Granada and Málaga

My line manager is Spanish and I've had a standing invite to go and work at his house in Málaga for a few days and this year once the hot weather had mostly receded, Beth and I took up the kind offer. We flew initially to Granada and had a couple of days with a trip round the Alhambra and then a bus ride to Málaga and some work. Though it wasn't without enjoying the beach side location and the chiringuitos (restaurants along the shore). Some warm weather away from the rain that week - and some serious unrushed conversations. The photo album is here and there were the sardines..

- lots of great memories from both parts of the trip.

Teaser Tuesday - Jan 15

Teaser Tuesday
The rules are:

• Grab your current read.
• Let the book fall open to a random page.
• Share with us two (2) 'teaser' sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
• You also need to share the title and author of the book that you’re getting your 'teaser' from .. that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you've given!

Take the firebreak which is to the left of the tracks and heads down to a wire mesh gate at the junction of two fences within about 50m of the ridge. Looking along a line from the fence to the village of Bérchules, a white painted cortijo and concrete water store can be seen.

From Jeremy Rabjohn's Holiday walks in the Alpujarras. Memories - not always good ones (but that was life rather than the holiday) of the time around when we walked in the Alpujarras ending in Bérchules (the link goes to my blog describing the walks - once you ignore this post which also appear with that label! and further links to the photos I took). I think the indicated postion is around here near the summit of Cima del Tejar:

View Larger Map
(how do you get a precise point in google maps rather than the points it knows about, I suppose I could tweak the coordinates but it's close enough and the preview won't let you do that and see where you now are...)

Teaser Tuesday - Oct 16

Teaser Tuesday
The rules are:

• Grab your current read.
• Let the book fall open to a random page.
• Share with us two (2) 'teaser' sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
• You also need to share the title and author of the book that you’re getting your 'teaser' from .. that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you've given!

He had lostseveral of his regular columns due to missed deadlines. Other papers were fearful of publishing his articles after receiving anonymous threats.

A final teaser from Carlos Ruiz Zafón's The Shadow of the Wind - it's our book group's book of the month - I borrowed the book from the library but I'm considering buying (or from a real bookshop...) as a re-read - having just finished it. Wheels within wheels and such a journey!

Teaser Tuesday - October 9

Teaser Tuesday
The rules are:

• Grab your current read.
• Let the book fall open to a random page.
• Share with us two (2) 'teaser' sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
• You also need to share the title and author of the book that you’re getting your 'teaser' from .. that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you've given!

He must go immediately to the Boquería market to buy twenty duros' worth of boiled chickpeas and take them without delay to Police Headquarters (in a taxi if necessary) - or he must prepare to present his balls to him on a plate. Would you like me to repeat it?

Getting rid of the naive policman set to follow you in Carlos Ruiz Zafón's The Shadow of the Wind (again from the book group's book of the month).

La Palma

DSCF8594, a photo by rajmarshall on Flickr.

As you may have gathered ,we've spent a week in the Canaries - on La Palma - with InnTravel, this time self catering and one base rather than walking between hotels.We did some walking but mostly sightseeing - this picture is in the Caldera de Taburiente in the crater of one of the many volcanoes on the island. The set of pictures I took over the week is on flickr

Teaser Tuesday - 27 Sept

Teaser Tuesday
The rules are:

• Grab your current read.
• Let the book fall open to a random page.
• Share with us two (2) 'teaser' sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12.
• You also need to share the title and author of the book that you’re getting your 'teaser' from .. that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you've given!

That was the way it was with shepherds on the telephone, though little by little, as they became more adept with it, and picked up a few of the necessary social skills, things got better, untill we finally got to a point where we could even exchange rudimentary pieces of information over the phone.
Mistakes however remianed inevitable.

I've, at last, got around to reading Chris Stewart's followup to Driving over Lemons - `A Parrot in the Pepper Tree' (that's a link to the Guardian review), I don't think I got on terribly well with his first book - which is why I didn't read the second - as Beth already had a copy of each - but after last autumn's walking in the Alpujarras I was encouraged to give this one a go - and it is certainly enjoyable. I must dig out my copy of the Genesis first lp - Chris Stewart was very briefly their drummer...

Not bad - the strings are definitely of their time but I can do without the chorus!

A play fight

A play fight
Originally uploaded by rajmarshall

As a final picture from Alpujarras i thought I should add this picture of two of the spanish(!) kittens at the hotel in Capileira. The photo I took of kittens in Almeria has been rather popular and here's a photo of two of our previous kittens from long ago!
These two were very friendly and even their mother was happy for them to be played with by strangers - though not when they were enjoying ham from the hotel kitchen. There's a couple more photos of them next to this one in flickr - click on the photo!

The Hotel Dog

Sammy
Originally uploaded by rajmarshall

Sammy was very keen on walking groups especially if they take him with them as a guide and is a fixture at the Hotel los Bérchules. We had a stormy night before our last half day - we had to truncate the holiday because this hotel was booked up but maybe that was as well in view of the weather! Lunch in Bérchules and then a taxi ride back to Capileira and a drive back to Malaga where the plane left 3 hours late.. but the walking and eating break did us good! As before the full album is on flickr and I hope to get some of Beth's photos off her sometime!

Above Trevélez

Above Trevelez
Originally uploaded by rajmarshall

Our last inter hotel walk was from Trevélez to Bérchules, a cloudy day with some rain so at least we weren't burnt off! This was - of the full walks we did - probably the trickiest to route find. Maybe it would have been easier in the Spring when the ground was greener - though we did see, the next day, some other folk in the InnTravel tour using the road rather than the longer version of the walk probably because of all the rain which had fallen. There's a bit where you are instructed to follow an overgrown acequia (looking like 2 parallel lines of vertical slates) - which looks like this!. The loose dogs do indeed run away when you pick up stones! The path down towards Bérchules is marked by more figs, mulberries and walnuts. Stayed at the Hotel los Bérchules, contrary to the walking guide notes there appears to be at least one other restaurant but the hotel's restaurant was simple, homely and much enjoyed!

Trevelez - barrio alto - upper town

Trevelez - barrio alto - upper town
Originally uploaded by rajmarshall

The next day should have been a walk to Trevelez but we'd been warned by the folks ahead of us that wayfinding was difficult, in some places the advertised path was impassible - and they'd been chased, and stung, by a swarm of hornets! Did I mention it was a 17km, 7 hour walk? We therefore took the easy option of the bus - though we did walk to Busquistar. The Bar Vargas was closed the day we went though - Wednesday - but there is another bar elsewhere in the village - which had a number of puppies as opposed to the usual cats, see the album for canine photos! Once in Trevelez we found the Hotel La Fragua - quite a way above the bus stop in the barrio media. We walked to the upper town (in picture) to have a drink while admiring the view of the valley and town. That evening we ate in the hotel restaurant - restricted menu choice being on an inclusive package - but very good (see the hotel website for the full menu!)

The Taha valley from Pitres

Looking into the Taha valley from Pitres
Originally uploaded by rajmarshall

The walk for the following day consisted of a circular walk around the Taha valley very steep with rocky paths and ruined mills. We found a pleasant bar in Ferreirola (not mentioned in the walking instructions) where we had a long and leisurely lunch.

Just before you reach Ferreirola there's a spring called La Gaseosa providing free agua con gas! The walk ends with a punishing climb back up to Pitres! Dinner was again at the Hotel San Roque.

As before my full photo album is here

The walk over to Pitres

View from the crag
Originally uploaded by rajmarshall

There was a certain amount of trepidation faced with the first non-circular walk after the difficulties of the first day! Today's was though far easier, it went up the shady side of the hill above Capileira with views over to the Mediterranean and the Atlas mountains just being visible then just after we joined the GR7 (a long distance walk) we reached the point in the photo - now on the sunny side of the mountains and time for a rest. The walk heads through the Barranco de Sangre scene of a vicious battle between the Moors and Spain in 1570 and then into Pitres and the Hotel San Roque (after a stop at a bar for drinks, tapas and fending off a cat) where we stayed two nights.
The hotel is very small but we were well catered for - there were though noisy workmen due to some emergency repairs! That evening we thought we ordered 1 litre of vino but ended up with a litre of Rosé sherry (25%) - we only realised when most of the way down the first glass having been warned about the robustness of the wines!
Here's a rather interesting weblog El Paraje de las Alpujarras on walking and culture of the Alpujarras.

And here's some music from the area played in the same hotel:

Windfarm in the Poqueira valley

Windfarm in the Poqueira valley
Originally uploaded by rajmarshall

Three years ago on our first visit to Spain we walked in Almeria, this time we were a month earlier and in the Alpujarras. Drove from Malaga airport - in a hire car - up the hairpinned road to Capiliera and rewarded by this sight of a windfarm in the evening light. We stayed at the Finca los llanos and ate the first evening at Casa Ibero - recommended for vegetarians - though all of us had a meat main course! It appeared to be connected to the local Buddhist centre O Sel Ling. Next day we thought it might be a gentle breaking in walk but we were warned by the folk who were a day ahead! One of us slipped and fell off the path and it ended with the path being a walk up a stream! In between though, there was the spectacular bridge over the Poqueira - see the flickr album for some photos - we just did the beginning and end though this did involve the difficult bit! The walk was circular and we returned to Capileira for a meal at the hotel, I tried the plate of Alpajarras specialities - sausage, black pudding etc, lovely but having gone for the starter which I thought was a selection from the starter menu but was actually lots of salami etc., I rather ran out of steam! For dessert the English translation of the menu suggested 'house tart' which suited our naughty sense of humour!

Back from the Alpujarras

Looking back to Trevelez
Originally uploaded by rajmarshall

We've just returned from a much needed few days walking in the Alpujarras region of Andalucia. Another trip with an itinerary provided and hotels booked by Inn Travel. Hot and dry but much enjoyed, the photo album is here on flickr - rather too many pictures of cute furry animals and not enough of the scenery! I'll blog more about the separate days soon!

Jeunes filles au jardin

I've not put up a classical piece for a bit, so here's a wonderful performance of Mompou's 'Jeunes filles au jardin' a sort of merger between de Falla and Ivor Novello.

It has the wonderful Satie-esque performance indication of 'Chantez avec la fraîcheur de l'herbe humide' (Sing with the freshness of damp grass). I'm currently learning it...

Musica Callada

I was given the score of Mompou's Musica Callada for Christmas. Spare transparent music about which Stephen Hough blogged recently. Spiritual, minimalism before minimalism. Here's book 1 no 1

Especially for those walking with or remembering dogs on a Boxing day walk tomorrow.
I must try recording some of these myself, but maybe this week is a little early!

El Orfanato

A trip last night to the Silk Screen in Macclesfield to see Juan Antonio Bayona's El Orfanato (The Orphanage). A Spanish gothic horror which draws one into a world where children are simultaneously innocent and unknown. I found myself thinking of James' Turn of the Screw. There was a lot of involuntary audience participation last night! Wonderfully acted by Belén Rueda in the main role. Here's the trailer - in Spanish, I'm afraid I couldn't find a version with sub-titles and I really didn't want the dubbed version!

Canciónes y Danzas No 6

I'm currently learning the Mompou Canciónes y Danzas No 6 so here are three rather different versions!
Firstly, and slowest, Eulalia Palomero Saber

and then there's Paolo Spagnolo - embedding isn't allowed I'm afraid, and finally here's Konstantin Bogino:
unfortunately not including the Danza.

.. and some Mompou

Larrocha playing Mompou's Cançons i Dansas: no. 2, Lento. (There's some good Stephen Hough performances of the same composer from here)

Alicia de Larrocha

Alicia de Larrocha, who died on Friday, giving an incandescent performance of de Falla. I remember seeing her live 20 years ago at the Aldeburgh festival performing Mompou - a little more understated than this! The Guardian Obituary is here

She recorded the major works of both composers, including Iberia and the Suite Española by Albéniz, and Goyescas by Granados, several times. The playing is above all controlled, formal (checking the opposite tendency in both composers' styles, grounded as they were in folk music and improvisation), yet it is also warm, with a radiant, jewel-like tone quality. It avoids overstatement and impulsiveness and is in immaculate taste.

As many have said, she owned this part of the repertory!