Tapas Dancing in Barcelona

 

 

March 5th - March 19th. Planes, trains, buses and bicycles have taken these Senior Nomads to 10 countries and over 30 cities since we left Last July. We've revisited many places we were familiar with from our time living in Europe and other pleasure trips, but Spain just wasn't on our radar.

I do remember a quick work weekend in Madrid in the 80's and Michael and son Christopher had a great visit to Barcelona together in 2000, but until these past two weeks in Barcelona, I don't think we really appreciated this wonderful country. Had we known that once you've come down with Tapas Fever you don't really look for a cure - and dancing in the streets at midnight is just what you do, we could have easily settled here for a few more weeks. Maybe on Senior Nomads Round III.

Tapas were everywhere! Buffet style, at the bar,Wherever.Whenever.

For those of you who know how much I like to read about food, think about food, cook any kind of food, write marketing prose about food - but, when the fork hits the table, don't actually eat much food, you will also know that I found Nirvana in small terracotta plates. Tapas! They were filled with my favorite salty, savory, fishy, porky, tomato-y, potato-y, obsessions served all different ways on demand - and all just my size. If ever there was a restaurant that combined the Sushi-go-Round with a Tapas-go-Round (we could call it Tapishi) I would have to be pried from the table.

And then there is Paella. Now that it something I can eat large plates of. In fact, I took a Spanish cooking class and we made a mountain of it. This version used a large squid like creature called a cuttlefish and its sticky ink turned the dish a deep dark ocean blue.

I am so glad Rafael volunteered to clean our Cuttlefish.

The most flavorful tomatoes I've ever tasted.

The finishing touches to our days work..

The class started with a walk through Barcelona's famed Borquieria fresh food market to gather ingredients. Once we were back in the kitchen we made (and immediately drank) several pitchers of fresh Sangria while preparing the base for Catalonia Creme to chill for dessert. Then we made two large pots of fresh fist stock using what looked like the ravished leftovers from a sea lion's dinner. On to Gazpacho with gusto, Potato and Onion Fritatta, Pan con Tomate (crusty bread slabs toasted and vigorously scraped with pieces of garlic and then gently rubbed with the cut sides of vine ripened tomatoes). Did I mention the Paella? It was a labor of love but so worth it. Beyond the tender cuttlefish, there were lanky crayfish, huge shrimp with all their lovely bits, buttery mussels, and spicy chorizo chunks. We dined on the fruits of our labors while our instructor took us through a regional wine tasting - all in all, a wonderful way to spend an afternoon.

Our apartment was in the center of the city on the edge of the Bjorn district and just a few blocks from Plaza Catalonia. We could easily walk to the Cathedral, and the Palau De La Musica - and with a little morning fortitude we walked to the harbor and nearby beaches. We had a metro station across the street for adventures beyond our four mile walking limit! We took the free walking tour as usual and Michael took the Gaudi walking tour while I was at my cooking class. We hiked up to Park Guell for more Gaudi gawking, and a trek to Montjuic. We enjoyed two great concerts including a trio of Spanish Guitars in one of the cities most beloved churches, the Santa Maria Basilica del Pi and a rousing piano recital.

Yet another happy couple shot - this time on Montjuic.

Stumbled on what looked  like a Pagan Ritual celebrating your stuff. But in fact it was a lovely traditional dance performed every Saturday night in Cathedral Piazza by dozens of the young and old alike to rousing live music. Although every circle did dance around their stuff...for safe-keeping.

Mr. Campbell enjoying Gaudi's glory in the sun.

I regret not getting to the Picasso Museum, but the days were perfectly filled with our commitment to live daily life - including wifi and cell phone challenges (a separate Nomad blog for all that!) Some days we stayed home and read and did laundry, caught up on bills and our daily diary, played Scrabble, cooked and counted our blessings. Oh, and watched the Barcelona Marathon pass by under our balcony while having breakfast on morning. Nice!

A go-to first night dinner featuring roasted chicken and potatoes

One last highlight! Through a friend in London Michael was able to get his hands on a rare ticket to the FCBarcelona vs Osasuna match at the hallowed grounds of Estadi Camp Nuo. The match  was in the afternoon on a Sunday. It was a beautful day, and since Michael loved the hype and excitement around the stadiums when he'd attended matches in other cities, I decided to escort him to the stadium to see the hoopla for myself and then head off for some alone time and a civilized dinner. As it turns out when Michael opened the ticket envelope at the gate he discovered two tickets and two VIP wristbands! Well hang on a minute - maybe I would consider a slight change of plans!

With credentials in hand, we were able to nod to the riff-raff, take a few pictures, and then beeline to the VIP lounge where there seemed to be unlimited bubbly and beer (no alcohol served outside or inside the stands for the aforementioned riff-raff), and tapas. We found our very VIP seats and settled in. I stayed for a respectable hour and then scooted off to seafood dinner. Michael was able to witness a very important moment in soccer history as the revered Senor Messi scored a hat-trick; 3 goals in one game and become the all-time leading scorer for the club. Sorry I missed it, but by then I was deep into a entire grilled sea bass loaded with rosemary, lemon and garlic. Something Mr. Campbell cannot appreciate. So it was, as we say in America, a win-win situation.

Sorry boys - No wristband, no real beer. But I love you all.

Michael getting warpaint for BFC. He loved it!

 Over the course of our travels we've had some good discussions about the future. How long can we do this? How long do we want to do this? What does the next phase look like? We both feel I can return to work of some kind to top up the retirement fund. That's fun to think about, too. Michael does love his yellow pad and a good Excel sheet - so we're working the options.

I should have left a 'job-seeking' notice for a full-time Tapas Taster on this board

Next up Rome! We have a great place booked that is about a 20 minute walk from the Vatican.
I'll catch you up in a couple of weeks. Thanks for reading.

Debbie and Michael
The Senior Nomads

p.s. Did you know that Salvador Dali designed the Chupa Chups logo? Makes you respect those little suckers more now, doesn't it?

A Stop on the Way in Montpellier

March 1 - March 5th. After our wonderful time in Nice with Mary and the kids we loaded up the nomad bags and headed to the train station for our next adventure. This time we are heading to Barcelona by train. It's an 8 hour journey with a train change in Montpellier, France - and being the flexible travelers we are, we decided to build in a stop for a few days.

The elegant buildings were a rich butterscotch color

The train ride was a treat ... for just a few extra euros we upgraded to First Class and it turns out we had an entire train car to ourselves for most of the journey. Plenty of room for some personal space, reading and napping. Although the scenery along the coast for most of the journey kept us glued to the windows.

Montpellier is a lovely ancient city with roman ruins and a grand cathedral. I am glad we had a reason to stop because our airbnb flat was fabulous https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/677804, one of our top five!

Michael on our deck with guess what?!

We did our usual provisioning stop to get the basics which have now come down to: Milk, orange juice, assorted beverages, a few snacks, a light meal; usually salad, cured meats, cheese, bread and fruit. And cereal.

I've separated cereal because it has become an interesting challenge to find a brand that  Michael especially enjoys every morning. The thing is that almost every cereal contains chocolate! The corn flakes are chocolate or there are bits of dark chocolate in the Special K. Certainly every kid cereal wouldn't dare show it's box if it wasn't full of Nutella clusters or ChocoChunks! The granola on offer still has oats, and nuts and other good things along with chocolate chips. If you are not a fan of chocolate for breakfast, you are banished to the boxes on the top shelf - All Bran, Muesli, and a box full of strange gray clumps that just might be made from recycled cereal boxes. So I am thinking the next time we buy cereal we should head to the dark side! Maybe when we are in Rome because you know..."when in Rome..."

There is no shortage of chocolate cereal in Europe

Just to add to the joy of shopping - we ended up with a flooding shower. It obviously wasn't draining, but there was no shower pan so the water just wandered off into the bathroom. This would need a Plumber's Helper! The question is, how does that translate into French? Michael used the translator on his phone at the store but the young clerk did not speak much English and was certainly not a plumber so he couldn't 'help'.  The word Plunger wasn't much better so I jumped in with some high quality Charades moves as I demonstrated the use of the item we were looking for. Handle about this long, round dome shape, uh ... push, push, push, ... and hair (pulling on my own) whooshes out and the drain clears. "Comprendre?" "Viola! I'll get one from the back" he said with amusement.

L'aide de plombier

We made some great new friends during our stay. When we were in Paris last summer we met the parents of twins who went to daycare with Colette. Massoumeh and François are the parents and Sheyda and Kimia the twin girls. They were very interesting, Francois is a film maker and teaches film making as a university professor and his wife Massi works as a freelance translator in the film industry. She is Iranian and speaks Farsi, French, German and English. Their little ones are almost three - and absolutely adorable. We met for coffee one afternoon, and had so much more to talk about we were invited to their beautiful flat the next night for dinner. I haven't spent any time around twins so it was a treat to play with them and observe just what it's like to see double! The best part was the flat had several rooms that flowed into each other without doors so the girls could ride their scooters from one end of the house to the other over the ancient tile floors.

Our new friends in Montpellier

The sun followed us from Nice so we had some quality time on our deck, long walks, a wander through an extensive flea market and a free concert. The kitchen was well equipped, and the farmer's market was very close, so I was able to putter in the kitchen  When in France make Boef Bourgonion!

I had to take a shot of the sky color - wish I had my Pantone book

Next we'll be in Barcelona. Michael's been there a couple of times, but I have not. I have heard from so many people that it is one of their favorite cities, so I am looking forward to it!

We'll catch you up soon. Thanks for reading.

Debbie and Michael

Nice Rocks!

February 19th - February 28. After leaving the blustery winds and rain in London we landed under clear, blue skies in southern France.We did enjoy every minute of being in England again, but we were definitely ready to dry out.

Michael and I arrived in Nice at 1:30 in the afternoon. He headed into the town to get everything settled in our apartment while I waited at the airport for the arrival of Mrs. Mary and our two little grandchildren, Colette 3 1/2, and Marcel, who will be two in June - Mary is expecting baby III at the end of May! I could see them about an hour later through the window as they turned the corner into baggage claim - Mary definitely had that zombie look that comes with traveling with small children, let alone being 6 months pregnant - but she was also calm and radiant. Love that girl. 

Mooma (that's me) to the rescue! Together we scooped everyone up and clambered aboard a city bus heading for 'home' for the next ten days. Both our bus and Michael's earlier taxi were held up due to Carnival 'divertisments' - the daily parade through town was in full swing!

A few hours later Mary would return to the airport to head back to Paris for two days for a food styling project. She is quickly growing her business and is in demand! http://www.eatinginparis.com/

Thanks again, airbnb. We landed the perfect apartment. https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/922255 The bustling daily farmers market was literally outside our front door, the twisting maze of old town was just behind us, the beach was a stones throw away (more about that later), amazing parks were close at hand, and Carnival was one big confetti fest. We did not lack for things to see and do.

I unloaded all of my American kid booty including a frothy, spangle-covered blue carnival dress and Candyland game for Coco, and a scary shark and shorts set and a Thomas the Tank Engine for Marcel.Then we were off to explore.

Since when did Candy Land have a spinner? She loved it anyway!

What a great city. So walkable and family friendly - and of course a warm sea breeze can't be beat no matter where you are. Surprisingly, the beaches here are covered with smooth stones of every size. It was hard to find patches of sand, but we didn't mind since it was still a little too cool to spend more than an hour or so at the beach, and the surf was a little high for the kids. We had a great time picking through rocks to find shapes to bring home and paint later. A great afternoon activity if you were Mooma and Coco. Marcel preferred to throw the rocks. Inside, outside, anywhere, really.

So many Rocks to choose from...toss them? Paint them?

Or make them into a little Frenchman!

 Mary and I love to cook together so we shopped the market every day and created some memorable meals. Of course fantasy had to be tempered with  reality - who would eat what, and when?

So nice to be back to eating fresh and local every day!

Who would nap and who wouldn't - especially grown-ups? Most every one did nap. Most every one did eat, most every one did have temper tantrums, and most every one did get along in our small space.

Naps? Who's takin' Naps? Grandpa and Mooma, that's who!

Marcel performed some spectacular face plants on the tile floor, and Coco cracked under pressure a few times, but all in all it was a great time. Highlights included watching Frozen (as many times as was necessary), Carnival, fun-with-rocks, parks everywhere, coffee and gelato on the promanade, bakery runs, Mom and Mary having dinner at a crazy Indian restaurant, and a trip to the outstanding aquarium in Monaco - only marred slightly by Colette getting motion sick on the very crowded, windy bus trip (no picture needed here). Who needed that shopping bag anyway?

Carnival was all about confetti and silly string! No beads that I could see.

Still wondering about message behind  Putins in Tea Cups - but we loved them!

The Baby Nemo tank. Next to the Baby Dora tank!

Mr. Gregoire was blissfully unaware of any of this while on a back-country vacation in Montreal with his good friend Patrice.

Mr. Campbell was able to get away for a football match in Monaco that he thoroughly  enjoyed. Was it the getting away? Or the adventure? I think both. He got there in one piece - but the journey home was filled with several public transport twists and turns that only he can explain - he did arrive safe and sound around 1:30 in the morning and I could not detect booze or perfume or gambling debts. So all was well. 

Waiting for the bus just after midnight in Monaco!

With the opportunity to spend time with Mary and the kids I am not sure The Senior Nomads truly appreciated Nice in our usual research oriented way - so I am giving it over to a family beach vacation and calling it good!

Mary and I in Monaco with a little peek from Coco!

Too soon it was time to put Mary and the kids back on a plane to Paris, and for Michael and I to board the train for a three night stay in Montpellier, France on our way to Barcelona.

See you soon!

The Senior Nomads

Mind the Gap!

February 6th - February 19th. If you saw news showing most of Southwest England suffering floods of epic proportion - the stories were not exaggerated. It had been raining steadily all over the UK since early December. And once the huge storms hit - the southern coastal waters and rivers just couldn't take anymore. It was sad for us to arrive during that time since we owned a home in the Thames valley near London when we lived here 23 years ago. Our village, Sunbury-on-Thames was definitely affected.

We did not escape the wind, heavy downpours and chilly conditions in London either. But we managed to stay afloat and revisit a city we love. It was great to be back!

Leaving Seattle had it's own challenges. We arrived at the airport to find our flight delayed by 3+ hours. Then we were stuck on the plane itself while a bag had to be off-loaded  due to a passenger not showing up to board. That was another hour.

We arrived in London much later than planned only to discover a general strike on the Underground. It was rush hour so the few trains that were running were crammed full of grumpy (but of course polite) rain-soaked commuters. Our very large suitcases and back packs were unwelcome additions ... but hey, a taxi from the airport is almost $100. and we pride ourselves on using public transportation. Maybe this could have been a day to break that rule - however getting a taxi on a dark rainy night at rush hour with a strike on isn't easy either. Anyway ... two trains and a cab for the final leg got us to our destination. We felt like we'd been run through a long wash with an aggressive spin cycle  at this point.

We staggered into the lobby of a very modern building where our airbnb apartment was located  to collect keys from the concierge. Unfortunately, he did not have notification from the owner of our arrival so he couldn't give us the keys. Really?

At this point we were as fried as a British chip. Michael rallied and found enough paperwork to prove we had, indeed rented Apt. 33 and left a pleading message to the owner to contact the concierge. After a half hour wait, and threats to collapse on the lobby floor, the poor man reluctantly handed over the keys.

We threw our bags down and headed for the nearest pub! We had a great meal and watched a little football on the telly. Things were coming right. We sloshed home and slept for 12 hours!

The next morning (afternoon?) we took stock of our surroundings. Things look different in the light of day and a after a good nights sleep. The apartment was fine - https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/1701111 The Battersea location, however, was a little further from central London than we thought. Not as the crow flies - but because of a lack of a tube station nearby it would require a lot of bus travel to get around - but who doesn't love sitting up top of a bright red double-decker? The bus stop was right outside our front door so we could easily get to Sloane Square and  Knightsbridge so we could grocery shop in Harrod's Food Hall (in my lottery winning dreams) and on from there to Oxford Circus. A bus in the other direction took us to the West End, The City, the Tower of London and St. Paul's Cathedral. The only challenge was the day to day, since we were in no-mans land when it came to real-life grocery shopping, dining out, etc.

Give Mr. Campbell a newspaper and he is happy anywhere

The construction around us was robust and in a few years time this will be the hippest place to live in London. Gordon Ramsey has just opened a new restaurant nearby. Currently a bus ride away of course. http://www.batterseapowerstation.co.uk

The view of the power plant from our window

We did walk from central London to our flat on the rare day it wasn't pouring. It was about three miles and it was fascinating to see observe the infrastructure and new condominium towers being built along the south side of the Thames in the shadow of the old Battersea power plant.

On the walking tour in St. James Park

This would be a good time to note that London has just been rated the most expensive city in Europe for good reason - a bus or Underground trip one-way is about $3.00 On our Senior Nomad's budget it's at least a $12.00 decision. I know that doesn't sound like much if you are on vacation, but on a daily basis with several trips planned it adds up. The Oyster Card frequent travel card helped.  Happily museums are free and there is so much to see and do once you are in the center of London it all evens out.

We loved the 156 to Sloan Square and beyond!

Highlights include: the free walking tour of course, strolling twice through the National Gallery, church service at St. Paul's (I remember getting up at 4:00 am years ago to watch Charles and Diana's wedding here), a visit to Michael's ProServ office on Craven Street just off Trafalger Square, a free concert rehearsal at St. Martin's in the Field, a visit to the Tower of London and walk across the Tower Bridge to the Bourough Farmer's market, dinner with Seattle expat friends Brian and Elaine Kabasnick and a matinee performance of the one-man-show 'The Only Way is Downton' - a whirlwind, cheeky performance by a very talented actor that impersonated every character of the Masterpiece Theatre production that so many of us love. And a sunny day trip to Cambridge by train. What a beautiful city steeped in history and a good cuppa tea.

The commons at Kings College, Cambridge in front of the Cathedral

A different twist on street music in Cambridge

We also watched a good share of the Olympics on the BBC- Curling anyone? That seemed to be the event that was on no matter the time of day ... but there was a lot of 'posh' coverage of all the other events as well.Michael had a chance to visit our first London home in Fulham. We didn't row out to Sunbury.

Michael at 65 Winchendon Road. Our first home.

Chris (4) Kelly (8), Mary (6) against our garden wall in Sunbury in 1988!

The two weeks went by quickly. Next up Nice, France where we will host daughter Mary (due in late May with the third baby), and Colette, 3 1/2 and Marcel almost 2. Should be fun. Maybe not relaxing, but definitely fun. See you there!

The Nomads off at dawn for the next leg to Nice

Thanks for reading - we'll catch you up on Nice soon. Debbie and Michael

Weight, Weight, Don't Tell Me!

A beautiful day in Sun Valley - not Snow Valley

The Great Northwest, December 16th - February 5th. We packed up, teared up, and will definitely need to shape up as we return to our travels. A few weeks in the good old USA was enough to undue some of the benefits of all that walking and healthy eating in Europe!

However, there were some very tasty meals with good friends to be had while we were home - and we wouldn't have passed up a single brownie, Serious Pie pizza, or Taco Time binge. And I did enjoy cooking for family and friends over the holidays. It started with banana bread, cranberry nut bread, and chocolate chip cookies, moved on to french toast, bacon and more bacon, lasagna, fajitas, chili, meatloaf and BBQ; and ended with a stash of American sweets, snacks and condiments I was sure we couldn't travel without (see weight restrictions below). 

Warning: The following reads like an overly long Christmas Letter. Skim or skip.

Colette decorating her first tree!

We spent the week before Christmas in Paris and enjoyed decorating the Christmas tree with Coco and Marcel. The lights in the city were magical and Coco and I took a twinkly little train trip around Montmarte. Hard to say goodbye, but we looked forward to time in Seattle ... and we will see them again in February. 

The time went quickly while we were home. We started in Seattle at our home-away-from-home, the Murray-Robinson's delightful guest house on Mercer Island. I attended the annual Ladies Christmas Lunch at Carmine's. Michael and Kelly enjoyed their annual Messiah concert at Beneroya Hall, and we were dazzled with shopping options right up 'til Christmas Eve. We had a great little Christmas with Kelly and Chris at Chris's house in Ballard (I brought the little decorated plug-in tree from the Tip Top office) and we barbecued flank steak and asparagus for a great steak and eggs brunch. Then off to my brother's to catch up with more family. Drove to Portland the next day for Christmas cheer with the Portland Campbells. The grandkids were so much fun. The next road trip took us to Black Butte where the entire Portland and Seattle clans gathered at Alistair and Jenny's wonderful home in the woods. The snow forgot to show up - but we enjoyed crisp walks in the woods, games and more food, food, food (see above). Next stop - Sun Valley! We caught up with Carla and Tom, and if we thought we loved staying in their guest house, well, their Sun Valley house was truly a home-away-from-home with serious upgrades! Again, the snow was stuck in traffic, but we had a few days together and then Michael and I stretched out for a luxurious, sun-filled three week stay. The only word I can use here is spoiled. We spent time planning our next leg, watched American TV, read, cooked and counted our blessings. We didn't ski - but we did snowshoe. The Ketchum library was amazing with it's crackling fireplace and visitor library cards that let you come and go with an armload of books and DVDs. Headed back to Seattle via Walla Walla and a spectacular drive along the Columbia River. Stopped in Portland for the weekend for a few more hugs.

I would insert a long paragraph here about all of offspring and there many accomplishments - which are many, but I am afraid I would lose your attention. Suffice it to say everyone is healthy, happy, more than gainfully employed in the fields of their choice and so much fun to spend time with. Oh, and our four grandchildren and one grand nephew are exceptional. Upcoming highlights will be the birth of Mary and Greg's third baby at the end of May and Chris and Jamie's wedding August 9th!

Ten days left in Seattle to see friends we missed the first week, squeeze in doctor and dentist visits, and swoop through Goodwill for an armful of nearly new kid clothes to take to Paris. It all finished with a fabulous Mad Women Book and Wine Swilling Club gathering at Carla's followed by classic apple pie and ice cream at my brothers house before heading out for Round II.  You can look now!

Leaving Paris with the help of the fabulous Gregoire

Sorry Europe. Nothing beats Darte.

The lovely Jenny and Lucy in Portland

Speaking of eating...Fondue for Two, for one!

A rare sighting of my brother Jerry and I

It was time to pack. We had the best of intentions to take fewer things this time, but trying to pack for six months with your next stop being wet and wild weather in London, spring in Spain and summer who knows where - all stuffed into one bag is a tall order. We did commit to packing a bit under our weigh limit of 23 Kilos (about 50 lbs) so that we had some wiggle room when flying on discount airlines in Europe due to lighter weight limits and stricter carry-on rules. Plus I personally dislike the "if you are going to add something to your suitcase, you'll have to give something away" rule imposed by a spouse who will remain nameless. Takes all the fun out of shopping - especially if it's a dreamy bottle of olive oil. Or wine. Or a hefty souvenir. Oh well, keeps the spending light, too. In keeping with the weight theme, we were spot on with 23 Kilos each. Once I off load the kids goodies, I hope to gain that much needed wiggle room.

Here we go again! Bags and tummies full.

Off to the airport! We arrived two hours early as planned, only to discover our flight was delayed by three hours. Good thing we have a wonderful airport to explore and the ongoing backgammon tournament can begin early. We look forward to keeping you up to date with our adventures.

Much love to all -  the Senior Nomads!

p.s. If you don't have plans for my birthday on March 6th, you might consider attending the Pike Place Market Foundation Luncheon. A great cause that is near and dear to my heart. www.pikeplacemarket.org for details.