This morning was our first photo critique. Ira usually starts out a little more gentle on the first day, but since we all had taken previous classes he held nothing back. What he’s looking for are not typical tourist photos of statutes and buildings, but us recognizing good light and moments with people. The group seemed up to the task.
We had yet another tapas meal for lunch, this one with slightly different options. We all seem pretty hooked on fried artichoke hearts and are determined to find a recipe for them when we get home. Because we’re sharing small plates it’s a little hard to judge if you’ve had enough or too much. Somehow it all works out.
La Ramble was featured prominently in the news in late August when a terrorist drove a truck down the pedestrian walkway killing somewhere around 13 people and injuring over a 100. Today in the bright sun you would never know there had been an incident. This is probably the most popular street with shops and restaurants lining the pedestrian way with street hawkers selling a variety of goods. One area housed the flower market with both fresh cut flowers and seeds to plant your own.
The Boqueria sits near the end of La Rambles in a huge open air space. Like markets the world over, vendors offer a variety of goods from fruits and vegetables, seafood, meats, sweets and condiments. Several restaurants offer bar seating where you can order tapas for a snack or meal. I love these kinds of places! I could wonder for hours thinking about all the great meals I could prepare with the very fresh offerings. I had not sampled one of my favorites, Pimento de Padrons (small peppers that are sautéed in olive oil and sprinkled with salt), so I found an open bar seats and enjoyed a plate full. The were fabulous, none containing the heat we often encountered with the varieties we find back home.
After a couple of hours at the market, we traveled a few short blocks to our evening’s entertainment, Flamenco. In order to fully appreciate what we were going to enjoy this evening, we started with a lesson. This reminded me very much of them time I attempted Zumba and realized I didn’t have quite as much rhythm as I had created myself with. We burned some calories which made our selections at the buffet dinner a little easier.
Seated below the stage, we were excited to see our award winning dancers really do it. How impressive! Our dancers, two men and a woman, were accompanied by an equally talented group of guitarist and singers. Such emotion is on display in flamenco. For the most part, the dancers each have their own set, leaving the stage breathless from the tremendous amount of energy they have expended during the performance.
We wondered back down La Reamble to the hotel. After a quick glass of wine we retired for the evening.
Tomorrow: Protests
We had yet another tapas meal for lunch, this one with slightly different options. We all seem pretty hooked on fried artichoke hearts and are determined to find a recipe for them when we get home. Because we’re sharing small plates it’s a little hard to judge if you’ve had enough or too much. Somehow it all works out.
La Ramble was featured prominently in the news in late August when a terrorist drove a truck down the pedestrian walkway killing somewhere around 13 people and injuring over a 100. Today in the bright sun you would never know there had been an incident. This is probably the most popular street with shops and restaurants lining the pedestrian way with street hawkers selling a variety of goods. One area housed the flower market with both fresh cut flowers and seeds to plant your own.
The Boqueria sits near the end of La Rambles in a huge open air space. Like markets the world over, vendors offer a variety of goods from fruits and vegetables, seafood, meats, sweets and condiments. Several restaurants offer bar seating where you can order tapas for a snack or meal. I love these kinds of places! I could wonder for hours thinking about all the great meals I could prepare with the very fresh offerings. I had not sampled one of my favorites, Pimento de Padrons (small peppers that are sautéed in olive oil and sprinkled with salt), so I found an open bar seats and enjoyed a plate full. The were fabulous, none containing the heat we often encountered with the varieties we find back home.
After a couple of hours at the market, we traveled a few short blocks to our evening’s entertainment, Flamenco. In order to fully appreciate what we were going to enjoy this evening, we started with a lesson. This reminded me very much of them time I attempted Zumba and realized I didn’t have quite as much rhythm as I had created myself with. We burned some calories which made our selections at the buffet dinner a little easier.
Seated below the stage, we were excited to see our award winning dancers really do it. How impressive! Our dancers, two men and a woman, were accompanied by an equally talented group of guitarist and singers. Such emotion is on display in flamenco. For the most part, the dancers each have their own set, leaving the stage breathless from the tremendous amount of energy they have expended during the performance.
We wondered back down La Reamble to the hotel. After a quick glass of wine we retired for the evening.
Tomorrow: Protests
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