MIND TRAVELS

Getting old is not so bad if you look at it from the right angles. For example,, if I wish I can travel back to Europe in my mind and go to wherever I want to. I can picture the time spent in Spain with my husband driving from Madrid north to the Basque country. I can see the beautiful mountains and valleys, remember the strange food and reflect on the fact that my knowledge of Spanish worked very well. My husband spoke Spanish fluently since he learned English and Spanish at the same time when he was very young.

Driving through the Pyrenees on one lane roads was exhilarating yet nerve wracking, with mountains reaching for the sky on one side and deep ravines on the other. We never made reservations ahead on our trips because we didn't really have a set plan as to where we were going. It was always an adventure, stopping in small villages, taking side roads to unfamiliar areas, and stopping at little cafes on the side of the road. We were able to meet interesting people and learn more about the environment that way. That's the way we always traveled during our forty-two years of marriage.

Our first night out of Madrid was spent at the Hotel Mugaire on the Bidasoa River. It was really a small inn and quite comfortable. The village was Mugaire/Oronoz, the first name is Spanish the second is Basque which is the way all the places are named in that region.

In the morning after a pleasant night's rest, we went down to the little restaurant for breakfast where I ordered a fried egg with a croissant. Evidently they don't fry eggs because I had to tell the waitress how to cook it. She relayed the message to the cook and soon here came a plate with one egg in the middle floating in olive oil! One of the first things we learned about eating in Spain was that they do not eat at noon as we do. No, they eat about 2:00 p.m. and when we went to a cafe at noon the old men sitting around the dining area playing cards looked at us like we were crazy. What?? Eat so soon after our hearty breakfast which was consumed about 10:00??

After a brief drive through the city of San Sebastian on the Bay of Biscay, we drove along the coast until we found another little cafe perched near the dock of a fishing village. Upon entering it became obvious that the seating was arranged in such a way that the locals and working men were in one area and the "outsiders" were in another. I ordered squid in its own ink since I like to experience foods of the area I'm in. As I started eating I noticed that people from the surrounding tables were watching me, I guess to see if I really was going to eat that awful looking stuff. Well, I did, but it's not something I'm ever going to order again. Side note: Spaniards really like to stare and study their visitors. We had noticed a large platter of a delicious looking cake as we came in to the cafe so I asked the waitress for a piece for dessert. She said, with a straight face, "There's not any left". As we were leaving there was that big platter with the same amount of cake. Guess she just didn't want me to have any. 

I have a few more stories about our trip through Spain and France but I'm tired now so they will have to wait.