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Friday, February 17, 2006
¡Que Aproveche!
GC Philo, a Philadelphian living in Cádiz, Spain, says, "There’s nothing I hate more than seeing a group of Americans here in Spain, who are probably on vacation for less than a week, standing in line to order a Whopper from Burger King."
He also rightly says that "One of the most important things about going to another country and experiencing its culture is having an open mind. It’s a different place and, seeing as you’re only going to be there temporarily, you should try to absorb as much of the local atmosphere as possible."
Oh, I wholeheartedly agree and find it quite sad also to see hoards of British visitors queueing for their Burger King burgers, McDonalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken and a myriad versions of the good ol' traditional English Breakfast and Sunday Roast.
If that's what you want, go to Blackpool and buy a sunlamp!
And I do know that you will get the English breakfast in Blackpool, because the son of some Canarian friends of mine recently went there with a party of disabled kids. He is currently studying to be a doctor at the University Hospital in La Laguna and came back with the awful impression that we Brits eat the most unhealthy, greasy, fattening, calorie laden things.
Was he so very wrong? :)
Meanwhile, here in the Canary Islands, there is also a vast selection of new and interesting flavours to try, if only you will. Honestly, they are not all disgusting and inedible as they look.
Anyway, back to GC Philo's excellent, informative and decidedly amusing guide to Spanish food, ¡Que Aproveche!, which veers you away from the familiar paella and jamón serrano into the "uncharted waters" of slugs, barnacles and sea urchins.
Most of all, he advises, "... don’t write off all Spanish seafood just because their cuisine includes a sea creature that you know exists only from old pirate films and Mutiny on the Bounty."
¡Que Aproveche!
