Our flights were smooth, the line for entry into Spain long, but moving; the bags, however, took a long time to be delivered to the belt. There was traffic from the airport making the ride to our hotel longer than usual. Given the hotel’s location in a pedestrian area, we were dropped off a short distance away. Thomas from the hotel met us and assisted with getting the luggage there. Our room has a large window and a French balcony overlooking a historic square and an elementary school. The square doubles as a playground, and kids were noisy running around. After hours, small groups of adults gathered here and there in the square enjoying the soft night air.
TAPAS AND AFTERNOON
Interior of Bar Mono
The culinary theme of the day was tapas. After checking in and cleaning up, we were ready for some lunch. Ever efficient, Thomas walked with us to point out several possible small options for lunch not far from the hotel. We opted for Bar Mono and shared some tapas: chicken croquettes, fried artichokes with Romesco sauce, and cod fritters.
Fried artichokes w/Romesco sauce
Cod fritters
All very tasty! The Chief Penguin also sampled a bowl of gazpacho, a lovely cream version that too was delicious. This was a good way to return to Barcelona on a sunny pleasant day.
We booked dinner at the hotel and then spent part of the afternoon sitting on the rooftop deck. There’s a small pool, not really deep enough for swimming, but attractive to the doves and pigeons diving by for a drink. We both relaxed and struggled to stay awake, mostly me. Later we took another walk, and the Chief Penguin found the hotel we had stayed at 10 years ago. It’s on a big square in front of a cathedral where we had witnessed a lively, yet peaceful. demonstration for Catalan independence. Our old hotel had changed its name and, when the security guard allowed us in to take a peek, we could see that it had been nicely renovated and was more elegant than in the past.
MORE TAPAS FOR DINNER
Dinner started at 7:30 pm and we were there, ready to eat again and then retire for the night. This time we had smoked salmon and chicken croquettes, a lovely plate of paper-thin dark red Iberian ham, a board with small wedges of three cheeses, and a chewy round fougasse (bread) stuffed with potatoes, all washed down with glasses of the local white and red wines! The food here was more refined than that at lunch and simply delicious.
Tomorrow, Wednesday, we have a full day devoted to Gaudi, Sagrada Familia and two other buildings of is. Now for some desperately needed sleep!
When we lived in San Francisco, we subscribed to the opera, and when we were very lucky, we were invited to sit in the director’s box, close to the stage. I loved the opera seasons there, mostly because their season always included at least one contemporary opera. We saw a wonderful production of Nixon in China, for example.
The Chief Penguin signed up to watch post-performance live streams of some of this season’s SF Opera offerings. He watched all of Rigoletto (I caught snatches of it), and together we endured Dead Man Walking with music by Jake Heggie and lyrics by playwright Terrence McNally. I say endured, not because it was bad in any way, but because it is extremely intense and moving. Based on the book of the same title by Sister Helen Prejean and the 1995 movie (which we have seen), this powerful opera premiered in 2000.
The staging of the opera is simple and minimalist, but very effective. Sister Helen leaves the school-aged children she works with to visit Joseph De Rocher, her pen pal who is on death row. He is initially distrustful of her, not sure she can help him, but then asks her to be his spiritual advisor as he awaits the recommendation of the pardon board and, ultimately, his execution date. Almost to the end, he proclaims his innocence and denies that he has killed the two teenagers, not having the courage to admit the truth and seek forgiveness. While he is bitter and vulnerable, Sister Helen herself becomes overwrought with emotion from their encounters and questions her own beliefs and assumptions.
The scenes with Joe’s mother and brothers are heartbreaking, while those with the teens’ parents seeking accountability and justice are heartrending in another way. I would not have thought that an execution scene would be so excruciating and powerful to witness, but it was. A thought-provoking and demanding work of art. See it if you have the opportunity.
POWERFUL FICTION: 1960’s MAGDALENE LAUNDRY
Wayward Girls by Susan Wiggs
Young women at Good Shepherd Convent/Laundry in Buffalo, (buffalore.facebook.com)
Susan Wiggs’s latest novel is a bit of a departure for her. Her earlier enjoyable books are heartfelt stories of family and romance, often in a series built around a particular location (Lakeside Chronicles) or historical works set in the 19th century. Wayward Girls is set in the late 1960’s in Buffalo, NY, and then zooms ahead 50 years to the present day. I’ve read about and seen films about the Magdalene laundries in Ireland, but I was not aware that from the 1880’s into the 1920’s, there were a number of these institutions in the U.S. including in Buffalo, Albany, and Philadelphia.
Masquerading as do-good institutions for reforming girls who were pregnant and unmarried or were troublemakers, they were industrial laundries run by nuns. The girls were forced to labor all day, were physically mistreated, and regularly punished by being locked in a dark closet. In essence, they were prisoners with no visitors and no escape.
Mairin, a 15-year-old with a lively spirit, misses her deceased father greatly. When her stepfather Colm tries to get “handsy” with her, she lashes out at him physically. He lies, her mother takes his side, and Mairin finds herself carted off to the nuns at Good Shepherd Refuge. Not one to settle quietly, Mairin makes multiple attempts to escape, before she becomes friends with several other girls. A natural leader, she inspires Angela, Helen, and Odessa to think about how they might successfully escape before they turn eighteen.
Much of the novel details daily life in this prison and then shifts to the present day and what Mairin’s life now is, years after she escaped. The trauma of that time remains, yet Mairin’s curiosity impels her to try to discover what happened to the other girls.
The characters are fictional, but the situations are based on a real laundry and survivors’ accounts. It’s a totally absorbing book. I also found the setting, from the music and TV shows of that era to the descriptions of life and culture in upstate New York, spot on. Not surprising, I guess, since although Wiggs lives in Washington State currently, she spent her early childhood near Buffalo. Highly recommended! (~JWFarrington)
Both Honor, married to Tom, and Grace and her husband Pietro make important decisions that have repercussions years later. Finding Graceis Briton Rothschild’s novel debut. Chapter One is shocking and totally unexpected.
Without giving away the plot, it’s fair to say this is a novel about love in several forms: parental love, romantic love, and love among friends. It’s also a book about big secrets, those we hold rigidly tight, and smaller ones, things we protectively guard in how we present ourselves to one another. How candid are we with someone we are attracted to, and how soon do we reveal ourselves fully?
The conundrum at the heart of this story is an unusual one, and it threatens to upend the progression of a new love. Finding Grace has some surprising twists and turns of both character and plot. Recommended!
Edith, Bertie, Cora, Lord G., Mary (hollywoodreporter.com)
If you, like us, have watched all the TV seasons of Downtown Abbey and the two previous movies, then Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is a must see. It opens in 1930, and the Granthams are all in London at the theater along with many of their household staff. The only person missing is Lady Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess.
The times have changed, and they all must adapt. Lord Grantham, despite saying otherwise, hangs back on fully handing over the reins and the running of the estate to Lady Mary. Dominating their conversation is how to maintain the estate and cover needed repairs. Lady Cora’s brother Harold arrives from America with his friend and advisor Gus Sambrook in tow; together they have grand financial plans. Also looming are new adventures for Anna and Mr. Bates and retirement for Mrs. Patmore, the cook, and Mr. Carson, butler and major domo.
It is fun to see how the various characters have matured and succeeded from kitchen maid Daisy to former staff member Barrow, to Tom Branson, who left and created his own business. Lady Edith has social status and an assertiveness to match it, while Lady Mary remains glamorous, poised, and a force despite new personal challenges. There are two wonderful scenes near the end that require both upstairs and downstairs to confront a new social order. Highly recommended for fans of the series!
NEW NOVEL: FRAGILITY OF FRIENDSHIP
Among Friends by Hal Ebbott
Author Ebbott (penguinrandomhouse.com)
Among Friendsis Hal Ebbott’s first novel. It is diffuse at times, full of striking analogies, and also a poignant dissection of longtime friendship. Amos and Emerson have been close friends since college; now both over 50, they have wives and teenage daughters. Neither marriage seems to be as rich and strong as it could be, but their 16-year-old daughters, Anna (Amos and Claire’s daughter) and Sophie (Emerson and Resty’s) have a relationship that is friendly without being bosom buddies.
When the couples and the girls gather upstate for a weekend visit, Emerson approaches Anna in a way that will strain and fray the bonds of these relationships. Despite their seeming closeness, Amos and Emerson come from very different backgrounds. Amos’s family was very poor, and he always strove to measure up to others. Emerson is a product of privilege, used to having his way and being seen, yet carrying an element of meanness.
This is primarily an interior novel. There is limited action, some descriptions of surroundings and the weather, but much of it exists in the thoughts and minds of each individual character. Ebbott’s sentences are not long, but one feels the echoes of Henry James.
I found the beginning somewhat slow, but once accustomed to his style, I appreciated what he was doing. How the big event in this group of friends is finally addressed and dealt with has a bittersweet rightness that will allow life to move forward, but likely not life the same way as before. Recommended for readers of serious literary fiction. (~JWFarrington)
In Irish Blood, successful Los Angeles lawyer, Fiona Sharpe, played by Alicia Silverstone, receives a message from her estranged father that takes her to Dublin. Arriving and learning that he died, she sets out on a dangerous path to discover the circumstances of his death. Along the way, she meets a family who didn’t know of her existence and enlists the aid of the smart young cop, Roisin, who is eager to be involved.
There are 6 episodes in Season 1, and Season 2 is set for production in 2026. The series is entertaining enough that the Chief Penguin and I have now watched half of this season. I’d call it good, not great crime drama, with enough action to keep us in our seats.
Almost a week ago, we left our idyllic Maine abode. Life there is quieter and slower-paced but punctuated and enlivened with visits from various family members. We made one final visit to the botanical garden, finally got to Camden, browsed once more in Sherman’s bookstore, and savored our last lobster rolls of the season at Cozy’s Dockside. The morning air was cool to cold, fewer people were out and about, and one sensed fall hovering close by. I took more photos, a few of which I ‘m sharing here.
Awaiting next summer?Punch of color after day liliesQuiet cove
RECENT READING: CRIME IN MAINE’S WOODS
Pitch Darkby Paul Doiron
Paul Doiron (amazon.com)
A former editor of Down East magazine, Paul Doiron is the author of the Mike Bowditch Mysteries. Pitch Dark is the 15th book in the series featuring game warden investigator Bowditch. A few years ago, I read The Poacher’s Son, his first book. This title published in 2024 is gripping, intense, and had me enrapt.
Bowditch sets out with his father-in-law Charley, a bush pilot and a retired warden, for the northern Maine woods in search of a supposedly missing person. The missing man has been asking questions about a man and his young daughter staying in the area. Mike and Charley’s first stop is to see Josie, a bush pilot who lives by herself up there and is somewhat prickly. Josie knows the man Mark Redmond, a builder, and his 12-year-old girl, Cady, for whom she is akin to a grandmother. That stop ends in a murder, and these two men now have a new set of leads.
The woods are dark and deep, the clues are few, and Mike ends up going it alone in pursuit of his fugitive. He ranges near the Canadian border and that presents risks of its own if he crosses without authorization. Recommended for those who like suspense set in the wild.
VIEWING: COLD CRIME CASES
UnforgottenSeason 6 (PBS Masterpiece)
Jess and Sunny (pbs.com)
Unforgottenis one of the best detective series around. Set in Britain, the writing is excellent, the characters complex. Add in a set of unrelated individuals, all with some connection to the crime.
Last season, Nicola Walker as DCI Cassie Stuart, a fan favorite, was replaced by Sinead Keenan, who plays DCI Jess James. Sanjeev Bhaskar as DC Sunny Khan continues as a warm-hearted, thoughtful guy. He and Jess are initially tentative partners, but gradually in this season, they open up to each other.
When a dismembered body washes up in a marsh, the immediate task is to identify the person. After establishing who it was, follow-up involves an autistic man who lives with his mother, a professor, a TV commentator, and a recent immigrant on the path to citizenship. Both Jess and Sunny have issues in their personal life and these enrich and add depth to the series.
Like past seasons, one crime and its solution unfold over the course of the six episodes. I figured out who was the guilty party but didn’t realize all the circumstances; each of the suspects had a likely motive. Unforgotten raises moral questions in this probing and very human portrayal of crime and its after effects. Highly recommended! (~JWFarrington)
