I drove home from Barcelona on Tuesday, so the week started there. On Thursday my wife also came home, so that we could join our friends, about 15-20 people altogether, for a Santana concert in Murcia on Friday night. So this blog covers two Spanish cities about 650 km apart.
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During the days in Barcelona I continued to walk Mochi three times a day. The morning light on Rambla de Badal was very nice:
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Father and son in matching FC Barcelona shirts. Lamine Yamal is Barça’s teenage sensation who emerged as a star last year (as he also did on Spain’s national team). I see more of his no. 10 shirts, also in Alicante, than any other player:
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Social life on Rambla de Badal:
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Dog transport on Rambla de Badal:
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Cat window, somewhere in the Sants neighbourhood:
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During one walk I came across this large dog, waiting for his human outside a grocery store:
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He was a friendly beast:
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Another canine scene on Rambla de Badal:
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On Wednesday, back in Alicante, I stopped for a beer on Plaza Seneca in the centre. It is very much an urban space used by the people in the neighbourhood. This was the view from my table:
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The following day I had lunch with a colleague in our restaurant at the office. It is not something I do that often, it is more than twice as expensive as the regular canteen, and reservations are hard to come by, but they do serve nice food for an office restaurant, like this pickled tuna and lentil salad:
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Or the dessert, dark chocolate macaron, crumble and ice cream:
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Then Friday arrived and it was time to go to Murcia for the Santana concert that evening. First we met up for a long leisurely lunch at a local restaurant called La Pequeña Taberna. We were a group of about 15 people, the usual circle of friends. Here, Mati and Christian:
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Mati and Christian share a laught with Fernando:
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Dalal, too:
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Eliot examines the local wine were drinking, which was inexpensive and very good:
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Of course, any restaurant is more about the food than anything else, and La Pequeña Taberna did not disappoint. Here is one of the starters, ensaladilla rusa (yes, unfortunate name, I wish they changed it):
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Smoked tuna:
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Bacalao:
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Beef:
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And to accompany the beef, a dish named “Huevos de Miguel”, definitely a double-entendre:
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Each region of Spain has its specialties, and one of the Murcian ones is the dessrt, a leaf coated with a sweet breading and then baked:
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Then, to finish things off, a boat carrying gin & tonic for everyone:
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Nereyda takes a photo:
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Then we all walked to our hotel for a siesta, except that I don’t waste my time on sleeping during the day, so I went for a walk, popping into this pet food shop to find a satisfied customer there:
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The Santana concert started at 9:30 p.m. in the local bullfighting arena. We got there a bit early to get good spots not too far from the stage:
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Then things got going. Carlos Santana may be 78, but he has lost none of his ability with the guitar:
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Other members of the band were also highlighted on the big screen:
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But of course, Santana is the main man:
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Towards the end of the concert, images of Santana in the 1970s were shown:
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Both the music and the lighting were great:
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The culmination:
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On Saturday morning, before driving home to Alicante, I went for a walk around Murcia. This is the Segura river with reflections and a water rat:
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Murcia city hall:
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A homeless man sleeping by the wall of the city hall:
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This young woman was not homeless, but she looked like she was still dealing with the effects of Friday night partying:
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Why settle for just one dog?:
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I came across this monument in the river. It is called Entierro de la Sardina (“burial of the sardine”) and represents one of Murcia’s major festivals, held each year right after Easter:
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That part of Murcia is named after one of the many incarnations of Virgin Mary, the curiously named Virgen de los Peligros. I am not sure what are the dangers being referred to:
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In Murcia, as in other Spanish cities, the cost of housing is a big issue:
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Walking back along the river towards the hotel, I happened upon a large group of runners getting together for what appeared to be some sort of charity run:
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Shortly before reaching the hotel, I passed a dog park and saw the man and his many dogs again:
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Full speed:
More photos from Barcelona can be seen here, and I also have a small Murcia gallery.