1. Coffee is one of the greatest inventions of human beings. Some is good some is bad (American to me, e.g.), but always nice in good company.
2. Precisely, being a civil servant myself coffee break is kinda tradition. We don’t really misbehave (not a escaqueado or a fanullone), but flee for a little while to Puerta del Sol coffee shops or to those in calle Alcalá (btw flooded by tourists and damn starbucks) in madrid km 0.

cheers

ahora eres hansguncia?

As usual (for the last 8 years) we all travel to Salamanca, my wife’s homeland. Most of you would know it after its great university plus nightlife in an ancient pedestrian Castilian city.

But it has got its non-touristic traditions and in this Latin country (not the only one, sure) that means food. And Christmas and New Year are about eating and drinking, isn’t it?

Here’s what we have (painful to hit the names in English of unusual nourishing things, thanks Internet)

Starters:

Boiled langoustines (in fact most every dinner across the country consist of sea food, namely barnacles and spider crab)
And of course, in the Land of Pigs (not to mistake with Portugal (real close, indeed, btw), Italy (cariiiiini), Greece (it’s all Greek to me) and Spain (olé), ham. But ham not like Parma one (sorry fede, simply no comparison) or regular ham. This is almost a question of honour here: it must be Salamanca Ham, (Jamón ibérico). Nevertheless you can have Jabugo, Teruel or a few others, but it has to be great and expensive to be tasty and healthy. Fede can say a word on this, I guess.

Main dish:

In Salamanca we tend to opt for the fruit of the land rather than the fruit of the sea. And then you can find both lamb (cordero asado, but this is more for Madrid or Segovia really) or cabrito (kid). This is what we had. Unfortunately I don’t dare entering the kitchen (where I only pick and bother) so I cannot say hoe to cook it, but I can ask. I wish I had a picture, bcs it was delicious, and the meat simply melts in your mouth.

Desserts: as good heirs of the moors in Spain we enjoy a rage of sweets from turrón to mazapán and some fruits. But lately we tend to have tropical fruits (namely pineapple), so we emit too many tons of co2 per dinner, and that ain’t no good, mate.

That’s it so far.

I promise to take a few pics at new year’s eve dinner, 12 grapes included, and how we do it at home. I am enjoying this!!

Hasta la vista! Y feliz año nuevo a todos!!