29.09.06
Posted in
Spain
at
2:04 pm
by
Andy
I’ve just finished The Truce by Primo Levi (thanks to Carter for the recommendation) which follows on from his first book If this is a man, in a continuation of his of his experiences in German Concentration Camps. It takes off from the day of liberation and describes Primo’s 10th month repatriation trip and as a result has a much happier tone to the hard hitting tales from Monowitz. Levi’s writing is descriptive and observant, yet with no trace of hatred towards the perpetrators can be seen, something that Levi describes well in the afterword. The more I read about the Nazi’s the less I understand. What happened in those years is truly incomprehensible to me.
As you can probably tell I’ve had a very easy week. I’ve been laying about reading in the sun on the balcony of Espe’s parents place, interspersed with trips to the city center, and generally eating too much. Espe mentioned in a previous conversation that her favorite food was that of her mother’s, and I can truly appreciate why. With so much good food and in big quantaties, it is so easy to over eat.
On Wednesday we took a day trip up to Sagunt, which is a small town north of Valencia. It is home to the remains of a stunning roman castle / city, as well as an amphitheater which took a fair bit of exploring. Down below the old town was very quaint old town with tiny alleyways and beautifully painted houses.
One final thing that deserves a mention, is that Espe and I celebrated two years together on Thursday. Apart from doing very little during the day, we had some very good Manchegan food (and wine) in one of the few restaurants in Alaquas.
25.09.06
Posted in
Spain
at
4:52 pm
by
Andy
On Sunday morning we drove South to Oliva for the start of my Catamaran Course, a birthday present from Espe (I’ve loved Dart catamarans from a very young age, and use to dream of owning one). We were due 3 hours tuition on Sunday and 3 hours on Monday. Espe had looked into various courses but this one ended up being the most convenient. Others had stated that I’d have to take a normal sailing course before climbing aboard a cat. Likewise I had been declined the use of a cat in Thailand, as the owner stated that sailing a cat was very different to a single hulled boat. This place however, spent 45 minutes with me on the boat, and then left us to it for the rest of the time (the chap judged that I knew enough about sailing to handle the cat).
I was surprised how much came back to me. I’d learnt the basics of Sailing with my dad on the Norfolk Broads and subsequently had a couple of opportunities to sail in small boats, the most recent of which was with Natalie just north of London. In one sense it was good as we were free to play about, but this was a course and with 6 hours I expected to learn a lot rather than just practice what I already knew. This was something that really bothered Espe as the course was supposed to be a learning experience for me.
Towards the end of our time out, I was getting some good speed up and turning with the wind (I can’t remember the English term for this, trasluchar in Spanish), but on one occasion I sent Espe to the other side of the boat too soon (keeping the weight on the correct side of the cat is essential) and that was enough with the speed and wind to tip the boat over. Espe found herself falling gently into the water (almost getting trapped between the hull and sitting platform), while I found myself launched seaward from the other side with hull a good 6 foot out of the water while at the same time trying to release the sail to level the boat off.
Apart from a drawing some blood on my hand we were both fine after the capsize and exhilarated by the adrenalin. Unfortunately between us we didn’t have enough weight to right the boat so we sat around waiting for the Surf Center guys to come out to us (something they said they would do if the boat capsized). They didn’t come, fortunately two Red Cross people came passed on a Jetski to check if we were ok. With the extra hands we were able to right the catamaran with ease.
Sunday evening after finding a hostel we wandered up to the castle ruins in Oliva before retiring rather exhaustedly to bed. Today, we were let out in the Cat again on our own. The only “instruction” given was discussing how a catamaran can capsize and the reasons we had problems the previous day. There was a lot more wind and waves, and this combined with the capsizing memory left me with much less confidence. It was still a good crack and I left smiling. One thing that did annoy me though was that as I finished the course I was given an essential piece of advice that I should have been told at the beginning of day one…
23.09.06
Posted in
Spain
at
5:39 pm
by
Andy
On Friday evening we left Alcobendas at 5pm after another dental check up. Our destination: Alaquas, Valencia. Our route, the one with the most twists and turns. Having been so fed up of Spanish Motorways of late, I decided we were going to reach Valencia avoiding motorways.
We completed the whole trip on nice roads with no inconsiderate Madrileños winding me up and managed to avoid traffic jams completely. We took the N320 via Cuenca as recommended by Philippe over a year ago. We missed our intended turn after Cuenca and found ourselves in the hills again with yet more fantastic roads.
A small car is great for these sort of roads (read, really chuckable), especially after putting some air in the front tyres, but I can’t quite help but fantasize about what it would like to do these roads in an Integrale, 911 or Elise. Talking of Elises, I must speak with Niki, as he’s just returned from his second consecutive Stelvio not Bust.
We spent Saturday in Valencia at Espe’s parents place, and very uncharacteristically it rained all day (a throw back from Hurricane Gordon apparently). In the morning we went to watch David (Espe’s nephew) play football, followed by Espe’s parent’s superb Paella. I had a nice lazy afternoon, taking a siesta, reading and writing this, only to be interrupted by countless bangers going off. These Valencianos really do love their fireworks.
22.09.06
Posted in
General
at
1:11 pm
by
Andy
Over the last year I think I’d forgotten how much I love music and how much it does for me. Just tuning into the radio more and listening to some new albums has left me feeling great. On Sunday night I took Espe down to Cafe Central for a bit of Jazz. We were treated to a performance by an Argentinian singer and accompanying band, who were later joined by two guest singers, each of which had stunning voices capable of bringing out emotions in people. Amazing stuff.
While on the topic of music, for those that don’t know, it is definitely worth checking out Pandora.com . An Internet Radio station with a difference. Put in the name of an artist or track that you like and they will play you music that fits in a similar genre. An excellent way to hear new music to your own taste.
Wednesday just gone, I met Henar on the terrace outside the flat for an intercambio and to find out about her trip to Japan. We were later joined by Espe and Pete to sample once again the goodness of the tostas prepared there. The ever friendly bar man seemed merrier than usual. Espe headed up for a early night while Pete and I helped take in the chairs and tables as he was closing up. Next we found ourselves invited for several free beers. Thinking it was time to go, we were then invited by Roberto, the bar owner, and his friend to go play some fusball. We obliged and found ourselves in a quiet bar tucked away in the side streets. After loosing shamefully at fusball and just plain loosing at pool we wandered of to another bar / disco. Apparently we got through another three rounds, but things in the last place are a little hazy for me. I’ve no idea what time we go in, all I do know is that I was a mess the following day.
So, the weekend is nearly here again, and better still I’ve got next week off. We’re heading down to Valencia for the weekend and then to a small place called Oliva for my catarmaran sailing course (a birthday present from Espe). Should be good.
15.09.06
Posted in
Music
at
12:44 pm
by
Andy
I meant to post this up last week. I listen to Gilles Peterson’s BBC Radio 1 show most weeks, but last week’s show really was something else.
With music from the likes of Karizma, The Heritage Orchestra and Ben Westbeech I was hooked… Then came Zero DB. Wow! It’s been a while since music has moved me physically, especially in my own front room. Top marks to these boys. Their best track had to be a remix they’d put together of a track called El Fantasma de la Libertad. Filthy beats and heavy bass lines, but by far the best ingredient were the profound Spanish lyrics. Need to get myself a copy of that track!
Oh, and take note how many of the above artists are signed to Ninja Tune. Surely the best record label in the world!
Posted in
General
at
12:32 pm
by
Andy
This post was originally called Rickshaw Run Meet and was half written until last night. I’ve had a pretty shitty week, after the disaster that was the Rickshaw Run meeting that I organised and then several immensely busy days at work. I found myself being stitched with cases continuously ‘cos everyone else in my team is scared on taking cases on a particular range of products. Where would they be without me?
Anyway, on a positive note, I spent last night with Alberto, Pete, Leo, Liz and Paula in a kind of post Mongol Rally meet up. We started in the wonderful “The stomach comes first” Mexican bar/restaurant and chatted all things Rally / Rickshaw Run. This was the first time I’ve seen Leo since February at the first Rickshaw Run meet. Since then he’d not responded to any messages or emails which I was a little peeved about, but after single voice mail he left me yesterday that all vanished… he’s just such a character.
I ended up going on to a bar afterwards with Alberto, Pete and Donald (Pete’s pub quiz master pal) until 4 in the morning. I have to admit to grossly under estimating Donald who is a thoroughly nice chap (mainly ‘cos he gets my twisted humor). I really should stop doing that with Yanks, but you know how it is. At the end of the night Alberto gave me a lift home. Alberto is yet another top chap. He’s so full of energy and thoroughly down to earth. As for David, he couldn’t make it due to family commitments, but I can’t mention Alberto and the Mongol Rally without thinking about David. It’s great to meet such people and for that I have to thank the rally. It was a true pleasure to assist and watch David and Alberto before and during their journey.
Moving onto the topic for which this post was originally intended. Its been a strange week. The Rickshaw Run meeting left me feeling a little down and this combined with the work situation this week left me pretty fed up and unmotivated. All the same I’m finally getting round to posting about last weekend.
Espe and I set off for London on Thursday night. Friday we were blessed with beautiful weather (sunshine and perfect temperature). I had to run around doing a few things, but otherwise it was really relaxing. We spent some time up in Roxeth Park. The first time I think I’ve been there in 10 years or so, which of course brought all the memories flooding back. “This is where I first fell off a skate board”, “this is where I lost my first football match” etc. We even had a look around the cricket ground to give Espe her second lesson in cricket theory (all important for the rickshaw run in India).
We were joined later by Nicky (chica) and off we went to find a local pub with a beer garden. As luck would have it they served Thai food. We were discussing the merits of Thai food menus in pubs, when out walked a Thai woman to take our order. A little while later, out came the best Thai food I’ve eaten outside of Thailand!
Come Saturday, we headed into London. The whole reason we were there, was for the 2nd Meeting of the People of the Rickshaw Run. Something I’d organised to ensure that I could be there (there was loads of talk on the forum about arranging a meeting, but no-one was doing anything about it. So I set a date for which I already had flights).
I was a little bit nervous about it having discovered that Tom, the organisor, was not in the country but having spent a fair bit of time the previous week talking to Stephen (Mongol Rally co-organisor) I felt more confident that we could guide the meeting along.
In reality it was a disaster. It started of quite well opening things up for discussion, but pretty well went downhill from there. The “discussion” went on for three hours or so, but it was all futile as firstly nobody could agree and secondly Tom had his mind set on a route anyway. Basically I started the meeting off completely the wrong way. I should have given it the Tom spiel: Yes it is stupid, yes it is nearly impossible, but it is an adventure. You should set off not knowing at all what is ahead of you. If only we’d managed to get Tom on the video conferencing live from Mongolia, then I’m sure the meeting would have turned out a lot better. Unfortunately that wasn’t to be. The charity, which is something that needs to be set ASAP, didn’t even get a mention. After 3 hours nothing was decided and things were getting a bit heated. I was out of the room talking to Tom on the mobile when Espe walked out and suggested I entered the room to see what had happened. Basically the people had divided into two groups. Those who wanted the Tom style chaos of an impossible adventure in one corner, with those who wanted an organised shorter route with achievable distances with a strict 10 day plan for all, gathered around Stephen. At this point I realised that I’d got myself trapped between a personal issue between Tom and Stephen. Something that has obviously been brewing for some time.
After the meeting we tidied up and headed down to the local pub. That first pint was possibly the best I’ve had this year (despite the fact that Tottenham were losing in the background). The evening actually turned out really well. All of the people at the pub were for the hardcore Rickshaw Run hence in was much more relaxed leaving us to chat about all things travel and enjoy several tasty beverages.
Stephen, Jon, Espe and I wandered off to a nearby Polish restaurant where we were seated next to a weird boxing chap, who brought framed photos of himself to the table and spent most of the time boxing the air as though it were a punch bag. The food was great though.
Later we headed into Soho to meet up again with Tim, Nick and Harriot of team Bombay the Hard way. Nick was celebrating his birthday and we found ourselves in a tiny basement bar with a live jazz band. Despite the chaotic failure of a meeting, the evening turned out very well.
On Sunday morning, before getting on our return flights, we were treated by Jon to a fantastic full English breakfast… all good.
07.09.06
Posted in
General
at
2:28 pm
by
Andy
Despite an relatively cool summer for Madrid in August, once into September the temperature shot up into the 30s again. Highest official recording this week was 39 I think. This made sleeping difficult again, but last night we were treated to a spectacular storm. It is raining again now and it has dropped to a reasonable 28 degrees.
Seeing lightening flash across the skies, I couldn’t resist trying to get some pics with lightening forks in them. This is something I’ve been wanting to do ever since seeing some spectacular storms in Austria as a kid.
Once again, the Canon EOS 30d has shown its colours. I took 628 pictures, or more correctly the camera took the pics while I sat around chatting to Pete who’d just returned from Mongolia. I locked the shutter release down so that as soon as one pic was done, it took the next. I returned to the camera every so often to recompose and slow the shutter speed down (as the night got darker, I could take longer images, giving greater chance of capturing a fork). Anyway, of the 628 images, 27 captured lightening forks. Here’s some of the best.
04.09.06
Posted in
General
at
5:12 pm
by
Andy
Its been a quite eventful uneventful week if you know what I mean.
I had four innoculation jab at once last Thursday morning. Not the most pleasant of experiences, but it is all in preparation for our trip to India for the Rickshaw Run. They injected me with such nice things as Japanese Enciphalitis, Meningitis, Tetanus and Typhoid fever. I’ve got do go back for some second doses this week and I haven’t even started on Hepatitis A or B yet… Joy.
On Thursday evening I met up with Lavinia a few beers and some tapas. Lavinia was my first ever intercambio from 2 and a half years ago. She went to London in 2004, but we’ve stayed in contact since. Despite living in Milton Keynes, she seems to be enjoying England and her English is fantastic now. Sitting on a terrace outside my favorite tapas bar with a beer in my hand chatting about nothing in particular reminded of one of the many great things about Spain. That is definitely something I will miss.
On Saturday I went over to help Philippe do a bit of a service on his bike. In reality all we did was an oil and filter change but it was a learning experience and all went well. I had a rather strange experience with an old man though. While I was trying to fix the door lock on my car, I heard the sound of water being poured out of a bucket. I stood up to see an old man walking of with our bucket having emptied out the filthy water all over my tools and the parts we’d removed from Philippe’s bike. After confronting him, he said that he thought it was an old bucket that had been abandoned. I can understand the mistake. A bucket with a water and a sponge in, sitting next to an open tool box in between a half dismantled motorbike and a car with its boot open and two workshop manuals spread open on the parcel shelf clearly must have been abandoned… Thieving bastard!
The rest of Saturday afternoon and Sunday were fairly relaxed. I managed to do a lot of reading and even gave Espe here first lesson about cricket. She now more or less understands the basics, what the players do and how the scoring works. Maybe we’ll get some practice next weekend back in Blighty.
I’ve just finished reading Sum of all Fears which was enthralling. All 1077 pages of it. Typical Tom Clancy stuff. I just love the nerdy/techy details along with the high tension and suspense.
I’ve not really given much mention to music for a while. Probably cos I’m losing touch. I manage to hear about some good new music via, Gilles Peterson but otherwise don’t find out about much that suits my taste. I was, however, given a few pointers by both Nico and Dan recently. As a result I’ve just discovered Matthew Herbert, and his latest album, Scale, is simply fantastic. Also being overplayed at the moment is the Quantic Soul Orchestra… Check them out if you get a chance.
Talking of, erm, good music, Carter sent me this… Vocoder
Finally, I received some photos from Pete who has just returned from Beijing and should be with us in Madrid by Thursday. While in UB, he snapped some pics of my Mini for me… Check those Mongolian plates!
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