Blog
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31 January 2012 at 15 : 18 PM
Life on the Douro – local and little known Portugal
Zev Robinson is a hyper active painter and filmmaker. My impression of him is that he works and travels constantly. And this is paying off. He’s completed a unique documentary film about the Douro wine region in Portugal that is ambitious in scope–covering 300 years of history, of the region, of the families that make [...]
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12 January 2012 at 15 : 20 PM
Book of the month
It ain’t Spanish cooking, but it’s still truly local. And, hey, we’re all about good food, anywhere, especially in the Mediterranean region. So, welcome to our recommendation: A downloadable, colorful and, most importantly, flavorful concoction of a book, artfully done by a small New York publishing house. Salento Flavors. The Taste of Tradition There are [...]
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12 January 2012 at 12 : 36 PM
La verdad misma – Absolute truth
There is no way to get around it, I have to copy this editorial out in full because it hits on the button about the state of affairs in Spain today. Apologies to non-Spanish readers, but no translation for now. Elvira Lindo, a well-known author who has published a series of children’s books based around [...]
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2 January 2012 at 13 : 22 PM
Tweaking into the New Year
Still fixing up some of the glitches on the spanking new MNBTV website. But here we are, healthy and ready to to film, to taste, to travel and to share. Welcome one and all into the new adventure of 2012.
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30 December 2011 at 13 : 49 PM
End of year news: New site and new sights
Aside from a whopping new site, that allows for easier navigation and, more importantly, uploading of content (thank you, dear web builder!), we’re also venturing further into the social media world with an account on Tumblr. Check it out! Why? Because sometimes we just want to post images, of all kinds, from everywhere, taking advantage [...]
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10 December 2011 at 20 : 28 PM
Anthony Bourdain loves f&%@ing Spain
On Facebook, of course, I stumbled across a video of Anthony Bourdain’s “No Reservations” which features a series on restaurants and food around Spain. I feel vindicated. Por fin, it’s official and on national TV in the US–Spanish food (from and in Spain) can be called the best of the Western world. And he goes [...]
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5 October 2011 at 12 : 44 PM
Botanical gardens on the island of Mallorca
Who knew? I thought I did. It just so happens that I’ll be heading to Mallorca next week for the screening of a film that I represent through my business, MocaMedia, about landscape architects. So, it seemed like a good idea to research botanical gardens on the island to contact in case they might be [...]
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5 September 2011 at 12 : 13 PM
Munching in Sigüenza
Last June my family and I went to Sigüenza, Guadalajara for the weekend and were pleasantly surprised. We stayed at the Parador. This splurge was well worth it, since we were staying in a 12th century medieval castle, with its protective wall, overlooking the town. One of the most amusing sights we had when we [...]
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5 September 2011 at 11 : 06 AM
Whatever happened to the “jarra de agua”?
It used to be that at most restaurants, especially the less tony ones, you could choose between a “jarra de agua” (a jug of water) and bottled water, fizzy or flat. Now, there is no choice. When you ask for water, you get the bottle. Sure, I know what that is all about–a bit more [...]
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7 June 2011 at 02 : 10 AM
Mercadillos: Tag Sales, Yard Sales, Second Hand, Garage Sales…Finally
The Anglosaxon communities have a long tradition in thrift, in second hand shops and in garage sales. But these have long been anathema to the Spanish way of perceiving purchase. For Spaniards, perhaps it seemed a sign of poverty and therefore shameful to purchase clothes or goods second hand, to be seen rummaging through someone [...]
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