food

The Guadarrama mountains, la Sierra Madrileña and a great new bar: La Gamberra

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About an hour’s drive North of Madrid are the Guadarrama mountains. I have talked about them often, but never quite dedicated a blog to it -and this is not it. But a recent outing prompted me to write this.

Of course, the main reason to visit the mountains is nature and nature sports: hiking, cycling, or skiing (sorry, camping is forbidden except in designated campgrounds). But there are also great villages and buildings, like El Escorial (read about that here) or El Paular monastery (click here for more).

Spending my Summers there since my youth, we would, of course, take advantage of all the natural resources, but we also wanted to find places to hang out and party.

My cousin Quique recently opened a bar, La Gamberra, in nearby Alpedrete. My sister and I were invited to the opening night. We had a blast! La Gamberra has a simple but delicious, straightforward menu with a heavy beach vibe -lots of fresh seafood[1]! Obviously, a full bar, this is Spain after all, a huge “terraza” outdoor seating, “Beer garden” style, and best of all awesome great live music, most nights. They also have a prix fixe lunch menu for weekday lunches based on homemade traditional stews. The mood was enjoyable! Laid back, with the live music playing, people spending time together, having fun. If you are in the area and looking for a place to eat or to have a fun drink and enjoy some live music, I could not recommend this place enough!

[1] Remember that Madrid has the second biggest seafood market in the world after Tokio, despite being over 200 miles away from the nearest ocean.

The Grand Tour, or get out and travel

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The Grand Tour is associated with wealthy brits traveling around Italy back in the 19th C., think of Lord Byron, or E. M. Forster’s Room with a View. But long before them, noble Spaniards were doing the Grand Tour, as I recently discovered at a brilliant exhibition at the Biblioteca Nacional in Madrid, titled Palabras de Viajeros.

The Grand Tour eventually morphed into “Euro railing” which was a Summer jaunt through Europe taking advantage of cheap rail tickets. My niece did this last year and there seemed to be more flights than trains and more discos than museums…

Nowadays I do not travel as much as I used to. Mainly because I am now tied to the academic calendar, and when I am not teaching, I enjoy spending time with my family, with Celia, with friends. But I still manage little escapades to Chapel Hill, to Rome, to the Camino. And I am excited to visit St. Augustine soon, look out for that post.

The issue here is not so much an issue of quantity as much as quality. Discovering new foods, talking to locals, walking, walking, walking. And processing, maybe through writing, keeping a diary -for me it is this blog- I do not know if Instagram allows you enough depth to really appreciate your travels, although we always enjoy nice photos.

At any rate, the conclusion is simple: if you can, when you can, go travel.

 Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow mindedness.

Mark Twain  

Antonio y Rocinante’s Long haul flight and jet lag hacks

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Getting on an airplane

At this point in my life, I cannot tell you how many times I have crossed “the pond”. My first time was in 1976, I remember because the US was celebrating their bicentennial, so I was 11. Since then, we moved to NY for my 6th grade, then I went to college in Boston, and stayed in NY and Boston for a few years after that, then I traveled for work and vacations all over the US, Caribbean and South America, then I moved back to Boston in ’05, and you know the story since then (if you don’t, you can backtrack in this blog). So, for a conservative number let’s say over a hundred times.

Here are some of my travel and jet lag hacks:

Pre-flight:

Your body has three main built in clocks: stomach, sleep, and light. We need to prep those at least the day before the flight:

Start eating easy to digest meals this will “prep” and confuse you stomach, getting it adjusted for your new meal schedule.

Same with sleep: try getting some naps in the days before the flight. Again, you are trying to “trick” your sleep pattern.

Flight day:

Look good. Do you really want to meet someone important in your life, maybe your next boss, your future spouse, a potential client, or a celebrity, wearing oversize sweats and Crocs. Is it really that difficult for you to look good and be comfortable at the same time? Work on it; for me it means a button-down shirt, blazer, chinos, and comfortable loafers – just like George Clooney in Up in the Air (see clip below). Ground staff and cabin crew are going to like you more if you look nice than if you look like you are going to a pajama party.

Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. Cabin air is super filtered and super dry, so on a long haul you are going to notice. Most of your tiredness after a long flight is more dehydration than tiredness.

Night flights: try to sleep! Take a heavy-duty Melatonin, eye mask, ear plugs, blanket and sleep, sleep, sleep, or at least try to.

No alcohol, coffee, tea, sodas, all those drinks are going to make you pee, or make you thirsty, or dehydrate you or whatever, stick to water. I also put on moisturizer every time I go to the bathroom and wash my hands, it feels nice.

Adjust your watch if you are an old fool like me.

After landing:

Do not have a big meal, stick to easy to digest meals for a day, to continue adjusting.

Try to adapt to the local schedule ASAP, no going to bed in the morning, no big meals at odd times. Be a local.

Try to go outside, if there is sun, take in the sun, remember light is one of your body clocks.

You are welcome.

Any thoughts? Additions? Suggestions? I would love to read them in the comments below.

Monet, the Mediterranean, the cradle of Western civilization, and Mallorca

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Years ago, it must have been in a thrift shop in Chapel Hill I bought a “Monet and the Mediterranean” Exhibition poster; a windswept pine tree overlooking the sea. I loved it because it reminded me of the Mediterranean. I could smell the pine trees and the sea, I could hear the deafening song of the cicadas, feel the heat on my body, and taste the thousand flavors that unite this Mare nostrum.

Why is this region the cradle of Western civilization? Why is this diet considered the best in the world – olive oil, a little wine, veggies, and fish? Why is the Mediterranean lifestyle so admired and aspired to? In short, why is this region so special?

I am not a specialist, not an expert, in fact I have no clue, although I do have some theories: Ancient Babylonian culture lacked the convenience of an ocean, so slowly a migration occurred -think of Abraham- to the West, to the Med, et voilà! The rest is history, you are welcome.

Going back to the Mediterranean every year is a blessing and a pleasure for me. I feel at home in Mallorca or Greece, in Valencia or anyplace united by these waters. This year mom invited us again to spend a few days in her favorite spot, Camp de Mar, a small “cala” inlet where we have been going for decades! It did not disappoint amazing food, great swims in the ocean with my nephew and nieces, runs in the pine trees, overall, another memorable holiday.

Hispanic Heritage celebration at the Norton

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The Norton Museum in West Palm Beach is such an oasis of culture for me that I have already written about it five times in this blog. Well, here is the sixth:

Understanding the importance of Hispanic Heritage and Hispanic Heritage month, the Norton organized an open house “Nuestra Cultura” day in celebration. I took advantage of the opportunity and took some students from my classes. We had a blast!

We skipped the piñata making table, the Latin dance lessons, and the food stalls. We checked out the mercado set up in the garden, and what we really dug our teeth into the actual museum. Although the collection is small, it contains top notch art. We walked around discussing different pieces and paintings.

We had a wonderful time, and I enjoyed (finally) being able to share the Norton with my students!

On Pizza

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Disclaimer: Google recently had a pizza doodle which included a cute game, but I was planning this blog before that. Ok, now we can move on.

Like languages, pizza is a relatively modern variation of an ancient dish, basically jazzed up flatbreads that you can taste all around the Mediterranean basin: Coca in Spain, pita in Greece, etc. Of course, pizza wins the popularity contest due to Southern Italians immigrating everywhere and taking their recipes with them, grazie.

Growing up in Franco’s Spain, I was not exposed to pizza until high school in London, specifically Pizza on the Park on Hyde Park Corner (now closed and turned into a fancy hotel). It was love at first bite! American pizza during college was different, but still delicious, the most memorable one being Pizzeria Regina in Boston’s North End. Through the years, as I moved around, I discovered great pizza joints, Napoli in El Escorial, The Upper Crust in Boston, Italian Pizzeria (IP) in Chapel Hill -they also showed European football, which was a great plus!, and NAP in Madrid.

In my old age, my taste buds require simple, few, but delicious ingredients, (I have written before about the “Minder is meer” less is more adage) so nowadays I only eat Margherita pizza which should only have three ingredients plus the dough: mozzarella cheese, tomato sauce (which should have a bit of garlic), and basil (plus obviously olive oil and salt).

Due to its heavy New Yorker population, South Florida has decent pizza. Almost every week I meet my friend Manuel for some great pizza at County Line in Juno Beach. Here in Boynton, there is Pizza Rox which makes a textbook pizza and has a great selection of local beers, and Frankie’s. Recently I have also discovered my friend Arlene’s great pizza place in West Palm Beach, Pizza Al Fresco set in a lovely Spanish patio with awesome staff!

My pizza fever has been compounded by a guy called David Portnoy who does pizza reviews on the internet. I confess that I have gotten to the point where I can guess the points he is going to give the pizza he is reviewing before he does! Check out his pizza review app Onebite and one of his many reviews below!

The secrets to a great pizza are a screaming hot oven (800 F – 450 C), fluffy, airy dough so you get the bubble – you need the bubble! And simple, excellent ingredients. Enjoy.

What is your favorite pizza place? What are your thoughts on pizza? Let me know in the comments!

Camino Francés vs Camino del Norte, which is better? My opinion

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As soon as people find out I have done the full Camino Francés AND the Camino del Norte they always ask the obvious question: which is better? Well, here are my thoughts.

Like everything else in life, it is all about your personal tastes, the purpose of your Camino, etc.

The French way has more varied terrain, switching every few days. You get the Pyrenees on day one, then the rolling hills of Navarra, blending into the vineyards of La Rioja, eventually you get to the agricultural hills of Burgos, before hitting the plains of the plateau of Palencia and Leon before arriving at the hills of El Bierzo and the ancient Celtic hills of Galicia. The North or Coastal route on the other hand is amazing beach after amazing beach, and amazing forest after amazing forest, oh, and the only flat bits are the beaches, the rest of the time you are going up or down, which makes this route much tougher physically, but extremely rewarding as you are never more than a day or two away from the sea.

Also since this was the predominant trail in the late Middle Ages, the French way has a lot of history and a powerful spiritual charge, every chapel, every church, and cathedral just has this literally awesome, moving presence. By contrast, the Northern trail was abandoned in favor of the Francés as the Moors were driven out of the peninsula so, in fact, you are walking a much newer trail without so much of the spiritual aspect.

Food is probably better on the North route, as you partake from the bounty of the lush, green countryside and the ocean. This does not mean that the French way is bad, it just does not pass-through San Sebastian, arguably the best food per square foot in the world!!

North Coast of Spain is very green. Why? Because it rains a lot! So, if you commit to the North way, make sure you are prepared mentally and physically to deal with rain, sometimes for days… The French way on the other hand tends to be much drier.

Finally, depending on when you are doing it, the French way can become a bit crowded, while the North route has consistently less traffic.

If you are more into exploring cities and towns, both ways offer great stops, San Sebastian, Bilbao and Santander on the North, Pamplona, Logroño, Burgos or León on the French way.

So, in the end it boils down to what you want from your Camino. If you are looking for tradition and spirituality, go with the French way, if you prefer breathtaking views and more of a physical challenge, go North.

Have you done both Caminos? Leave your thoughts in the comments!!

Tacos

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Strangely enough, I rarely write about food, which happens to be one of my favorite things! Well, we’ll try to fix it…

As an old family member used to say: “I will eat anything that does not eat me first”, so I´ll eat pretty much anything – except maybe that Corsican cheese with the maggots (it does explain Napoleon being Corsican, though). At any rate, one of life’s simple pleasures is street food.

And what better example of street food than tacos? Of course, there is street food everywhere there are streets, so I remember fish and chips growing up in London, crêpes in France during my summer internships, hot dogs and pretzels in New York, churros in Madrid, Dholl Puri (curried yellow split-pea flatbreads) in Mauritius, etc. etc.

My first visit to Mexico was for work in 1993, and I can testify that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. Many tacos later, in Naples I was blessed (a word I hate to use because we are all blessed, we just don’t see it or do not want to see it) to have Taquería San Julian. While not a stand, but a “real” -if humble- sit down joint, it made exceptional tacos. In fact I took my students there to order their lunch in Spanish as the oral component of their final exams!

Florida, unfortunately, does not have a rich heritage of street food. In fact, it does not have much heritage at all. The native Seminole population is limited to a handful of casinos, and until the late 18th C. nothing much happened here. What about fried alligator? A handful of “native” Floridians will shout. Well, when was the last time you saw a fried alligator stand on a street corner? Fortunately, enterprising Mexican immigrants have filled that vacuum with delicious tacos!

In a providential twist, there is a great taco trailer that parks -literally- around the corner from my house. So, guess where I end up when I am in a rush, or feeling lazy, or just craving tacos?

Although I have had tacos at Michelin starred restaurants (Punto MX in Madrid) and they were delicious (and expensive), tacos are meant to be eaten on the street (Florida does not really have sidewalks so one must eat in the car).

In conclusion: Thank God for tacos!

The great American restaurant: The diner

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Thanks to almost 30 years of the Food Network and food magazines, the US is finally waking up to eating good food. This is not to say there was no interest in food before. Look no further that the Amish communities with their all organic and local only fare -long before that was even a thing. For too long Americans in general only considered food as fuel for the body. Generally, Thanksgiving is the only exception when families cook and sit together to eat. Of course, there have always been restaurants around the country that venerated food. I think of Locke Ober’s in Boston, which my dad loved, and of course many others. Speaking of the Food Network, think of all the restaurants Guy Fieri features in his Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives show, revealing some of the generations old, mom and pop restaurants that are temples of food.

It is my opinion that diners are the finest representation of American food and therefore, culture. It boils down (sorry for the pun) to the Puritan/Protestant DNA, of our work ethic ingrained in our culture; work is the way to earn your salvation. It means one must have a big breakfast to work all day towards one’s goal. Thus the big breakfast at the diner, who has time to make eggs and toast and hash browns, etc, etc, at 5 in the morning? Lunch is a non-event: I have seen people wolfing a slice of pizza while they walk, a sandwich at one’s desk is more than acceptable, it is respected as a sign of your hard work, taking your time for lunch means you are a slacker.

My love for diners started way back in 1983, my freshman year in college in a small town outside of Boston. Exploring the town, I discovered Wilson’s diner. Its shiny blue and chrome was beckoning, inviting. What a discovery! It looked like a railroad car that was permanently placed there. And what a breakfast they had, buttery everything. Big dollops of butter to make the pancakes, the eggs, the omelets, the hash browns, everything! The first times I went with my best friend Theo who quickly got to chatting with the staff in Greek. I was amazed at the coincidence until I learnt that many, if not most of the New England diners are family owned and run by hardworking Greek immigrants. There is obvious irony in the fact that a Greek family was cooking perfectly buttery, greasy American breakfasts. I immediately fell in love with Wilson’s and walked the couple of miles  -sometimes in foot deep snow- into town on Saturdays for my breakfast: eggs, hash browns, bacon, sausage, pancakes, I tried everything and everything was delicious. During those four years of college I explored other diners: The Blue Diner in Boston, and the Deluxe Town Diner in Watertown, quickly cementing my love for diners and what they represent.

Since then I have had the chance to discover many diners and I always make it a point, whenever and wherever possible to breakfast in a diner: The Empire Diner in Chelsea (The New York one, sorry) around the corner from my apartment after college, The Agawam Diner near Newburyport where I lived for a winter, tiny Casey’s Diner in Natick where I would sometimes take my advisory group, it is so small it does not even have a regular door, but a sliding door which takes up less space, the famous Red Arrow Diner in Manchester New Hampshire where presidential candidates go get their photo taken during the primary election campaign. There are not many diners outside of the Northeast, but that does not mean that there are not great breakfast places that do the job of the diner: Ye Olde Waffle Shoppe in Chapel Hill is one of them. I even held the oral component of my final exams there; the students had to order their breakfast in Spanish from the wonderful Latino staff (although the ownership was Greek!) to pass the class! Visiting the University of Virginia, I discovered the White Spot on which I wrote one of my earliest posts (you are going to have to scroll way down…). The Clover Grill in New Orleans, I even bought their T-shirt: “We love to fry, and it shows”, Plato’s Diner in Maryland, and so on.

The other day I discovered The Boynton Diner in Boynton Beach in Florida, and I am happy to report it is a perfect specimen of the species: great waitresses, perfect breakfast, and, of course, an endless cup of piping hot coffee.

Tonxo Tours

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Our plane with our super pilot!!
Private plane tours? Check (Over El Escorial)
Leading a group of students around the Royal Palace
Showing Valencia to some students (During Falla festivities!!)
Showing some students the castle at Segovia
Bottom line: I am passionate about showing you Spain
Yes we are wheelchair friendly!!
Deep into explaining the curved facade of a Baroque church
We have fun learning games for kids to enjoy during our tours!
Guiding students around the Dalí museum in Florida!!
Cold will not keep us from showing you around.
Another group of satisfied customers!
We love food and drink tours!!
We can do tours by bicycle, moped, motorbike, airplane, you name it!!

 

Well, I guess the first thing I must do is apologize to my followers for a very long silence. Soon you will know the reason. As you might know, about a year a ago I returned home to Spain after many – thirteen to be precise – years in the US. With a clean slate, I decided to start a business that had been on the back burner for years: I have become a personal tour guide, creating bespoke tours of Spain under the name Tonxo Tours.

Showing people Spain is my life calling. I am passionate about sharing my culture, history, language. After showing Spain to all sorts of folks for years, I have decided to start Tonxo Tours and make my joie de vivre available to all! I have been toying with this idea since the late 90s, so it is about time to get going, don’t you think?

Most tour companies boast about their team of specialists, well, I am that specialist. I have been giving tours of Madrid and of Spain since my twenties. I have worked with British rock bands, schools and universities, foundations, executives from all over the world, even the Monaco Olympic Sailing Team, I would love to show you around!

After twenty odd years in the business world and thirteen teaching in high schools and universities in the US, it is time for me to do what I do best, which is to share my passion for Spain.

Why has it taken so long you might ask? My life has been marked by a peripatetic lifestyle, moving to New York when I was ten and then to London, Boston, Paris, Bordeaux, Geneva, Lausanne, Chapel Hill, Naples Fl., and so forth to over eleven cities. Cities became my friends. I loved discovering what made each one unique ̶-how they got their personality. I spent my time in museums, cafés, theaters, concerts, operas, ballets, all of which unavoidably infused me with a love for the arts. Sharing my love and knowledge of cities and their cultures soon became a venue to express myself. As a teenager I gave tours of Madrid and London to friends and family, something I continue to do and enjoy, which has led me to create Tonxo Tours. My experience and passion radiate on the street: Explaining Spanish history, architecture, food, music, sometimes all of them at the same time!!

When I started thinking about setting up a tour company I was aware of the tremendous competition in the market. Just in Madrid you can jump on a sightseeing bus and casually check out the city while chomping on some churros, you can take a Segway tour, there are a bunch of tapas tours, there are free tours, you can get a tour on a tuk tuk, a golf cart, an antique car, even in a pink Rolls Royce! In contrast to that, my philosophy is simple: a no gimmick, quality driven, discreet – yet fun – bespoke tour that will cater to what you want to experience, see, taste and hear, not the other way around.

I can arrange exquisite lodgings, extraordinary experiences, delicious food and drink,

with only one purpose: creating unforgettable memories.

But why would anyone choose Tonxo Tours? you might ask. Here’s a few more reasons:

  1. I am a native, a local, born and bred here, but with the advantage that I have lived abroad many years. I have dual citizenship USA / Spain, offering me a perspective unattainable to most.
  2. Passion: I love sharing my culture, my history, my food, my architecture, art, music, dance, etc. This drives me.
  3. Experience: I have been doing this for years with friends, colleagues, schools, universities, foundations, etc. From 1994 to 2004 I had my own company (but that is a different story) which took me to every city and town in Spain at least a couple of times a year, more for the big cities. So I really know Spain like the back of my hand.
  4. DNA: My grandad worked for the British and American embassies, often times driving dignitaries around – he even got a medal from from Queen Elisabeth (but that’s a different story). My dad was restless. We would go on excursions every time he got bored – which was often – He was also a Spanish history buff which rubbed off on me, so I have been reading Spanish history and literature since I was a youth, which eventually led me to get a PhD in Spanish literature at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (again, different story).

I received my undergraduate degree in business. I specialized in management, the human part; what motivates people? What makes them tick? I used these skills in my first jobs in finance, photography and management before using them to run my own business for ten years, importing and selling industrial machinery in Spain and consulting for European companies wanting to expand into Latin America. I moved back to the US, where I started teaching in 2005, and although I was making a fraction of the money I used to make, I felt much happier and more fulfilled. In the meantime I got a Master’s and then a PhD in Spanish Literature from UNC. Returning home to Spain allows me to indulge in my true vocation. I am able to apply my many skills developed and honed over the years. So don’t over think it, contact me and I’ll be happy to show you around!

Let me know when you are going to be in Spain and what you want to do and see. I will personally take care of you, if you just want to spend a few hours walking around old Madrid or if you want to spend two weeks exploring Spain, I will be happy to set it all up.

If you want to know more about me, you can read check out this blog about my random thoughts, travels, and whathaveyous.  You can check out my website tonxotours.com and/or my Instagram: tonxotours