Boredom, the Family Sabbatical and the history of flip flops

Kids 'summiting' alone in the Sierra Nevadas outside of Granada

 "A kid needs enough downtime to be bored, yes—bored enough to stare at the sky and study the imperfections in his own eyeball. That’s what makes for a childhood worth remembering for the whole of one’s life." 
- Cristina Schwarz in an excerpt from "Leave Those Kids Alone"  in the 
March issue of  The Atlantic 


More on the subject here


One of the greatest things about a family sabbatical is enough downtime to be bored, yes- bored.


Now that we're back home those spaces on the trip that appeared to be a vacuum were in fact, a plenum- a state of fullness. Questions were asked, wonder sparked, jokes told, squabbles had, tears shed, silence shared. In retrospect, it's clear that life was being lived, one empty moment at a time.

One of those days of boredom on the trip yielded the following piece of writing from 11 year old Gigi.  Never one to let an opportunity to be cheeky escape her, she wrote an essay about flip flops. It started out as a joke. Take a look at what it turned into. What was remarkable was the day after she finished it we saw this enormous thing in a Roman ruins museum. (Take a look at the strap and the toes, you'll be learning about it.)

The continuous slapping of flip-flops against cobblestone alleys is all I have heard for a month and a half. This sound is capable of masking the voices of souk inhabitants. 

It can bounce around the ruins of a Roman temple and carry me across the stepping stones of a river. 

My new-fangled flip-flops (which are actually a Greek design using a strap between the big toe and second toe) might have walked where a Roman flip-flop (a strap separating the second toe from the third) once crossed a pavilion. 

The sound of my flip-flops followed me on a search for Moroccan slippers.

 If I found some slippers in my size, then maybe I would hear a soft shuffling noise, not unlike a loyal dog following its master. We searched many shops. The only shoes that would fit my unusually gargantuan foot induced vomiting because they only came in fuchsia, black and brown.

After seeing my choices, I was quite contented with my flip-flops.

After hearing the sound of my flip-flops on noir-colored pavement, marble, grass, rocks damp with river water, and dirt sometimes as brown as my eyes, I now get to add cobblestoned alleys to my list. 

Normally, you wouldn't find cobblestoned alleys in the U.S. 

But here, in Spain and Portugal it is not uncommon.

While we were in Spain, the Egyptian president, Mubarak (who was 82 and having ruled for over 30 years) was forced to change his status from dictator to toppled leader.

In Egyptian murals there are depictions of early flip-flops. The murals are in both tombs and temples and some date back to around 4,000 B.C.  I hope that during the conflict none of the ancient Egyptian masterpieces were destroyed.

The next place the sound of my flip-flops will accompany me might be over a little wooden bridge, with me dressed in a Kimono, where zoris are common. 

Photo by d'n'c

Or, the sound could tread on cement with me that the Chinese lay over 2,000 years ago. 

Photo by Blazej Mrozinski

Wherever I go, I know the "flip-flop" of flip-flops will trail behind me like a shadow that never disappears.

Spanish Olive Oil- A way of life.

Olive trees in Spain as far as the eye can take you.

The Phoenicians and Greeks introduced olive oil to Spain over 3,000 years ago. Today Spain is the world's largest producer of olive oils.

This Spanish tree trunk is OLD, we heard of many trees that were 1,000 years or more.

It was the Moorish culture that left behind the word for oil in Spanish.

'Aceite' originates from the Arabic word al-zait, it means 'olive juice!' In fact, olive oil is exactly that- juice.  Why? Olives are a fruit and what we know as 'oil' is the juice squeezed from the fruit just like we do with lemons and oranges. 

Olives for sale in a Spanish market

Hippocrates, the Greek who is known as 'The Father of Medicine' called olive oil the 'great therapeutic.' What do we know about olive oil and the body today? It lowers blood pressure and raises 'good' cholesterol. It may slow the narrowing of the heart arteries. It may slow the process of age-related dementia, Alzheimer's and even give some protection against some types of cancer including bowel and breast cancers.  

There's no doubt that the diet in Spain is different than what we eat in the U.S. Their consumption of fruit, fish, wine and veggies is different to be sure. 

Here's a Spanish family eating lunch: veggies, wine, bread, olive oil and ham without a lick of nitrates or nitrites.

The biggest thing that struck us on our trip was the sheer amount of olive oil consumed, every single Spanish day. 

We are talking about a drenching amount- the word copious seems scant to capture the amount.  How much? I tried to cook a handful of Spanish dishes our first week home and managed to go through an ENTIRE BOTTLE OF OLIVE OIL! 

This dish carried a cup of olive oil.

This soup? A quarter pint! The mushrooms in the center? 1/3 of a pint!

How should it taste? Fruity. Smooth. Not too bitter and not too spicy. It should have the aroma of an olive grove. Spicy? Turns out great olive oil should 'awaken' the tongue but not burn it.

We stopped by an olive producer, Senorio Vizcantar to taste and learn from Don Fermin; his family has tended olive groves for three generations. It was other-worldly to hear him speak about olive oil- how to judge a good one remains seared on our taste buds.

 It was like being in the presence of a master who knew he was simply this generation's spokesman. His family-owned small holding fights on by diversifying into olive oil hand creams (amazing!) and olive paste and jam and producing olive oils that are globally recognized as outstanding.



Fermin is passionate about olive oil. It is contagious. He gives classes on olive oil 'appreciation' atop this 1,000 year trunk.

A 1,000 year old trunk supports a wall of Vizcantar oils.

The small white-washed village of Almedenilla boasts a bull ring with the endless rows of olive trees radiating out from every direction.

We've decided to import a palette of Don Fermin's olive oil tins. We don't know where it will end up. We only know that we're trying hard to keep elements of the trip alive here at home and if olive oil isn't in the picture we haven't a thing. We're continuing making Paella on Sunday so just to keep that tradition alive we had to see this through!

J said this morning, "I miss the food so much". We all do.

Breeding Contentment and the Spanish Tuna Tart

Photo of Bunaken from Visit Indonesia (it really looks just like this)

Many years ago when Rick and I were backpacking around Asia we found ourselves on a speck of an island off of Indonesia. (For anyone on the hunt for the best snorkeling in the world and the Gilligan's Island of your imagination, look no further- Bunaken National Park is extraordinary.)

It was so small the only structures were glorified shacks covered with palm-fronds. We were eating lunch one day with our Swedish backpacking buddies;  we didn't notice who else was in the small hut until something happened.

There was a rumble and a bang of sorts and we all looked at each other quizzically. I remember wondering if a truck had run into the back of the 'hut' until I remembered the island was so small there were no trucks; there weren't any cars either for that matter, everything and everyone arrives by boat. In a micro-second a table full of Japanese backpackers had jumped from their table and had literally rolled off into the sandy beach that was the front of the restaurant. Our four non-earthquake familiar bums sat firmly planted in our seats. Upon seeing the panicked Japanese group in the sand our brains slowly registered that an earthquake had struck.

We feel really lucky that we have come home safely and are praying for Japan's people.

We may have a strong internet connection but we haven't seemed to acquire any more time. So, as I hear Baby-O waking up I want to share pictures of another dish that was ubiquitous in Spain- the tuna tart or tarta de tuna y tomate. You could buy it from small bakeries by the slab (or whole as Rick liked to do) for just a handful of Euros. It was great for a snack, for breakfast or for taking along on day-trips to the beach or hiking.

I had an hour and fifteen minutes yesterday before I had to head into the kids' school to help Gigi's class learn typing. I wanted to hold a piece of the trip close to us and decided by jove I was going to try to reproduce the tart even though I didn't have a real recipe. It was a whirlwind hour but what resulted was the best filling I've ever made in my life. One lesson from the trip that remains strong within me is to just try. . . to experiment when you don't know how. . . to not postpone because it usually turns out ok and if you get lucky it may just turn out great.

Here's what went inside.

The dough was a cinch. Besides flour and salt it has a cup of olive oil and a cup of white wine- it's like a health elixir in itself. It doesn't have any yeast (other than that found in the wine) so it really takes 5 minutes to make and 30 minutes to 'rest'.

(Sorry for the photo quality- all the photos since we've gotten home have been taken on the phone)

The tuna fillets that are found in Spain are nothing like our canned tuna. I found a tuna on sale, the fillet floating in olive oil and really close to the succulent Spanish tuna- nothing like the yucky canned variety we all have memories of appearing in our lunch . . .

 

With about two minutes to spare I asked Rick if he would add the final touch- some kind of decoration, it's usually ropes strung daintily across the dough. My cheeky husband did this:

We've never bought fish in our entire adult life since most of those years were vegetarian (before that we were on the austerity plan of rice and beans) :) 

We've turned to the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch list to know which fish we should buy and which we should avoid. They sum it up aptly: "there's a  limit to the fish in the sea." They've produced a nifty pocket-guide or app for sustainable seafood so we have no excuses!  Turns out the tuna I had found does not make the cut. . .

 The American Museum of Natural History science website for kids 'Ology' not only has a good Biodiversity section complete with games but Archeology, Anthropology, Astronomy, the Brain and more. 'Ology' also posts a wildly eccentric collection of facts that will delight kids and adults alike- they make for great dinnertime conversation.

We're still searching for a comprehensive list of which fish are the healthiest to eat (read: mercury content etc.) Thank you Pam (xo) for sending this super clear list of which fish should be or are not to be. . . in your diet. . .if you inform yourself!

I ran into the kids' principal yesterday and she asked what it had been like to have so few possessions- the short answer? Completely liberating. By the end of the trip the 5 of us were in two suitcases, one medium and one large along with small backpacks. We had a handful of a change of clothes and two sets of shoes. 

Not having access to a dryer and having to lug your possessions around breeds contentment. 

1,000 year old Oxford, England on our last night and other tales

Our family sabbatical to Spain (with trips to Morocco, Portugal and England) has come to an end; tomorrow we fly home.

Sorry that we've been out of touch for the last week- no 'wee-fee' as the Spaniards say.

We've been challenged by many of you over the last (nearly) two months with questions about how we plan to translate 'wisdom from the trip' to our life back home; our answer is we're not sure yet but we won't give up until we do it.

We'll keep you posted (no pun intended). We'll also play catch up and fill you in on the incredible places we visited over the last week and other weeks we couldn't post about the interesting places and learning we were doing. We'll also write about whether or not the kids' got 'behind' in school and how all that goes once we get back.

But for now, scenes from the last week.

From Roman ruins on the Atlantic

 

To standing upon a geological wonder of limestone that was part of the bottom of the ocean floor 100 million years ago

From experiencing Andalucian beaches and their bounty for the first time

To returning back to Malaga where we had begun the trip, we had a great last week. 

It is already abundantly clear that some things are permanent. Friends, family and history come to mind tonight while new discoveries and changes lie around every corner. . . if you've got your eyes ready and your heart willing.

The wonderful family of the Hotel Monte Victoria made us feel as if we'd returned home. It felt like we had and that everything was the same.

Like breakfast.

Except. . . the Nativity sets had been put away and as we had driven into Malaga we had stumbled upon early-carnival celebrations in advance of Lent 

Something else had changed too- Linda, one of the cats of the Hotel Monte Victoria that we had cherished the first time around, had just given birth to 7 kittens

One thing that hadn't changed was Tom. I'm convinced that our favorite Japanese kids' film director, Hayao Miyazaki used Tom the cat as an inspiration!  He is one of the most lovable creatures ever and as many previous happy Monte Victoria guests note, the real director of the house!

Tom delighted one and all- the power of pets and kids in tow should not be underestimated when booking accommodations.

We left Spain knowing the world had changed radically while we'd been away.

We believe we have too but travel, unlike a revolution, shows its effects more slowly. 

It's fitting we ended with a whirlwind trip to Oxford, England to visit a family we had met when Gigi was 3. Friends don't change even if the world does and you live one away from each other. 

Born 5 days apart, Gigi and Zebulon went to preschool together. His family now lives in England where the uber-smart Dad is now a Director in Applied Mathematics at the University of Oxford. Time doesn't matter when friends are involved; the night was pure magic. Here they all are in our hipster pad in Oxford 

More to follow in a forthcoming post on why you must visit this city with kids (or without) as soon as you can. Information about a great place to stay with family in tow, the food, the incredible things we saw like a Dodo, dinosaurs, endless weapons and Darwin's net at what the kids' declared was, 'the best museum ever!' are to come.

You'll also find out what it's like to attend a Hogwarts-like institution without the wizards of course, when we write about Zebulon's school. It was founded in 1480 and to give you a sense about how different it is from American 6th grade he takes Latin, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Art, Drama, Geography, Information Communications and Technology, and French to name a few of his weekly classes. Does that whet your appetite? Can you see his uniform up there? He's taken off the tie and blazer!

I was ecstatic to receive an email this week from the gorgeous Myriam. Remember our Tunisian friends we met in Marrakech? I didn't tell you they were newlyweds. We are going to post an interview with them about Tunisia (we are planning a visit!) and their life soon including the grand affair that is a Tunisian wedding. Here's a taste.

When the rowdy crowd that was hanging out at Riad Misria looked at the wedding pictures and we came upon Myriam's brother (pictured below) Gigi remarked later, "You guys went nuts when you saw Myriam's brother!" I'm guessing you can figure out why! What a family. 

One of the treasures about traveling are the friends you make. There's something very visceral about being away from home and meeting people that have chosen to do or be exactly where you are at that very moment yourself. Small-talk is non-existent, instead you dive right into survival points, acting upon their advice, side-stepping the surface for deep discussions and jokes that will linger in your mind for months to come. Sami and Myriam are like that along with other characters you'll meet, without Sami's kindness we wouldn't have experienced Marrakech in the same way.

We know we won't be seeing the same things once we go home.

Or, eating the same foods (I'll refrain from showing the taps at the many pubs we managed to frequent in literally less than 48 hours).

My curiosity lies now with how the trip might change the way the kids think, act, eat and wonder. And also, how we will think, act, eat and wonder with each other. 

One thing is for sure, making the decision to see and be with people you miss or experience places you dream of is not something I plan to postpone. I imagine many people in Egypt, Tunisia and Libya are wondering why they waited for so long. . . here's a glimpse of a friend revolution aka kids having so much fun you know everyone will remember it for a very long time. 

I'm excited that Rick and Dr. genius, aka Zebulon's dad were already planning our next adventure and I was left wondering why we waited so long for this one.

I was reading a book about Japanese word puzzles last night called, "The Gateless Gate"

 (do you see how even the title is a puzzle?) and came upon these words,

"If useless things do not clutter your mind you have the best days of your life."

When you travel for a long time (or a short time if you're careful) you realize that there's less time or space to clutter your mind and literally, your space. Maybe that's why you remember it as some of 

the best days of your life. 

I hope I can carry that idea home with me

 and unpack it 

and use it 

every day.

I'm excited to try. 

Even though tonight is an ending it is really just the beginning. 

Thanks for traveling with us and for your generosity in words and spirit along the way; for all of you who took care of things back home so that we could be away, we thank you. 

Love Family in Tow