Gillian Thrum, Author at The Green Door

Apr 282014 0 Responses

A fleeting find

We found a wonderful patch of these baby iris whilst driving from Montejaque to Benaojan on the weekend. I couldn’t believe it! Out the window was this little flash of blue amongst the grass. Phil didn’t believe me. He thought it was another mass of Muscari. Normally you’d be thrilled with a mass of Muscari, but Muscari has become “old hat”.

There were hundreds of them only a few inches high. We went past the next day and they were “over”. Can you believe it. We were SO LUCKY. Peter identified them not as Iris reticulata which is what they looked like to us, but Gymandriris sisyrinchium – was called Iris originally but has been reclassified…. it as a case of being in the right place at the right time.

Apr 282014 0 Responses

Patas nigra

The black footed pig that produces Spain’s most famous food product. Iberico pork. We’ve practically OD’d on this, especially in the first week in Madrid and Salamanca. The Spanish are very proud of their pig and it’s products and I must say, deservedly so.

If I hadn’t been told it was pork I was eating as an eye fillet the other day I wouldn’t have known. Very hard to describe – something in-between lamb and beef perhaps. Not with a gamey flavour at all as I’m not a fan of game meat in particular.

The famous Iberian pig has an extremely good life. It’s allowed to roam practically wherever it likes and during the summer finds it’s way underneath as many Cork Oaks as it can where it literally stuffs itself day in and day out with Cork Oak acorns which flavours the meat – until the uninitiated, such as myself, can’t tell what they are eating – just that it is magnificent. The salami type product that is made from pure iberian pig sells for over 100 Euro a kilo. This is from pigs that are finished off completely underneath the Cork Oak trees – not a bad way to end your existence if you are a pig!

Apr 282014 0 Responses

Hiking in Montejaque

Our last day in this fabulous area was spent doing two short, but as you can see, strenuous hikes into the surrounding mountains – doing what we like best – spotting plants in their natural habitat. It is the biggest thrill I can have. First finding the plant and then successfully identifying it.

The mountains in Andalucia are filled with easy to difficult tracks. Many are extremely old such as this one that has been linking two villages together for many centuries. Today was Sunday and by the end of the second walk we came across many a family walking party that were enjoying their day out – from 5 yr olds to 70-odd. The Spanish “olds” are extremely fit. I am sure that this is because so many of the towns and villages are built on impregnable sites and they get a lot of exercise just walking to their equivalent of the corner store!

Apr 262014 0 Responses

Riding from EL Gastor to Montecorte

Another fabulous day in “holiday-heaven” Andalucian style.

I was off today (after a late start as I waited outside the wrong bar … The “Communist Bar” with the red and orange chairs instead of the right- wing bar with the blue chairs according to Dirk). Anyway, thankfully cell phones sorted this mismatch of Bars out – both reportedly the only Bar in town at the top of the hill…..need I say more.

We were off on a five hour ride from the picturesque town of El Gastor which held out against Franco for an additional 15 years whilst the menfolk hid in the hills. It would have been pretty chilly in winter I can tell you as it was only 8 degrees on the tops when we rode through in April!

Posts by: Gillian Thrum