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A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Royal Palace

By Rosario Charie Albar There I was, only on my second day in Madrid and shopping already. I had a good excuse though. I needed to buy some pantyhose because I had brought only 2 pairs for a 10-day trip. And it was freezing cold. On approach to Madrid’s Barajas airport, I could see the countryside blanketed in white. Local television reported on various accidents caused by foul weather. They also showed weekend vacationers who were stuck for hours on their way to ski resorts because the roads were closed from heavy snowfall. The salesgirl at El Corte Ingles was very helpful. I told her I needed the thickest pantyhose they sold and she showed me two dif ferent kinds made by a famous French designer. On examining them, the 11-euro pantyhose was much thicker than the 8-euro one so I decided to buy the former. I wanted to kick myself for forgetting to buy nylons at home where it is far cheaper. The salesgirl congratulated me for choosing a really good pair and what’s more, she added, it wa

What's for breakfast?

Sure, I took a long walk on the beach this morning but breakfast at my cousin’s house was too good to resist. Think of crabs, alimasag (baby crab) , prawns, fish relleno, bangus, exotic fruits like mango, pineapple with its prickly skin, sineguelas , and “short” bananas. And for dessert, banana leaf-wrapped sweet rice ( ibus ). How can I turn my back on this tantalizing spread? And the lap lap of the sea, only steps away, provided a relaxing tune to help my appetite along. Never mind that I will have to walk longer and farther tomorrow to make up for all the goodies I ate (without guilt) today. * * * Image by Rosario Charie Albar

New Paintings in My Private Museum

It sounds very rich to say,"My Private Museum". I wish I have one. But I'm not wishful thinking. Instead, I'm adding new paintings to my current collection of artworks. From Roxas City I brought home two oil paintings. Unang Apo is by Lino Villaruz and Cooking Woman is by A. Villanueva who is a former student of Lino's and is now a teacher of art himself. Cooking Woman is a very good copy of a painting done by the famous Fernando Amorsolo. Villaruz's style borders on abstract with elements of pointillism. Notice the dots that shower his canvas. It reminds me of Seurat's paintings. I've seen Lino's other works including one in the style of Picasso's Portrait of Dora Marr . "Ang Unang Apo" (First Grandchild) by Lino Villaruz Oil on canvas 18 x 24 Cooking W o man touches me because it is a poignant reminder of home. The water jar in the background is the same kind we had in our house. We played with clay pots as children and made &qu

Hello BayBay Beach

Images by Rosario Charie Albar Love this cocoon Let sleeping dogs lie Beached jellyfish Dilis from jellyfish Seashells on the seashore Hey, those are my coconuts! Money laundering Good Friday at the beach At the end of the day

Life is a Beach

My recent trip to Capiz was hardly a vacation. We were there visiting with an ailing relative who raised me as a child. How opportune that we found an inn across from Baybay beach. It gave us the chance to enjoy a quiet walk at sunrise, get our feet wet and observe how the locals greet a brand new day. I especially enjoyed watching the children frolic in the water. And how their parents indulged them. One day I saw a baby half buried in sand. And when his mother scooped him from the sand and into her arms, he bawled and my heart went out to him. We discovered many things along the shore everyday. There were an incredible number of seashells, hundreds of beached jellyfish, stray dogs sleeping peacefully in the sand, PE classes in the water, fishermen pushing their outrigger to sea, fish drying in the sun, tacky beachside cottages and restaurants, seafood entrepreneurs as young as 6 years old raking for clams and fingerlings and a coconut raider who was generous enough to give us some c

Madrid Free and Easy

A T-shirt on display in a shop window in the center of Madrid proclaimed, “Life is Good”. Thinking about my recent visit to this city after nine long years of absence, I agree de todo corazon . I arrived on Saturday morning and wasted no time in reacquainting myself with Madrid. It felt good to walk around town and find my way by getting lost along its many narrow streets. From Puerta del Sol, Madrid’s main draws such as Plaza Mayor, Monasterio de las Descalzas Reales and the Royal Palace are within walking distance. To see Madrid’s many attractions involves little or no expense on the part of the visitor. Here are some free and easy ways to savor Madrid: 1. The Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia is one of my favorite museums in Madrid. This is the home of Guernica, a powerful and evocative masterpiece by Pablo Picasso. It is immense. Painted in black and white, it is an abstract representation of the destruction wrought by the bombing of Guernica, a small town in the Basque re

Eating Well in Spain

On my first day in Madrid, I passed by this window and stopped to admire the fresh seafood on display. Then I noticed the menu and after checking it, I decided to stay and eat lunch. The restaurant is called Tres Encinas and it is on Calle Preciados, a short walk from Plaza Callao. I chose mixed vegetables for the first course and grilled salmon for the second. The waiter brought me a big plate of what I considered, overcooked vegetables, a typical European way of serving vegies. The salmon steak was big enough for 2 people. Desert is selected from a tray brought to your table. This is a pricey restaurant but worth it. The decor at Museo de Jamon tells all. Legs of ham hang all around the restaurant. Not surprisingly the menu includes ham soup, ham sandwiches, ham tortilla (omelette) and sliced ham appetizers. They also serve 3 course meals for less than 10 euros. For 9.95 euros, I had paella for the first course, cochinillo asado (roasted suckling pig) for the second, and flan for d