Tot sobre rovellons.

 

Welcome to the woods!

Yesterday was an interesting day…

One time I was making small mushrooms for a ring and my teacher and I started a to talk about them, he told me about going to the woods once a year to pick a variety of them, how seriously people take this and I asked a million questions, little did I know two years later I would be doing it myself.

The most important thing is to go with someone that knows where to find them, location and the right spots and which  are the ones you can eat and which are poisonous, I was lucky to go with three men who had 50 years of doing this

They gave me a special knife, because they have to be removed from the stem, if you just pull them they won’t grow next year.

 

 

And a whistle, there were 6 of us in groups of two, so one blow meant we were around, two blows meant you were lost

They gave me a basket and then they left before I could ask anything else, in a blink they turned into little children right before my eyes and just left with their basketsl

I was faced with this:

Basket in hand just knowing I was to search on damp places.

I can’t describe the joy..

But I can show you.

  

 

So many different kinds, so many details, I found  many hidden under rosemary bushes.

The minute you moved them around to pick the rovellon between the damp smell of the earth and rosemary it was impossible not to smile, what a pure smell.

The whole place was the perfect scenario for a fairytale

 

 

We were there from 9am to 2pm having a little break in the woods for lunch under the mist and we showed each other what we had found

Here is a different variety of the ones we can eat.

Here is what I found.

 

It was such a lovely experience, specially since the people I went with knew so many stories of the place, they told me many recipes, how to clean them and store them even how to conserve them.

I agreed to come next year.

These are the moments I cherish.

Going up to the Castle

  This is Vilafames.

They had a showing of old traditions, a lot of people were outside dressed up making food, some of the houses where open for you to see old kitchens, old schools with books dating 1900, pharmacies, butcheries etc.

There was a lot to see but there was music on the streets and people walking up to a small castle, on top of the town.

We walked down the alleys which I truly adore,they are so inviting, make you want to go get lost..

Still heading up the castle we found this.. pretty clear..go up and up..

 

When we got to the ruins the first thing I did was walk into this tower, and look out one of the windows..

This is what I found..

Inside  this place reminded me of conversations with a friend of mine about spots filled with energy, it makes you wish you could have a peek of this place years and years ago.

Coming back down, I found this garden and got in for a closer look. (((It was open, so I figured I could go in, please don’t think I break into other people’s houses to sniff on their flowers, take photos and and run haha!)))

Three ladies were here knitting, doing embroidery and this is when my jaw dropped, making some lace..

 

 

This lady right here was the highlight of  my day, I stared and smiled and asked 1000 questions and went back to the time I asked my little weaving teachers about their work.

She was kind enough to explain about the patterns, and what amazed me the most is that these threads are regular threads, she just knots and knots and I stand there having no idea how she keeps track, she laughed and told me it was years of practice and then stopped to show me some of the other things she had made, including the black lace she was wearing.

Her granddaughter made bracelets, still so intricate, I just enjoy complimenting others on their handmade work, it is truly admirable how they keep the traditions alive.

After talking with her for a little while I told her that I made jewelry, and she pulled out a cookie box, inside there where some bracelets and she said they where made with silver wire..silver thread I thought.. and she handed it out to me and it was indeed the thinnest wire I have ever seen, she even mentioned someone makes this wire for her in a specific size so she can make it lace like this, again I have made thin, thin wire, but this one was the thinnest! and  in person this bracelet was sturdy,really shiny and delicate.

All and all a nice day, came back home with a ball of goat cheese from that area, happy for a little trip, ready to relax and enjoy the rest of the afternoon.

Easter Costa Rica, Guatemala, Spain.

 

Easter or “Holy week” as we call it, is a week long celebration.

Back in Costa Rica we have the processions,there are many church activities and people get from 3 to 5 days off, in my family ever since I was little, we would go back to the farm.

Back then my great grandmother was alive, and I was raised very innocently, believing things like if on a holy friday I went to swim in the river I would turn into a mermaid (something that I seriously considered with a friend of mine), she was a 103 and you have to behave because if you happen to disrespect holy friday you will be punished… oh! I did behave.

We used to go camping,fishing and build fires and the older people would tell us stories about ghosts and things that had happened in the farms, which scared me to death, I believed every single word, as I got older I truly cherish those moments and the other day a cousin took a photo of the house of my great aunt where I used to go for holy week, it is an old house that hasn’t changed a bit.

The traditions, the scary bits, which not believed so much now still respected and remembered with certain nostalgia, my childhood is trapped right there in that moment and time and I remember and cherish every detail.

Some places seem to not be touched by time and still every year, my family goes camping, fishing.. oh and my grandma cooking without limits and us eating like there’s no tomorrow.

 

 

From the  traditional foods I love specially “rosquillas” which are made with corn and cheese  in a wood oven, the best way to eat them is put some in a cup of black coffee and eat them with a spoon, believe me!

They can be purchased like this, but back in the farm, every year the corn dough is prepared from scratch and baked in a rustic wood oven.

 

(Source) 

 

Guatemala is pretty incredible, I think I leave that pretty clear every time I talk about it and sight a little, whishing oceans where way smaller.. what calls my attention the most is the carpets they make in the streets ..

But for this go over to Lucy’s  and this particular post of Semana Santa explaining a more about this and many other Guatemalan traditions.

The photo below belongs to my friend Suzanne

You can see the rest of her photos over here

As for Spain,  I guess there could be a blog just about the stuff they do here, like in every other place some people are quite religious and wait all year for this week, I live in a place where is not common to do so much but this is something new I learned “Monas de Pascua”

Starts at 8am making the dough and letting it rest for 3 hours.

Then there is the filling made with lemon, almond,sugar,cinnamon and olive oil

 

Another layer of dough and some decoration..

  

Some are stuffed some are not..

Then we got to this one which at first I thought they where kidding..

This one is one layer of dough..

 

And 2 hard boiled eggs..

Apparently the tradition for kids mostly is while eating it, smash the egg in someone’s head…

That’s when I giggled .. and had to confirm it, from different sources, I may seem so silly asking all these questions but I was curious..

The egg is smashed in the head, but not eaten with the bread, because is sweet…so it is just used later for a salad or something.

One with Nutella, half of the jar to be precise.

 

Here they are all ready to rest for another hour..

Now they had to be glazed with egg, for that golden color, and sprinkled with sugar all around the top

I made the first 2 in the corner.

After an afternoon of baking, running back and forth, ohhhh the smell..

Here they are.

Starting with the famous eggs..

 

The ones with the filling..

A total of 11, some to give away, some to keep.

They are soooo good, and everyone laughs when I keep telling them, they should be eaten all year long not just easter.

So this is how I spent my easter, and I am keeping this recipe with me to make some when I get back home, one of the great things of traveling is this… learning new things that  you can carry with you and can share later on.

This is the one I made and one last thing:

Nutella is love.

Surreal days..

Let me start by telling you a little story,

When I decided to move to Spain, one of the biggest questions always my the tools, where to get the metal,etc… for this I asked my teacher which also happens to be from Spain to help me see what would work better..he advice to look for second hand things over here.

I have some tools but I always hold back on the shopping since I have just the basics, or what I can carry in 2 suitcases, and so while looking online for used tools in Spain , prices and such.

I found Don Juan.

He happened to live just 10kms from where we, were to live and well after some conversations, photos, he decided to sell us his tools.

How can I explain?

The closest I can come to, is like if you have a dream, something that you know will take years to achieve, I had an idea to have something like this in a period of 10 years, some of the larger tools like an electric rolling mill was out of that list, it was beyond my reach, then the torches, smaller tools,files,burs, so to me is  like having a loan for college and suddenly finding out is all paid for, like winning the lottery, like having that one thing that would change everything,right there.

 

 

 

No room for excuses,no need to think what’s next..

If I could only tell you how much I’ve cried, happy tears that is..

When I got here, saw the tools and started unpacking, I would cry with every single thing, had a little nervous smile, with each of the things I pulled out of the boxes, we are talking boxes and boxes of these..

I adoreeeeee that each and every one of these tools, has a story, you can see the years, I cherish and respect experience, and he as kind as he is, is willing to help me set up the workshop and explain things, his tools are his tools and well there is a bond, they are what make us earn a living, and facilitate to make whatever comes out of out head, and now little by little I’ve spent my days, sorting them out, cleaning, trying to convince myself this is real and they are mine.

The jeweler’s table, sitting there makes me think how many things have been made there, I am enjoying myself,  I feel like a little girl just playing with everything, getting to know everything..

Moments like this make me feel humble and grateful..

New work is coming soon..I’ll have fire!

I can’t wait!

And so it went..

Woke up at 7am last Monday after about 4 hours of sleep and 5 days of being in a fair for 10 hours a day.. more on that later, there is so much I need to tell you about..

 

Everywhere I go I have the luck of having a mountain near me.. so after months of seeing these mountains every morning, it was time to say goodbye.

I love how everything is always green in Costa Rica.

After a few goodbyes and the strongest hugs my arms can give, I went off to my grandmothers to have a tamal, in CR we have tamales for Christmas, and although it was a bit early, she made sure I had some home made ones before I left..

Then off I went, this time it was a bit particular, I was not alone, specially travelling and going somewhere specifically.. my house!, every time things are more planned and everything is done before I get to the country, so wow! lol! adult behavior? …I mean this is a big deal coming from a girl who used to just think “Once I get there I will figure it out” …

So first a plane, good 10h on it.. the great thing was that after such running around packing I can assure you  I slept at least 6h on the plane,this is right before landing..

Running around in the airport, changing money, 2 suitcases, ruuuuuuuun, I wanted to be out already, Madrid was so sunny, chilly but sunny, got there at noon on Tuesday.

 

Finally outside! Find the bus to the train station, literally running once again hence this photo..

 

3 and a half hours later,time for a train, AVE makes a 400km drive in just one hour and a half..

 

From the train… if you look close enough you can see my messy head haha! Of course no self portraits at this point, between excitement and jet lag, I was quite the crazy lady..

Finally in Valencia, a 1h drive..

And after all this I have to say, I was dead but you have never seen anyone happier.

H and I are in Spain! ready to start, planning around, buying incense for the house, moving things here and there..

And  my workshop, oh my workshop!… needs a complete blog post, I am overwhelmed, the first 3 days I was here when I saw the tools, I would cry, literally, I would go from the kitchen to the living room, see the workshop and smiled, is like when you were little and you liked a little boy and you looked at him and then quickly look away, dear friends, I am this crazy about it! and I am familiarizing myself with everything..unpacking has taken me a week, because every single thing is cleaned, observed and cherished for a good amount of time.

Love is all around, loving H, love for life, for work, for realizing all our hard work finally paid off, love for all the people in this world who we meet and sometimes have to say goodbye to, loving this relationships getting stronger, for adventure..

I could write how much I am grateful for, but I pretty much can sum it up to the point, I am grateful for everything, even the smallest things have a meaning and I have taken a week just to enjoy them..

These days, we wake up to this..

And excited to see what each day brings..

So hard to convince…

This is Jorgito he is a gnome that was born March 18th,2010   between a good friend of mine who loves gnomes and I .

He went with me to Guatemala and came back.. he’s always been around..

This week I thought it was about time for the world to see him, but then he just completely turned around and didn’t want anything to do with me..

He is not being mean, he is just very very shy, and I guess it could be scary for a little gnome used to hiding to call the attention so much..

I tried to bribe him with chocolate..

And he gave me such a hard cold stare.. how embarrassing! how could I think he would give in so easily to a giant chocolate bar???

The disappointed Jorgito kept hiding all week long..

I tried to convince him once again, and basically told him, that by letting me make a piece of jewelry with him, he could travel! he could meet new people and see new places..

After hours and hours, of sitting down and chatting..

He wondered where he would go?? We don’t know yet but it triggered his interest and asked to see what I had planned..

He finally agreed!!!  but under his own  terms of course.. and here you have it..

Still hiding a little bit, but I assure after this he is fully into it. so there will be more of him around here..

Doing what I have to do.

I think way, way,way too much.

Every time there is decision making to do I really need to take my time and as positive as I try to be, I think of every possible thing that could go wrong.

Then  I try to find the solution to all those things that could go wrong, which is really dumb, because  as many of my friends have told me, I worry about things that haven’t happened, that might never ever happen.

But well, it’s one of my biggest flaws, I can’t help it and I get a sense of peace when I feel I have a plan B if all goes wrong.

Most the time I take sudden decisions, and I follow my heart on what I feel is right, but then I spend all this time working around all the details of the decisions I take.

I’m extremely happy with life right now, and everything is colorful, pretty, simple .. and  I think I’ve learned more about myself and others in the last 8 months than in many years, there are things that used to bug me that are not even important anymore.

Criticism, that sometimes would crush me and make me feel insecure, I now respect but don’t let get to me.

Many big and little things, Guatemala really has shown me what really matters.

And it is all a learning process, and I’m halfway there, there is still so much work to do, which leads to my latest decision.

I believe in our subconsciousness trying to reach out for us, there are things we sometimes need we are not even aware of, then something clicks and it makes all the difference in the world.

I was talking about my life here and how satisfied I was as a person, but  then there is work ,and well because of the lack of tools and working from the tiniest workshop if you can call a table and a few tools that, I am restraining myself from doing my best.

It is hard to settle.It’s hard to think of all this.

And then someone I love asked me: “Do you want more?”

And I realize I do, I want to learn more, I want to see what else life has to bring, and for that I have to get out of my perfect little bubble that is this town.

Which is one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to take, because remember I had to work so incredibly hard to get here, I worked for an entire year saving every penny just to be able to live here, eat my tortillas,walk back and forth from the market while picking up some fresh fruit, making jewelry in the afternoons, living in literally the house of my dreams and enjoying myself  learning about another country and their culture.

Then I look back and read this and I feel I did it, I am better today than what I was exactly a year ago, a year ago I was hoping to be like I am today and that for me is an achievement.

Still grabbing everything again and starting something new, is so hard this time, now I’ll be homesick of 2 countries haha!

Since I don’t want to make this the never ending blog post.

This is the plan, I’m going back to Costa Rica for a while to go back to ask my teacher 1000 questions, to learn as much as I can from him and my friends, this is like a round 2, I’m going back to where I come from to prepare again for my future goals.

Moving to a part of the country I said I would never live in, but Hey! at the end is really about confronting those things you once tried to avoid and still be yourself.

Then there’s something else.

Spain is calling me..

For now I basically will just spend my last month enjoying the countryI fell in love with.

Methods of Transportation..

Tuk Tuk or Tuc Tuc got no clue how to spell it…

Fast,safe, and the best part $1.25 to take you anywhere you need in town.. maybe ,maybe $2 if it’s a bit far away..

You are shaken all around with the cobblestone and the guy riding as fast as he and really sometimes when you bump your head on the top of the tuk tuk, you are in there with  all the  grocery bags and you have to hug all your bags because everything is dancing around,  you can’t help but smile.

Van:

As many as can fit, and well I’ve been in one of these too, can’t say much of the experience it was about 7pm,raining, cold  and going on a closed road because of all the landslides..

 

Boat:

It’s so nice, when is not raining, it’s very beautiful to see all the other boats, the high, high mountains and all the houses on the shore, this one on the first photo is the one to get from place to place, you can see these boats filled with everything too, people who have to get their products around load the boats and then sometimes it can be you in the boat enjoying the sun, or the boat filled with people and bags and you holding someones little baby on your lap .

Then the other day the guy that was riding the boat told me that once the boat flipped because it was full and then when going out, everyone in the boat got on the same side and PUM!

 

Chicken Bus!:

I think every single person I’ve met has a chicken bus story..

I ride them to the city, from town to town, for very long trips I never go by myself, because being honest is not the safest way to move around.

For the robbing and for the guy driving like a mad man in extremely closed curves..

But let me tell you how it is, you sit there ready to go and you have the usual vendors, here I give them props.. they don’t come in just asking for money, or selling stuff.. here they go seat by set and hand you the cookie, pencil, incense ,toy, booklet, whatever random item they might be selling.. while saying ” This is for you to see the product up close, don’t ignore me, don’t humiliate me, just take it, it doesn’t mean you have to buy it..” then they tell you the price and go seat by seat charging the money, and picking up the cookie,pencil.. etc.. and well to say the truth I see a chocolate/cookie in my hand and my brain says “eat it”.. so it works for them at least with me..

Little by little people come in, each sit fits 3 people, you are lucky if you are by the window, you are always squished,but in the middle you the filling of a human sandwich, on the side you have to balance your body so you don’t fall when it hit s a curve..

It’s a wonderful arm workout too because you have to grab yourself so tight..

People use it to transport products, and the top of the bus can be filled with everything you can think of.. There is a guy that helps the driver, his job is to tell people where the bus is going by yelling it out loud hanging on the side of the bus , then helping people come in and putting the stuff on the top of the bus , charging the money.. etc

Everytime I get on one of these I usually end up talking to people and hear their story, everything from an old man  who used to be in the army and told me he was trained to use telepathy on his enemy and now he sells incense((not sure if he uses the telepathy on that too.. .I told him that and he cracked up))) , to a lady with 5 kids getting on a bus and me carrying the smallest one, to guy saying that cellphones are really the devil and talking about the church he went to, best part is then someone called him, and I asked “Aren’t those from the Devil” and he said well he blamed his jealous wife   , and since I speak spanish and because of my skin color, thank God people don’t even give me a second look or think I’m a tourist of any sort and to this day I’ve not had any problems and like I said, for long trips I take shuttles or go with several people and just move around to near by places on these.

 

Anyways it is fun  to get from place to place

 

Frida

I paint my own reality. The only thing I know is that I paint because I need to, and I paint whatever passes through my head without any other consideration.

I don’t know what my mocking dream thinks. The ink, the stain. the shape. the color (sic). I’m a bird. I’m everything. without any more confusion. All the bells. the rules. the lands. the big grove. the greatest tenderness. the immense tide. grabage. water jar, cardboard cards. dice digits duets vain hope of constructing the cloths, the kings. so silly.my nails. the thread and the hair. the bantering nerve I’m going with myself.

My painting carries with it the message of pain.

The quiet life.. / giver of worlds.. / Wounded deer / Tehuanas / Lightning, grief suns / hidden rhythms

New kitty..

My cousin comes to my house and pulls this out of her purse …

It was…..

how can tell you…

absolute love at first sight

Her name is Athenea, and she is so adorable..

I was worried about Tango so the next day I took a small cage and put her inside it so Tango could see it and not touch her..he was sooo angry and hated her..

As you can see he was all over the place and in the third picture you can clearly see how the kitty could care less.

After a while she got bored of staring at Tango and decided it was time to go..

The next morning I tried one more time, to find out Tango doesn’t hates Athenea he is VERY jealous.. if I leave them alone he lets her play with his toys and I found the kitty playing with Tango’s food and he was ok with it.. the minute I walk out he goes wild …

Well I just wanted to show you..

Isn’t she cute?