La Giralda of my heart

Juan Belmonte (the famous bull fighter born in Sevilla) always had the Giralda in his heart (as noted in the photo), and I know why. La Giralda has a special place in my heart too.

It's not just because it's in the center of the city, surrounded by cobble-stoned streets, cafes and incredible architecture. For me, it's because this was the am & pm meeting place back when we were courting. (Yes, I just said courting. Felt good.) This was our rendezvous point before heading down the street for sweet orange wine at La Peregil, tapas and fun. If we weren't meeting at the Giralda, then we were meeting at the Triana bridge (photos to be posted soon).

I like having a meeting place. A place you can go and know exactly where to find the person you are looking for. This is something that I cannot say I've had here. Why? My guess is that it is because most places I have lived require driving to see people. The glory of Sevilla is that you can literally walk anywhere in the city center.

And boy, did we walk. Many of these walks were right past la Giralda on to other destinations. If I had to choose a destination in Sevilla that was at the "heart" of the city, I'd say it could be nothing other than the Giralda. I think most tourists, locals and gypsies would agree.

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We are slowly sifting through the many photos we took on our trip. It's only been a week, but it already feels like it's been months. Strange how quickly you can get back into the daily grind without even trying. Posting photos and short histories about these places will be a nice way for us to be reminded of our recent trip. Hope that you will also enjoy the ride, errr, walk.

new look, new year

Happy 2011!

While our blog recently underwent a little face lift and we now have a permanent home at ampmcrafts.com, we have been totally MIA for the last month. We know it, we acknowledge it & now we're moving forward.

We were super excited to launch our own website. It's been sometime in the making, something we've been wanting to do for a long time. Now that's it's up and running, we already have plans for some new items that will be posted in this coming year.

2011 is going to be the year of new beginnings, a new chapter to the life of am & pm.

We started it off with a Holiday in Spain (props to the Counting Crows & this version of the song!). It was my first holiday there, and four years tardy for pm. Needless to say, it was time for us to go. We were able to escape the cold and enjoy family, friends, food and wine. Ah, it was wonderful. I hadn't realized just how wonderful it was until we came back. Why did we come back? ;)

Our holiday in Spain, also was a holiday from all responsibilities. We paid our rent in advance, and since all other expenses are on pre-paid accounts, we could sit back and enjoy. We very rarely checked our email and as you can tell from our social media efforts, we stayed away from most technology. Fact is: pm and I need a break.

Prior to our trip we were running in so many directions I am surprised that we even made it to Spain without forgetting the clothes on our back and gifts for family. Or worse case scenario: our passports. I will admit, that was a close call the day we left.

We will post photos soon-- as soon as we finish the rolls and get everything developed. I think this time we took more film photos than digital. My love for doing things the old-fashioned way doesn't lead to the immediate results. I am hoping the photos will be worth the wait.

Along with posting photos, we'll also be posting some of our goals for this space for the new year. Since we haven't had time to think about new year's resolutions (other than to eat more vegetables and cut back on meat for the time being), we haven't had time to post anything here yet either. It will come. After all, all good things come to those who wait.

Rather than make a long post longer, we'll be back. Soon.

I may take a holiday in Spain / Leave my wings behind me / Drink my worries down the drain / And fly away to somewhere new.

spanish delight: empanada

Yesterday I had an awful day. Between being rained on during the day on Saturday and having the cold wind in my face most of Sunday, I woke up Monday to being quite sick. Fear not, I am doing better today. Nothing that a lot of r&r, orange juice, soup and meds couldn't fix.

That's one thing I've come to learn about myself. When I get sick, I get sick. My body doesn't mess around with just a little head cold or the flu. No way. Why have just a little when you can have it all? Anyway, this post is not to complain about my health.

Instead, it is to boast about my wonderful hubs. I have been craving and obsessing about empanada ever since I have a less than average meal at Ba Ba Reba (sorry for my honesty :)). The one thing on the menu that was actually worth eating was their empanada. Everything else, in my opinion and with my experience eating Spanish cuisine, screamed Americanized Spanish food. The food really got to me because (a) Spanish food is not difficult to make, (b) croquetas should not taste like fried fish or be served with tartar sauce and (c) good sangria should be not be served via tap. Okay, enough of that rant.

Back to my wonderful hubs. I came home from work today to the delightful smell of .... empanada. Thank goodness I can actually taste today. Pm made a delicious beef, chorizo and pepper empanada. It was delicious.

And so in lies one of my new goals: Try to cook my way through some of our favorite Spanish dishes from our Spanish cookbooks. This in itself will be challenge, mostly because I'm not as savvy as I'd like to be with the metric system when used for recipes. Not sure what the next dish will be, but I will be certain to keep this readership in the know. Approveche!

Are you talking to me?

First off -- I just had to add this clip; it inspired the naming of this photo. It's an inside joke pm and I have since it reminds us of our international wedding and all the things that got lost in translation. Fear not: If you speak just English you will understand 90% of this video. If you are Spanish, you hopefully will understand 90% too. :)

Enough of that diversion. Here's the photo, followed by my thoughts.

Time for a show of hands (maybe comments will work? :)): Who likes garden gnomes? Who doesn't? I happen to like them. That is not to say that I would buy one and decorate my outdoor spaces with it, but I do find them humorous. Every time I see one I have to smile. (And then wonder why someone bought it in the first place.) I also like to think that something is tending to or watching over the garden when I am not. For me the garden gnome is kind of like the scarecrow.

Anyway, pm does not like them. He finds them both tacky and creepy. I think it's because he has a thing with bearded men. He doesn't even believe (spoiler alert!) in Santa Claus. In fact, he feels the same way about Santa as he does about garden gnomes: creepy and tacky. Only difference, other than the plush red suite, is that Santa knows when you are sleeping, and knows when you're awake; the garden gnome does not. There has got to be something in that Spanish water.

I've been noticing a lot of garden flair lately. In part, yes, to the fact I have been making a point to notice all the flair. Chicagoans seem to like putting little artsy details in their front yards. Some past photos and examples include past post about our Pentax O-ME53 of the Wooden Totem and Red Star.

Hope this post inspires you to (a) articulate, (b) share your thoughts about garden gnomes and (c) get inspired to see garden flair on your daily walks.

Somos los mejores del mundo!!

There is some celebrating in order -- Spain won the World Cup! (This is obviously not new news, and if you've been following our blog for awhile you know that pm is from Spain).

Needless to say - it's been an eventful day at the ampm household. Too bad we weren't in Spain to partake in all the victory fun. I bet the partying is probably still happening in streets all over the country. They sure know how to party hardy in Spain.

For me it was a rather lackluster game. Granted as a fellow (be it past) soccer player myself, I understand what big games and pressure can do to your head. I guess I was disappointed that the final score was only 1-0. I would have liked to see some more scoring from both teams. They certainly had their chances on both ends. *sigh

So here's a cute little side note about the game and the Spanish goalie, Iker Castillas. He's obviously a shy, and very emotional guy. (Did you notice that he never stopped crying once Spain finally scored? :)). Anyway, so his girlfriend is a Spanish journalist and they've been keeping their relationship pretty hush-hush during the World Cup. This video just goes to show how much you want to celebrate the happy times with those you care for. Enjoy!

30 Days of Creativity - Day 29: Salmorejo

We are still working through our tomatoes from our recent trip to the Maxwell Street Market. (Planning to restock our fridge with fresh produce this weekend.)

Here's a salmorejo (thick gazpacho) from an authentic Spaniard (pm):

+6-7 ripe tomatoes

+ 1/2 c olive oil

+ 3 garlic cloves

+ splash of vinegar

+ 1 cucumber

+ 1/2 baguette (soak in water beforehand to soften; strain water)

+ dash of salt

+ other vegetables as desired (carrots are good!)

Blender and puree everything together. Let it sit overnight in the fridge to absorb all flavors. Garnish with hard-boiled eggs and jamon serrano (or prosciutto where jamon serrano is not available). Tuna works well too.

And that's all for today folks. We're signing off early. Que aproveche!

Bridge to Spain

I don't think that a week goes by without the thought of Spain crossing my mind. This has especially been the case in the last few weeks since two of my favorite festivities have taken place: Semana Santa (Holy Week) and Feria. We are anxiously waiting for the year when these two festivities are scheduled back to back so that we can plan a two week trip across the pond. (Hopefully with some luck we'll be there again before this happens too.) While I don't see myself wearing a flamenca dress unless pm wears one of these (ha ha!), I guess we'll see what happens. Que sera, sera. Whatever will be, will be.

For whatever reason I have Spain on the brain big time today. It may have to do with the warm breeze and sunshine, although my guess is it has to do with my desire to travel. I'm getting a case of the travel bug again. Not sure when I will be able to find a remedy for it, but I am hoping that it is sooner rather than later.

So this photo is of the bridge (la barqueta) that pm got to cross everyday on his way to the university. Not a bad view, right? (Check out other images of this bridge here). I'd say there are very few bad views in Sevilla in general. Until we meet again at least we have plenty of photos.

Project Update: bits & birds

The spring breeze has brought us dozens of project ideas and new directions. We assure you that the promised tutorial will be coming shortly.

In a recent raid of the Anthropologie sale bids we came across these cute door knobs. I immediately thought of Spain and all the beautiful azulejos. It's my goal (with the help of pm & his power tools) to use these knobs for a decorative shelf/towel hanger. I've got the perfect vision of what I want in my head. Now I'll just need to find the right match of wood and trim. My eyes will be peeled for another bargain. Design on a dollar, here I come. (I'd say dime, but goodness knows the deals are never that good at Anthropologie, even in the sale bin.)

Why the birds? We were recently inspired by these origami birds at a coffee shop, and wanted to try our hand at making them. We've got a great entryway leading to our living area where I plan to use these little guys. We've got lots of folding and cutting to do until then. Again, we'll keep you posted on our progress.

So yes, it was a productive weekend. Oh, and we brewed (yes, again!). This time we tried our hand at a white tea steam beer. It's fermenting away as we speak. The brew master, pm, will be posting more on that here soon. (It may just include the secret recipe, so stayed tuned!).

Paraiso

The reminiscing about Ireland has got me thinking about some of my other European adventures. The more I think about each of those, the more I think about Spain. (I also find it much easier to think about Spain when the temperatures rise above freezing, people crowd the streets, and birds sing from dawn until dusk.)

This photo is taken in route to the Catedral in Sevilla with our super sampler camera. When I first was in Sevilla as a student this area of the city was not strictly reserved for pedestrians and the metra; in fact, I am certain thousands of cars whizzed by this historical masterpiece on a daily basis. The wear and tear of our modern life was beginning to show adverse effects on the structure of the cathedral - among them: graffiti tags along the exterior and pollution damage to the outer structure. Needless to say, and as you can see in this photo, restoration has since been completed. I love walking around this area. Now instead of having to time the shot perfectly around traffic, the only thing getting in our way are people. It could be worse. :)

[I've got to say, it always amazing me how buildings with such strong historical significance continue to "exist" in our modern society. The U.S. is more recognized for our natural wonders, so there isn't as much of a chance to pass such a historical treasure on our way to the grocery store, bar, gym, or on an afternoon stroll. I always miss this when I am here and not there. *sigh. Although on that same token, I guess the people that do live so close to these historic gems often forget it. Can you imagine living across from the Colosseum or Aqueducts and having it be "normal'?? ]

If you could choose one wonder (be in natural or not) to see on a daily basis, what would it be?

Home away from home

Tonight it's a tribute to the homelands. Paella, serrano ham, olives, and red wine. These are only a small sampling of the many things we *love about Spain. The only thing that could be better than eating them here would be to be enjoying them with friends and family as they celebrate (well now celebrated) the day of Andalucía.

Southern Spain, much like many other places in the south, beats to a different beat and has its own flavor. People enjoy life to the fullest - the streets are always bustling with residents and tourists. Its rich heritage (and cuisine) keep people there (not to mention its balmy temperatures in the summer and temperate temps in the winter) and keep tourists coming back from more.

La tierra de amor. At least that's where the story of am. & pm. all began. Somewhere on a winding cobble stone road in the heart of Sevilla.

So tonight we raise our glasses to you, Sevilla. Salud!

(* Here a secret steal on some excellent Spanish wine: Estola Reserva. It's the tempranillo we always keep stocked in our wine rack. You can find it at Trader Joe's for under $7. A bargain well worth it. Click here for a review from albinnyc who is drinking her way through wines at Trader Joe's one glass at a time. We'll be bookmarking this site! :))

i < 3 hearts

I love how sometimes the most mudane things can make such nice photos. This stained glass heart has probably been attached to this window for years, and it wasn't until a recent visit that we were inspired by its charm.

And, yes, having it being a bright, sunny day and watching the red reflection bounce off the walls certainly did help catch our eye.



With Valentine's Day now under our belts, we'd like to reflect on some of the things we love:
<3 Morning espresso, freshly ground
<3 Walks, both urban and rural
<3 Sweets! (Especially those made from home, like our citris cookies... mmm!)
<3 Lazy Sunday afternoons
<3 Red wine (from the homelands...Spain)
<3 Snail mail & homemade cards

Oh, and how the list continues.

What are some of your loves?

Vagabundo

I have often wondered what it would be like to live out of a suitcase. If I had to downsize what could I leave behind? What would I have to have with me.

Naturally, I never thought about the suitcase being a horse & buggie.

I remember being at the stop light (in the car) and watching this man travel in the other direction. At first I could not believe my eyes. This is certainly not a sight that one would expect in the 21st century, but then again there is a culture of wanderers in Europe (aka Gypsies).

There wasn't much time to react, and I really wish we would have had more time to master this shot.

This photo helps to remind me on just how lucky so many of us are without even knowing it. We are fortune enough to have a roof over our head and an excess of "things." We don't have to travel from place to place to make ends meet.

Dream of Horses

If I had to dedicate myself to a creative form, it would without a doubt be double exposures.

I love how no two are the same. You can take the most photographed landmark in a city and make it different by overlaying another image on top of it. Double exposures are original, and very infrequently turn out just how you had in mind when you took both photos.

This particular double exposure did not just happen. I had been waiting in the plaza by the cathedral (yes, still in Spain!) for some time. I kept watching the horses and carriages come and go, come and go. It was a constant movement.

The horses were able to rest between rides, but a humid summer afternoon heat certainly is not the best condition for a restful rest. I started to wonder: Do these horses know how much better their life could be? Are they treated well, feed well, kept well? How do they endure day after day with the same routes, same tourists, same heat?

I took this particular photo thinking about how the horse and the wheel of the carriage essentially have the same job. Without one another the job could not be complete. If one is broken the workload becomes harder. Is this fair and right when one component is living and one isn't?

I think that photography should be more than just a click of a button. It should be beautiful at times, ugly during others. But, for me, more importantly - I think it needs to bring new meaning and thoughts to things we see in our daily lives.

Photography should make you think beyond the image.

Through the eyes of a horse

Photo by AMB
Carriage horse right outside of the Catedral in Sevilla, Spain

Table for Two

Here's to the sunny, inviting streets of Spain. If only there was a way to bottle that sunshine for a dreary Midwestern day.

Anyway, I love this image.

I love how the old man is sitting alone at a table. He's got his cervecita (now probably warm from the heat) and is just watching the people going by. What a life!

Then you have the student walking right by the outdoor seating to get back home. Oh to be a student in this wonderful country again...

Here's to more memories and future images of Spain. :)