We headed off to Girona, a town north of Pineda del Mar. During the ride, I dove into the eighth Harry Potter book. (Don't worry, I will not spoil anything. I can't stand spoilers.) En route to Girona, we stopped at a restaurant advertising a two-plate meal for 10 euros. I got paella mixta (a rice dish Spain is famous for, this one containing both seafood and meat) for my first plate, and sardinas a la brasa (grilled sardines) for the second. The menu was in Catalan, so our waitress translated a few things for us. Mama got an amazing goat cheese salad with the perfect amount of balsamic vinaigrette, dried cranberries, pine nuts, pumpkin sees, and mixed greens. Olivia got some delicious fried dough balls with bacalao (cod) mixed in. They both got sardines, as well. The plates were enormous. I was full after eating less than one-half of my paella, which was scrumptious, with shrimp, mussels, clams, and pork. But, don't worry, I was still able to eat two sardines grilled to perfection. Mama gave me a lesson on how to properly eat a sardine. First, nibble the crispy tail off. After gently removing the head and sides of the fish, eat the smooth meat of the flank. Carefully peel off the spine, and finally eat the other flank. For dessert (because I don't care how big a meal it is, there is always room for dessert), Olivia and I each had a ridiculously good chocolate mousse, smooth and cold. Mama had a white chocolate flan, a traditional Spanish custard.
Once done with the enormous lunch, we drove the rest of the way to Girona. We parked in the newer part of town. After looking at the information panels of a 350-year-old hospital-turned-government-building, looking around the stores and shops, buying two pairs of shoes, and getting two maps of the area, we went to the older section of the city. The older section was, by far, more interesting and beautiful. We went up and up and up the cobblestone alleys until we reached the old fortress that looks upon Girona. From a section with a broken-off wall, we could see a astonishing view of the city and its natural surroundings. We climbed up the wide stairs of the fortress and were able to see the bells ringing in the bell tower. There were numerous enormous Spanish Sword plants, and I pretended to shake hands with one of the huge adapted leaves. In the lower parts of the fortress, there was a working faucet, which we all took turns drinking from. Going to the higher sections of the old structure, we came upon a spiral staircase that led to the narrow walls meant for archers to position themselves in when an attack came. Though the spiral staircase freaked me out a bit when I went up, it was pretty impressive to overlook Girona in its entirety. After basking in the view of the city during the golden hour, my family and I headed back to town.
We ate dinner in a restaurant in the old section of Girona. It was typical tapas: bread with tomato rubbed on it, chorizo, cheese, and olives. As we ate, we listened to a Spanish man singing American songs and playing a guitar on the street. I loved times like this, eating wonderful food outside and listening to spontaneous, beautiful music.
After we got home, I stayed up late and finished the eighth Harry Potter book. It destroyed me. Which was awesome (in the way that "awesome" used to be said; awe-inspiring). Like all of the Harry Potter books before it, it was incredibly beautiful. I was saturated with emotions as I finished it, and these I'm-addicted-to-this-book-that-I-just-read-but-now-it's-over feelings were almost cathartic. Finally, I went to sleep.
No comments:
Post a Comment