Off to Spain

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Years back, soon after we had moved into India, we had gone to the Durga Pujo in Maddox Square, Kolkata.

There were a couple of foreigners at the pandal there trying to understand what was happening. My dad started talking to them and explained the story of how Ma Durga killed Mahishashur. He drew an analogy with the bull fights of Spain and explained that Ma Durga would fell the demon with one of her weapons and that the demon would gain life from the drops of blood shed and how this would go on till she finally speared him.

“Just as in a bull fight where matadors come in one by one and wound the bull till the bull finally succumbs to its injuries” he said.

I am not sure of the mythological veracity of his descriptor but then the image did stick in his eight year old’s imagination.

Bandra Durga Pujo 2012

Recently my mom told me that my father had gone to Spain before they had got married.

Which means that Spain is possibly one of the few West European countries that I had not been to as a toddler.

Well K and I are heading off to Spain in a few hours. Our first trip to the country. The choice driven by the fact that it is possibly going to be the least cold of the European countries at this time of the year.

We start of with Madrid then we head to Seville…Granada and finally to Vicky Christina and their Barcelona.

K has done a fair bit of research. Me more cursorily.

I am the sort of traveler who prefers to land at a place and then talk to the locals, amble around and discover its vignettes. An experience which often doesn’t tick all the boxes in the tourism departments list but is usually full of colour and life.

So if you are in Spain and if we have connected then do give a shout. Would be great to meet. Or if there are friends of yours there or favourite haunts of yours which you feel we should go to let us know. Would be much obliged.

Will check mails and my id is k.finelychopped@gmail.com or tweet me at @finelychopped or ping me on the finely chopped facebook page 

Now what’s Spanish for ciao?