i often wonder what life would be like living a little closer to europe, again. but i just can’t ever imagine leaving my beautiful california. it’s true—sometimes it is hard living so far away. like, we didn’t exactly factor in a pandemic into our move out here (we moved almost ten years ago now) and so that was really, really hard to not know when we might see our family again. but, i know that we all experienced that hardship in someway during that time.
we didn’t see our family for over 2.5 years.
we sometimes fantasise about buying a run down chateau in the south of france and renovating it over time. south of france is one of our favorite places in the world. that way we are smack bang in the middle of our other two favorite places—italy & spain. again, very much a pipe dream, but a dream nonetheless.
my mum moved to spain when i was 18 (and is still there). but my grandparents had a house there (in calpe, alicante) for a long as i can remember. i feel extremely grateful to have been able to spend, (what feels like) half my childhood in spain, and so many of my early memories are of those times— surrounded by some of the most incredible food.
i feel very connected to the culture, the food, and the way of life. not in a hilaria baldwin kind of way, but in more of a respectful, longing for it kind of way. i have so many happy memories of eating paella regularly at the port in the evenings, making friends and learning to speak spanish from a very young age.
once mum officially moved out there full time, i of course, would visit her often and stay for elongated stints. for 3 years in row i stayed from late april through end of october and got a job in a local spanish restaurant—the same restaurant for all three summers. i was a server and absolutely loved the restaurant life back then. this was when i really got to know spanish food on a whole other level.
i would often ask chef if i could come in early and watch the kitchen prep—which he always kindly obliged. as long as i made him a cappuccino before shift, of course. i would also bring the entire kitchen some little beers towards the end of shift and made sure to always stay for one myself. sometimes i would maybe have two and then excitedly cycle home through the quiet streets of quesada—mainly tired but also running on adrenaline from the busy shift.
summers 1 & 2 were a really fun time for me, but right before i left for summer 3 i had an awful break-up that tore up every inch of my soul. and so in a way, working in the restaurant was very therapeutic for me. i had many teary eyed cycles home that year—that was for sure.
i would cycle from mums to the restaurant in my crisp white shirt and black pants, every night. in the summer i worked 7 nights a week. i would leave mum and all her pals knocking back the local wine on mums terrace, knowing they would most likely still be there when i got home.
7 nights a week might seem excessive, being that i was only 18, but i hadn’t decided if i even wanted to go to university yet, and so this was an extremely fun way to spend my time, and make some money in the meantime.
endless days on the beach with my friends, random nights off dancing and spending all day swimming in the sea didn’t hurt the situation either.
it’s funny—i miss london all the time, but never enough to ever want to move back. los angeles is the happiest and most at home i have ever felt in my adult life.
andy and i have always lived away from our hometown, worcester—even when living in the uk. and i have now lived away from worcester for longer than i ever lived in it. i only associate it with such a small part of who i am. and unfortunately, the most traumatic parts of who i am. i don’t enjoy going back to my hometown at all.
but, yes—london i miss! we lived in london for 6 years before we officially moved to the usa. we moved to san francisco first, and boy what an adventure that was.
more on london & sf soon!
one of my favorite spanish things to eat was romesco—a thick sauce made from almonds and charred, roasted peppers and sherry vinegar. traditionally eaten with calcots in the spring but it is also amazing with fish, grilled vegetables, omelets and more. i served it with some fresh boquerones for a supper club last summer. here is my version.
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