Today I transitioned from Lyn’s very English condominium to my brother’s apartment near the Mediterranean, but before I “moved in” he headed toward Los Nuñez where our RUIZ cousins live in small barrios near one another. First, we returned to Venta el Gloria restaurant for my first real Spanish breakfast of Tortilla Española, an egg and potato omelet. There is nothing quite like this national dish to compare with, a little bit wet and potatoes that melted in our mouths. The creamy coffee with milk, café con leche, was delicious and we both enjoyed the camaraderie among the owner, bartender and waiter who are all family.
We have five families to visit in the small towns, so today we started with two, Juani Ruiz and his wife Mari Fernandez in Los Nuñez. They enjoyed seeing their photos and family information in the Ruiz Legacies book and Mari showed us their large flower and cacti gardens. From their patio, we had a view of la casa redonda (the house our father built) and reminisced about the memories we enjoyed there.
Tomorrow, we are invited to join their entire family (14) at “el campo” which is a small piece of land nearby where Juani grows vegetable and fruit gardens near a small patio house. Every Sunday, their family gathers for their big meal of the day. The family culture is pretty amazing here and the family members rarely miss their family day. Tomorrow, there will be 16 at the big cookout.
Next, we arrived at El Corrito, a family-run business that includes a market, a bar/restaurant and a bakery. Maria Angela and her husband Manolo welcomed us with their teenagers, Adrián and Esther. When I met these children in 2012, they were 6 and 8 years old. Today, they are young adults in secondary schools. Both speak English cautiously and their parents smile with pride, neither being able to speak our language. Manolo brought plates of Serrano ham and Manchego cheese along with Ribera del Duero red wine. Steven and I both enjoyed the vino and when we walked out of their house two hours later, we carried a bottle with us as a gift. My Spanish seems to be coming back to me (thankfully) and I was delighted to receive a miniature verdiales hat, with colorful streamers on it from Maria Angela. She remembers how much Steven Alonzo and I enjoyed the Verdiales Festival in Benagalbón, where the Ruiz family originated I am always touched by the thoughtfulness of these people.
Steven and I created our dinner from polla asado (roasted chicken) and a perfect salad filled with a lot of vegetables I found in his fridge. And I found a bottle of tinto de verano at the little market at the end of his street. This is red wine diluted with lemon soda, a very favorite drink I can only find in Spain —- I have tried to recreate it at home, but cannot do it! Something so simple should be so easy…
No comments:
Post a Comment