Máj - Some Czech traditions

I hope to go back to London sometime and have a better chance to experience it more. In the meantime, there is more traveling to do here in Prague and around.

Since December, I have experienced some of the most interesting traditions and events here in Czech Republic. The religious festivities and traditions are particularly interesting, more so when taking into account this is not a religious country, in general.

Christmas time, Prague style

Charles Bridge at Na Kampé Malá Strana

Right before Christmas, people gather under the Charles Bridge (Karlův most) in Na Kampé Malá Strana. During the communist times, people started to come to sing Christmas songs here spontaneously, and didn't need a formal form of organization; people just knew what to do and when, and they would find each other at this place to sing. Since then, it has become a very nice tradition that takes place under a bridge that was first built in the mid 1300's.

As they sing, some people walk around with bottles of fernet, slivovice, and hot wine to share. A few others walk around with bowls of cramberries and olives, and others carry bags filled with small wrapped gifts, usually candy or small toys. All meanwhile people sing along, drink, and meet with their family and friends under the bridge. At home, the Christmas tree awaits with way more gifts than most could handle! There can be so many gifts for each person that half of the tree can be covered; and to distribute the gifts can take as long as an hour, maybe more.

St Vitus Cathedral - constructions in 925, 1060, 1344 AD

It is very interesting to see how here in Prague it is common to celebrate festivities with a religious feeling only around Christmas time, in a town known for its heavy Atheist population. Long ago Christian religion was a big part of life, which is clearly evidenced by the dozens of large and very nicely decorated churches from 100's of years ago all over the Czech Republic. St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague is one of the oldest and most beautiful buildings of gothic architecture. It has been constructed and rebuilt three times in 925, 1060, and the current one in 1344 AD.

Communism was a big factor in how Czechs in Prague, and most of the Bohemia region, perceived religion. In those years, religion was suppressed, and after decades of not practicing religion by the older generations, the younger generations now have a tendency to consider themselves Atheists.

Yet, during the last week of December, here in Prague it is common to hear Czechs singing Christmas carols in front of the churches. On the 25th, many go to Mass at the local church and have a regular Catholic service. All other days, churches are very much empty.

Old Town Square - Staroměstské náměstí

Then there are the Christmas markets. I visited the ones in Prague, Bratislava, Krakow, and Budapest, and they all were really cool! Vendors set up stands in the main squares, and sell mostly hand-made crafts. You find everything in here from clay pots, to straw dolls, ceramic bells and angels, and wax decorations. The food and hot alcoholic drinks are also really good, particularly in those unbearable cold nights. It is also nice to see the huge Christmas trees in the middle of the squares full of lights and sparkling stars at the very top; the bright decorations of lights and Angles playing trumpets along the boulevards; the Nativity scenes in the churches; the Christmas carols in the squares.


Christmas beer and the "hunger" flying golden fish

Christmas beer - Depending on the pub you go to, the owners make a special beer for these days. I had this one dark and strong beer at a pub near the Prague Castle.

Ladies and Gents - cloudy (unfiltered) beer in small quantities does wonders to the spirit in a cold night in company of friends and succulent roast pork with dumplings and purple sauerkraut (pečené vepřové s knedlíky a se zelím) I kid you not!

The Golden Fish is a symbol of good fortune. And here is the deal - on Christmas day you are not supposed to eat until dinner when you can have the traditional Carp. Word has it that eventually you will see a flying Golden Carp, and if you catch it, you will have good luck.

I figured - of course you are gonna see flying fish, and very likely other abnormal things happening... it is called hallucination caused by hunger!

By the way, it is not a Golden Fish as a Czech rightly pointed out. It is a Flying Pig... there you have it Ladies and Gents - total hallucination!

Where is Nemo, mami?

Christmas dinner is very nice. To some extent, the experience is comparable to Thanksgiving in the US. Family and friends cook lots of dishes and prepare different drinks, get together around the table and talk and laugh, and in two hours stuff themselves to the neck. It is fun and a really good time to enjoy with those close to you.

Instead of Turkey, they cook fish. Now, this is the only time Czechs really eat fish, in general. Three days before December 25, people buy carp on the street, still alive and swimming in over crawded fish tanks. Then, like with lobster in a fancy restaurant - and sometimes even at a diner in NY - you get to pick the fish. The butcher can prepare it for you, or you can take it home alive and keep it in the bath tub for a couple of days.

If you want it prepared, the butcher puts one his giant rubber globes, takes the fish out of the tank and into his arms, and very quickly hits the fish in the head with a hammer real hard; right there and then skins it, takes all the guts out and cuts it in pieces. Not a pretty scene, let me tell you. The butchering of an animal still alive, the blood on the table and dripping down to the sidewalk and into the drain on the street is still something I cannot get used to, not in Czech, Spain, Vietnam, anywhere.

The other way is to bring home the carp alive, and keep it in the bath tub swimming for a couple of days before killing it. Doing this, I cannot help to imagine little Petr coming home one day and asking - Where is Nemo, mami?....Not cool :/

Even Chuck Norris cannot handle it. Check out this T-Mobile commercial from the Czech Republic. Tough guy, hu!


The only day when whipping girls is legal!

On Easter Monday, very early in the morning, men prepare a whip from a special tree branch, and then walk around town whipping girls along the way. According to the tradition, the harder you hit women, the longer they stay beautiful... and after the beating, women give you in return shots of alcohol or chocolate eggs.... could not believe it! In Prague, men might make the whip, but they are not likely to go around beating girls, or at least strangers. In the country side this is a more common tradition.

We went to the small town of Mnisek, on the south, and it was a good experience. The night before, we hit the only bar in town, and apparently the only formal business too. In the morning, we went out to whip them all, on the street and at their homes - no one was safe! And then, then we realized that almost all the people we met that morning were also at the bar the night before. What do you expect in a town of only 90 people!

Now, the whip is in water, and it is growing some leaves. I might go back to Mnisek and plant it. In that way, after many years I can make more whips from its branches and do it all over again!


A romantic kiss, Prague way!

A little history here. There was this guy, a poet called Karel Hynek Mácha that most Czechs know about. Karel wrote what is today considered one of the best romantic poems in the Czech literature. He wrote the poem  Máj (May) in 1836, and at the time no one thought it was that good. The poem talks about love for the beauty of spring. After writing the poem, he died in a fire trying to save a victim. Many years later after his death, his work was recognized.

Many Czechs celebrate Máj as a romantic love poem in May, as if it was St. Valentine's day, but better - it is not commercialized and people do it spontaneously. When celebrating Máj, couples stand under a tree with flowers and kiss. A cool place to celebrate is Letna, on Letenské Sady. There is a beer garden up there, and the view from Prague is amazing! During the Spring season, there are lots of flowers on the trees... the best excuse to give your sweet heart a special moment.

Burn, Burn!!!

Witch burning is another interesting tradition around Labor Day. And here is the thing, there is no celebration of Labor Day per se - Czechs call it Labor Day but celebrate their version of St Valentine's on day before the witch burning.

On the day before Labor Day, people gather around a fire and burn a doll representing a witch, as in the old old times when this was done to lots of women for real. This tradition is more fun in the country side, cause then friends camp around the fire, share stories while cooking sausages on a stick and drinking beer or Slivovice, a really strong vodka-like drink made of plums. Here in Prague, the city gets ghostly empty, but it is possible to still see some burning in Podolské nábřeží, a really cool place along the river, packed with restaurants, bars, food stands, and a beach!!! Czech Republic doesn't have access to the ocean, but here you can find a Czech beach!


Photo album coming up!

London - Rugby, I get it!!!

So I was in London for the first time. I knew there would be little chance to walk around because I was working.... but I was in London, it was not as rainy and fuggy as I had expected, and I did get to see something.

The black taxi painted in red and red phone box which lots of tourists thought it was best for pictures than for calls. I never really saw anyone making a call in there....

I tried to take a decent picture of the London Eye at night but didn't have my tripod, so this is my best shot...

The Big Ben, which I have to say is impressive, and the architectural design of parlament is awesome ...

The London Bridge is nice in architecture too....

The London Tower and the Crown Jewels, which by the way was awesome to see how they shine...

The double decker red bus (old and new) crossing in front of St. Paul's Cathedral...

Really nice Nothing Hill and the many many usless but interesting things you can buy at the Portobello Market...

Hyde Park, by the fountain, across the yellow flowers - I think this is a NYT's pic, in my humble opinion....

Oxford Circus and the many young people just hanging out pretty much every single nigth, most likely on their way to the clubs around Leisester Square - I can almost guarantee it...

Then there was the Rosetta Stone in display at the British Museum... If you want a picture, google it. I can only say it is really nice to see such a beautiful thing. But the pic from above at the entrance of the museum is nice...

And then there are the standard black, gray, white and beige colors of the city, aside from the redish/brownish brick buildings in Mayflower and the muilticolor buildings in Nothing Hill, plus some other I am sure I missed all around London....

On the last day, when I actually had some time to walk around after 10 days of working, I went to the local pub near my hotel for dinner and a rugby game - England vs. Ireland. It ended 27-9, England up, which apparentely was really impressive given the two teams are just as good.

Early during the week I had met some interesting folks and we met on Sat, and while watching the rugby game, these guys tried to explain how rugby works, and I totally can see why it is an awesome game. They told me "football (soccer for you in the US) is a game of gentelmen played by hooligans, while rugby is a game of hooligans played by gentelmen", which I got. They also tried to explained what England, UK and Great Britain really mean, and I was still lost. Then I saw this video, and now I think I got it.

This is a fun video, and there are some more at http://blog.cgpgrey.com/, where the intention is to explain the inexplicable.

Photo album

• London 2012

Krakow - Who knew? Hot Beer!

Night train

One thing is to go by bus for 6 hours to Berlin, or even 8 to Budapest by train. But 11 hours on a seat... no way! This is how long it can take to Krakow, Poland by train from Prague. In this case, it is probably better to take the night train and stay on a cabin with bed.

This is awesome! Not only comfortable, the sound of the tracks, the rocking movement, the blue light outside, it all makes the trip worth the 60 euros. Plus, think about it - you save on accomodation for one night, so in the end, it is a really good deal.

Prague-Krakow train tickets nifo


Krakow's hot drinks

Hot beer with raspberry vodka - 70%!

Seriously, when I heard it, the thought of it made feel close minded. When you drink beer, you want it cold, right? Hot beer is very good too, of course, with some special flavoring. The bar tender boils it, then adds cinnamon and sweet syrup, like raspberry or ginger, and a wage of orange in most places. Then there is the option of adding flavored vodka - raspberry for example. Oh, what a difference! It is good to try it.

Hot wine is popular in many countries here in Europe. In Poland, it is called Grzaniec. During the winter season, there are lots of stands in the shape of wine barrels around the main squares. It is so cool to get your small cup, and then drink it standing near the food stands where is warm. Here, hot wine also can have honey, which taste very good.

Winter, and in particular Christmass, feels very nice in these cities. It is cold, but people gather in large groups, seating on old wooden benches or standing around tall tables. Here you drink hot wine or beer, eat all kinds of dishes with sausages, potatoes, rice, sourkraut, and bread. There is more in the menu, but these are the favs.


City of details

The view from Krakus Mound is awesome. This day in particular was freezing cold, and the day was cloudy, so the view was not as colorful and long, but it was good. From up here, the entire city can be seen all around. On each side it is possible to see the old town, the power plant, the cemetery, and a huge hole on the ground where the dirt came from to form the mound, and the hole seems just as deep as the mound's hight, as if it was scooped like an ice cream ball.

There are lots of interesting details in Krakow. The buildings are similiar in design, but they all have something different and interesting if one looks closely. Also, in every district there is a particular set of designs and details that can make you feel you are in a different place every few blocks.

The city felt gray the entire time. That's because it was cold, the leafless trees, no snow, gray sky. Still, it was nice to walk down the streets, see the castle, the souvenir market, the food and drink stands, the cafes, the restaurants with their own themes, the old churches and sculptures on the walls, the locks on Most Józefa Piłsudskiego symbolizing couples' compromise to stay together, and then all the types of clubs, which can be really active.


The Jewish Quarter

I should have known better. The Jewish quarters in Krakow as in Prague is not like saying Crown Hights in Brooklyn, NY, to use an extreme example. Communities like Kazimierz had long seen Jewish populations (from the 14th century in many cases) dimish after WWII. Places like this are full of history. Today, Kazimierz is seeing an economic revival, and luckly, many of its features from the time the Jews left, are still visible, and now there is an interest to restore more of them.

This place is different from the rest of Krakow. It has its own building designs, Jewish details like fences shaped like manorahs, cafes and book shops with Jewish motives and signs in hebrew. At the moment of writing this posting, I was not sure whether there was also an increase of Jews moving to town, although my guess is that only the economic part of it was (showing how little I know about the topic). Some of this is also visitble in Prague, where the Jewish quarter is Josefov.


City of hidden variety

Funny thing - I was convinced I would see lots of old synagogues when I spotted them on the map. Looked around for them and only found one that was really old, and it was closed. And even that, I think it was only a library. The Jewish museum in Kazimierz was very good, and had lots of collections from centuries ago.

And in the process of finding these synagogues, we found a Tango Cafe. It was quite something to see Tango dancing after so long, in such a far away place. And it felt really good to be there, seating on an old and squeeky chair, having a small cup of capuccino, listening to Gardel and seeing couples dancing with some of the passion you would expect fromTango. Really good.

I also liked the cafes in the Jewish quarter. The ones I visited had old pictures. Looking outside, I realized the pictures could easily have been taken just a day ago, in black and white on purpose, because lots of buildings and streets still look like they did at the end and beginning of the 19th and 20th centuries - like in the pictures.

Josef street is another part of the city with its own charater. This is where most art shops and underground cafes and pubs are found. Nearby there are also a few bars where Salsa tunes mix with hot beer a few nights a week.

For a more alternative crowd, close to Beera Meiselsa street there are lots of pubs, underground clubs, and street food. For more main stream, pop culture, there are plenty of trendy clubs around the Old Market Square - and yes, you can defenitely hit all of this in two nights till early in the morning.

Krakow is a good place to visit. If coming from far away, say 10 hours on the road, I would recommend a cabin with bed in a night train. You arrive early in the morning, say at 7:00 am, and go to a coffee shop around the Old Market Square, have a capuccino with bagel and cream cheese, watch outside the window as people walk by on their way to work or back home after a rough night. Then the rest is what you make of it.

The city has its charm and is full of history, things to see and do, and it is heaven for photographers, I would think. During the winter is not as easy, for a summer trip - in my list.


Photo album

• Krakow

Bratislava in two hours - and hot honey liquor

It is not a circle - it is the city from different angles

I was warned it would take about two hours to see Bratislava's old town and surroundings. And it is true. Well, only if you walk, take pics and head back to the bus. Three days were good to get a feeling, and to see what can happen there.

We got to the central square, looked around, then took a side street just to end up in another corner of the same square in a few minutes - several times :) Good thing about this is that we saw almost everything, at least from the outside. During the day it was good, at night it was epic!

Next time thought it would be nice to actually get to know more places from the inside, and... here is prediction... maybe write a book about it.


Christmas Market

In Bratislava as in Prague, Budapest, Viena, Krakow, you name it, these are a must see during the season. There is the decorations, the small hand crafts, the stage with traditional music and dances, the hot drinks.

On the day we went, there was an activity with traditional music, costumes and dances. The stands around the square were selling small hand made decorations, like the dolls above, made of corn husk. There were also ceramics with hand painted motives and in many colors. The food was good too, with different types of breads, soups, sausages, pastries and sweets.


And then there were the hot drinks, in the freezing night, breathing white through purple fingers. 

We had hot wine, but first we had hot honey liquor, Medovina. The best medicine for cold days. Depending on where in Europe, hot wine is called differently. In Czech Republic it is Svařák, in Norwegian Glogg (which most New Yorkers might recognize). Want to try some? Click in the link to enjoy hot wine.

I am deviating a bit in here from Bratislava. But thing is, hot drinks in these parts of Europe are awesome and creatvie! They don't stop at coffee, chocolate, tea and now wine. There are also other mixes with beer and wine in different ways.

Some examples of European mixes when money is not enough for fancy cocktails.

Here in Czech Republic, and as I learned in a recent trip to Spain that apparentely that is where the idea comes from, some people mix red wine and coke - Calimacha!

In Bratislava I first had rezane, a mix of 10 grade light beer with 11 degree dark beer, which looked like a capuccino to some extent. And here is the funny thing, it was a mix of Czech and Slovak beer, which I could almost say it was a Czechoslovakian beer!

And then there is hot beer which I could not believe, but had it in Krakow. Some Polish dare to heat up beer like tea, and mix it with some sweet syrup and cinnamon. The one I had was with 70% raspberry vodka, 100% Polish, and I survived three of those :)

When it comes to alcohol, creativity is enhanced by drinking it, some might say.

So, back to the Christmas Market in Bratislava. It was a nice round around the world, and I really recommend it for a stop when you come visit Slovakia.


Things to see on the streets

Then there were the street performers. I liked this one the most. He gives the illusion he is actually on the air. The man passed the umbrella under his body, and rocked back-and-forth several times to show there was nothing under him. It is not such a big secret how he does it, just take a closer look and you will see it is easy to figure out. I also saw a woman in Krakow trying this, but he was better.

There are also a few statues around the corners that are very popular. This one is the working man. Everyone who passes by takes a picture or touch his head for good luck. There are a few other ones not far from this one, the paparazzi, the happy guy greeting by passers with his silver hut, and the small baby angel looking down the street.

We didn't visit museums or other buildings inside this time, but went to lots of cafes and small stores. For dinner, Verne on Hviezdoslavovo námestie was very good. This place, Verne, not only has good and affordable food, the ambient and design are also very interesting.  The entire place has only antique furniture and the decorations are inspired by themes from books of the French writer Jules Verne.

As for night life, there are quite a few good places. Primi and Casa Havana, both on Michalska, next to Michael's gate. Music is good, and believe me, it gets active. Then there is Rio closer to the river - go figure...

Along Ventrúska there are also quite a few good pubs. Some of the smallest ones can have good music and cool atmosphere, and depending on the night the bartenders are very good at doing tricks. Some other clubs that are worth a visit are more difficult to find. One I really liked is very close to Casa Havana. You first go inside the bar, then you open the door to the restrooms and voilà! The clubs is downstairs, live music, old like the town itself, and rezane beer.

Ah, and here is also where the taxi driver took us from the bus station to the train station, 3-minute ride for 30 euros, told us he would take us 10km outside Bratislava, take our money, and we had to open the doors in the middle of the highway to get him to stop the car. Yup, fun to the end in different forms and shapes. All good.


Photo album

• Bratislava

Buda & Pest

Budapest was good. I was told I would not understand the language at all, and yes, I didn't. Apparentely they are related to the Finish, thus the similarities in the languages.

I found the city to be similar in some ways to Prague. The architecture is similar in style, and if one was to compare both, Prague's buildings make the city seem more multicolored. The streets in Budapest are wider, and much longer, or at least that is the feeling. Prague is older too, so that explains the straight streets and wide avenues. At night, the area around the Danube river is beautiful, with its illuminated bridges and large buildings.

St. Stephen Cathedral is very nice inside and outside. In every corner there are lots of details and it would take more than a day just to see the basics, I think. Outside there are lots of statues and the cupulas are large and round, with pointy towers on the sides. The main entrance has a huge wooden door, and stepping outside the view of the Christmass market was a nice feeling.

This pic above is not the Christmass market by St. Stephen, but it is a nice one. It was very cold, but we fixed it with hot wine and goulash. The stuff they were selling was very nice. There were lots of ceramics and clay pots that can cook the best meals I have had in Central and Eastern Europe. The sausages are very tasty too. During the winter time it looks very nice. Next time I am going during the summer, and bike along the river and up the hill for a view of the city.

This place rocks! Zsimpla is on Kazinczy utca (street, pronounced Kazintszy utsa, close enough). From the outside it looks like an abandon building, but on the inside, there is a huge space, two floors with multiple rooms to hang out, and it feels as if you are in somebody's large patio. On the night we went, there was belly dancing show, and then we moved to the outside area. It has a very good athmosphere and is very local. During the summer, the open space is arranged with benches and long tables like a beer garden.

Then we moved to this other place. Not sure of the name, but is on the same street, same block. Outside at street level it looks like a quite bar, but then downstairs the party is awesome. Here I really had a different experience. This is the first place in all the Eastern European countries where I have seen Gypsys mixing, drinking and dancing with the others. Situation in this part of Europe is quite complex with this group, but I can tell you, this is not normal for me to see in a big city. It was a lot of fun and perhaps the best I had at night in Budapest.

This one is from Gallérthegy hill. The view of Buda and Pest from up there was worth the effort going up, with hot wine to keep our hands warm, sometimes also our feet :) We got there about 30 minutes before it got dark, and the wait paid off. The colors of the city changed dramatically at every minute. All day was cloudy and everything looked gray. Then, as it started getting darker, the different tones of blue and yellow became more and more impressive. I liked this one a lot, and would want to do it again. We then went down the hill towards the Chain Bridge, and found a French Cafe overlooking the river and the bridge. Capuccino was rewarding!

Need to go again to visit one of the Turkish baths. I dare to say I was in Budapest, and yet didn't do this, in the winter! Still, good place to be and lots of things to do and see.


Photo album

• Budapest 

Valencia, where the orange trees forever Send the breeze beside the sea

Valencia is one of the most beautiful cities I have been to. Four days packed with surprises around the corner, across narrow alleys leading to hidden places, at least to the forigner. There is a point in no using maps at times.... you miss too much starring at that piece of paper instead of feeling the surroundings. Took me ages to get back to my blog, and there is no better way I can think of to re-start this project than with a brief description of what I lived in Valencia.


Narrow Alleys... getting lost in order to find oneself stands truthful to its meaning

Very often in Valencia I found out the streets lead to other places with their own themes. It is not a very big city, but still it feels its quarters can be very different from one another, and yet, that is what makes them all the same.

Something I like a lot about this city as I liked it in Barcelona is the balconies. There are lots of them almost in every building. Go to New York and try to get an appartment with a balcony and see how much they charge you. Here I can only imagine the balcony is a given. It is a great section of the flat (apartments, as they call them here in Europe). You can decorate it with plants, put a small table and two chairs for an afternoon coffee, or just take a smook outside and feel the breeze running though the cobble stone streets, sometimes smelling like orange or lemon, and at times like sea or paella.


The all and new buildings are nice too

Here is a view of El Ayuntamiento - City Hall. During the day it looks beautiful, during the night is looks amazing. The fountain was working on this particular day, so I was lucky. There are also the other buildings around the square that add to the view worth of a painting.... which in fact I saw the day after, when a local artist was just doing that in the late morning.

Around the old town there are lots of nice architecture. The Plaza de Toros next to the North Train Station looked very good at 4:49 pm, before sunset, and on the last day there was a clear sky with a quarter of the moon overlooking the city shining over these two buildings.

The medieval towers around the old town are nice too. I looked at them, and imagine knighs and kings crossing them, with large poles holding the flags of the Valencian Kingdom. And they are so old, from around the 14th century, and are still standing. The Spanish and Valencian flags now over look the city, and in a clear day, the view of the city from atop these towers is a reward after a long day of walking.


Vino Tinto y Cafe con Leche, por favor

And here is another aspect of Valencia I liked the most, the cafes. There are cafes in almost every corner, plaza, alley, and busy streets. The feeling of a small table with just enough space for a tapa, a glass of red wine and a cafe "con o sin" leche in a clear day, with moderate temperature, under a tree and the ocassional Spanish guitar player.... priceless.

I particularly prefer the cafes in the smaller plazas. Most of the ones I visited connect more than 4 streets as if it was a star with the cafe in the middle. The streets then strecth far to other parts of the city, and at times you can see a bell tower, a statue, a fountain, a another plaza or another cafe at the distance. It is nice.


Paellita Valenciana.... better and better each time

When I was in Barcelona, little that I knew paella is only good there if prepared by a Valencian family. Here, I   experienced that paella got just better and better each time. This one above was in all ways, shapes and forms  the most tastefull sample of Valencian cuisine. It was prepared for a whole group of Spanish assisting a local music event, for free, and with the chance to repeat.... tasty!!!!

This one actually has a story. We were looking for a place in the outside part of the city, where there would be a local music event. Turned out the event was cancelled because of the rain, but we only found out once we got there. After a beer and a pool game, we were ready to head back to the center, and along the way found something much better than expected.

We found a communal space for local events, and the experience was unique. Inside, there were two orchestra bands playing Spanish songs, one from Valencia and the other one from Zaragoza. They played a lot of songs I remember from childhood. The songs brought back memories, and even though I had not listened to many of them in years, since I left Costa Rica, I still remembered the lyrics and sang along.

The food and drinks were also amazing. At the entrance of the small salon, there is a small bar. There, a mother and daugther were selling coffee, beer and wine. After so much coffee during the day, beer and wine were the clear options... plus there was an incentive - glass of wine 50 cents of a Euro, and beer 1 Euro, and they both were really good, not a hint of cheap stuff at all. At the end of the event, they set up the tables for a buffet style feast, with Serrano Ham, salami, cheese, and the star of the night... Paella Velenciana, the one above, and for free. It is true, the best stuff in life is FOC!


The art took on the streets

I liked the graffiti in Valencia. There are some sections full of them, and the art is very creative. I am sure people in Brooklyn would agree with me this is of high quality. Here, there are some alleys with very nice themes, all related to social issues and about life in general. Some buildings like the one above have gigantic paitings and interesting details, that if you don't pay attention, like with every piece of art, you miss the point. Simply beautiful.

Just for comparison, this one is a sample of a graffiti from Bushwick in Brooklyn, which I also like a lot (hi Maya). In Brooklyn they tend to be full of colors and along short walls. In Valencia, they seemed to me more like sketches and you can see them in short walls and tall buildings.


Four days, and this blog is too small to type it all

Valencia is a pretty nice place. I enjoyed the food, the drinks, the lemon and mandarine trees, the medieval town, the narrow alleys and its cafes. I also liked the dancing.... there is also Salsa there, and it is quite good. Just to deviate a little bit in here, the Salsa scene was interesting. At the two best clubs we went to, there were people from all ages dancing together. I usually either see the groups dancing separately, but not here.

It was a very nice experience, and for sure I need to go back to Velencia. Thanks Petra. You made this trip much better for me.


Photo album

• Valencia