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Falconry
March 13, 2011
One SUV. Two falcons wearing hoods in the backseat. Two friends. One expert. One apprentice. One vast countryside in Extremadura. This Sunday is for falconry, or cetrería in Spanish. Falconry is the activity of using falcons to hunt birds in …
Carnaval in Jerez
March 10, 2011
A thousand kids dressed up to march around Jerez de los Caballeros last Friday. Each class wore a themed costume. For Carnaval, kids and friends dress up as groups. This is a far cry from my creative costumes for Halloween, …
Futbol Sala
March 3, 2011
The field is neither green nor plush like grass. Rather it is the hard wooden floor of an indoor gymnasium. There are colored jerseys with team names, but there are no fancy endorsements. Instead of 11 players, each team is …
Paella Party
February 27, 2011
I got invited to a Paella party last Saturday. I knew only one person and met the rest when we got there around 2:30 in the afternoon. Those whom I met were so nice and welcoming, and luckily I now …
Banda Municipal de Jerez (city band)
February 22, 2011
Outside of the cultural building, Jerezanos going for a stroll can hear soft music wafting into the streets. Inside, the music echoes throughout the peeling, white hallways on the second floor. In a small, cramped room, a chandelier hangs unnoticed …
Cachipe
February 15, 2011
The name Cachipe is a family one – from a gypsy dialect that means a good person. The name came from the owner’s grandfather and the owners have since done everything to make the restaurant true to its name. Being …
My Spanish Birthday
February 10, 2011
Celebrating a birthday abroad is just different. There is no Costco cake in Europe. This probably doesn’t count as tragedy, I know. It’s just that I absolutely love spending my birthday with my family and friends in the United States. …
Authentic Extremenian cooking
February 8, 2011
Seve Garcia Vasquez has worked at Oasis for 6 years and showed me how to prepare various Extremenian dishes. How do they cook in Jerez? Easy, just use all of the parts of the pig. Really, ALL of the parts. …
Matanza
February 4, 2011
[audio:http://lauraeshelman.me/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/MATANZAaudio2.mp3] Join me and find out what going to a pig slaughter is like (4:30). A family crowds around the table to eat garbanzo beans. As bread is passed, the family laughs, relaxes and tries to catch some moments of …
Welcome to the candy party
February 2, 2011
A group of five teenagers gathers around the counter at Pasteleria Canela and Tomasa Pitel Jimenez patiently waits in her white coat, framed by the colorful candies behind her. Often in the afternoon, the storefront is filled with people and …