Up to Barcelona - November 3rd-25th 2008

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November 22nd 2008: Girona


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Breakfast from El Mos
Another chocolate croissant from El Mos. In addition to the ends, there was also a little bar of chocolate inside. The croissant, as I've come to expect from El Mos (and Barcelona) was definitely good quality. If I had a complaint, it might be that there was a bit too much chocolate.
Another chocolate croissant from El Mos. In addition to the ends, there was also a little bar of chocolate inside. The croissant, as I've come to expect from El Mos (and Barcelona) was definitely good quality. If I had a complaint, it might be that there was a bit too much chocolate.
Girona
The map I used to navigate around Girona's historic district.
Looking north along Rui Onyar from one of the bridges into the historic district.
The pedestrianized street Rambla de la Libertat had many tables in the street.
The Girona Cathedral, rising on a hill above the houses in old town.
The map I used to navigate around Girona's historic district.
Looking north along Rui Onyar from one of the bridges into the historic district.
The pedestrianized street Rambla de la Libertat had many tables in the street.
The Girona Cathedral, rising on a hill above the houses in old town.
The tower of Saint Feliu church. It's missing its top due to a lightning strike in 1581.
The view westward across Girona toward the mountains.
The ancient Roman city walls that I hiked along the top of. I intentionally took this picture with people to give the walls a sense of scale. In addition, notice the large stairway on the inside of the walls.
A 180-degree times-two panoramic movie of Girona taken from the top of a watchtower on the old city walls. The movie does two passes over Girona, one zoomed in on the distance mountains, and one focused on the nearby rooftops.
The tower of Saint Feliu church. It's missing its top due to a lightning strike in 1581.
The view westward across Girona toward the mountains.
The ancient Roman city walls that I hiked along the top of. I intentionally took this picture with people to give the walls a sense of scale. In addition, notice the large stairway on the inside of the walls.
A 180-degree times-two panoramic movie of Girona taken from the top of a watchtower on the old city walls. The movie does two passes over Girona, one zoomed in on the distance mountains, and one focused on the nearby rooftops.
A 360-degree panoramic movie of the Jardins d'Alemanys, a green area in ruined barracks by a corner in Girona's city walls. I like the look of the leaves falling from the trees. A peaceful place.
One of the narrow streets in old town. This is near/in the former Jewish quarter.
The Jewish museum had a model of old town. This is the section around the cathedral. The darker wood is roughly the expanse of the Jewish quarter.
A more typical street in old town.
A 360-degree panoramic movie of the Jardins d'Alemanys, a green area in ruined barracks by a corner in Girona's city walls. I like the look of the leaves falling from the trees. A peaceful place.
One of the narrow streets in old town. This is near/in the former Jewish quarter.
The Jewish museum had a model of old town. This is the section around the cathedral. The darker wood is roughly the expanse of the Jewish quarter.
A more typical street in old town.
The Catalan-Gothic bulk of the cathedral itself.
A close-up of the statues above the entrance.
The Catalan-Gothic bulk of the cathedral itself.
A close-up of the statues above the entrance.
Lunch at La Farca Vella
I ate lunch at La Farca Vella.
Catalan-style beans: a simple country dish.
Rabbit. It smelled sweet and had a spicy-sweet coating on its skin. Hard to cut. Tasted fried. I liked it: it's distinctive fried poultry. Sage may be an ingredient.
Crema catalana (a Catalan version of a creme brulee). I got this as dessert because everyone seemed to be getting it. It smelled like burnt sugar, meaning it was fresh. With a texture more like pudding than a custard, it tasted slightly bitter. The dish grew on me.
I ate lunch at La Farca Vella.
Catalan-style beans: a simple country dish.
Rabbit. It smelled sweet and had a spicy-sweet coating on its skin. Hard to cut. Tasted fried. I liked it: it's distinctive fried poultry. Sage may be an ingredient.
Crema catalana (a Catalan version of a creme brulee). I got this as dessert because everyone seemed to be getting it. It smelled like burnt sugar, meaning it was fresh. With a texture more like pudding than a custard, it tasted slightly bitter. The dish grew on me.
More Girona
Part of the Passeig Arqueològic, the green area outside the city walls.
Another part of Passeig Arqueològic.
Stalls I passed on the way out of Girona.
A movie of a street parade I stumbled onto. The women on stilts look like they're have much fun!
Part of the Passeig Arqueològic, the green area outside the city walls.
Another part of Passeig Arqueològic.
Stalls I passed on the way out of Girona.
A movie of a street parade I stumbled onto. The women on stilts look like they're have much fun!
Dinner at El Glop (in Barcelona)
El Glop's downstairs dining room.
Grilled calçots / calcots, a special type of large spring onion grown in Catalonia that I didn't think I'd get to try because it was out of season. (In fact, the reason I picked this restaurant when walking down the street and reading menus was because it was on the menu.) The staff had to teach me how to eat them. First, they gave me gloves because the calçots were too hot to touch. Then they provided a bib. To eat the calçots, I had to grab the root and yank (like removing a sleeve), thus peeling off the charred outer layer. Once I had the white insides, I dipped them in the accompanying romesco sauce and ate them. The gloves were important--even if I could peel them, the insides were too hot to lift to my mouth without gloves. These grilled calçots tasted like soft, grilled green onions (naturally) with a "grain" in one direction (a la how meat has a grain). The plate was too big for me; this many onions got to me.
Catalan-style duck confit. A respectable, decent dish. The duck was slightly sweet from raisins. Served with pine nuts and those mushrooms that appear everywhere in Barcelona.
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El Glop's downstairs dining room.
Grilled calçots / calcots, a special type of large spring onion grown in Catalonia that I didn't think I'd get to try because it was out of season. (In fact, the reason I picked this restaurant when walking down the street and reading menus was because it was on the menu.)
The staff had to teach me how to eat them. First, they gave me gloves because the calçots were too hot to touch. Then they provided a bib. To eat the calçots, I had to grab the root and yank (like removing a sleeve), thus peeling off the charred outer layer. Once I had the white insides, I dipped them in the accompanying romesco sauce and ate them. The gloves were important--even if I could peel them, the insides were too hot to lift to my mouth without gloves.
These grilled calçots tasted like soft, grilled green onions (naturally) with a "grain" in one direction (a la how meat has a grain). The plate was too big for me; this many onions got to me.
Catalan-style duck confit. A respectable, decent dish. The duck was slightly sweet from raisins. Served with pine nuts and those mushrooms that appear everywhere in Barcelona.
The service was mixed. The waitress who showed me how to eat calçots was certainly helpful. The guy who tried to take away my dishes three times before I was done was not.