Garlic Capital of Spain

Some people may have heard me say that Ciudad Real is kind of like the Gilroy, California (my hometown) of Spain. While that may be true in terms of quality of life, demographics of our fellow Ciudad Realeños, and size of the city, Ciudad Real is lacking one very important element: the garlic. 

That's why when Camille was visiting last week we made it a point to stop by Gilroy's sister city in Spain, Las Pedroñeras. Las P is located about 2 hours from Ciudad Real and also claims to be the Garlic Capital of the World. During most of the year there are about 7,000 people living in Las P, but during the summer the population swells to about 10,000 because of field workers. Their specialty is ajo morado, or purple garlic, but I think they also grow grapes for wine and olives for oil too. They also have the "Welcome to the Garlic Capital" signs like we have in Gilroy! 

They may be even more excited about garlic than Gilroyans. Check out this garlic sculpture in the middle of a roundabout. Amazing!

Besides the ajo, Las P is known around Spain for having an excellent restaurant called Las Rejas. We read about Las Rejas in one of our guidebooks and they actually have been awarded a Michelin star (the only one in our entire province!). That also means that their menu is pretty pricey, so instead of trying the fancy restaurant we went to the taberna, or less fancy "tavern" version next door. The two restaurants share a kitchen, back hallway, and executive chef, so we thought we were getting a pretty good deal. They serve more elegant versions of Manchegan (from Castilla la Mancha) specialties than you get at the local bar/restaurants around the region.  So this may get a little indulgent, but I want to share some of the photos of the foods we ate. It was definitely one of the best (maybe THE best?) meals we've had in Spain. 

Maybe we're just homesick, but it is really nice to be served butter instead of just olive oil when they brought out the bread. And even better, they gave us whipped garlic butter with a cute little purple flower on top: 

The waiter at the restaurant was very understanding about my vegetarianism and didn't even seem too surprised when I said no to fish in addition to all carne! They had a set menu of the day that normally includes several types of meat, but they made some special dishes for me that turned out great. It was a good day in Spain! Here's my starter of grilled veggies with olive oil and sea salt: 

Camille and Will were doing the carnivore menu and this was one of the first courses they got, quail and white beans: 

Their next course was hake (a white fish):

And I got a creamy potato soup with truffle and basil oil, mmmm:

Here is WP and Camille's main course. They got a little mashed potatoes on the left, fried pork neck in the middle (which was a lot like pork belly) and pork cheek on the right  (which was a lot like pulled pork), with a little applesauce on the top right of the plate.  I even tried a little of the pork neck and it was pretty delicious: 

When it was dessert time the waiter approached the table and asked if we wanted a chocolate dessert with some red berries. I said that it sounded good but asked what my other choices were and then he said, "Actually, that's the only dessert and it is amazing. You should try it." Can't argue with that. Warm chocolate brownie with vanilla ice cream, strawberries and blueberries:  

Since it was a sleepy, rainy Wednesday afternoon we were the only customers in the restaurant and spent a good couple hours enjoying the food and the delicious wine. And the whole thing, five courses and wine, was only 35 euros a person! I even told the waiter that I'm from Gilroy, and he was excited to talk some garlic with me for awhile. 

After lunch we took a few more pictures of "scenic" Las Pedroñeras. Las P is in what they call "España Profunda" or "Deep Spain". They use that kind of like we use the term "the Deep South" at home - you expect the people to be a little more traditional and the towns to be real quiet.  It really feels like you're in the middle of nowhere. I think this downtown stretch makes downtown Gilroy look like Paris. They could use a Rilo Nilo Mexican cowboy bar or two: 

They also have an annual Garlic Festival in the summer! Here's the only sign we saw for it given that it is still a few months away. "Feria Internacional del Ajo":

We also saw this building for the garlic company "Ajos de Las Pedroñeras" (small Spanish businesses aren't too creative in the name department): 

We can't wait to be home in the REAL garlic capital this summer. We'll be making it back just in time for the Gilroy Garlic Festival in late July. Las P was cool, but it's no Gilroy. (Go Mustangs!)

Camille's Visit - Segovia, Cuenca, Valencia

We are so lucky that Camille (my college roommate and all-around awesome lady) was able to come to visit us in Spain over the last week and a half! Since she lived in Sevilla for study abroad, she's already traveled around a lot of Spain, allowing us to go to some pretty spectacular destinations we might have otherwise had to skip. First we met up with Camille in Madrid and hung out with friends there for the weekend, and made a day trip up to Segovia. After a few days in Ciudad Real, we took off on a road trip to Cuenca and then Valencia. I have so many photos from this trip, and I have really tried to cut down how many I post, but there are so many good ones I want to share. So bear with me here with the length of this post, and at the very least, scroll down to check out the photos!

SEGOVIA & MADRID

On Camille's first full day in Spain we took the fast train from Madrid up to Segovia, a ride that took less than an hour. One of the first things you see once you get into town is the gigantic Roman aqueduct. That's right, Roman! 

Of course, like any respectable Spanish city, Segovia has a pretty amazing cathedral. We took a stroll through the inside and saw some interesting art. 

 

Here's one of the pieces that we all thought was pretty cool: 

We were traveling Spanish style, so after an hour or so of sightseeing it was time for a break for lunch. We headed to a restaurant we'd heard about that specializes in the Segovian delicacy of cochinillo, roast suckling pig. As a sort of gimmick they cut the pig using a plate to show how tender it is. They also serve it by the quarter-pig, so when Will's pig arrived we discovered he got one of the hind legs (and curly tail), and the leg had a tag certificate of origin saying it had been slaughtered the previous day - fresh!

Camille and I did not order the cochinillo, but still managed to get some tasty food. Here they are with the restaurant sign, post pig consumption: 

Besides the aquaduct and the cochinillo, Segovia is famous for its castle, which was one of the inspirations for the Sleeping Beauty Castle. Not quite sure what we are doing in this photo, maybe being Sleeping Beauty and Prince Philip? Or maybe just being silly?

We were some of only a few visitors to climb the couple hundred stairs to the top of the tallest tower, there was an awesome view from up there. From the castle courtyard there is also a pretty nice view looking back at the city and the cathedral: 

When we left sunny Madrid to head to Segovia, we definitely did not expect to get caught in a storm, but after crossing through the Guadarrama mountains everything changed. We were woefully unprepared (we brought umbrellas to Madrid but left them there and I, for some reason, wore just a t-shirt and a hoodie!), but luckily we managed to be indoors for lunch and inside touring the castle during the most intense downpours. The rumbling thunder and dark ominous clouds did make for some pretty great castle weather though. The rain off in the distance was pretty cool looking:  

Back in Madrid for a couple more days, we did some touring around the city. First stop, Plaza España and the big Quixote statues:

We also went to see this Egyptian temple that is in a park in Madrid. It is supposedly one of the only complete Egyptian temples that exist outside Egypt. I know, crazy, right? Apparently this temple was a gift to Spain from Egypt, given in appreciation for Spain's help moving the famous Abu Simbel temple when they dammed the Nile so that Abu Simbel would not be destroyed by flooding. When I was recently in Egypt with my family, I remember hearing about how Abu Simbel had to be moved, piece by piece, and was excited to find a connection to that story in the middle of Madrid. 

After checking out the temple we headed to the cable cars that connect the edge of Madrid to a huge park called the Casa de Campo. The park has a ton of space to ride bikes, exercise, lots of playgrounds for kids, a zoo and even a theme park with roller coasters. The cable car (or teleférico) ride was about 10 minutes long and covered a lot of ground. Here's a photo looking back at Madrid from the end of the line: 

CIUDAD REAL & AREA

On Sunday we took the train back down to Ciudad Real to hang out (and work) for a couple days. Camille got to go to some of our favorite spots in town and we made sure to take her to our neighborhood churro restaurant, Nueva Gran Via: 

 

While Camille was here we had some pretty severe weather - temperatures dipped and we had a couple cold rainy days in the Ciudad Real area. I'm sure that didn't add a whole lot to the local charm, but at least we had a warm apartment with lots of tea available. On Wednesday it was time to head out again, this time in a rental car. On the drive we even started to see some snow on the ground (pretty rare in our area)! 

To break up our drive to Cuenca we stopped in Las Pedroñeras for lunch. Why is Las P special? Because it is the GARLIC CAPITAL of Spain, so basically, the Gilroy of Spain! There's a lot more to say about Las Pedroñeras, so I'm saving the rest for the next post. Stayed tuned.  

CUENCA

We arrived in Cuenca in the evening and after checking into the hotel we got a chance to get out and see Cuenca's main attraction, las Casas Colgadas, or "hanging houses". They are named for the way they are perched on the edge of this cliff. Our hotel was located directly across from the hanging houses, and to get to the houses and the rest of the old part of the town, we had to cross the bridge in the photo. At night the bridge crossing was pretty scary since we couldn't really see the bottom of the canyon and it is a pretty narrow walkway.  It was worth it for the breathtaking views! 

Here's Cuenca's cathedral, a pretty cool building:

When we got back to our hotel, we were startled by some early Semana Santa (Easter week) decorations. There is a very stylized Jesus sculpture on the right and on the left a statue depicting a typical Spanish "Nazarene" from an Easter Week procession. Apparently the pointy hat originated as a symbol of penance (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capirotes), but for people from the U.S. the resemblance to the traditional Ku Klux Klan uniform is kind of freaky, especially when you round a corner and see this in the dark.

In the morning we got to see the hanging houses in day light and the bridge crossing was a (slightly) less terrifying: 

Here's WP successfully on the other side of the bridge: 

Here's the view of the canyon below, taken from the middle of the bridge. That's our hotel on the right, one of Spain's nationally-owned Parador Hotels in historically significant buildings. This one used to be a nunnery!   

This one was taken from the base of the hanging houses looking back at our hotel and the bridge: 

CIUDAD ENCANTADA

Just a short drive away from Cuenca, we went to visit the Ciudad Encantada, or "Enchanted City". It is a neat little park featuring the natural phenomenon of weirdly shaped rocks that have been eroding over time, starting as mineral deposits on the bottom of what used to be a vast sea here. I took a bunch of pictures here, these are just a few that were the most fun.

Ciudad Encantada was a little higher altitude than Cuenca, so we got to see some snow again!  

Here's the most famous rock, looking like it is about to tumble over any minute!

We liked these ones that were walls of rock with very narrow bottoms and larger tops:

Some of the rocks have even developed some weird holes and natural bridges.

Here we are playing in "The Gorge".  We decided to name it that after the narrow gorge the three of us rafted through in the Grand Canyon this summer with my family and a great crew of river rats:

 

Near the Enchanted City we pulled off the road to check out this river - what a beautiful color!

VALENCIA

On the drive from Cuenca to Valencia we stopped to see some Roman ruins in Valeria. Pretty amazing imagining a town with sophisticated buildings, fountains, and monuments over two thousand years ago in the middle of nowhere in Spain!

After Valeria we headed to the nearby town of Alarcón for lunch and got to see yet another castle! Here's the baby castle that sits closer to the moat (it really is very small): 

And here's the big castle! To enter the city, which is up on the hill, you have to drive over the old moat through the castle gates, which are only big enough to allow one car at a time: 

After a few more hours of driving, we finally made it to Valencia! The temperatures were way warmer once we got to Valencia, and we were thankful for the sea air. Our first morning in Valencia we went to the central market to buy some fresh fruit, juices and some delicious greek food! At the fruit stand a hilarious older lady told us how we had definitely chosen the right fruit stand, that their fresh juices are amazing, and that "every time her husband is sick she buys him juice and he gets better immediately." I love when strangers in Spain talk to me; usually they are older women and what they have to say is usually adorable. Plus, I have to admit, that strawberry-mango juice did make me feel pretty strong! Here's the bustling marketplace: 

After the market we wandered around all over Valencia. The buildings in Valencia are beautiful, the city feels lively and the people are hip. It would be hard not to enjoy that place. Here's one building with a crazy tower coming out of the middle:

In a park we saw this awesome play structure - it is Gulliver (from Gulliver's Travels) tied down to the ground:

This is one building in a series of very modern structures that were designed by world-famous architect Santiago Calatrava (a Valencia native) and make up the City of Arts and Sciences. The complex houses a planetarium, museum, and aquarium! But since it costs over €30 to see them all and we didn't have any small children in tow we decided to have our fun outside the buildings.

Our walk eventually took us to the beach. It was a little too chilly to go swimming, but we were happy to see the sea: 

Before dinner on our last night we stopped by to see these giant towers, one of the few remaining pieces of Valencia's old city wall. See all the small round holes? Those are from Napoleon's cannons. How badass is that?

And of course, for dinner on the last night we had to get paella. We went to a restaurant that was recommended by the owner of the apartment we rented (through Airbnb), and the paella was incredible! We all had some delicious vegetarian paella and Will and Camille tried the original paella Valenciana which has all kinds of game birds and rabbit with the rice. 

On our way out of Valencia, the owner of the apartment we rented decided to show us the way to the highway. He proceeded on foot and we followed him in the car for a while through a network of small streets in the center of Valencia. Eventually we stopped, because he was behind us talking to a couple of police officers on motorcycles. Turns out he had asked the police officers to show us the way to the highway, even though we definitely knew how to get there already. It was one of the more ridiculous Spain moments we've had - getting a police escort out of town. 

When we were within a few feet of the highway entrance they made us pull over to tell us how to get back to Ciudad Real, even though when we let him look at our map he wasn't really sure which route we should take. The icing on the cake was when we thought we were done talking to them, one of the officers went to get on his bike and then came back, made us roll down our windows and gave us a warning. We thought he might tell us not to speed, or to drive safely or something, but instead he tells us that sometimes Moroccans and Algerians will slash your tires at a gas station, then offer to help you and steal all your money. While this may be the case, it seemed like a scheme that anyone could have come up with, and the Moroccan people we've met (there and in Spain) have been pretty nice and hard-working people. But he probably just didn't want us to end up ruining our vacation, and he did drive us halfway across town, so no biggie.

 

LAS LAGUNAS DE RUIDERA

Our las stop before home was the national park Las Lagunas de Ruidera. This park is about an hour outside Ciudad Real and one of the closest places to go hiking, or go for a picnic. The waters of the lakes were a really nice greenish-blue color:

There is also a dam in the park that was pretty cool to see. Las Lagunas is an area we've heard a lot about from people in the Ciudad Real area. It was fun to stop by to see what it was all about, but probably even more fun to go in the summer when it is really hot outside!

And speaking of water: when we got home from the Valencia trip we found that the water in our apartment had been turned off. After a lot of back and forth between us, the water company, and the manager of our apartment building, it turns out we got disconnected because our landlord hasn't paid the water bill since last July (despite his claims to the contrary to us). The bill was only about 40 euros, and now our landlord gets to pay the original €40, €35 reconnection fee, and the €50 we spent on a hotel last night since we didn't have any water, since we're deducting all this from our next month's rent. Our landlord is also in France on vacation right now, so was absolutely zero help in solving the problem or helping us figure out who to call. At least now I am starting to get better at phone calls in Spanish!

Here's a photo of the water room in our apartment building, with our hose disconnected. Sad times, that are now, thankfully, in the past!

After some great adventures with Camille, being a little sick with colds, and some crazy adventures with Spanish bureaucracy, we are happy to have a little downtime at home before the next trip. My dad, stepmom and sister arrive this Saturday and after a night in the CR we'll be off again to explore Andalusia and Barcelona!