We arrived to our final destination in Catalonia a few days ago. "Where the heck is that?" you might be asking. Catalonia is a province in the northeast corner of Spain. Just take a train 35 minutes north of Barcelona, then drive about 20 minutes into the beautiful mountains full of cork trees and you'll find us. We're living at Can Ponet with Cesar, Liliana, and their two teenager daughters Johanna and Gemma. And we're having another most excellent woofing experience.
-The Language - Cesar and his family are proud Catalonians. They speak Catalan, not Spanish. Catalan is an old language that has some French and Spanish sounding words. Cesar was clear that we are in Catalonia, not in Spain.
- The Goats. They have friendly goats, complete with fashionable bells around their necks. We attempted milking the goats today. (Special note: The Chickens do not make the highlights because the roosters are right outside our window and are the “Early Loud” variety.)
- The Tasks. Let's sum it up with two words - varied and plentiful. The farm is rustic, so there is lots to do. We've built rock steps, added onto an existing pergola, weeded the garden, picked plums, forged for ferns, observed cheese making, replaced rotted fence posts, put away grass for the winter. By the time you read this, we will have done many more things!
- Meal Time. Now this is interesting. Our family is fiery. Not that we can understand much (or any) Catalan, but we can tell by the tone and volume that a lot of spirited arguing is happening. In fact, we sometimes feel very uncomfortable. But, since there haven’t been any tears or broken dishes, we'll chalk it up to “cultural differences” and try not to let our faces show our discomfort.
- The Food. Our meals are very plain and not spicy. Things like cured pork, cheese, stale bread, fresh yogurt, olive oil, fruit from the orchard and fresh lettuce are found on our plates. Liliana works at a pharmacy from 4-8 every day and takes care of the kitchen before and after.
- The Daily Schedule. It seems Spanairds rise and shine around 7 or 8 or 9, have breakfast, then work until 2 or 3 when the big meal of the day occurs. This is followed by a two hour rest. Insert "nap time" here. Almost everything - stores, schools, offices shut down. Some restaurants are open, but they are usually not busy. From 4 to 8 people return to work again, and then have supper around 9 or 10 pm. The late supper and bed time is taking some getting used to.
- The Weather. We wouldn't be Canadian if we didn't mention the weather. Day highs have been around 28C, and lows of 18C. It's been sunny, with little humidity. Rain - only once so far, with a hard downpour for about 20 minutes.