…don’t be a version of anybody, you have to be unique in yourself, you have to be creative, unique… don’t imitate anybody… be yourself, be genuine to yourself and build yourself. - Nawal El Saadawi

I listened to the most tremendous podcast this week, an interview on the BBC’s World Book Club with Egyptian author Nawal El Saadawi.

What a fascinating woman! A doctor and writer in her late 70’s, she has some of the most refreshing, interesting views on life and creativity I’ve heard for a very long time. If you are interested in the creative process, in writing, in living, I urge you to listen to this interview. It focuses on a novel of hers called ‘Woman at Point Zero’, which I shall order at once.

Helping a friend with a research project yesterday, I was asked what I missed most about the UK (family and friends aside, of course), and I came to this conclusion: Listening to Radio 4 (and programs like this) in the car. That even more than Marmite on toast. Or Cornwall. Thank god for podcasts.

We had the pleasure of being interviewed this week for Mocaenboca.tv, a great videopodcast coming out of Madrid – Many thanks to Gwen for giving us this opportunity to talk about our work and our favourite place in Madrid, do watch the video here!

Here’s a screenshot from my iPhone (my sister claims having an iPhone makes me a yuppie, I think she’s right) of all the people twittering within 25 km of me, here in Madrid, right now…

It’s a cool feature of an iPhone app called Tweetie, and just one more way to get addicted to Twitter. I can spend minutes scrolling through all this digisura…

I mean, in the above tweets we have not only information about a random stranger’s sex life, but a poem about the Rio Duero… it’s an art form, I swear… and I can’t actually tell if I’m trying to be cynical anymore. I love it, am fascinated by it, and at the same time find it absurd (in the philosophical sense… if you know what I mean).

In any case, it seems Twitter, like Facebook, has had a swift integration into Spanish online life …and whenever things are a bit quiet here on the blog, you can always find and follow me on Twitter I promise to reveal to you … well, stuff of great interest!

My friend Marielli is doing some really interesting academic work that includes research into expats living here in Spain, and could really do with a hand on a quick survey if you are:

1. US American or British
2. 18 years of age or older
3. Currently living in Spain, US or UK

As Marielli says:

“This research will require you to participate in a brief online questionnaire that will take less than 10 minutes to complete. The survey touches on the dimensions that are described extensively in the work of Geert Hofstede and Michael Minkov. They deal with key issues in national societies, known from social anthropology and cross-cultural research. By participating in this study, you will help contribute to more data in the field of cross-cultural research.”

I’ve taken the survey, it’s quick, easy to complete, so do please help if you fit the bill.

Here’s the link to the survey

Thanks! Ben

In the last in our current Guest Blogging series, Justin Perlman shares the kind of Madrid secret that money just can’t buy…

Shortly after moving to Madrid two years ago, a local friend of mine offered up some sound advice that I had never heard before, but my wife had pointed out is quite common. He told me when seeking out a good restaurant to look for the three B’s.

I thought to myself, I didn’t realize the Better Business Bureau (BBB) existed here in Spain. He proceeded to tell me that these three B’s are the characteristics one looks for in a first-rate restaurant that won’t break the bank; Bueno, Bonito, and Barato. It’s with these three qualifiers I wanted to share a diamond in the rough, a true gem of a restaurant, and speaking of treasures, this too is hidden below the surface. That’s right; you have to go subterranean to arrive at this Chinese Restaurant.

For two years, my wife and I had walked through Plaza de España and always detected a strong scent of what appeared to be some type of Comida Asiatica. We just couldn’t put our finger on exactly where it was coming from. I had suspected that perhaps the aroma was escaping from a nearby vent that had been re-routed to the Plaza. I could not have predicted that the restaurant actually resided below our feet.

Very recently, my wife commented on this to a friend of hers who’s a Madrileña (proud of her fine city, and is actually fourth generation, which as anyone can tell you is a rare find in this city – Most Madrileños are first or second generation at best.)

Right as this friend heard “Plaza de España” and “Comida China” she replied, “it’s called Jia Xiang Xiao Chi” (pronunciation may vary, but keep in mind this friend has been taking Chinese for two years and will be venturing off for a year abroad in China, so she was definitely a good choice of those to ask about the hidden restaurant!)

Without further ado, we went to Jia Xiang Xiao Chi aka Chinese Food Under Plaza de España the next day. It was a colder than average evening here in Madrid and perhaps some hot and spicy soup, fried noodles, etc. could do the trick. If you’re walking from Gran Vía downhill towards Plaza de España you would walk as if you’re heading to the main fountain, only to march down one flight of stairs towards the parking garage.

As you approach the restaurant you’ll notice a travel agency catering towards Chinese residents living in Madrid, a thriving community in the city of over 50,000, so I should mention one has the option to find a wide range of Chinese restaurants in town.

We were lucky enough to get seated right away. I should point out there are only a handful of tables so it’s first come, first served if you want to eat in, while many people do order takeout. We found the staff friendly and attentive, greeting you almost immediately after hitting the seat. They came by our table and took our order, while extending their hand out to offer you the choice of using a fork or chopsticks. After we made our utensil selection, it was time for the main event.

The menu for the non-Chinese speaker consists of 20 items, broken down into two columns and found on one side of a laminated white page. For those who speak Chinese, there are more options. The menu was clear and concise so it’s easy to make your selections. You know a place has appeal when you see others at nearby tables commenting on their neighbors’ selections.

We noticed many people had the dumplings so we ordered those without hesitation as well as hot & sour soup, a chicken dish, fried noodles, and ribs, finishing up with a fried sesame roll. The dumplings were bursting with flavor and mixed well with their soy sauce/vinegar side for dipping. The chicken was tender and cooked just right. The noodles were flavorful and veggies remained crispy, a perfect combo.

Soup provided spice while not overdoing the zip. Hot sauces are on each table so for the bold, a touch of added picante is not a problem. The ribs melted in our mouths, and effortlessly pulled away from the bone, were juicy and downright delicious. Sesame roll was satisfactory, but 5 out of 6 isn’t too bad, plus there were a few other dessert options we’ll try next time.

Most of the dishes fall under 5 Euros so you can order a range of food, fill your bellies, and enjoy a meal for around 20 Euros total for two people, not too bad in this city considering an average Menu del Dia can range from 9 to a whopping 25 Euros.

We ate our meal and took in the sights and sounds of our surrounding environment, from the hustle and bustle of people getting up and sitting down, to the 24” TV mounted up high with a DVD of flashy music videos.

The clientele that night consisted of 50% locals, a small percentage of tourists, and the remaining 45% or so of other Chinese clients – this poll includes the long line which began to form outside. People patiently waited outside the restaurant as one table at a time opened up to let in new customers. All in all it was an adventure worth repeating time and time again.

So, as you can imagine, this is undoubtedly our new favorite Chinese food hotspot. For those passing through Madrid looking for a lunch or dinner that’s Bueno, Bonito, and Barato, I highly suggest Jia Xiang Xiao Chi aka Chinese Food Under Plaza de España… you won’t regret it. I know we’ll be back soon enough!

Follow Justin’s continuing adventures in Madrid on Twitter!

Guest Blogger Jose Patino writes of important realisations on a trip to the north…

I’d come back to Spain to spend some time rediscovering the country I’d come to love as a nineteen year old. I wanted to find her as an old flame that had not changed, but became jilted as it was not the same country that I had left. I went north to visit a friend who was studying in Bilbao hoping to discover something new.

I walked along the Nervion River and took a ride up an outdoor elevator (only in Spain!) through the expansive Parque Extebarria with its amazing vistas of the city that sits in the valley of emerald hills. I walked into a lazy café outside of the Basilica de Nuestra Senora de Begona, and this is what I wrote:

Here it lays, the Spain that I’ve been looking for since I left so long ago. It is a place equally exotic and comfortable. The Basque country was always some place alien and foreboding. The preconceptions of Basque separatism cast a cloud over this place, making it seem less inviting than Andalucia or Madrid; places that I’ve known and have embodied essential Spain. This place lies hidden like a glen in the middle of a forest.

It feels different than the Spain that I am familiar with. It is clear that this place remained hidden from the Moors and all of the other modern day invaders of Spain. The great catalyst of the changing face of Spain has again run against the mountains and washed back like waves against a bluff.

My friend Karina is in a rush to go back to America and begin the rat race again. She loves it here, and she knows that she can come back, but I didn’t have the heart to tell her… you can never come back. This thing that she’s found here is not a place that can be easily found again; to be reached by plane, train, or bus.

This is a moment. A moment in life that once left may never be had again. Unlike a place, moments can never be returned to.

I’ve spent the last eight years trying to reconnect with mine, and I thought that this was my opportunity. I rented a room in Madrid wishing and hoping for it again, but as I walked the streets, I began to feel something at the corner of recognizance. I didn’t realize it until I arrived here in Bilbao.

Spain has opened to the great immigration of our time. It is no longer the isolated peninsula whose modest economy and society kept the hordes at bay on its beaches. It is now a pluralistic society seemingly displeased with the fact that it has become so.

There is no magic or singularity in it which, I realize now, was what distinguished it in the first place. It was so different from my American society, but now with its new found European prosperity; its problems are now similar: poverty, immigration, housing, finance, obesity, decline of education, and loss of traditional values.

I used to think that the Basques were being stubborn and selfish by ardently refusing to centralize, but after only one day cut off from Madrid, I realize what they have been fighting for; what they are fighting against.

The fight is to remain free, yes, but more importantly it is the fight to remain singular, special and unique as they always have been. The fight to protect their identity and their culture may be in vain. They have built their country behind the mountains and from places like this, the reconquista began.

Hopefully their mountains are still strong enough to ward off the tsunami of globalization and help maintain their singularity. Moments like these are vital, and if missed, they can never be had again.

Guest blogger Eleena de Lisser discovers a new culinary curiosity…

“Come, come, good wine is a good familiar creature if it be well used; exclaim no more against it.” – Shakespeare, Othello

A Spanish winery has taken the old Spanish proverb “con pan y vino se anda al camino” to heart and is developing a product called Pan de Vino (“wine bread,” in English). The purple-colored bread will reportedly have all of red wine’s health benefits with none of its side effects. In other words, it won’t make you tipsy. That means you can eat as much of it as you like and not have to worry about it going to your head. What it will do to your hips and waistline, if eaten in excess, however, is another matter.

The research unit of Grupo Matarromera, a large winery based in Valladolid, Spain, is creating the bread in conjunction with Spain’s Centro Tecnológico del Cereal. Its researchers claim that one slice of the bread will equal two glasses of wine, in terms of health benefits.

Red wine contains a large amount of polyphenols, naturally occuring chemicals that help reduce the negative health impact of fatty foods. These polyphenols, located in the skin of red wine grapes, have antioxidant qualities. In plain English, drinking red wine in moderation is good for your body because it lowers bad cholesterol and can help keep your heart healthy.

Pan de Vino gets its purple color from the skin of wine grapes. Because the wine bread doesn’t contain actual alcohol, Matarromera says it will be safe for pregnant women and children to eat. But perhaps the biggest plus of Pan de Vino, apart from its heart healthy benefits, is the fact that it will stay fresher longer than conventional bread, according to the company.

Pan de Vino is currently still in the research and development phase, although Matarromera has said it expects to bring the hybrid comestible to market sometime next year.

If Matarromera tiene éxito with this venture, perhaps other Spanish food and beverage companies will follow suit creating their own unique twist on classic Spanish foods. Chorizo-flavored churros, anyone?

Actually, it wouldn’t be surprising if someone were already in a laboratory somewhere right now trying to invent such a concotion. After all there are a lot of wildly creative chefs and food scientists in Spain.

Can you guess which of the following menu items do NOT currently exist in Spanish cuisine? Leave your guesses in the comments below. We’ll update this post later on with the correct answers once we get at least 20 responses!

1. Skate wing (a type of fish) with pig trotters (pig’s feet) and tabouleh
2. A “popcorn” made out of tomato water and olive oil
3. Manchego Cheese ice cream
4. Cow stomach lining and cow intestines with garlic
5. Bacalao butterscotch cookies
6. Dried octopus chips in soup
7. Vegetables with jelly
8. Peanut butter and jamón serrano bocadillo
9. Scallops in coffee cream, cinnamon and curry

Check out Eleena de Lisser’s latest project ReVerb Spanish