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Cycling on the Via Verde
Written by Greg Franklin   
May 20, 2009 at 06:24 AM

via verde topography We cycled 96km last weekend. A little saddle-sore, but otherwise painless. What a fantastic and beautiful ride! We took a 2 hour train to Ripoll saturday morning and cycled 7 hours to Thomas & Julieanne's rural hideaway paradise in Amer to stay the night, then another 2.5 hours to Girona on sunday.

The "Via Verde" is a trail that has taken the place of an old railway line. It's cool because every little town you go through has what used to be a train station, usually converted into a restaurant or cafe. It actually goes all the way to the Costa Brava, but we had to get back home, so we hopped on a train at Girona. We had done Girona to the coast a couple of years ago already.

Last Updated ( May 20, 2009 at 06:43 AM )
Bela Tarr and long films
Written by Greg Franklin   
Apr 17, 2009 at 05:44 PM

satantango-2.jpgI recently discovered an amazing filmmaker who has actually been around for quite awhile -- Bela Tarr. Why had I never heard of this guy before? I love it when that happens. The first thing I saw was The Man From London. I was so into it, I went ahead and watched his 7.5-hour-long Satantango. Here is a clip. I was looking around for his DVDs on Amazon, and was pleased to discover a collection of his films were just released in April as a set - The Bela Tarr Collection.

Last Updated ( Apr 17, 2009 at 05:46 PM )
Middle Eastern Easter
Written by Greg Franklin   
Apr 14, 2009 at 07:47 AM

Food we cookedWe have been cooking some interesting food lately. From a new cookbook called Vegetarian Dishes from the Middle East, by Arto Der Haroutunian, published posthumously. It's mostly been salads, but also some warm dishes, namely:

  • chick peas with spinach
  • chick peas and onions w/ tahini dressing
  • tabouleh
  • cucumber olive feta salad
  • carrot orange salad
  • green bean in yogurt sauce with rice
  • stuffed tomatoes
Last Updated ( Apr 14, 2009 at 08:01 AM )
Weekend Away in Garrotxa
Written by Greg Franklin   
Mar 16, 2009 at 02:57 PM

Can Jou Had a nice weekend away in Garrotxa. We stayed in a very remote rural bed & breakfast called Can Jou (pictured). 6 long km of twisty unpaved uphill road to get to the b&b, but what a spectacular view! Their focus is horseback riding -- I counted at least 24 horses in the stables down the hill below our balcony. We didn't have time for horses, we just relaxed and enjoyed the tweeting birds and otherwise noiseless environment on the hilltop.

Last Updated ( Mar 16, 2009 at 03:02 PM )
Jazz Podcast: Bending Corners
Written by Greg Franklin   
Mar 13, 2009 at 07:34 AM
logo_bendingcorners.png I can't believe more people don't get into podcasts. I am constantly telling people to check out this or that podcast. Most free ones you find are spoken word / news podcasts, but sometimes you find a really good music podcast. Bending Corners is an old favorite of mine.
Last Updated ( Mar 13, 2009 at 07:39 AM )
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