Look at the colour of that earth! This was taken in the Ribera del Duero region, but you see striking soil colours all over Spain, especially the rusty reds you find on the way down to Valencia from Madrid. Thanks to Cata Vino for posting the image (you may want to check out his great site on Spanish wine too.)

Honourable mentions should also go to Enrique NYC for his Semana Santa pics and Pau.cc for his panoramics (click through to his site to see them move - very cool!) There were many more excellent images posted this month, but I can’t choose all of them!

Keep ‘em coming, the NFS Flickr group is really getting going!

 

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As the temperatures rise in Madrid, Marina decides it’s time for that summer classic, Gazpacho!

Ingredients (4 people)

1 Kg of Ripe Tomatoes
1 Italian Green Pepper
1 Cucumber
1 Medium Onion
1 Medium Garlic Clove
1 Slice of bread
1 Small glass of water (Wine size)
1 Teaspoon of salt
2 Dessert spoons of Vinegar
6 Dessert spoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Preparation

Place all the tomatoes (except one), cut into quarters, in the blender, with a slice about 5 cm wide of green pepper, a slice about 5 cm wide of peeled cucumber, half of the onion and the garlic. Then blend for 5 minutes or until the mixture is completely smooth. Then add the water and salt and mix again. Taste to check that the salt is ok, then add the vinegar and mix again. Finally when the vinegar level is ok, add the olive oil and mix in at a slow setting until it mixes in completely.

Let it cool in the fridge for a few hours before serving. It can be served either as a drink in a glass or as a starter in a bowl with garnish or “pispirris”. To prepare the pispirris cut the tomato, the remaining green pepper and cucumber, half an onion and a slice of bread into very small cubes then place each in a separate bowl. Take these bowls to the table in a tray and let each person choose what they want to add to their own Gazpacho.

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Princess Leti does a Marilyn, somthing you just can’t get away with on Spanish TV! (Direct link)

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Marina and Ben visit the Feria del Libro (book fair) in the Retiro park and discuss the rise of the book in post-Franco Spain. The image above is of Mario Vargas LLosa, author of the extremely powerful ‘Feast of the Goat’. Other titles mentioned include ‘The Shadow of the Wind’ and ‘The New Spaniards‘ by John Hooper.

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A photo from out recent trip to Ibiza. Photo by Ben.

Isn’t that a lyric from a Beatles song? Lennon and McCartney must have been on holiday in Spain when they wrote it. The point is this: when you pass a neighbour in the street in the UK, you say ‘Hello’, or ‘Morning’ to each other. In the same situation the Spanish will usually say ‘Hasta Luego’, or ‘Adios’ (See you later/Bye…) to each other as they pass.

Plus, it is a common to say ‘Buenas Noches’ (Good Night) when you walk into a house/bar/restaurant at night, a phrase I would only use just before heading for bed. I wonder if that tells us anything about the two cultures…

The transcript for the latest Notes in Spanish podcast has changed slightly. There is now an exercise before the actual conversation transcript. The idea is to listen once without reading at the same time, just trying to complete exercise 1 (there is real teaching theory behind this idea!) After the conversation transcript there are 3 more exercises, but not the usual list of vocab and grammar - instead exercises 3 and 4 challenge you to find the words and phrases in a different way. The idea is that by actively seeking the answers to these exercises, the vocab stays in the memory for longer (forever, we hope!) Finally, the answers are included at the end of the transcript instead of in the forums.

Any feedback on the new format will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

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Marina has a birthday, Notes from Spain celebrates its first birthday - sounds like an excellent excuse for a trip to Ibiza!

The daily paper ‘20 Minutos’ has put together a wonderful collection of old photos sent in by readers, an interesting window on the country’s past. Thanks go to Marbella for bringing this to light in the forums.