July 11, 2008 · 11:31 am

Your Children Should Learn Spanish

Obama is right. Your children should learn to speak Spanish, but he forgot to mention that I have to learn French ASAP. My guess is that it won’t be so difficult once I put a little more effort into the endeavor.

Seriously, I think Obama is definitely correct (though he failed to mention that he himself doesn’t speak Spanish). After living in Spain for eight years (and having already known the language) and now that I am spending so much time in France, I can’t stress how important it is to speak another language. Your world opens up to infinite possibilities when you speak another language. Not only can you order the sandwich of your choice, ask for directions and understand them, bridge the cliche cultural and political gaps, but most importantly you can “participate” in all senses of the word.

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July 8, 2008 · 6:10 pm

The Summer of George

So far it has been a great Summer for Spain. The Spanish national soccer team won the European Cup, and Rafael Nadal just won Wimbledon. You could also say that I have had a great Summer so far. During June alone, I traveled non stop between Madrid and Paris, and have been in Rabat and Rome.

As a matter of fact, I have only spent one out of the past six weekends in Madrid. Ironically, it doesn’t feel much like Summer to me right now. I am looking out the window at a rainy, cold and windy day in Paris. It is 65ºF and feels more like October than July. Meanwile in Madrid — where I am spending an average of two to three days a week — it is 90ºF with clear skies.

At least my summer is better than the Summer of George.

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July 8, 2008 · 2:20 pm

19 Courses to Fight Hunger

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I just read this article in El Mundo (in Spanish) about the leaders of the G8 dining together in Tokyo to discuss how to solve the problems of world hunger, increasing food costs, and food shortages (amongst other issues). The meal? Nineteen courses. It’s good to be the king(s).

Of course, I have recently written about excellent meals myself in Rome and Paris.

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July 6, 2008 · 1:29 pm

Sunday Brunch in Paris

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And then there is Sunday brunch in Paris at William and Yasmine’s place.

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July 5, 2008 · 2:08 pm

When in Rome

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When in Rome . . . eat like you’re at home? One of the things I loved most about Rome was the food. Ironically, the Italian food in Rome is almost as good as it is in the U.S. Seriously, though, the pasta, gnocchi, and pizza all reminded me of home.

As seen above, one night we had gnocchi with tomato sauce, basil, and mozzarella, and then probably one of the best pastas I have ever tasted: linguine with shrimp, zuccini, and fiore di zucca (squash flowers).

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You also have to realize that I don’t get good mozzarella or basil in Spain. At Italian restaurants in Spain, they almost always substitute the basil with oregano — and I just don’t go for that. So at every meal, I had to doubled up with a caprese salad (tomatoes, mozzarella and basil) that could have come out of my mother’s garden. Continue reading →

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July 3, 2008 · 11:09 am

Good for the Goose

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Yesterday, the New York Times reported that the U.S. government modeled Guantánamo interrogation techniques directly on a Chinese torture manual for inducing false confessions. I wonder whether John McCain still thinks that the Supreme Court’s decision was one of its worst? Does Justice Scalia believe that torturing someone until they confess to anything will save lives?

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July 1, 2008 · 3:25 pm

Roma Eterna

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It’s hard to believe that after living in Europe for eight years, I had never been to Rome before.  That all changed this weekend! Especially for the past month, I have been going back and forth between Madrid and Paris. Paris must be one of the most spectacularly beautiful cities in the world, and Madrid is one of the most agradable. So was it so surprising that I should find myself so surprised by Rome’s stereotypical and cliché eternal beauty? I had assumed that I would be most impressed by Michelangelo’s Rome, by the renaissance Rome, and by the Rome of the narrow alleys and colorful houses. Continue reading →

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June 27, 2008 · 10:20 am

Damn That Grammar!

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It looks like it all comes down to an interpretation of some shady grammar, of commas, of prefatory, operative, and ablative clauses. And something about Latin.

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

If the founding fathers only had better grammar, Christians wouldn’t need guns and the death penalty to keep black kids from having abortions and life saving condoms out of Africa.

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June 27, 2008 · 10:02 am

Spain and Ahab’s Wife at a Crossroads

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I am about half way through (around page 300 of 600) Ahab’s Wife: Or, The Star-gazer. The novel, one of my mother’s favorites, had been lying dormant for years on my book shelf until a week or so ago when I decided to open her up and give some air to pages. After a slow start, I am finally fully involved in its development.

Then right when Una, the story’s main character, was at last about to touch land after a dramatic voyage at sea, Spain convincingly beat Russia 3-0 in the European Cup semi-finals. This victory marks a major change in the Spanish national soccer team’s history of disappointing performances in major international competitions.

The moment the match ended, the spontaneous festivities broke out in the streets of Madrid. Outside my window, it sounded like a mix between a war zone (firecrackers and car alarms), San Fermines, and a fascist pep rally. Although I am not the biggest fan of patriotic boasting, reaching the finals of the European Cup is a major ego booster to a (soccer-loving) nation and source of pride and future bragging rights.

But amidst all of the cheering and chanting (“que viva España” and “a por ellos, oé”) and celebrations, I kept wondering how people could so openly rejoice after everything that Ahab’s wife, Una, had just been through and everything that awaits her ashore. It just goes to show that we live in little bubbles isolated from our own immediate surroundings, like a raft alone in the open sea.

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June 26, 2008 · 5:24 pm

Justice Scalia, the Judicial Activist

To no one’s surprise, Justice Scalia and his Republican appointee brothers on the Court have shown a fine example of judicial activism. Personally, I think that from a historical and even a literal reading of the Constitution, it is a real stretch to find an absolute right to bear arms in the Second Amendment. And regardless of how you feel about the issue, it takes a great feat of judicial activism to overturn the will of the D.C. electorate who have been firmly against firearms possession since 1976. I wonder whether John McCain thinks this particular instance of judicial activism is one of the best or worst decisions in the Court’s history.

In referring to Scalia’s flip flop, E.J. Dionne Jr. writes,

In his intemperate dissent in the court’s recent Guantanamo decision, Scalia said the defense of constitutional rights embodied in that ruling meant it ‘will almost certainly cause more Americans to be killed.’ That consideration apparently does not apply to a law whose precise purpose was to reduce the number of murders in the District of Columbia.

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