Golf Girona

I am not a golfer but since many people come to Girona for the quality and variety of the courses I took the opportunity to walk around the Girona Golf course with marketing director Carla Tonini, an Argentinian working here for the last 7 years. The project was the idea of Pere Ramió and built between 1989 and 92 on this hilltop a mere 10 minutes from the centre of Girona with a variety of house developments around the borders. The course certainly blends in well with the surrounding countryside with lots of cork oaks and splendid mediterranean pines providing plenty of shade for the golfers. The aromas drifting over are heavy with wild rosemary and the blossom of fruit trees which are both typical and evocative of the area at this time of year. Carla emphasized that this course, while not the hardest in the area, has it's challenges, and their use of recycled water means both the fairways and greens look fabulous despite the drought we are experiencing locally. There are 3 lakes on the course and from some places there are good views over Girona and the Cathedral and a fairly constant reminder that the airport is also close by. In fact so close that there are Italian and British golfers that take advantage of Ryanair to fly in early, play a round of golf, have a meal and fly home again all in a day. I prefer to think about people taking a little longer to discover the joys of the area and maybe relaxing on the Costa Brava for a few days too. Many thanks to Carla for taking the time to show me around and for more info see: www.golfgirona.com

Can Xapa -chocolate making at it's finest

Can Xapa is a very well kept secret since it is well hidden in the old part of Bordils, a town that most people pass through on their way from Girona to the Costa Brava without even noticing. If you do venture into the old part of town however there are several surprises in store, one of which is the beautiful church and the other which is Can Xapa. The pastry and chocolate making here has been passed down through the generations to the current owners Esteve Fabregas and his wife but there is an issue of what will happen when they retire since they have no children and it does require many years aprenticeship. I was given a tour around the medieval fortified farmhouse which has been the shop and workplace for hundreds of years, all beautifully restored with old materials but not easy to combine the modern equipment needed with low ceilings and narrow corridors. The day I visited they were preparing one of the standard ingredients in many of their famous recipes-roasted almonds covered in caramel and sugar. This base configuration will turn into slabs of dark chocolate, individual decorated chocolates, catanies and other delicacies. The catanies are sugar coated almonds which are then rolled in cacao powder and are very typical in Catalonia and given as a gift. The process is to use local almonds, which have more oil and hence flavour, than foreign varieties and roast them in the oven. Meanwhile it is time to get the caramel prepared in the special heated bowl into which the roasted almonds are added. Once thoroughly mixed the sticky almonds are poured onto a bed of sugar and mixed so that the sugar granules stick to the caramel and this means that we now have individual almonds covered in sugar which can be handled easily. The next process depends on what the ultimate product will be but in the case of catanies each sugar coated almond is further rolled in cacao powder to take on the traditional colour. It is a wonderful place to wander around admiring the cakes, chocolates of many types as well as the savoury dishes they also prepare for taking away. So, the next time you pass through Bordils, make a short detour and you will not be sorry!

Rupit -medieval town

Coming from Girona or Barcelona it is an easy and fun drive to Rupit and will take about an hour. The main approach is via Santa Coloma de Farners or Anglès heading to Olot in the comarca of La Selva. At Val d'en Bas you turn towards Vic and a few kms along the main road there is a sign for Rupit. After climbing out of the valley at the top of the escarpment are signs to El Far which means lighthouse and gets it's name from the white limestone cliffs which were visible to fishermen from the distant Costa Brava. There are some nice walks along the cliffs and a restaurant serving typical local fare and busy on weekends. Continuing into Rupit itself and parking in the free car park just outside of town since the streets are too narrow for traffic there are various signs with tourist information such as walks, bike rides, hotels and restaurants in the area. Taking a walk into town across a wobbly pedestrian bridge over a river gorge is fun and sets one up for exploring the restored medieval streets. Other than restaurants and hotels it's fun to look in the various shops selling local cured sausages and several types of cheese made from cows, sheep or goat and aged for different periods. You can always ask for a sample before buying if you are not sure whether the stronger flavours of the older cheeses are for your palate. Another option is to buy some bread and cheese, ham and tomatoes and head down to the river where there are several picnic tables set up under overhanging rocks and it is always cool and shady here even in the hot summer months. There is lots of good exploring to do in the surrounding countryside with old churches, country restaurants and of course El Far which is a couple hours walk away. The vistas of wooded hills and small villages and farms below in the valleys are one of peace and tranquility and take you back in time.

Susqueda Dam and the serious water shortage

This is a perfect day trip from either Girona or Barcelona and offers a combination of unspoilt countryside with the old medieval town of Rupit or the market town of Angles nearby. The first side trip from the main Angles to Olot road is up to the Susqueda dam, a dam built in the 50's to supply water to Girona, the Costa Brava and Barcelona. The lack of rain during the last years has made water an increasingly important issue, with restrictions being threatened for all of the communities mentioned above in the short term unless some pretty major rainfalls occur this spring. The road borders the river that flows from the dam to the River Ter in the valley below but as the dam is barely releasing any water the river is pretty meagre. Once you arrive at the dam itself and head out along the walkway it becomes very clear how much water is missing, the latest count puts Susqueda at only 22% of capacity and it is a sad sight seeing the shortfall from the exposed sides of the surrounding hills. Water restrictions appear almost inevitable and have set Girona against Barcelona as the former do not see any reason to be cut off first for water they consider theirs. Barcelona has seen the writing on the wall and is already bringing in barge fulls of water from the Rhone in France at what can only be an outrageous cost to the tax payer. This situation and the political consequences are likely to get worse before it gets better and with the global warming predictions as well how it will end remains to be seen but everyone needs to do their bit and save as much water as possible.

Fresh fish!

The fishing boats arrive to the fishing village of Port de Selva around 5pm most days. Once they arrive it is a mad scramble to sort each variety into separate boxes and then unload onto the quayside pallets for collection to the the Fisherman's Co-op and auction house (the Llotja) right next to the harbour. The auction process is rather unique as the participants sit on the tiered benches holding an electronic device which they push when they are interested in purchasing the full box of fish moving along the conveyor belt in front of them.The price is established by watching the electronic board which states the type of fish, boat on which it arrived, weight of the box and then a price per kilo which is the only changing part-the price starts at a high level and is falling continuously until one of the participants hits their button to establish the price at which they will buy that box. This is called a reverse auction since prices are falling not rising as in the traditional manner. Once that box has been bought an electronic ticket is generated which falls into the right box with all the buyers details and it is then covered with ice and stacked ready to be loaded at the end of the auction onto the waiting trucks for dispatch to the various fish markets around Girona Province or in Barcelona. The whole process from arrival of the boats to being bought and loaded onto trucks for its onward journey takes about an hour. In fact some fish are dropped off directly at restaurants that evening for a really fresh fish experience! This same process takes place at all the fishing ports on the Costa Brava and Palamos is probably where most fish is unloaded every day as they have the largest fleet of commercial boats based there. The other important point is proximity to population centres and Palamos is closer to the main Barcelona markets than Port de la Selva is.

Girona Airport Info

Ryanair, Spanair and other airlines have established a base at Girona Airport where you can now fly to over 60 destinations all over Europe. There are ground transfers by bus, minibus, shuttle and taxi into Girona town, Barcelona and the Costa Brava from here. For more information on transfers by van or car with driver email: gironablog@gmail.com or call 0034 607 262 102

Top 10 things to do in Girona town:

1-Take the tourist train around town. Its a comfortable way to get an overall feel for Girona and the kids love it! 2-Walk around the Old Town and explore the Cathedral, Arab Baths, Jewish Quarter and Museum. 3- Walk along the roman walls and explore the gardens behind the Cathedral-relaxing and fun. 4- Find a cafe/restaurant along the Rambla or Plaza de Independencia to sit outside on the terrace and watch the world go by. 5- Visit the covered market and buy some fish or meat and vegetables from the little old ladies that sit around the outside of the building. 6- Window-shop along the Rambla, Carrer Nou and Santa Clara where all the trendy boutiques are located. 7- Take in an exhibition at the Fontana D'Or (Caixa de Girona) or La Caixa where exhibitions change on a regular basis. 8- Rent a bike and cycle around the Devesa Park and along the bike paths next to the Rivers Ter and Onyar. 9- Take in a concert at the Auditori, La Mercé or Sunset Jazz Club. 10- Enjoy some good food at one of the wide choice of restaurants here in Girona (see Top 10 Restaurant list). See map for details: