The Last Supper

After a few days in Seville I headed back to Madrid. I board the train and sit next to a Nicaraguan family, an older son, daughter-in-law and the parents. We are both surprised to meet each other in Seville Spain. They from Nicaragua and I had lived there from 1992-1995 and knew a lot about their country.  We talk almost the entire way about when I lived in Nicaragua and the politics of the country then and now. It brought back a lot of stories and memories. Also, gratitude that I don’t live in those countries.

I relate a story to them about the day I arrived in Nicaragua, with three little ones in tow. On our way to our temporary government housing our car was surrounded at every red light by scores of people selling everything imaginable.

From blue jeans, to oranges, to shower curtain rings. Most of the items that particular day were shower curtain rings. Yes, that is correct, those cheap plastic shower curtain rings to hang a shower curtain. I remember thinking “Seriously, shower curtain rings are a hot item, a black-market item?”

Yes, they were a hot item, and I would soon forever regret the decision not to buy any.  I later discovered you could not buy shower curtain rings anywhere in the country. I eventually ended up tying the shower curtain on the rod with ribbon.

When we parted in Madrid we wished each other a good trip and I headed back to the Air B and B I had stayed at earlier. My host and hostess were glad to see me most of all because previously I had helped with a bit of translation with other guest from Germany, Poland, and France who spoke some English but no Spanish. My host speaks no English, but they get by pretty well with google translate.

I discover that many of the museums in Madrid are free after 6:00 pm and decide to visit the Museo de Prado, which has the largest collection of Goya paintings in the world. I was advised by one of the museum workers that two hours is not nearly enough time to see all the Goya paintings and that it was worth the cost of a ticket to come and stay all day. But honestly, I think 2 hours of Goya is just enough. The paintings are huge and impressive. I stand staring at some of the paintings that cover an entire wall and wonder how many brush strokes it took to complete it.

I also pass the Navy Museum which I find strange but then remembered good old Christopher who sailed and it made sense. The museum explained the history the Spanish Navy had on the country since the Catholic Monarchs in the 15^th century. Impressive.

But my favorite events of the week were my cooking classes. I learned how to make a Spanish Tortilla, not really a tortilla as we know it but more of a marriage between a frittata and a souffle.  I also learned how to make a Spanish paella with a hand full of octopus and of course a great Sangria.  So, for a mere few nights in your home, I will make this dinner for you-minus the octopus.

The last few days are spent walking and taking in the food and wine in Madrid. I would like to find a place in Madrid to rent for 3 months a year, I was that impressed. My host and hostess from the Air B and B where I stayed prepared an incredible last supper for me the night before I left, complete with Champaign.

I head back to the USA -Nashville to be exact, for my future grand-daughters, baby shower and then plan to continue as a vagabond until August, if I can hold out that long. Gas prices have gone up since I left so I may be walking to my next place. I wonder how many miles Bulgaria is.