2022 is one of the years that I have traveled the least; but, on the other hand, I will hardly forget it.
It has been an intense year. All the getaways have been special because of the people with whom I have shared; but Ethiopia has taken the podium in many ways!
I started the getaways of 2022 with a weekend in May in Mallorca. It had been many years since I went and I really wanted to. I went with my family to a friend’s house to share moments with her. The goal was not to know the island and instead she showed me the most authentic part. We were in the northeast, near Artà, in the middle of the countryside and without noise or tourists. Having an omelette for breakfast made with the eggs collected the same day is a privilege. I highlight the visit to Aubocassa. It is a Majorcan possession where history and agricultural exploitation go hand in hand in an exemplary way. Visiting the olive fields and ending with an oil tasting, is priceless!
Those of you who know me know the passion I have for Menorca. I was four days in June and fifteen more in July. It is my second home. The more I know it, the more I love it. I repeated destinations that I already knew such as Pedrera de Santa Ponça, the beaches of Binisafua such as Es Caló Blanc or the Binisafua beach itself, the awesome Biniparratx, the quiet Cala Teulera, the camí de cavalls on the south coast, the gins in Som Sis, the sunset in Cavallería; but I am also happy to have known new things.
Having met the Brothers of Soul Menorca at Tiffanys has marked a before and after in my Menorcan nights. Leaving aside the family parties in Binibeca, I don’t remember having danced so much on the island since I was young! On the other hand, I loved being able to be alone, in the middle of July, in a couple of nooks of Els Escullots, a nook that I didn’t know. Virgin and lonely landscape. I hab never seen, from the sea, the procession of boats from Santa Carmen in the port of Maó and had not done a night delivery by sea either! Picking up the pizzas from La Bahia de Biniancolla to eat them on the sea watching the sunset is an unbeatable experience. Oh! and I loved knowimg Es Forn Nou de Sant Climent. After fifty years going to the island, it’s gratifying to see how it still surprises me and I don’t keep explaining that otherwise I won’t have anything left for publications!
In mid-October I went to Madrid for a weekend. Seven friends from school went there to celebrate the anniversary. It was a getaway I was looking forward to; but we had never traveled together; in fact, I had never shared more than one dinner/lunch with them. And we all know that sharing 24 hours is risky. The summary is that it was AMAZING. We saw few things of the city, but we laughed like never before. From here I want to thank the Aurora restaurant for getting us to dance the first night and making sure that we couldn’t stop until we got to Barcelona… despite the fact that the merit was ours, because on Ave we already messed it up! Our attitude was overflowing. By the way, the breakfasts at Hermanas Arce are a great discovery. Good product in a different place! Ladies… difficult to beat this weekend!
The nerves were concentrated at the end of October, because the trip of the year was coming: Ethiopia. The initial idea was to visit the north and the south; but as there had been no peace treaty in the north, they forced us to go to the south. We start the route, by car, in Arba Minch and we finish it in Jinka visiting the Konso, the Ari tribe, the Mursi, the Hamer, my favorite Karo and the Nyangatom. As I have explained in the podcast, it has been the hardest trip I have ever done. Emotionally and physically tough. Emotionally because, of the countries I have visited, this is the most unfavorable or needy. Seeing children crying when I gave them a pencil breaks inside. Believe me. They told me that it had only been officially open to tourism for ten years and, as a consequence, there is almost no infrastructure prepared. This is the hard part physically. Not having hotels in good conditions also was hard. It is a country that you have to visit being aware of where you are going. It has been an inflection point for me.
In mid-November I had the annual trip for cousins. We went 10 to spend a weekend in Amsterdam. The first thing we did is go see the Red Light District at night. I have mixed feelings on this topic. The next morning and with a beautiful day, we rented bicycles to tour the city. I ate some of the best apple pie that I have never eaten, delicious coffee, saw rusty bicycles recovered from the bottom of canals, crooked houses, cheesy potatoes lasted a minute, and cheese mussels were really good! Thank you Rafa and Bea for being such good hosts and showing us the best of Amsterdam.
This year all the trips have been really emotional.
Leave a reply