Taking my much needed vacation in Spain this year. I'm near Girona in a small village called Fornells. As I speak with the locals they all know where I am from because of Rudy Fernandez. Catalan people are very proud of their heritage, distingush themselves from spaniards as often as they can . . . and thinks Nate doesn't use Rudy enough. I think a lot of psoters would get along with Catalan people as they could all dog Nate on what a terrible coach he is. I am a Nate fan, but here in ¨catalan¨region I quickly parrot the Nate haters and fit right in. (When in rome metality) Anyways it was strange to have so many locals, even in the small village I'm in know about Portland, Oregon. Of course all the attention is on the world cup (i´ll be drinking in a bar in Barcelona when Spain plays) . . . but most people will take the time to talk basketball and Rudy if you bring him up. I really blew it not bringing any Blazer gear . . . I don´t have Rudy gear so didn´'t think about bringing Blazer gear. But no doubt locals would recognize the team jersey or some Blazer tshirt. I will be going into France for a few days . . . I´ll bring up Batman´s name and see if it strikes conversation. Don´t speak French, so it could be hard to get into a conversation. Plus I am in the region Rudy grew up and I don't think I´m going to the region Nic grew up (southern France). But so far it's been very cool to talk Blazer talk with locals in small towns and villages. Adios.
Buy a Batum French national jersey if you can! I'm planning to hit up Spain next summer, let me know more!
Man darizzle . . . are the Lakers going to pull it out. Many Laker (Gasol) fans here. Watched yesterday´s game from 2:00 am TO 4:30 AM. Thank god for jet lag . . . but danm that was the worst defeat of the series and it was Boston who handed it out.
After the trip, whatever hints I can pass along I would be happy to. I owe you anyways as I ended up buying that Kodak point and shoot HD video camera you posted about LOVE IT. Fits in my pocket, can get wet, dropped it twice already with no effect. . . tape all day and download it to the laptop at night. It is a breeze to organize the video files of my day trips . . . basically the whole process is so easy it was a good call to get the camera and a lightweight laptop. I can't believe a small devise like that records in 1080 . . . inside isn´t so hot, but outside works great. This is my second trip to Europe. The people in Italy were much friendlier (so far) but again in Spain I can actually talk Blazers with locals. not doing so well on finding good food, but I jsut got here a couple of days ago. Anyone have recommendations on type of food I should try to eat. I ordered pallea tongiht and it was lousy. I have Rick Steve Barcelona book . . .but things aren´t going as smooth as Italy. Oh well, a bad day on Vacation is better than a great day at work.
Jamon Iberrico Bellotta (most baller ham in the world). It comes from the black pig....I had some a while back, its really good. I saw on "Biazrre Foods" the Suckling Roast pig...that looked really good. Tapas bars/...just stick to fresh, local restaurants I would guess. I've heard food in Spain does kind of suck.
Greetings from Gresham......... or should I say 175th & Foster! I've been out here standing next to a drive thru cigarette shack talking to the local meth-heads and they all seem to agree that Nate is not using Rudy right........ that and MIXUM is their favorite DJ! I found a Gary Trent jersey for sale at the shack and picked it up as a souvenir! Stay tuned for further stories from my vacation!-HCP
That's the type of vacation you get when you spend all your cash on that pimped out ride you roll around in. I say sell the Audi and come visit. Got a brand new Audi A4 (diesel) as a rental. Crzy, when I stop at a red light, the engine shuts off and starts up immediately once I put it into gear. I think it is for saving gas, but it is hard to get used to . . . damn Audi car.
Spanish food is wonderful, especially on the north coast. The peasant food is best prepared simply. Stay away from their attempts to fancy it up French-style. It's Continential-Spanish food that blows. What Spain excels in now is the marriage between science and food; they're doing some messed up stuff. As for jamon iberico de Bellota (gran reserva), it comes from the Extremadura (just east of Portugal) and eats acorns. It's pricey stuff, but very good. Catalunya is a nice part of Spain. If you're on your way to France from Gerona, I would recommend stopping in Figueras and visiting the Museo Dali. Also, if you find yourself in Barcelona, where Las Ramblas ends at the water, around Port Vell is some of the cheapest and best seafood you'll ever have. Try the squid in it's own ink (calamares en su tinto). Also walk up Montjuic and check out Park Guell. Finally, if you stick around Gerona after the Tour of Switzerland, you may see Lance Armstrong.
Right about where Las Ramblas hits the water, I saw a drugged out dude take a chair and nail the crud out of an elderly tourist. Bad stuff. He went into shock and the family thought he'd died. My bad luck to be so close to a random act of violence, but it sure colors my view of that part of town.
Nice call on the Museo Dali . . . that guy is one strange artist. I have been to a lot of musuems and this was by far one of the most interesting museums I´ve been to. I found the musum so facinating that I came back to the villa and read about him for a couple of hours. Still striking out with food although local tapas bars are doing the trick. Off to southern France tomorrow . . . any suggestions?
I'm a big fan of saucisson sec with butter on a baguette. Simple, yet tasty and from the south of France.
Thanks for the tip . . . I'll try it for tomorrow. This board is a wealth of knowledge in all areas . . .glad to be associated with it.
I'm sure it was a ghost town when Spain lost to Switzerland this morning. I love Spain, great country.
