Firewood and Romans

The sunrise over Cal Llop was a sign of another glorious day in the Priorat. Red sky in the morning may be no good for sailors, but it was great for wood choppers. We set out to find an alternate route to the finca, as the boulder is still blocking the road. Out little Opel was tortured to within an inch of its engine, as we rolled over rocks and ravines, crawling over the mountains with no idea where we would end up. Yet we managed to snake our way to the finca. Took hammer and tong to the boulder, but no amount of elbow grease would give us the inches we needed to get by. Today we take a sledge hammer to it, so stay tuned.
The flea market saw was a gem, and we loaded the trunk with an assortment of wood: pine, olive, and almond. What a roaring fire we managed with that haul.
Winding our way back out, we stopped to explore the neighbors ruin, an incredible masia (farm house) which at one time was an impressive estate. Remnants of a working farm are strewn about, including an old grinding stone. We have found a similar one on our finca. The terraces, from Roman times, are breathtaking. How they did it one can only imagine. Slaves, no doubt. There were two tower structures at the peak of one hill, markers for some event. Something to inquire about, as they are so unique.
The evening was spent strolling through Gratallops, running in to Pepe from Beso Palleja, the land clearing guys. We'll stop and chat with him today. It's a new week.

Buttons at the Mercat

Woke up yesterday before the sun for our drive to Barcelona, to drop the always delightful Cyrus off at the airport for his return to the states and 1 degree weather in Ithaca. It was odd to see our son off at the airport, with us staying in Spain for another 3 weeks. A glimmer of days to come. It was a real energizer to know we could hop in the car and be in Barcelona in an hour and a half. Like going to Queens from Manhattan in rush hour.
We zoomed up the Gran Via, headed to the Plaza Glories, with little traffic on a Saturday morning. Our destination was the flea market, el Mercat Encant. Found a perfect parking spot (free on Saturday!) where we squeezed in the dirt encrusted Opel. The little car thing works, folks.
After a little wandering around, and asking various people where the market was, we finally caught a glimpse of tent tops, and in to the bowels we went. My goal was to find buttons, the weirder and more unusual the better. And what a bonanza it was. David is a masterful button scrounger, digging deep for the best. Buttons abounded! I walked away with pounds, gleaming with our haul. I must say I was very good about walking away with just what I came for. My fingers did indeed graze some delightful things, in particular old postcards and the odd graphic item, like chocolate bars inserts from the 50's that taught you how to do shadow puppets. But this pitufa is scaling down, so buttons only. Now back to the hotel to knit away, as the buttons need a home. David found what he was looking for, a saw and a grill for an open fire. Today we head for the finca to chop firewood and grill the rabbit he says he will be catching with his bare hands. Going country.

Almond shoots and rosemary blossoms

The sun has made it's way to the Priorat. We awoke to a glorious blue sky, beckoning us to the countryside. The dirt road is still a bit muddy, and the boulder keeps immediate access right to the casita impossible. But we are undaunted. The almond trees are showing signs of life, juicy red shoots promising blossoms in another month. That is truly a sight to behold, the delicate almond flowers one of the marvels of nature. And the rosemary, which is abundant on the finca, has covered the ground with that particular periwinkle blossom I adore. The scent is truly intoxicating as you walk along the terraces. We gathered firewood for the hotel, with the intent of picking up a saw in Falset to really score some decent size logs.
We're off to Barcelona this morning, to take Cyrus to the airport. We are hoping to stop at the flea market (Mercat del Encants), looking for buttons for my sweaters. More mayhem, but oh what fun.

Touring the Delta, icy fog on the finca

The weather continues to be chilly, with an amazing blanket of icy fog on the olive trees as we drove to the finca with Pep to show him around. It was as if a veil of lacy net had been cast over the country side. The region is so diverse, with so many micro climates, that you can drive from ice to oranges within fifteen minutes.
We wound our way over the mountainside towards the Ebro, via Miravet, to the delta. Our goal was lunch in San Carles de la Rapita, a fishing port where a fresh daily catch is guaranteed. Had a great lunch of various shell fish and grilled whole fish. As we wound our way back over the delta, amazed at the rice fields dotted with a variety of exotic birds, we found a ferry shuttling vehicles across a narrow waterway, a short cut back to autopista (main highway). In to Reus for a cable Cyrus needed for his laptop, a few vegetables and fresh bread for dinner, and back to the hotel for chicken soup and more knitting.

In the Priorat

We've arrived, to great fanfare. There was indeed snow on the ground, the villages and grapevines blanketed in a lovely white. We were greeted at (Cal-Llop) with hugs and kisses, shouts of "los americanos"! and spent the weekend drinking and laughing, culmunating in a family feast to clean out the kitchen stores before the official vacation closing. Peter Fischer, from (Chateau Revelette) arrived with his wine making partner Eric, who only spoke French, driving from Marseilles with bottles of his amazing white wine. The delightful Fredi, a Swiss wine god trapped in a Spanish man's body, from (Sao del Coster) arrived with red. And we novices from the Oregon wine country arrived with two Pinot's and a Cab from Walla Walla. The first Pinot hit the mark, the second was pummeled, and the Cab was packed by Cristina for their trip to Menorca. The feast was a glorious cacophony of French, Spanish, English, and Catalan. Music!
Our first sojourn to the finca was an adventure of snow and mud. We managed to get two thirds of the way down the dirt track off the main road, and were greeted by fallen rock. David swung the car up an incline, in the hopes of turning around in sinking mud. No such luck. He proceeded to back the car up the road, full tilt, to avoid getting stuck, until he hit a wide spot to turn around in. Cyrus and I walked behind with the shovel, our thoughts being less pressure with no passengers in the car. The air was fresh, the scent or rosemary mixed with the crispness of the snow absolutely intoxicating. We headed back to Cal Llop mud spattered but dizzy with the joy of not getting stuck.
Today we meet with our man Jeff about what's next, and then off to the finca with Pep Figueres, another builder, to get a second opinion and estimate on the casita. Stay tuned, as everyday brings "algo nuevo".

On the road

Well, we are taking the plunge, a month in the Priorato. Our friends Cristina and Waldo from (Cal-Llop) have invited us to house sit the hotel while they are on vacation, from mid-January to mid-February. We jumped at the opportunity. The permit for the casita renovation is in hand, and we want to hammer out the details with Alex of Julex, the contractor. Cyrus is going with us, our resident architect, to offer perspective.Very exciting.We will have a month to truly get a sense of what it might be like to be there year round. The weather will be cold in the evening, fresh during the day (average 60 degrees with sun). An adventure. The wonderful Cristina said it reminded her of the Berlanga film Bienvenidos Mr. Marshall, and in particular the scene
(Americanos os Recibimos). Too funny.
Let the adventures begin!

Permits coming in!

Word from Jeff, the permits are in the hopper. We can legally renovate our casita, the 50 square meter wonder. The well permit awaits a final rubber stamp. But we are on the way to becoming farmers in the Spanish countryside.
Our friends Cristina and Waldo in Gratallops have offered us the use of their delightful hotel C'al Llop (cal-llop) from mid-January for one month, while the hotel is closed and they take vacation. A month in the Priorat! We are excited and nervous simultaneously. The litmus test. I adore Cristina. She's funny, smart, and full of life. She sent a greeting referencing the marvelous Spanish black and white film Bienvenido Mr. Marshall, "Americanos os Recibimos". Check it out!(Americanos os Recibimos)
Jeff sent images of a similar casita the contractor has been working on in nearby Vinebre. Overall looks good. Our month will be spent hammering out the details, and hopefully overseeing "groundbreaking". We are committed to this project, come hell or high water. The economic crisis only adds to the resolve to not become immobilized with fear. Slog on, that's the adventure of life.
We hope to also be poking around looking at townhouses. The "casita de campo" on Finca C'an Do will be just that, not a palatial Spanish country house. The system is casita in the country, townhouse in the village. Been that way for centuries. We have no interest in being "expatriates" but rather members of a community as it exists. Vamos a ver. Faith and patience.