Notice that the flag displayed in 2002 used a dark blue triangle….

El Morro 2002

When I returned to Puerto Rico last year, we again visited El Morro and I took a similar photo. But it wasn’t until later that I realized the PR flag now in use has the light blue triangle.

El Morro 2007

For those who are unaware, the light blue triangle is the original design, from 1895. It was based on the Cuban flag, which was in turn based on the US flag. For the colonial authorities (first the Spanish then the Americans) it came to represent the spirit of revolution and was thus banned on the island. When Puerto Rico became a Commonwealth of the US in 1952, it was adopted as the official flag of Puerto Rico, with one important change. The blue triangle was darkened to match that of the US flag.

Fast forward to the present, and the dark triangle is commonly regarded as representative of the statehooder sentiment, while the light blue triangle is that of the independence movement.

In 1995, the official flag of Puerto Rico was reverted to that of the original design. I can only assume that the flag at El Morro was eventually changed for this very reason, but I thought it was interesting nonetheless.

In the video, you can see all sorts of tourists standing around, amazed at the proximity of the incoming planes.

When we were there, it was just a bunch of guys on the beach and it went more like:

“Wow, that runway comes all the way out to the……………HOLY CRAP!!”

Then she went into the food, glorious food. A big deal was made about the fact that the Spanish eat dinner at 10pm or so, preceding it with tapas and drink. Jen and I salivated as Samantha sampled chorizo al vino, calamares, and croquetas, then followed that up with a huge dish of paella.

However, the bit that moved us to act was about a favorite treat of ours when we are in Spain: Churros con Chocolate!

As soon as the segment was over, Jen asked me to find a recipe online. I did as I was told and found this (reproduced below after the jump, in case the site disappears). But then I took it to the next level; I said let’s make some now! Since fried carbohydrates covered in sugar accompanied by the thickest hot chocolate you’ve ever seen makes perfect sense at 9pm, I ran out to get a couple ingredients and voila!

If you’ve never had it, the chocolate is a thick, viscous beverage. I can’t really drink the stuff. As a matter of fact, I don’t recall ever finishing a cup, and tonight was no different. I tend to use it for dunking the churros into, as this is where it shines. Mmmm. See how it coats the spoon? We’ll be making this again.

While in Spain, Bri and I had it last in Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain, next to the second-oldest hotel in the world (yes, we stayed there). In 2004, we enjoyed some in Barcelona on Las Ramblas. It was awesome, but we were essentially ripped off, having been charged just under $30 for two servings of churros con chocolate, two orange juices and a serving of toast (or something similar). Ah, the memories.

Check out the recipe below.

The Churros

Here’s the ultimate recipe to make your own churros at home, just like they were at the churrería stands. Of course, the difference here is price. Here you can make a whole batch for what is cost for a few. Once you make the churros, you can make the authentic chocolate dip to dunk them in.

Ingredients: (Makes one platefull)
Vegetable or Olive Oil
1 cup water
1/2 cup margarine or butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 eggs
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)

Prepare to fry the churros by heating oil in a pan (1 to 1&1/2 inches) to 360 degrees F.

To make churro dough, heat water, margarine and salt to rolling boil in 3-quart saucepan; stir in flour. Stir vigorously over low heat until mixture forms a ball, about 1 minute; remove from heat. Beat eggs all at once; continue beating until smooth and then add to saucepan while stirring mixture.

Spoon mixture into cake decorators’ tube with large star tip (like the kind use to decorate cakes). Squeeze 4-inch strips of dough into hot oil. Fry 3 or 4 strips at a time until golden brown, turning once, about 2 minutes on each side. Drain on paper towels. (Mix Sugar and the optional cinnamon); roll churros in sugar or dump the sugar on the pile of churros, like the pros. That churro taste will take you right back to your favorite summer days walking the paseos of Spain.

Note: REAL churros in Spain are made without cinnamon mixed with the sugar, but the cinnamon adds an extra nice flavor.

Chocolate for Churro Dunking

4oz dark chocolate, chopped
2 cups milk
1 tbsp cornstarch (also known as cornflour and is the powder that causes the thickening)
4 tbsp sugar

Place the chocolate and half the milk in a pan and heat, stirring, until the chocolate has melted. Dissolve the cornstarch in the remaining milk and whisk into the chocolate with the sugar. Cook on low heat, whisking constantly, until the chocolate is thickened, about five minutes. Add extra cornstarch if it doesn’t start to thicken after 5 minutes. Remove and whisk smooth. Pour and server in cups or bowls for dunking churros. Do not pour over churros, but use the mix for dunking churros after every bite. Served warm.

Feel free to share this recipe with your friends, as long as you include my name and web address, so others can contact me with comments.

Real Spanish Food Recipes – http://www.xmission.com/~dderhak/recipes.html

Dean Derhak – dderhak@xmission.com

Galicia is the region of Spain directly north of Portugal (see below). As you might imagine, the language, customs and cultural identifiers are similar to that of Portugal.

But surprisingly there is a Celtic influence in Galicia. It is evident in some of the food, even in the name of the region, but most of all, in Galicia’s music. You can detect obvious similarities to Celtic music through the use of bagpipes and other instruments I can’t name, but simply sound Irish. (Admittedly, Celtic is not synonymous with Irish, I’m just making an observation here.)

Getting back to the folkloric dancing, the Celtic influence is also readily apparent in the footwork and the costumes of the dancers. The dancers lifted their feet and performed turns which distinguishes this dance easily from that of the Portuguese to their south. One set of male performers even wore wooden shoes! I’m not sure if that is a Celtic trait, but it certainly separates them from the Portuguese.

Bri and I enjoyed it as much as Jen, although I think for slightly different reasons. In any case, I’m posting the first of several videos here, after the jump. I apologize for the low quality, but I only had my digital camera with me when I decided I wanted to record the performance for posterity.

[googlevideo]http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7696411074753891105&hl=en[/googlevideo]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctPQvjevzhs[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwKAt-XR0mY[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qcr02XVM8M[/youtube]

Some of you may remember when I was sent to Madrid by my old employer. I had already planned a trip to Portugal with my father-in-law and his brother when I was informed that a customer needed an engineer in Spain. The dates coincided with my time in Portugal. I not only saved the frequent-flier miles I’d planned on using, but I earned many more! I felt like I’d won the lottery.

I ran across the pic above today at notesfrommadrid.com. It shows Madrid’s skyline as viewed from El Escorial, a town northwest of the city. While I was there, I worked in the Torre Picasso for a couple days, overlooking Real Madrid’s Bernabeu stadium. It was a ridiculously easy job, too. Ah, the memories!

Then, there’s Panera. They may not have the best coffee in the world, but this place is a traveling geek’s dream since they also offer free wifi. The agreement they flash in front of you before allowing access to the internet essentially says “Be courteous”, meaning don’t hog the big tables when we’re busy and you can stay as long as you like.

Even better, as I went up to the counter just now to order a coffee, the girl asked if I wanted it in a mug or a cup. I thought that odd since it was a couple minutes before 9pm, their closing time. When I pointed that out, she says “Oh we don’t kick anyone out…we’re here cleaning until at least 10pm anyway”. Man, that’s just awesome.

Take this as a lesson, Starbucks! You charge more for wifi as you do for your over-rated coffee and for that reason I’ve *always* headed to the nearest Panera when I’m on the road and in need of wifi. Bitches.