Saturday, November 10, 2012

Yesterday we followed what has become our typical Friday morning routine.  Susan went to her Pilates class and I got to my gym.  I leave later than Susan because her class starts at 10:30 and my gym is less crowded after 11:30.  I did not get home until 1:45 and we decided that since we were going to symphony in the evening, it would be easiest to have lunch out.  Our choice was A Nou.

Yesterday’s menu was particularly enticing.  The appetizers included a scramble with fresh asparagus and ham, goat cheese with caramelized onion and a croqueta de bacalao.  We chose a seafood fideuá as our entrée and it was spectacular.  Talking with Javi we discovered that Sunday is a special day at A Nou.  They are hosting a food and wine luncheon that starts at 2:00 followed by a concert that will focus on traditional Valencian songs.  The cost is 25 Euros per person and it sounded so attractive that we made our reservations there on the spot.

We finished our meal with dessert – a homemade membrillo topped with queso manchego and a chocolate mousse – coffee and a chupito.  By the time we got back home it was already 5:00 and we were heading out again in another two hours.

At 7:00 we took the elevator down and when we opened the elevator door we discovered that it was raining or perhaps I should say it was RAINING.  The rain, of course, was not in the forecast, and it took most people by surprise judging by the number of people that were hunkering under any available awning.  Armed with our umbrellas we walked to the taxi stand and, surprisingly, made it to the Palau a good ten minutes before the concert began.  We took our seats in the third row and listened to the orchestra as they tuned up.

Last night’s concert was most impressive and consisted of the following: Eduard Toldrá: La filla del marxant, Felix Mendelssohn: Concierto para violín y orquesta en mi menor, op. 64, Paul Hindemith: Metamorfosis sinfónicas sobre temas de Carl Maria von Weber and Richard Strauss: Muerte y transfiguración, poema sinfónico, op. 24 . Last night’s soloist was Benjamin Schmid and he was outstanding.

The concert ended a little after 9:30 and when he left the concert hall we discovered that the rain had abated.  We walked over the bridge in hopes of finding a place to have a drink and a tapa, but every bar and café we passed was filled to the brim.  We caught a cab home and stopped in at a bar around the corner from our house, had a quick drink and then went back home.  We read for a while and went to bed a little after midnight.