About Me: An Introduction (Pretty Simple Enough, I Suppose)

About Me: An Introduction (Pretty Simple Enough, I Suppose)

There’s an old Vulcan saying: Don’t let perfection be the enemy of the good. Well, perhaps it’s not a “Vulcan” saying but I have often heard it repeated by a pathologist that I worked for many years ago. It turns out that she was correct in her assessment as I have let getting my series of essays lag while I stressed over the “perfect” introduction. Realizing the error in judgment, I’ve decided to throw caution to the wind, say the heck with it and just start releasing my essays to the Substack community and not fret over any faults, regardless of how major or minor they may be. With that being said I offer greetings to my potential readers and thank you for checking out my first essay.

This is a beginning attempt at publishing my work in an open forum. This is a brave new world for me so don’t expect any literary masterpieces (at least not yet). Any constructive criticism would be appreciated, too so feel free to submit it (privately of course).

What is the topic of these essays, you might wonder? It all began about a year and a half ago when my husband Les and I began planning to move abroad. It wasn’t a decision we arrived to without careful consideration. We were living in Phoenix, Arizona for almost ten years and for a variety of reasons needed to make a change. After determining that most other American cities were either too cold or too expensive, we thought that going international was a viable option. Reviewing the options we settled on Barcelona, a city with which we were both familiar. My husband was born in Barcelona to American parents, so it would be a homecoming of sorts for him.

But why did we decide to move to a foreign country, specifically in Europe, instead of staying in the United States? When I was an undergrad at Temple University, I was fortunate to attend two semesters abroad in London during the early 80s. That adventure piqued my life-long dream to live in Europe. Consulting multiple sources, we considered several major European capitals but kept coming back to Barcelona. After additional research and calculations, we decided Barcelona was the place for us.

Since I had recently retired, we were able to qualify for non-lucrative visas. I decided to utilize my time to finish my master’s degree in liberal studies at Arizona State University, which I successfully completed earlier this year. While working on my final applied project, I found myself inspired by the intersection of food and culture in Barcelona. There is a such a distinctiveness about how it intermingles that I find fascinating. Eating is a decidedly social experience and is tied in with not only festivals and holidays, but everyday life as well.

While this was an invaluable learning experience for me, trekking through Barcelona’s gastronomic wonders allows me to connect with people in the community. No doubt, I could just keep to myself and not accept the challenge to form relationships with any residents of the city. Participating in the food culture is providing a path to making friends and having meaningful interactions. Eating like a Barcelona resident - I should note that there is no “typical Barcelona resident - is quickly becoming an ideal way to adapt and participate in the city and its culture.

This journey on which I’m about to embark will take me to places and events that might not be all that well-known to some. The essays are regular series of observations and personal reflections as an expatriate gastronome in Barcelona. Yet, don’t expect a travelog, regular restaurant reviews or even a food gossip column. I’m not an expert (yet) and my level of knowledge doesn’t even approach that of the late Anthony Bourdain or even Martha Stewart. These are just my own personal takes that I hope will also enlighten and entertain. I also hope that this may inspire readers who may be thinking of joining us in Barcelona to experience this remarkable city, welcoming people, and captivating food scene. Also, any questions that you may have would be more than welcome.

P.S. There’s been several reports in the international news over the last few days about anti-tourism demonstrations in Barcelona. We haven’t encountered any of them although we were confronted by a grumpy guy on our way to Spanish class who complained about tourists. We mentioned that we lived here, and my husband even mentioned that he was born here. Since he was proven wrong, he just waved us away and continued to move along, mumbling to himself. That is by far the exception, rather than the rule regarding our experiences here in this city. We’ve been the brunt of far more aggressive verbal abuse in the United States, even in such LGBTQ and tourism-friendly cities such as Philadelphia and Phoenix. In my opinion, though, this anti-tourism kerfuffle will probably soon blow over. Additionally, we don’t get too many tourists in our neighborhood, so there is that but we trust that the city can handle the situation without it getting out of hand.