Spain became our destination of choice for this year’s international trip. Though we’d been to several northern European countries, some several times, this was our first time to the south. Italy will have to wait, and a dozen other places.

I brought my best friend along and I like to think so did she. Our first picture illustrates me obeying Scripture, the one that says, Go eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart . . . enjoy your life with your wife whom you love . . . (Ecclesiastes 9:7,9). Spain enjoys an abundance of outdoor cafes, and enough olives, it seems, to supply the world.

We based in Valdilecha, a town about half an hour outside of Madrid. This was due to the courtesy of friends Louis and Lisa Shanks, working here with the same organization Anne and I used to serve. They gave us the use of their flat while they were in the States, and their car! One can’t be richer than having loving friends. That’s us in town, out for a walk, in a photo posted in Blank Slate. This is Toledo, but it could be a number of places in Spain’s long history. Every turn and every narrow street is another picture. And I took an abundance. Believe me, I’m sparing you by only showing a few. These cities were built before cars, and you wouldn’t think a car could drive them but they do, sometimes two-way!

The view from above is another delight, and documented over and over again on camera. This one, the old city of Chinchon, an out-of-the-way place of history and charm, has a heritage of making award-winning anisette, wine, and garlic, with a ruin of a castle on the far hill and a make-shift bull ring in the town center (left). Can’t say I know anything about anisette, but it gets up to 74 proof!

One thing Spain is perennially proud of is Cervantes and his classic character, Don Quixote, and side-kick Sancho Panza. Seems it was the first novel ever written, certainly in the Spanish language. I mentioned I’d read it to a Spaniard I met and he was surprised. “It’s so long,” he said. (Such is all “required reading.) Here’s just one of the tributes, in Madrid’s center, Cervantes, god-like, in stone, above.

One of the greatest high points of the trip was the visit to the Church of the Sacred Family in Barcelona. I’d long wanted to see Gaudi’s architecture in person, considering it about the most creative and free-form imaginable. But I was also very moved by the imagery, more than in any other church we visited. I reflected on this as well, and the value of a life work, in Blank Slate.

Though I saw none (actually, a few) praying in the cathedrals, I was interested to find one doing so in an art museum. It was the home of Joaquin Sorolla, converted to a museum of his work. I, too, have long been moved by this painter, have studied his work in books, and would travel far to see it in person. Same with this fellow, obviously, and wouldn’t leave without something of the spirit.

I don’t think I can count how many art galleries we went to. And if it wasn’t galleries, it was art in churches or museums. Not shown here but which we saw was the work of Goya, El Greco, Velasquez, Picasso, Miro, Calder, and dozens more, known or not so much. I thought Anne’s colors went particularly well with these pieces in the Reina Sofia, don’t you? And what about that bull eyeing her?

After we toured the historic bull ring and museum in Ronda where it was first developed (above), my interest was rekindled in seeing a bull fight in Madrid. I was once something of an aficionado, back before we were married, primarily in Tijuana. I got my fill, but I must say I enjoyed this very much, along with 20,000 others, mostly Spaniards, last Sunday afternoon. Not sure how the bulls felt.

Besides the art of the Spanish, past and present, Anne had discovered on-line a fellow printmaker living in a small converted farmhouse outside of Granada. She even holds workshops, attracting students internationally. Anne was interested enough to at least check it out, and I must say we found the whole life style intriguing, maybe even inviting, but that we have the best of both worlds now.

Art can be where you find it, or at least its potential. Walking along the narrow streets of Cordoba, I couldn’t help but see the beginnings of images in the peeling paint. That could be a bull fight scene itself above, or a fish, or a Picasso, or a map of continents. Or at left, is that a grazing animal? Then there are the wonderful doors everywhere, the likes of which I’ll not even begin to show.

Here is Ronda, majestically seated on dramatic sheer-dropping terrain. It’s complete with Visigoth, Moorish, and Catholic history. It’s also one of the “white towns” (though most are considerably smaller) that dot the landscape, like pearls on a necklace. Remember, this was a driving trip, so we saw a lot. (Sometimes more than we wanted, not quite sure where we were.)

Speaking of pearls on a necklace, here’s about a quarter of the panorama of archbishops that served in the mega cathedral in Toledo. I’ve not even tried to do that justice here. Suffice to say it’s likely where the term “Holy Toledo” got its origin. I noticed that about the last dozen of these portraits of archbishops wore glasses, none before. Peoples’ sight must have been better earlier.

I already blogged on the church/mosque at Cordoba. As with most, Blank Slate on this is a personal take. If you’re interested, click on it, then return here. It’s another majestic space, but one of complete uniqueness. Though most of us in these places were tourists, and a majority of them Spanish, I was amused at this Muslim woman taking pictures of it all with the rest of us.

Here’s La Alhambra, one of the most beautiful man made places on earth. Once again, I’ve commented on it already, in Blank Slate. It looks serene here but, in fact, I’d usually have to wait for throngs of tourists to move on before I could get a photo of just Anne. We’d read that you couldn’t even get in the same day you bought tickets. But we were flying “Seat of Pants Airlines.”

Did you ever think you’d reach the end of this report? As you’ve seen, I did most of the photographing, but Anne did some too, as is shown here. She’s documenting one of the delightful hotels we stayed in. Or, me, outside of the Sorolla house, where the guy was praying. Though we did a bit of praying, we didn’t do any art this trip. We’d planned to, had packed a few materials, but it didn’t work out that way. There was too much to see, too much to keep us busy. On the other hand, there was plenty of rest. Often we’d be back at the flat in Valdilecha for a Sabbath rest (or whatever day). It’s a good way to travel, really. As I write this, we’re packing for home. Who knows what we’ll find for next time . . . when that will be, and where? Thanks for coming along. _______________________________________________________________________

New Book

It’s About Life, the book I’ve been putting together from Blank Slate blogs will be available shortly. It’s 132 pages and, besides the words, is peppered with drawings never before seen, out of my sketchbooks. It’ll be $16.95 from Amazon. More details next time.

Next Show

Our next studio show is scheduled for November 16 and 17. That’s a revision from earlier announced dates. Who knows what new work may be present due to inspiration from this trip? Either way, there’s always lots, both paintings and lovely new work from Anne’s press. Mark your calendars. Would be great to see you.