Was That a Fartó?

Back in 2011 while I worked at Westside High School in Omaha, Nebraska, my colleague/buddy Assumpta, fellow Spanish teacher from Valencia, Spain, and I organized an exchange with her former school, Sagrado Corazón. For an entire week, our WHS students flew over to Europe and stayed in the homes of Sagrado Corazón counterparts and also attended classes. When not in school, the American and Spanish students explored Valencia together.

WHS students and teachers returned to Omaha, but literally three days later, the Spanish students followed us back to the land of hamburgers and Uncle Sam. They experienced the same culture, gastronomic, and language shock, but had the comfort of a friend that had just experienced the same adventure.

Those three total weeks of cultural, life, and language exchange left a lasting impression on all involved. It was so impactful that that same summer, two Spanish students returned to Omaha on their own, and Nebraska of all possible destinations. Two WHS students also jettisoned back to Valencia for an additional month.

The friendships created with this exchange last today. That is why we decided to spend our Christmas vacation in Valencia with Pilar, Assumpta, and Christina.

Early Dinner at la ciudad de las artes y ciencias

Just like student trips in 2011 and 2013, my family and I had to visit la Ciutat de las Arts I les Cièncias, the iconic figure of Valencia. This time, four of our own kids joined us strolling the premises and enjoyed dinner at the food carts lining the covered area east of the Hemisfèric.

The excursion south of Valencia included a visit to the Albufera Wetlands. It was canceled due to the wind that wrecked havoc on boats and my stylish man beard. Instead we hit up Playa del Recati for conversation, snacks, stories, and beer before a full on late lunch / early dinner. The actual name of the meal doesn’t matter as the Spanish tend to have at least four meals during the day. In addition, Valencia claims to have invented paella, so paella was on the menu for lunch, or was that dinner? Like any good Spanish paella, it’s served on a massive skillet pan the size of a car wheel and at least 10 pounds of rice.

You can imagine my surprise when I saw the dessert menu after gorging on delicious paella. Listed in red on the menu was a dessert interestingly named “fartó”! Out of sheer curiosity, I had to order the fartó. This wasn’t your exported New Mexican dessert from the rural fringes, but a Valencian elongated flaky pastry layered with melted chocolate. In between each layer was a sweet cream. I would compare to an éclair. It was the opposite of what one might expect from the dessert named fartó.

Next stop – Navigating Tight Spots in Granada.

La Ciudad de las Artes y Ciencias

Early Dinner at la ciudad de las artes y ciencias

Hemisfèric at Night

Nice to See You Ol' Friend