
Upon learning of the [Batalla de Vino last year](/2006/06/29/batalla-de-vino/), I decided that we _must_ attend this year. Unfortunately, due to a problem with our car, and that it starts at 7:00 in the morning and is [90 minutes away](http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=from+colindres,+spain+to+haro,+spain&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=42.310334,66.181641&ie=UTF8&z=9&om=1), we're going to have to wait until next year, when June 29 falls on a Sunday. Viewing the video in last year's post and the related videos that now exist on YouTube (there weren't any when I posted that one last year) will give you an excellent demonstration of one of the things I love about the Spanish: they _know_ how to party! That kind of lighthearted hedonism warms my heart.

And finally, on this long anticipated day, the release of the much-hyped iPhone, I'd like to shout out one more big fat [_I told you so_](/2006/11/09/the-black-box/ "...back in November 2006. So what it if it was probably mostly developed then?") on the topic. Okay, no more of [that](/2007/01/10/i-told-you-so/).

So spill some wine today in honor of Spain.


No Wine Battle This Year

Bullfight in León


On Saturday, we got up, packed our bags, and drove to Mondragón to celebrate Grandpa Ramón's 87th birthday. <a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-26-grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/629054978_f9dd1be507_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3736.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-26-grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/629054978_8a074ff945.jpg" alt="CIMG3736.JPG"/>
</a>

That's a lot of years. It's easy to calculate people's ages when they're born in a year divisible by 10.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-26-grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/628198725_a7caf2b25b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3737.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-26-grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/628198725_c27c8e320c.jpg" alt="CIMG3737.JPG"/>
</a>

It's not a prime number. Since the sum of its digits is divisible by 3, 87 is also divisible by 3.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-26-grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/629076932_38e5fd7aa8_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3741.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-26-grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/629076932_382e094768.jpg" alt="CIMG3741.JPG"/>
</a>

The numbers had to be moved to the cake that had the "Congratulations" banner on it.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-26-grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/628223691_1603c12141_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3742.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-26-grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/628223691_e3bed99212.jpg" alt="CIMG3742.JPG"/>
</a>

Check out the reflection of the long white table in his glasses.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-26-grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/628236633_80be9bc7e2_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3743.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-26-grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/628236633_cff7804fce.jpg" alt="CIMG3743.JPG"/>
</a>

A great smile from Grandpa. 87 and still going strong.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-26-grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/629116522_1b0591eb13_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3744.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-26-grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/629116522_2e95fcde37.jpg" alt="CIMG3744.JPG"/>
</a>

I hope to take many more pictures of Grandpa Ramón in front of a cake. I love him like he was my own grandfather.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-26-grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/628202013_28da8d5719_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3740.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-26-grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/628202013_a7cd4af0a4.jpg" alt="CIMG3740.JPG"/>
</a>

Recently the Extremadura Cultural Center has had these little ladybug chocolates that they give you when you order a coffee. Every time I see them, I'm reminded of [my favorite java applet game ever](http://oneslime.net/ "Slime Volleyball"). Most of them are really kind of cute. I was the only one that got the creepy blond you see on the left. That's not a lady bug!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-26-grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/629045214_458b666c14_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3746.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-26-grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/629045214_637eaebc2d.jpg" alt="CIMG3746.JPG"/>
</a>

Belén was sick, unfortunately.

Unlike [last year](/2006/06/20/grandpa-ramons-86th-birthday/), my intellectual property rights were not violated at all during the birthday party.

Marga wasn't feeling well, so I had to moderate my wine consumption so that I could drive three and a half hours west...to [León](/2007/06/26/bullfight-in-leon/)!


Grandpa Ramón's 87th Birthday


We had a long weekend. It was pretty evenly divided into three separate events, so I'm going to write three separate posts. The first event was a concert in Colindres on Friday night by [Shaila Díºrcal](http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shaila_D%C3%BArcal). Shaila is famous because of her famous parents, particularly her mother, [Rocí­o Díºrcal](http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roc%C3%ADo_D%C3%BArcal), a famous singer and actress in Spain. The nearest equivalent that an American would understand would be someone like [Julian Lennon](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julian_Lennon) or [Jakob Dylan](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jakob_Dylan) (except that their parents were more famous and they have more talent than Shaila). She's a year younger than me, not bad looking, and can sing pretty well.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-25-shaila-durcal/624423134_4e1ab04e7b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3637.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-25-shaila-durcal/624423134_6ba95a4083.jpg" alt="CIMG3637.JPG"/>
</a>

Like most hot visiting celebrities, Shaila invited me out for drinks earlier in the week and posed with me in this photograph.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-25-shaila-durcal/623564177_39f29499c5_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3638.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-25-shaila-durcal/623564177_4ed306d2db.jpg" alt="CIMG3638.JPG"/>
</a>

Then she taught me how to properly show off [my enormous forehead](/2007/04/13/1980-was-a-good-year/), a trait that she and I share.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-25-shaila-durcal/623576247_98a2f74b2d_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3724.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-25-shaila-durcal/623576247_0ec45e863f.jpg" alt="CIMG3724.JPG"/>
</a>

She was the guest of honor at the _pregón_, the official announcement of the start of the San Juan festivities in Colindres, scheduled for 21:10 on Friday. As you can see, she was not present at 21:10. The Town Hall of Colindres has this advertising slogan that Colindres is "Pueblo 10", as in "on a scale from 1 to 10". I can't decide whether it's idiotic or genius. Anyway, to add to the idiocy or genius, all the organized events start at 10 past the hour.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-25-shaila-durcal/624462610_3a8d0082b3_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3726.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-25-shaila-durcal/624462610_7f70ba5b87.jpg" alt="CIMG3726.JPG"/>
</a>

Not bad, only twelve minutes late. That's like being early in Spain. Incredibly, she started the concert that she gave a few hours later _one whole minute **early**_! I bet Marga that she'd be at least a half-hour late, so now I have to take her out to dinner (Marga, not Shaila).

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-25-shaila-durcal/624473154_131fc61fed_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3727.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-25-shaila-durcal/624473154_5321f8f634.jpg" alt="CIMG3727.JPG"/>
</a>

Like me, she prefers a haircut that shows off her huge dome of a forehead.

Here's a couple seconds of her concert: 

Shaila Díºrcal sings sings well, but I don't know if it was that the sound wasn't set up quite right, or if it was because I wasn't in a very good mood that day, or what, but I really didn't like the concert very much. Good thing it was free.

She definitely lacks the stage charisma and vocal _je ne sais quoi_ of a truly successful artist. The way the crowd cheered every time she mentioned her mother, who died last year, betrayed the real reason that we were all there.

Shaila made name for herself singing in Mexico, and is only now returning to attempt success in Spain. I didn't know this when I went to the concert, so when she said, "And you can't have a Mexican fiesta without mariachis, can you?" I was _way_ confused. I thought it was some sort of figure of speech that I was unfamiliar with. But sure enough, out walked a mariachi band!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-25-shaila-durcal/623605089_920a70b72e_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3731.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-25-shaila-durcal/623605089_7f2ac25e0b.jpg" alt="CIMG3731.JPG"/>
</a>

I had a secret chuckle to myself since it was Friday, and my coworkers have recently started associating Fridays with Mexico for reasons I'm not at liberty to divulge.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-25-shaila-durcal/624560714_3c8370e9d1_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3732.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-25-shaila-durcal/624560714_cbe230b222.jpg" alt="CIMG3732.JPG"/>
</a>

The problem was that, in the end, it was a concert of mariachi music. I'm open to most kinds of music, but some music is really best served in the background while you're in an elevator or stuffing your face with nachos, and Shaila's mariachi music falls squarely into that category.

After the concert we went straight to bed, because we had five hours of driving and [a birthday party](/2007/06/26/grandpa-ramon%e2%80%99s-87th-birthday/) planned for Saturday.


Shaila Díºrcal


In sort of a combination of my [tea cup](/2007/06/18/my-cup-of-tea/) and [guitar](/2007/06/19/sky-guitar/) posts this week, I have continued to alter reality a bit with Photoshop magic. <a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-21-guitar-photoshopping/580044472_2384826f90_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Trapped Artist">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-21-guitar-photoshopping/580044472_913a918cf7.jpg" alt="Trapped Artist"/>
</a>

This was my first idea. I don't like it that much.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-21-guitar-photoshopping/580044656_e6cbe927cb_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Miniature Musician">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-21-guitar-photoshopping/580044656_a34ad49445.jpg" alt="Miniature Musician"/>
</a>

This would make a great album cover, were I a classical guitar virtuoso.

Note how the string shadows hit my foot and cross my foot's shadow at about the same place. If it weren't for the lighting problems on my shoulders and feet, it would look pretty darn real.

I must have read too much [Borrowers](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Borrowers) as a kid. Almost all of my photoshop ideas involve a mini-me.


Guitar Photoshopping


Last night, we had five new cactus flowers bloom. Although, [due to unfortunate circumstances](/2007/06/12/cactus-cam-goes-offline/ "...because our cameraman died..."), no timelapse footage was available, [Cactus Cam Productions](/projects/cactus-cam/) was on the scene just as the flowers opened. Come with me on a journey...._into the cactus flower_!

This post contains detailed close-up photos of cactus reproductive organs and may not be suitable for small weeds and other plants that have yet to flower.

To re-cap, we've had 16 flowers so far this year, in groups of 1, 1, 5, 4, and now 5. I count at least a half dozen more buds. In 2008, we'll have to have some sort of cactus flower betting pool.

Anyway, on to the stunning images...

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-20-into-a-cactus-flower/574327865_c4f20ee691_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3703.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-20-into-a-cactus-flower/574327865_2f84c8527d.jpg" alt="CIMG3703.JPG"/>
</a>

I'm starting with my favorite shot this time. I almost never use manual focus on my camera, but I had to for these close-ups. I love the depth of field and how clearly you can see the opening.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-20-into-a-cactus-flower/574303135_85cb688dff_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3699.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-20-into-a-cactus-flower/574303135_56b05e6e71.jpg" alt="CIMG3699.JPG"/>
</a>

Check out the fuzz on the neighboring stalk.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-20-into-a-cactus-flower/574092754_bca11036d7_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3700.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-20-into-a-cactus-flower/574092754_cb63d7b303.jpg" alt="CIMG3700.JPG"/>
</a>

A little closer...

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-20-into-a-cactus-flower/574098798_8a72c70ed7_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3701.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-20-into-a-cactus-flower/574098798_100f8f3add.jpg" alt="CIMG3701.JPG"/>
</a>

I could see all the way down the flower's hollow stalk.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-20-into-a-cactus-flower/574115876_56f4f73eb4_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3707.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-20-into-a-cactus-flower/574115876_6021486a02.jpg" alt="CIMG3707.JPG"/>
</a>

This is thirty minutes later.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-20-into-a-cactus-flower/574126074_8e981578a5_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3708.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-20-into-a-cactus-flower/574126074_5c43f9d40b.jpg" alt="CIMG3708.JPG"/>
</a>

The flash doesn't do much for viewing, but it adds a neat effect, like you're looking at an explosion.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-20-into-a-cactus-flower/574137128_2e320ba5e2_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3718">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-20-into-a-cactus-flower/574137128_e689e66fef.jpg" alt="CIMG3718"/>
</a>

And then an hour later, they were almost fully open.

And now....the feature presentation.

revver(306548)

I got the music from [this CD of various artists](http://creativecommons.org/wired/) released under the [Creative Commons license](http://creativecommons.org/).


Into a Cactus Flower


The other day, I was admiring how shiny and reflective the surface of my classical guitar is and, like a good amateur photographer, started thinking of subjects I could reflect it in. Naturally, my first idea was a narcissistic one, but I couldn't figure out how to position the camera and lighting to make that work. So then I went simple and just hung the guitar out the window.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-19-sky-guitar/568662673_f94330a9e3_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Guitar Clouds">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-19-sky-guitar/568662673_93579e1118.jpg" alt="Guitar Clouds"/>
</a>

This shot isn't bad, but I really like the next one.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-19-sky-guitar/568115336_1a9c538098_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Sky Guitar">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-19-sky-guitar/568115336_36edde541a.jpg" alt="Sky Guitar"/>
</a>

I'm sure there's a clever _Stairway to Heaven_ reference here, but it ain't comin' to me.

I like how you can see all six string reflections, and how the strings all speed off into a [vanishing point](/2006/06/30/vanishing-points/) in the distance. It's also got a very [2001 monolith](/2006/11/09/the-black-box/) feel to it.


Sky Guitar


When I was uploading [my frame breaking work](/2007/04/14/frame-breaking/) to Flickr the other day, and placing it in the [appropriate groups](http://www.flickr.com/groups/trickery/pool/), I found this incredibly awesome picture: [![Memories](https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-18-my-cup-of-tea/523220582_cade3337b0.jpg)](http://www.flickr.com/photos/waynewho/523220582/)

I was so inspired, that I decided to try some Photoshop trickery projects of my own.

This is my first two-hour attempt, below.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-18-my-cup-of-tea/563790348_e826bed2ab_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="My Cup of Tea">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-18-my-cup-of-tea/563790348_1b139a4142.jpg" alt="My Cup of Tea"/>
</a>

Does this tea taste funny?

The hardest part was getting the shadows right. Unfortunately, there are just too many highlights in my hair from the original background to get rid of them all, so that part looks a little unnatural.

Overall, though, I'm pleased with my first effort.


My Cup of Tea


Just like [last year](/2006/06/26/small-town-festival/), today we had a free town sponsored meal in the park. The dish was _cocido montañes_, the most typical food here in Cantabria. It's a stew with beans, cabbage and meat. The big San Juan bonfire will be next weekend, but we won't be here. We've got bigger plans.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-17-cocido-in-the-park/560748393_00d3a9e490_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3624.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-17-cocido-in-the-park/560748393_e755167442.jpg" alt="CIMG3624.JPG"/>
</a>

Each serving cost 1€, and the bottle of wine also cost 1€. We sat on the curb just like last year.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-17-cocido-in-the-park/560760737_8d6d72d92b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3625.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-17-cocido-in-the-park/560760737_8fa9c6c6e8.jpg" alt="CIMG3625.JPG"/>
</a>

Mmmm!! Cocido montañes!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-17-cocido-in-the-park/560770453_6c8179ba30_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3627.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-17-cocido-in-the-park/560770453_1e1161490b.jpg" alt="CIMG3627.JPG"/>
</a>

Enjoying cheap wine in a plastic cup.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-17-cocido-in-the-park/560777763_4080c63fb3_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3628.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-17-cocido-in-the-park/560777763_fc934bd022.jpg" alt="CIMG3628.JPG"/>
</a>

Marga got more morcilla in her serving than me. I was so jealous!

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The atmosphere was very festive. The park was full of families with their plastic tables and chairs making a full day of the event. In case there was any doubt about the location of this video, I zoomed in on a crystal clear Mount Buciero at the end. Sorry about the crappy camera work.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-17-cocido-in-the-park/560377696_96b65c886b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3629.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-17-cocido-in-the-park/560377696_0dccc46ff3.jpg" alt="CIMG3629.JPG"/>
</a>

Sort of a homage to [my Martini shot](/2007/06/14/martini/) from a few days ago.

Afterwards, I put on my best Tiny Tim impression and went up to ask for seconds to have for lunch tomorrow. Marga was too embarrassed to do so, but I marched right up there. No one else was still asking for food, but the woman kindly gave me two extra servings, without charging me, and put extra meat in them, since there was so much meat left over. Now I don't have to prepare lunch tomorrow!

We went home for a short nap (this is Spain, after all), and then went out for a walk.<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-17-cocido-in-the-park/561416384_d75aa2b524_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3630.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-17-cocido-in-the-park/561416384_43e3db4b7e.jpg" alt="CIMG3630.JPG"/>
</a>

First we walked over by the docks.

When we wound our way back to the park, the festivities were still going on. There weren't any oxen or broom throwing like last year, but there was an egg smashing competition. As far as I could tell, the idea is for each team to smash all 12 eggs as fast as they can, but you have to smash them over the head of your partner. The hardest part was actually grabbing the eggs out of the carton. What a brilliant form of entertainment!

I took a couple videos of the competition.

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revver(304274)<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-17-cocido-in-the-park/561408624_a5251fc151_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3633.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-17-cocido-in-the-park/561408624_8ac623e1a3.jpg" alt="CIMG3633.JPG"/>
</a>

There were lots of people that looked like this, "[made to look foolish or embarrassed](http://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/egg+on+your+face.html "Egg on your face")".

When the egging got old, we continued on, stopping briefly to watch two adorable puppies playing in the park.

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Just like I concluded [last year](/2006/06/26/small-town-festival/), it's nice to see people in a small town having so much fun enjoying simple pleasures.


Cocido in the Park


Today at noon, when I was putting on my [shoes](/2006/06/23/i-bought-a-pair-of-imacs/ "They're not shoes, they're iMacs!") to go buy bread, I stuck my head out the window and found this fantastic panorama before me. <a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-15-bedroom-window-panorama/552341374_cf3a0c73d0_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Bedroom Window Panorama">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-15-bedroom-window-panorama/552341374_716b14fed8.jpg" alt="Bedroom Window Panorama"/>
</a>

I highly recommend that you click on the image to see it at Flickr. There are notes that identify various landmarks.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-15-bedroom-window-panorama/552796885_b962b9ef7c_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="The Sea (zoomed and cropped)">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-15-bedroom-window-panorama/552796885_5e9ba8b0d1.jpg" alt="The Sea (zoomed and cropped)"/>
</a>

This is a magnified section close to Mount Buciero, on the left. You can just _barely_ see the horizon of the Cantabrian Sea. I swear it's easier to see at high tide, but that doesn't make much sense to me mathematically.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-15-bedroom-window-panorama/552670392_40159b4554_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="The Ria From Home">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-15-bedroom-window-panorama/552670392_e2f6b4bee7.jpg" alt="The Ria From Home"/>
</a>

From the far left of the image, looking over the center of Colindres, you can see the Rí­a Asón that [I wrote about](/2007/06/08/afternoon-by-the-ria/) a few days ago.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-15-bedroom-window-panorama/552577318_a0f688d455_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Pico Candiano From Bedroom Window">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-15-bedroom-window-panorama/552577318_df01bdf5b7.jpg" alt="Pico Candiano From Bedroom Window"/>
</a>

From the far right side of the image, this is our beloved Pico Candiano that [we climbed recently](/2007/06/10/return-to-pico-candiano/).

For some reason, I've gone really panorama crazy lately. Photoshop CS3 stitches them together so nicely.


Bedroom Window Panorama


Last time I was in Mondragon, I was struck by a particular logo that was spray painted onto many walls. It combines two really cool symbols. Unfortunately, the two symbols carry just a tiny bit of historical significance.

Both symbols can be made by drawing three lines on a sheet of paper, rotating the paper, and drawing the same three lines. Because both symbols hold a natural symmetric beauty that appeals to humans, they have already been chosen to represent movements and ideas in history.

Know what two symbols I'm talking about yet? Why, it's the [Star of David](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_of_David) and the [Swastika](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swastika), of course!

Can you think of two symbols more historically opposed to one another?<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-15-how-not-to-choose-a-logo/549292728_6b781657fa_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Basque Graffiti">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-15-how-not-to-choose-a-logo/549292728_1fe4ed230c.jpg" alt="Basque Graffiti"/>
</a>

I'm quite glad not to live in the Basque Country, because the politics there is a little bit heated, to put it mildly. This is the symbol for the [Basque Nationalist Action](http://www.eae-anv.org/), one of several political parties that contain the words "Basque" and "Nationalist". Since the rest of the world cares so little about Basque politics (it's all they talk about on the news in Spain), the [English Wikipedia page](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eusko_Abertzale_Ekintza) on them is pretty meager.

I'm not going to say any more about the party, because there is enough information on this blog to find me, and I'm a coward.


How Not To Choose A Logo


We've now completed episode 2 of our 4 part [marriage class](/2007/06/13/marriage-classes-begin/). A different teacher this time. Today's topic: Faith.

Here are my thoughts on the matter... (I know that thinking is highly discouraged, and I'm sorry) Most of the lecture was about Jesus and the apostles, the last supper, and whatnot. If you accept that...

- God exists
- Jesus was (is?) the son of God
- Any of the people that wrote the Bible were actually eye-witnesses to Jesus' life, and therefore could give a reasonable testimony
- Jesus, being the son of God, actually had any idea about the devine nature of things
- Only the parts of the Bible that they ever mention in church should be followed

...then the Christian tale is truly beautiful and incredibly seductive (hence it's domination as a religious meme). God made us in his image, God is love, God loves us, etc. How incredibly comforting!

Unfortunately...

- The evidence of God existing is purely philosophical, and can quickly be dismissed with reason and logic.
- There were [many other people](/2006/11/30/rivals-of-jesus/) in Jesus' time that claimed to be the son of God
- Evidence shows the Gospels to be written at least 20 to 50 years after Jesus' alleged death1
- It's completely unreasonable to assume some chapters of a book to be holy and others to be "outdated myths". [Either it's all the word of God or none of it is](/2006/12/02/terror-and-the-media/).
- There's crap like [Leviticus 20](/2007/06/13/marriage-classes-begin/) that make the Bible a ridiculous joke of a moral standard

The problem is that none of the reasons in the latter list are obvious unless you've been given a good education, actually read the Bible, and been taught to think critically, and the items in the former list, when told to you by a kind, gentle authority figure, seem perfectly acceptable.

As do Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy...

After 50 minutes, I actually had a little respect for the teacher. He seemed like a genuinely nice guy, as most Christian speakers do. But then, at the very end, he came out with a recommendation to see the _Passion of the Christ_, because it's true, and to remember that books like _The Da Vinci Code_ are made for commercial reasons only, not because they're true. Whatever, dude.

1Give me 12 young men that actually believe I am the son of God, record what I say to them, have them go off telling people how great I am for 20 years without writing anything down, and then have them write down my conversations with them. Will their writings be anything like the recording of the actual words? Think about it.


Marriage Class - Part 2 - Faith


<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-14-martini/544751503_923148e3d8_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image post-thumb" title="Vermouth">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-14-martini/544751503_62e2504664_t.jpg" alt="Vermouth"/>
</a>

In my Spanish class in England, one of the Spanish teaching assistants told me that, in Spain, before lunch (the big meal of the day), the Spaniards often go out and have a [vermouth](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vermouth), a so-called "aperitif".  At the time that I was taught this, I had been visiting Spain and going out with Spaniards for pre-meal drinks for several years, and I had never seen anyone order a vermouth. To me, a vermouth was something that was added to a [martini](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martini_%28cocktail%29), the favorite cocktail of my father, grandfather, and James Bond. Not only that, it was the most disgusting part. As Winston Churchill is mythologically reported to have said, "To get the proper amount of vermouth in a dry martini, one should add ice to the glass, glance at the bottle of vermouth from across the room, and then add the gin." My father takes several years to make it through a bottle of vermouth in his daily martini ritual. I'm sure he will elaborate in the comments.

I'm much more of a beer and wine person myself, as are all of Marga's family, apparently, since I was so ignorant to this tradition. But it turns out that a significant percentage of Spaniards really _do_ order vermouth when out in the pre-meal drinking ritual (in which I participate at every opportunity). The vermouth that they drink is not the nasty "dry vermouth", but a sweeter spiced wine. As if to try and complicate things, they often call it by the brand, [Martini](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martini_%28vermouth%29). A typical Spaniard has no idea what the 007 cocktail is. If you say "martini", they will assume that you mean this sweet vermouth that they drink here. Like wine, there is the option of red or white. Unlike wine, they call the red vermouth "vermíº rojo", not "tinto".

Recently, I've taken quite a liking to the red vermouth, and often order it in place of wine during our pre-meal, midday excursions. It's particularly nice in the summer, because it's iced. I took the following picture last Sunday at the same table at the same bar as the [Blond and Brunette](/2007/06/01/blond-and-brunette/) shot. Like before, Marga was so engrossed in her ultraviolet absorption, that I was left to play artistically with my camera. The sharp angle of the buildings makes it look like I used some fancy lens, but I'm not that sophisticated.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-14-martini/544751503_923148e3d8_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Vermouth">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-14-martini/544751503_62e2504664.jpg" alt="Vermouth"/>
</a>

Plus, they often give you olives.


Martini


Beginning tonight, for four days, we have marriage classes at the local church. I'm really quite curious to know what The Church thinks it can teach me about marriage. I've been reading up on the course material. The most relevant stuff I've found so far is [Leviticus, Chapter 20](http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?book_id=3&chapter=20&version=31), where it talks about how adulterers should be put to death. That seems perfectly reasonable. But, on careful observation, I've noticed the wording in the [New International Version](http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?book_id=3&chapter=20&version=31) and the [King James Version](http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Leviticus%2020%20;&version=9;) specifically define adultery as having sex with "_another man's wife_", so both the adulterer and the adulteress must be married for it to be officially "adultery", and therefore punishable by death. Although the [definition of adultery](http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/adultery) has changed to "sex with anyone that's not your spouse", the Holy Bible pretty specifically doesn't prohibit having unmarried concubines.

The other thing that I'm unclear about is _who_, exactly, is supposed to put the adulterers to death? Hopefully the issue will never come up, but these are the kinds of worst case scenarios that The Church should be preparing us for going into a holy matrimonial union.

Of course, I would never say such things in class. Marga would kill me! See how much I know about marriage already?


Marriage Classes Begin


Tragedy struck here at [Cactus Cam Productions](/projects/cactus-cam/) last week. Our cameraman, my 6-year-old G4 Powerbook, had a severe stroke last Wednesday. He's been in intensive care since then, and, I'm sorry to report, he passed away yesterday. Due to the nature of his work, we know the exact five-minute interval that he lost consciousness: July 6, 2007, at 18:16, CEST. His last few days of timelapse videos were lost, so we don't have the video of the most recent flowers opening.

I'm afraid that this means that the Cactus Cam is going offline for at least the remainder of 2007. I might still post photos of future flowers, but there will be no more live webcam and no more timelapse videos. <a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-12-cactus-cam-goes-offline/541863686_ed02f3adb4_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3512.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-12-cactus-cam-goes-offline/541863686_a120040a3f.jpg" alt="CIMG3512.JPG"/>
</a>

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-12-cactus-cam-goes-offline/541861820_af19238502_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3513.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-12-cactus-cam-goes-offline/541861820_c2d642b7ac.jpg" alt="CIMG3513.JPG"/>
</a>

Flower porn.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-12-cactus-cam-goes-offline/541968559_540fe1a278_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3514.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-12-cactus-cam-goes-offline/541968559_45a8b74653.jpg" alt="CIMG3514.JPG"/>
</a>

Close-up of reproductive organs.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-12-cactus-cam-goes-offline/541857930_09a0bd51ab_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3515.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-12-cactus-cam-goes-offline/541857930_616b6ec5df.jpg" alt="CIMG3515.JPG"/>
</a>

Who knew there was a special Flickr group called [Under A Flower](http://flickr.com/groups/underaflower/)?

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-12-cactus-cam-goes-offline/541856064_8d4d289eb1_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3516.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-12-cactus-cam-goes-offline/541856064_26af6bcd69.jpg" alt="CIMG3516.JPG"/>
</a>

Here you can see the ridges of the cactus.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-12-cactus-cam-goes-offline/541962773_b2b56b2b2a_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3576.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-12-cactus-cam-goes-offline/541962773_9a499af055.jpg" alt="CIMG3576.JPG"/>
</a>

He died the way he lived, with his CPU fan going full blast. R.I.P. little buddy!

This will be the final film for a while, so enjoy it.

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The soundtrack is a little multi-track extemporaneous jam in D-minor that I did in GarageBand a couple weeks ago that I didn't deem worthy of its own blog post.


Cactus Cam Goes Offline


Yesterday, Marga and I were resting on the couch, having a post meal coffee, when she turned to look at the window and exclaimed, "¡Mira! ¡Hay un caracol!" Sure, enough, there was a snail hanging upside down on the outside of our window. Now, normally this wouldn't be very impressive, but we live on the _sixth floor_!!!

"How the hell did he get up here?" I wondered aloud.

"Very slowly," said Marga.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-11-sixth-story-snail/540408507_a658e3813e_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3570.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-11-sixth-story-snail/540408507_34a9d3abef.jpg" alt="CIMG3570.JPG"/>
</a>

Yes, our windows are dirty. We know!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-11-sixth-story-snail/540411183_481e152555_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3572.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-11-sixth-story-snail/540411183_f7d434fbbe.jpg" alt="CIMG3572.JPG"/>
</a>

He's even got a racing stripe!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-11-sixth-story-snail/540412833_3f4eb19266_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3575.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-11-sixth-story-snail/540412833_ae6ac9908d.jpg" alt="CIMG3575.JPG"/>
</a>

Maybe he took a _spiral_ staircase! (feel free to groan at that one)

He's still there this morning.


Sixth Story Snail


This past week, there were advertisements around town for an organized hike in the mountains on Saturday. You had to be at the town hall by 8:30 to participate. We weren't sure that we wanted to do it, but we decided to set the alarm clock for 7:30 and check out the weather and decide then. It was a little cloudy, but looked like it was going to burn off and be a wonderful day. So we went. From the town hall, we drove to [La Aparecida](http://www.bienaparecida.com/), which is located right about [here](http://www.google.com/maps?q=La+Aparecida,+Ampuero,+Spain&ie=UTF8&ll=43.327332,-3.451338&spn=0.008616,0.015986&t=h&z=16&om=1 "Google Maps"). There's [a famous church](http://personales.ya.com/rutascantabria/santuario_bien_aparecida.jpg) where, 400 years ago, some monk had a hallucination once that he, using Occam's Razor, assumed _must_ be the Virgin Mary, and now pilgrims come from all over to see the church.

In Colindres, there's a funeral parlor called "Aparecida", which literally means "appeared". Every time I see it, I'm tempted to get some spray paint and vandalize it, so it reads "**des**Aparecida".

Because we walked to the town hall, not knowing how the transport to the mountain would be organized, we had to walk back home to the car. When we got to the destination, the group of hikers was already in the distance. So we had to walk extra fast to catch up to them.

Just like last time, when we did a similar excursion in September, 2005, we were by far the worst prepared hikers. We actually wore our hiking boots this time, but that was the only decent preparation we did. Everyone else had much more water than we did, they brought sandwiches to eat at the peak of the mountain. Most of them had telescoping, fiberglass walking sticks, and some of them had other specialized clothing. The problem was that we had zero idea of what it was going to be like. All the poster said was "walking in the mountains". We ended up going to the same mountain peak that we went to two years ago, where I took the picture in the blog header, that I now know is called _Pico Candiano_.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537343928_51024c0539_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="La Aparecida Panorama">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537343928_ba4be0d720.jpg" alt="La Aparecida Panorama"/>
</a>

A panorama from where we parked at La Aparecida. As you can see, it was pretty cloudy as we started out.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537486997_e7f8b964f5_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3526.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537486997_9f676b04c8.jpg" alt="CIMG3526.JPG"/>
</a>

A couple of caballos taking it easy under their little shelter.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537489169_5bdf9f02b7_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3527.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537489169_379137f5d7.jpg" alt="CIMG3527.JPG"/>
</a>

The little colt had the best view.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537490473_e91ce33dbb_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3528.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537490473_3ec75cbade.jpg" alt="CIMG3528.JPG"/>
</a>

The Asón river

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537492033_dc064a7094_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3529.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537492033_9f1e97c19b.jpg" alt="CIMG3529.JPG"/>
</a>

We saw some cows having breakfast.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537376510_6f54edc08a_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3530.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537376510_4029625a45.jpg" alt="CIMG3530.JPG"/>
</a>

Quite a few of them in there.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537495269_65145ea8a1_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3531.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537495269_ff39c57a38.jpg" alt="CIMG3531.JPG"/>
</a>

Trekking up the mountain. The hardest part was walking on a sideways slope. My ankles are still killing me.

There's something exceedingly _natural_ about walking with a group of people in the wilderness, on a barely visible path, staring at the feet of the person in front of you. Between the thoughts of "Ow, my feet hurt" and "Can we go home now?", I had couple genetic memory flashbacks to walking with my tribe through the hills and valleys.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537498021_6de3452666_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3532.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537498021_8d0bfe6d5e.jpg" alt="CIMG3532.JPG"/>
</a>

Up towards the top, the only vegetation was grass, and these odd rock formations.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537501155_63e0392999_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3533.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537501155_dd0764cc8e.jpg" alt="CIMG3533.JPG"/>
</a>

They had little holes, like swiss cheese, from weathering many years of wind.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537502585_e046211dd2_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3534.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537502585_c54062f204.jpg" alt="CIMG3534.JPG"/>
</a>

Proof that I was really there.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537388090_9e27d0c8c2_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3535.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537388090_c754779d86.jpg" alt="CIMG3535.JPG"/>
</a>

Looking back down at the church from the top of the mountain. That little red dot in the bottom right corner is our car.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537343956_391fbdf2ed_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Looking Down on La Aparecida">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537343956_953275dfa3.jpg" alt="Looking Down on La Aparecida"/>
</a>

In this panorama, you can see the long, multi-kilometer, uphill route that the pilgrims walk, despite the fact that you can drive there, to get to the church. In the [largest version of the image](http://www.flickr.com/photo_zoom.gne?id=537343956&size=o), you can see the red pilgrim path along the side of the road. There are little virgin statue praying stations along the way to keep you going. Penitence is a bitch.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537504811_246ad4dd64_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3542.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537504811_67c73b2e7c.jpg" alt="CIMG3542.JPG"/>
</a>

You know you're high when you're looking down on goats.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537506937_d55f427145_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3543.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537506937_0733bed151.jpg" alt="CIMG3543.JPG"/>
</a>

A storm in the distance.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537393110_8bbf3abbc3_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3544.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537393110_97522a3b8a.jpg" alt="CIMG3544.JPG"/>
</a>

The visibility was terrible! Here you can see the familiar shape of Mount Buciero (see top of blog) in the center, and the Pico Candiano, with the tall radio tower on the right.

This is about where I thought, "Oh well, so we're not going to the same mountain as last year... Okay, everybody, let's head back!" Little did I know...

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537510779_7f6a9d2a8d_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3545.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537510779_29d769408a.jpg" alt="CIMG3545.JPG"/>
</a>

This particular peak had a horizon guide.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537514971_2e2551387a_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3547.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537514971_2a8815f463.jpg" alt="CIMG3547.JPG"/>
</a>

Resting with the tribe.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537401810_b008918edc_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3548.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537401810_54c7490641.jpg" alt="CIMG3548.JPG"/>
</a>

This picture, not being three dimensional, fails to capture how deep the backdrop was behind these two girls. The 12-year-old girl was the first to the top of each mountain.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537395824_295a456db3_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3546.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537395824_ae74f797f3.jpg" alt="CIMG3546.JPG"/>
</a>

Then, out of nowhere, a cloud came up the side of the mountain and attacked us!

revver(295941)

It's coming, it's coming!! Wait for me!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537403366_4416041b9a_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3549.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537403366_4e6a65a064.jpg" alt="CIMG3549.JPG"/>
</a>

Last year there were horses roaming loose up here, too!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537519673_314833348c_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3551.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537519673_f2b00d23d6.jpg" alt="CIMG3551.JPG"/>
</a>

This guy was holding a really majestic pose with his head held high and the foggy backdrop, but he looked my direction when I went for my camera.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537405020_05b4689f95_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3552.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537405020_e21be8aa24.jpg" alt="CIMG3552.JPG"/>
</a>

Misty horses.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537523601_78ce758fee_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3555.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537523601_9c6d705728.jpg" alt="CIMG3555.JPG"/>
</a>

Even _more_ walking!

About 98% of the way to the top of our final destination (just like last time, strangely enough), my calves started cramping up. I was instructed by a couple 50-year-old men, who were having no problems whatsoever, that I should take smaller steps, and walk slower. They walked slowly with me for a bit, but then got bored by the slow pace and sped off in front of me.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537408648_74a6dcf914_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3563.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537408648_14147e990d.jpg" alt="CIMG3563.JPG"/>
</a>

Finally, we made it! The top of Pico Candiano! While everyone else was munching on their sandwiches and apples, all I could do to pass the time was play with taking photos with various vegetation in the foreground.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537526489_e252306cf5_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3564.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537526489_8f2197ff37.jpg" alt="CIMG3564.JPG"/>
</a>

There was a butterfly on that flower a second before.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537411932_c48fd2d0d7_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3562.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537411932_d874169c0f.jpg" alt="CIMG3562.JPG"/>
</a>

Looking down at Colindres and Laredo.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537471837_279b41f564_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Pico Candiano Panorama">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537471837_8b0bc0d06f.jpg" alt="Pico Candiano Panorama"/>
</a>

The panorama you've been waiting for, showing Colindres, Mount Buciero, Laredo, and Ampuero. What a perfect view of what looks just like that Wikipedia page I referenced in my last post. "Drowned river valley" is a good term for it.

revver(295933)

There was no shade up there. Not much wind either. Compare this with the video that I took back in September, 2005:

revver(43999)

While we were up there on top of the mountain, the sun came out. The humidity was still incredibly high. The result was general discomfort. On the way back, I became very dehydrated, and suffered some heat exhaustion. There was a period where I really thought I might pass out and have to be carried the rest of the way. The moral of this story is to not be an idiot and take just a small bottle of water on a four-hour hike in the 28° sun.

When we did finally get back to the car, we bought two bottles of water from a vending machine. It was the best water I've ever tasted. The rest of the group arrived little by little (somehow they didn't all pass me on the way back), and we all cooled off in the bar of a restaurant there at La Aparecida. While we were there, drinking a Coke (Marga had the good idea that some sugar might be good for our blood right about then), all sweaty, a group from a wedding came in, all freshly showered and elegantly dressed. It was quite a contrast.

A couple months ago, we evaluated La Aparecida as a possible wedding location, but declined it because, apart from the spectacular views, the church and restaurant were pretty mediocre.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537529955_a392d70702_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3566.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-10-return-to-pico-candiano/537529955_8d49537c3e.jpg" alt="CIMG3566.JPG"/>
</a>

On the way back home, just before arriving, desperate for a shower, some food, and a bed, we got stuck behind this guy driving a big pile of grass.

Twenty-four hours later, everything below my knees tingles.


Return to Pico Candiano


On Tuesday afternoon we went for a walk along the Maritime Walkway, the most picturesque part of Colindres. We got lucky, and the tide was all the way in. High tide enhances the natural beauty of the scenery by several orders of magnitude. The body of water that borders Colindres is called the _Rí­a Asón_. I just spent thirty minutes laying out the [official Spanish definition of _rí­a_](http://buscon.rae.es/draeI/SrvltGUIBusUsual?LEMA=r%C3%ADa&origen=RAE), translating it for you, and concluding that the best English word for it was _estuary_, when I found [this wikipedia page](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ria) explaining it perfectly in English. Oh well.

The river that empties into the sea here is call the _Rí­o Asón_. Here's [a nice picture](http://www.panoramio.com/photo/305057) of its birthplace.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-08-afternoon-by-the-ria/535828678_299ae8f9ed_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3507.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-08-afternoon-by-the-ria/535828678_412af1f359.jpg" alt="CIMG3507.JPG"/>
</a>

The water and the sky were a beautiful shade of blue.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-08-afternoon-by-the-ria/535784568_037e0e96d8_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Rí­a Asón Panorama">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-08-afternoon-by-the-ria/535784568_c78e57112d.jpg" alt="Rí­a Asón Panorama"/>
</a>

A huge panorama of the entire scene. It's worth clicking on and seeing larger. And if you _really_ love it, the original version of this picture, which is also available on Flickr, is 9.8 MiB.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-08-afternoon-by-the-ria/535829594_38e0fde389_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3508.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-08-afternoon-by-the-ria/535829594_fa253f7a11.jpg" alt="CIMG3508.JPG"/>
</a>

Here you can see the bird watching cabin. I've never seen any bird watchers there. It's a great hangout spot (sheltered and isolated) for teenagers, though.

I love how the mountains are doing their best to hold back the clouds.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-08-afternoon-by-the-ria/535830778_61ad9f5a6f_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3509.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-08-afternoon-by-the-ria/535830778_78d52031d7.jpg" alt="CIMG3509.JPG"/>
</a>

I was going for a textured "desktop background" sort of shot here.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-08-afternoon-by-the-ria/535831932_4ea2258283_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3510.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-08-afternoon-by-the-ria/535831932_c008ad5fc9.jpg" alt="CIMG3510.JPG"/>
</a>

This is my favorite shot in this post. There are these pillars extending out into the water that absolutely _must_ have held some sort of pier at one time. I have so far been unable to find it in any historical photographs.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-08-afternoon-by-the-ria/535949187_9d6199190c_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="CIMG3511.JPG">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-08-afternoon-by-the-ria/535949187_bb3477d211.jpg" alt="CIMG3511.JPG"/>
</a>

A little walkway out to a lighthouse. It serves as a levy-like border for a deeper section where the fishing boats are moored in the harbor.


Afternoon by the Rí­a


As I've been going through my old posts and converting them to use Flickr for all image hosting, I've found some old photos that I had forgotten about that I really love. I thought I'd re-post a few here for you. This first one seems like a good candidate for some [frame breaking](/2007/04/14/frame-breaking/).

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-06-old-favorites/531892688_03a3f7046b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Corner Flag">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-06-old-favorites/531892688_e01401e83f.jpg" alt="Corner Flag"/>
</a>

**Corner Flag** - The Spanish word for "corner kick" is "córner". [Original post](/2006/06/06/sunday-soccer/).

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-06-old-favorites/532560853_802d299a4f_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Palacio de la Magdalena">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-06-old-favorites/532560853_5528a65745.jpg" alt="Palacio de la Magdalena"/>
</a>

**Palacio de la Magdalena** - Flowers at the Palacio de la Magladena in Santander, Spain. [Original post](/2006/07/03/luisma-visits/).

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-06-old-favorites/532491718_a1cff0c72d_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="San Fermin 2006">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-06-old-favorites/532491718_d983aae996.jpg" alt="San Fermin 2006"/>
</a>

**San Fermin 2006** - Erik models the appropriate San Fermin attire on _the street_ in Pamplona, 2006. [Original post](/2006/07/09/san-fermin-2006/).

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-06-old-favorites/533316201_e7496b8f8b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Double Teeth">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-06-old-favorites/533316201_9a52b04e56.jpg" alt="Double Teeth"/>
</a>

**Double Teeth** - A [cabezudo](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gigantes_y_cabezudos) in Bilbao, Spain in August, 2006. [Original post](/2006/08/28/the-in-laws-go-to-bilbao/).

I hope you enjoyed those as much as I did. I feel like I've found an old trunk full of family memorabilia in the attic. And it's only been a year!

Psssst! The [cactus](/projects/cactus-cam/) is blooming tonight!


Old Favorites


I've been debating for a while how to, and whether or not to, switch to host all of my photos on Flickr. After one year of photo-heavy blogging, I am currently hosting 530 MiB of jpegs on my server. This is with every photo being sized down to 1024x768 and having a 450x338 thumbnail that is included inline on the blog. My employer is kind enough to lend me the server space, but it's clear that if I continue for a few more years, which I hope to, then there will be issues. Plus, if I host my photos on Flickr, then there will be much higher resolution versions available to you, my dear readers, for the photos that particularly interest you.

The way I have been publishing my photos is:

1. Drag them from iPhoto into a folder
2. Run a program that I wrote in java to resize the photos
3. Make the appropriate directly for the post id on the server
4. Securely copy them to the server
5. My program then prints out the HTML code that I paste into my blog, complete with empty paragraphs for the witty captions

This has been very convenient, but every few months, my Photoshop Expert friend, [Alan](http://www.thegradys.net/?src=erikblog), complains that the quality of the photos is crap. He's right, of course. The resampling algorithm that sizes them down in my java program does a pretty miserable job. I would complain if he posted images of that quality on his blog, too.

I've been investigating various applications to help blog with photos from Flickr. The new browser, [Flock](http://www.flock.com/), that I think has a _lot_ of promise to be better than Firefox, lets you drag pictures from a bar that shows all your Flickr pictures directly into your blog post editor. But it doesn't put the image sizes in the <img> tags. Just before embarking on writing a Wordpress plugin to do this, I found this plugin called [iMax Width](http://www.soldesignco.com/wordpress-imaxwidth.html) that does just that. It even does the extra trick of sizing them down to fit within your blog layout (the standard 500-pixel wide images from Flickr woudn't fit in my blog design).

But what really sealed the deal was finding what must be the [Mother of All Flickr Wordpress Plugins](http://tantannoodles.com/toolkit/photo-album/). It was commercially developed and then released into the open source community. It's called, rather blandly, [Photo Album](http://tantannoodles.com/toolkit/photo-album/). It does what Flock tries to do, but from directly within your Wordpress post editor, and provides more sizes than Flock does. Not only that, but includes a sidebar widget. It completely rocks!

So I've decided to spend some mindless hours converting all my previous blog posts to host their images on Flickr. Because I'm such a perfectionist, I'm having to find all the images in iPhoto so that I can upload the huge 4 MiB, 7 megapixel, versions, so it's going to take me a little while. If things are a little slow around here, that's why. I'll be spending my normally budgeted blogging time on this task.

What's beautiful about this is that, when I'm done, my blog will be nothing more than a database of text that can be moved to any server with ease. I've had to suck it up and buy a Pro Flickr membership. I had been operating on the free account up until now. My idea was that Flickr would be for my best pictures only, but that's going to have to change now.

To test the process, I have already converted [my first post with any hosted pictures](/2006/06/06/sunday-soccer/). It was relatively painless. You will thank me later, my dear readers.


Migrating to Flickr


This blog, in its present form, turned one year old [this past weekend](/2006/06/02/new-blog/). It was a solemn single-candle ceremony. To look back over the previous trip around the sun, I've added a new feature to the sidebar called "One Year Ago", which displays three posts from one year ago. It's kind of a hacked up version of the [One Year Ago Wordpress Plugin](http://www.lamateporunyogur.net/wp-plugins/one-year-ago/) using my famous [Widgetize Anything](/2006/11/30/widgetize-anything/) plugin.

The code used inside the body of the widget is as follows:

`$dateago = (date('Y') - 1) . date('-m-d');  
global $wpdb;  
$entries = $wpdb->get_results("SELECT *     FROM $wpdb->posts     WHERE post_status = 'publish' and post_date >= '$dateago'  
    ORDER BY post_date asc limit 3");  
if ($entries)  
{  
  echo '<ul id="oneYearAgo">';  
  foreach ($entries as $entry)  
  {  
    $post_date = date('F j, Y', strtotime($entry->post_date));  
    echo "<li><a href=\"" . get_permalink($entry->ID) .  
        "\" title=\"Posted on $post_date\"" .  
        " class=\"tooltipped\">$entry->post_title</a></li>";  
  }  
  echo '</ul>';  
}`

You are now free to reminisce to your heart's content.


One Year Ago Widget


We had a very busy weekend, with most of the agenda being wedding-oriented. On Friday, Marga had an orthodontist appointment in Vitoria. Still no specific date on braces removal, but they have been informed several times of the October ultimatum, and they have set the next appointment for three weeks time, which is a pleasing acceleration from the normal 6-week intervals.

The orthodontists' office is in this rather nicely landscaped square in Vitoria called the _Plaza De Los [Fueros](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fueros)_. There were some people practicing and playing _pelota a mano_, a strange Basque cousin of racquetball played with bare hands.

revver(289469)<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512538862_a592b14d5c_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Having a beer">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512538862_5390415b92.jpg" alt="Having a beer"/>
</a>

Fresh off [my success with a beer foreground photo](/2007/06/01/blond-and-brunette/) and bored out of my mind, this pensive shot was the best of a few dozen that I took with my camera sitting on a napkin dispenser in the bar below the orthodontist office while I waited for Marga.

### The Church

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512543586_8d7669735b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Church Scaffolding">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512543586_0690e9dcac.jpg" alt="Church Scaffolding"/>
</a>

I decided to use some of my connections and gave ol' Zing-Zing (that's [His Holiness](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Benedict_XVI) to you) a call to see if they couldn't do a little facade work on the church I'm going to be married in. I hate to call in favors, but sometimes things don't get done any other way.

### The Hotel

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512547776_8e46ecea56_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hotel Mondragon">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512547776_775b4af87f.jpg" alt="Hotel Mondragon"/>
</a>

This is [Hotel Mondragon](http://www.hotelmondragon.com/), where we've booked rooms for all the Americans that will be attending. Guests' names have been given and rooms are officially reserved. When we fill up the rooms we've reserved at the [other, less swanky, hotel](http://www.hotelarrasate.com/) with visiting Spaniards, then we will try to fit the other English speakers from the UK in with the yanks. The receptionist claims that all the receptionists speak English. The rooms will cost 52€ per night with breakfast **not** included. That seems a little pricey, especially with all the business we're bringing, but I wouldn't count on us being able to talk them down much from there.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512551712_026ed75f02_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hotel Mondragon">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512551712_c4d07c3f0e.jpg" alt="Hotel Mondragon"/>
</a>

Three stars, apparently. The nice thing about this hotel is that it's a straight shot from the Extremadura Cultural Center to the hotel, just following the river.

On Saturday, we had another double birthday celebration in the Extremadura Cultural Center.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511730427_c0e500a53d_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Watching television">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511730427_aa1514b247.jpg" alt="Watching television"/>
</a>

Marga's cousins didn't care about much besides the motorcycle race on television.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512566132_d24647b54a_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Chilled Wine">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512566132_c2f4fcc9c4.jpg" alt="Chilled Wine"/>
</a>

I was in charge of keeping the wine cool.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511742209_1b2dba84d3_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Shrimp">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511742209_1e2616d6b5.jpg" alt="Shrimp"/>
</a>

The first course was shrimp, clams, and those weird fake [gulas](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angula) that are not that unlike pasta.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512575752_cf4cd93c2d_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Shrimp Moustache">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512575752_f56073ae32.jpg" alt="Shrimp Moustache"/>
</a>

Grandpa Ramón complains that the shrimp didn't shave for the occasion.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512583054_b647e3cb3d_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Family Dinner">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512583054_2603f71094.jpg" alt="Family Dinner"/>
</a>

Candid mid-meal shot.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511755525_d60c024969_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Birthday Cakes">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511755525_b277fe9000.jpg" alt="Birthday Cakes"/>
</a>

Two cakes.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512601220_9c8c1cb080_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="22">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512601220_b3f0e531d3.jpg" alt="22"/>
</a>

Cousin Rubén, born in [1985](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1985), turned 22.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511777779_e155cf9952_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Redhead baby">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511777779_6bd2c7a275.jpg" alt="Redhead baby"/>
</a>

Rubén's adorable redhead cousin tried to help blow on the candles.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512612490_7edaed710f_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Manoli 53">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512612490_c7b814d420.jpg" alt="Manoli 53"/>
</a>

Aunt Manoli, born in [1954](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1954), two days after Jerry Seinfeld, turned 53.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512619818_c5682fa641_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Cake">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512619818_0df8752a08.jpg" alt="Cake"/>
</a>

Rubén's cake is written in Basque.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511798117_6f6ddbdcf2_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Cake">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511798117_de3b9c889e.jpg" alt="Cake"/>
</a>

Manoli's in Spanish.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512635394_7a50e399fe_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Erik and Tia Marga">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512635394_6939daa661.jpg" alt="Erik and Tia Marga"/>
</a>

A great shot of Aunt Marga and her favorite American nephew.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512641850_f9690f531d_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Flan">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512641850_2ac80e6433.jpg" alt="Flan"/>
</a>

Mmm! Flan!

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511818573_d6f44a429a_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Flan and Cake">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511818573_c1822cee14.jpg" alt="Flan and Cake"/>
</a>

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511820455_d7d0eb5e80_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Brandy Advert">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511820455_161c289754.jpg" alt="Brandy Advert"/>
</a>

Happiness is served in a snifter.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511823279_babeaf9bae_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Chupito de Hierba">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511823279_56089ca876.jpg" alt="Chupito de Hierba"/>
</a>

Uncle Ramón thinks his grass liqueur isn't quite full.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511830381_c8603af2fa_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Hierba">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511830381_d838780784.jpg" alt="Hierba"/>
</a>

A good candid laughter shot.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511836823_1edcb8050e_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Erik on the bridge">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511836823_216dfa8bd2.jpg" alt="Erik on the bridge"/>
</a>

This is me being an idiot and having my photo taken at exactly 19:00, one hour earlier than I was supposed to to participate in the [A Minute In The Life](http://aminuteinlife.blogspot.com/2007/03/welcome.html) project. Instead, by complete chance, exactly 60 minutes later, I took this shot:

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511839817_30fd19c6e0_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Wieners">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511839817_f8a2295c43.jpg" alt="Wieners"/>
</a>

There was some sort of a German-oriented beer and sausage festival going on. Normally I would prick up my ears and wag my tail at that sentence, but we were so stuffed from our meal that we just passed right through.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512675602_a1b60d489a_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Pipi Can">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512675602_de4abc53f2.jpg" alt="Pipi Can"/>
</a>

Comically awkward drawings of canine defecation amuse me, but normally aren't worth photographing. What's great about this sign is the usage of the word "Pipi-Can". Apparently that's what the fecal receptacles are called. I don't know any Basque, but I've got a guess at what "kakak" means.

### The Restaurant

I just realized that I didn't get any shots of the outside of the wedding restaurant, [Etxe-Aundi](http://www.etxeaundi.com/). We went there to get a few questions answered. The big debate at the moment is whether or not we will try to serve a little refresher snack at the restaurant, before heading to the Extremadura Cultural Center to continue the party, or if we will do it later at the ECC. The woman that runs Etxe-Aundi is one of those people that is so nice and helpful that it's a pleasure to do business with her.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512688806_98d4b5cf8a_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Oil Painting of Etxe Aundi">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512688806_2e987bee91.jpg" alt="Oil Painting of Etxe Aundi"/>
</a>

This oil painting of the restaurant is the first thing you see when you enter the restaurant (or their [website](http://www.etxeaundi.com/)).

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511862637_6257cc2708_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Bar Selection">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511862637_cd790f4738.jpg" alt="Bar Selection"/>
</a>

An artsy shot looking into the bar. To all of the guests that were concerned about the possibility of there not being any JÃ¤germeister at the wedding, you can put your fears to rest.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512699862_081c385b09_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Roses">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512699862_c67677fbbb.jpg" alt="Roses"/>
</a>

Some nice flowers at a side building near the restaurant.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511877983_3ef34017f6_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Slide to Nowhere">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511877983_444b09f94e.jpg" alt="Slide to Nowhere"/>
</a>

On the other side of this garden, to the left of the photo, is a 30-foot drop down to a river (that's the top of a tree, not a bush). This is some sort of a canal that powers (or used to) a mill in the building in the previous picture. First of all, what a strange place for a garden. Second of all, there didn't seem to be any place to get back out of the canal once this slide had been followed to its abrupt end.

With our questions answered, we headed back to Mondragon...

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511903685_da510fed71_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Wine and Snacks">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511903685_e846525c81.jpg" alt="Wine and Snacks"/>
</a>

This is a vision of happiness. Drinking and snacking before the main meal of the day. With the current management (the bar is rented out to the highest bidder) at the Extremadura Cultural Center, they don't give snacks with drinks, as is the custom in southern Spain. So the clientÃ¨le have begun bringing things from home. On the far left is what is left of some [morcilla](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morcilla) that Juan and I brought (he bought it in his home town, Zahí­nos, when he visited for Easter), then some cheese that Grandpa Ramón brought, and the foil on the right held bread that we brought (you can't eat morcilla without bread!). Wine is never better than when consumed with a good strong queso.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512716290_af9340804a_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Alejo">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2512716290_b7c863d3a7.jpg" alt="Alejo"/>
</a>

Alejo thought he looked good next to these plastic flowers. He's kind of like Juan's [Jeff](http://www.flickr.com/photos/erikrasmussen/493485191/).

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511894441_3e23239c5b_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Skeet Trophy">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-03-dentist-hotel-restaurant/2511894441_82105f5bf3.jpg" alt="Skeet Trophy"/>
</a>

And finally, this skeet shooting trophy in the trophy case intrigued me in my inebriated state. You can almost read the writing on the shotgun shells.

I took some other good photos this weekend too, but I'm gonna save them for future posts.


Dentist, Hotel, Restaurant


<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-01-blond-and-brunette/524621542_e94a5ad78e_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image post-thumb" title="Blond and Brunette">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-01-blond-and-brunette/524621542_8a2acd966a_t.jpg" alt="Blond and Brunette"/>
</a>

A couple Sundays ago, Marga and I went out for a few drinks. She got so entranced in her sun worship that I was able to snap this picture without her knowledge.  The blurring effect that I applied helps a lot. It both adds to the mysteriousness of the anonymous woman, and dramatically highlights the foreground. I also like the hint of cleavage through the glass.

<a href="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-01-blond-and-brunette/524621542_e94a5ad78e_o_d.jpg" target="_blank" class="flickr-image" title="Blond and Brunette">
  <img src="https://d1js6qm6cshi0v.cloudfront.net/oldblog/2007-06-01-blond-and-brunette/524621542_8a2acd966a_z.jpg" alt="Blond and Brunette"/>
</a>

**Blond and Brunette** - Two of my favorite things

Have a good weekend! We've got some wedding legwork to do in Mondragon this weekend, so I might get some photos of the restaurant to post here.


23 posts from June, 2007