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The Expat Almanac

The Expat Almanac

Monthly Archives: May 2013

Nice Place. Now What Do We Do About the Bad Guys?

30 Thursday May 2013

Posted by Tom in Gallery, Travel

≈ 10 Comments

Tags

expat, Girona, Girona wall, Passeig de la Muralla

Pnorama of Girona taken from the wall.

Panorama of Girona taken from the wall’s north tower. Click to enlarge (all photos).

During recorded history, Girona has undergone twenty-five sieges and has been captured seven times. Defending against the bad guys has been the name of the game since the First Century BC, when the Romans began construction of a wall around the city. Over the years the wall was fortified: slots were added to accommodate bows with arrows; towers were built to house heavier artillery; the wall kept getting higher.

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Makin’ Pals

28 Tuesday May 2013

Posted by Louise in Travel

≈ 23 Comments

Tags

expatriate, friends, Girona, pals

People in Girona often ask us “Why three months in Girona?” True, if we were just visiting landmarks and museums in the city, that would take about three days. While some people travel for art and some for food, we are in it for the people. We stay a long time in order to make relationships that we hope will be enlightening and longstanding. We are curious and communicative by nature and profession; we like to learn about the world through the people that live here. But only if we really like hanging out with them as well.

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Geeky Good Things

27 Monday May 2013

Posted by Tom in Travel

≈ 10 Comments

Tags

geeky, Good things

Cover from a Martha Stewart Good Thing book

Does Martha Stewart still say, “It’s a good thing”? Hearing her say that on her TV show soured me on the expression forever, yet there are so many occasions when I could use the phrase. This is one of them.

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Return to the Scene of the Slime

24 Friday May 2013

Posted by Tom in Gallery, Travel

≈ 8 Comments

Tags

Costa Brava, Sant Martí d’Empúries, subdural hematoma

Photo of Tom on bike at Sant MardiForgive my tawdry attempt to attract your attention with that headline. The “slime” I refer to is a subdural hematoma, which we’ve discussed on these pages before. (If you share a vulgar interest in items corporeal with, say, twelve-year-old boys, you can search for the YouTube video of the removal of a subdural hematoma yourself. You have been warned.)

The “scene” is L’Escala, Spain, the captivating seaside town we visited in April where my personal subdural hematoma experience began. We returned to L’Escala yesterday for an overnight visit. The place is far too charming to condemn just because I encountered a medical event there; and besides, our last visit was, well, sorta cut short.

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A Boy and a Boat

21 Tuesday May 2013

Posted by Tom in Travel

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Barcelona, Barcwelona Maritime Museum, Girona, Ictineo I

Photo of Tom with Ictineo I

There was once a time that I was a tour guide aboard the USS Blueback – a US submarine docked in downtown Portland. I confess: I am a submarine junkie. There aren’t many of us. I made a video of the Blueback in my early days of movie making. It’s here.

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The Skinny on Spain

20 Monday May 2013

Posted by Louise in Travel

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

Girona, skinny, Spanish diet

Photo of thin Spanish girl

Most Spanish people we see are not fat. A disclaimer: We see only city people, and they are usually skinnier because of the walking and the peer pressure. However, I have some ideas about why the Spanish are svelte.

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A Bounty of Affection

19 Sunday May 2013

Posted by Tom in Travel

≈ 26 Comments

Tags

birthday, Girona

Photo of birthday cake decoration

Yesterday was birthday number 69. Sixty-nine! Having just survived two life-threatening events, I am keeping my bald head above water in an ocean of feelings, defeating whirlpools of self-pity amidst the contemplation of mortality.

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Wilfred the Hairy

17 Friday May 2013

Posted by Tom in Gallery, Travel

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

Besalú, Spain, Wilfred the Hairy

Statue of Wilfred the Hairy

They say that Anthony Weiner is likely to announce his candidacy for Mayor of New York City next week. Could anything be more bizarre? Yes, of course: they could elect him.

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Ay Ay Ay Guapas!

14 Tuesday May 2013

Posted by Louise in Gallery, Travel

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

Girona, La Devesa Park, street markets

Photo of goods at market

My guilty pleasure is: street markets. I absolutely haunt the one in the park next door: La Devesa.

This market shows up every Tuesday and Saturday morning, and for some reason I always see things I haven’t seen before.

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The Land of Orange

12 Sunday May 2013

Posted by Tom in Travel

≈ 8 Comments

Tags

Girona, marmalade, Valencia orange

Photo of man on bike with oranges

Girona is about 250 miles north of Valencia, and Valencia is, of course, the Land of Orange. So is Girona, given the proximity.

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