please (please!) write suggestions in the comments below, or send them in by email if you prefer.
Thanks, I can’t wait to hear your suggestions. Ben
We were really looking forward to this film. It’s set in the town I grew up in (there’s a clue in the title), has a pretty good cast (John Hurt, Elijah Wood, Leonor Watling) and is directed by Alex de la Iglesia, who so perfectly depicted the horrors of living in a Madrid apartment building in La Comunidad.
So, what went wrong? Here are the top 3 disasters:
With the exception of young men who probably feel that seeing Leonor Watling in nothing but a kitchen apron is worth the price of admission alone (and Alex de la Iglesia may have been banking on this), there really is nothing to recommend this film at all. What a shame. It had all the makings of the kind of blockbuster that could have added a little shine to Spain’s spiraling film industry.
(God it’s hard writing film reviews at midnight on a Sunday night… I wish South of Watford had seen it first then I could have just linked to one of his great reviews instead! Still, I hope you get the message. The film was pretty crap. Apart from the apron scene. But don’t tell Marina I said that.)
What’s your all-time favourite, or worst, film from Spain?
I just noticed the following comment appear on my previous post and thought it was such an extremely accurate and acute observation that it deserved not to be missed. It speaks volumes of the Spanish attitude to both sincerity and their fine national cuisine:
“Fact: If you cook dinner for Spanish friends, they have no problem giving you a detailed critique of the meal when it is finished.
I remember noticing this on the Spanish cooking show, Hoy Cocinas Tú, in which a person learns how to cook a dish and then makes it for family/friends. The dinner guests always offer suggestions as to how the dish could have been improved. I have grown accustomed to this and now I prefer a fair assessment of my food to an insincere compliment.
I usually only prepare foreign dishes for Spanish friends (American or Mexican fare) so that they don’t really know what the dish is supposed to taste like. And yes, I leave out the hot spices. Something that defeats the purpose of many Mexican dishes.
One more thing, you cannot change a single ingredient when making a standard Spanish dish or you will never hear the end of it. I made a tortilla the other night for my girlfriend and her mother. They both looked on in horror as I made it with cheese and onions—something that just isn’t done here. It was as if I were mixing two highly volatile chemicals like bleach and ammonia. The only way I could get them to try it was to convince them that it was a French dish.”
For more of the same, check out the author’s blog at www.leftbanker.com
1. Spanish people almost never tip on a Menu del Dia
This is explained patiently to me time and again. There is no need to tip if you have the set, 3 course menu del dia lunch. We know that tipping in Spain is by no means obligatory (5% is about right for good service at dinner), but few people will tip for one of these marvelously good value lunches.
2. Bananas must come from the Canary Islands
And if they come from anywhere else, many a Spaniard will rather go banana-less until the next shipment comes in.
3. Indian Restaurants Sugar their Spiciness
Most Spaniards do not like hot, as in chilli-hot, food. So many Indian (and other ethnic) restaurants actually add sugar to their curries to bring down the scorch factor.
Any random Spain facts of your own to add in the comments?
The Ramirez family has been making classical and flamenco guitars in Madrid for over 125 years. We visited their workshops in Madrid, spoke to Amalia Ramirez (pictured at work below), and heard a professional musician play one of these world-famous instruments in their shop, near Madrid’s Puerta del Sol.
Listen to the podcast, check out all the photos on Flickr (try the slideshow!), and read on below for more information on everything mentioned in the podcast.
More information:
Notes from Spain would like to apologise for prematurely announcing earlier this week that Spain had found lyrics for its wordless (since 1978) national anthem.
Apparently the poetic attempt to keep all parts of this divided nation happy received too many complaints, and the Spanish Olympic Committee, who were behind the initiative, have canceled a star-studded gala due to take place next week, when Placido Domingo was to sing the new words in public for the first time.
It is believed that the inclusion of the phrase ‘Viva España‘ in the lyrics is to blame for the controversy: who, after all, could realistically expect a Catalan, Basque, or Gallego, to sing that?
There is no doubt that this whole merry dance is far from over, as many talk of taking the lyrics to parliament for ratification, but things don’t look good. Read the lyrics again below and decide – could you write something more harmless than that?
Full news here in Spanish. Words of the anthem below:
Don’t worry… Help is at hand!
Notes from Spain by Ben Curtis 