Been a while...

...but I'm back. Lynne, Pam, Ron and Joanne arrived last week and before they left for Barcelona and points north, we took a day trip to Albufera, a wet, marshy, reedy destination about a half hour from Valencia. A rice growing locale, and of course then, the birthplace of paella.

Soon thereafter, Harvey and I trained to Peniscola for an overnight. Great seafood and yet another castle up a steep hill, and apparently a pensionista destination, but one night was enough.

Back home to walk Harvey to the airport train for his long trip back to San Francisco. Good visit............................................................ Weekending away and hosting took it out of me and I've spent the better part of two days relaxing and doing the tranquilo dance. Got back to a gym schedule as I count down to the last two weeks en Espana. Pam, Lynne and company return later this week from Barcelona and I contemplate a three day sojourn to Madrid, a futbol match here in Valencia (cheapest tickets are 53 euro!) and one last symphony concert in that glorious concert hall.........................................................................................................Did the visit tonight back to my much loved concert hall for Mahler's Ninth. Did a little research beforehand and learned he never got to hear this work as he died right after composing it. It was a Frankfort company with a German conductor all doing Mahler - how German can you get? Mahler (i think my first live experience with his music) as we know is quite the guy - big, chaotic, dramatic and disjointed, but also lyrical and delicate at times. I swear to god there were fifty or sixty violins in the orchestra, and lots of brass. Great to be back to classical music in Europe.