Institute of Oceanography, Fomentor, & Fiesta

Monday 11 June 2007
Angel arranged for a visit with Pere Oliver of the Centro Oceanográfico de Baleares this morning. Ana went with us. I spent an hour with Pere and some of his specialists discussing the work of the center and especially squid and cuttlefish, how the are fished in los Baleares, and how they study these animals. They believe that most cephalopods live only one year. The cuttlefish are caught in trammel nets. The season is just ending now. Pere gave me some links to web sites where I can find more detailed information on the fisheries of los Baleares. I was very impressed by the size and number of research vessels that they operate, and the interpretive displays they have in their patio.

We then went for coffee and pastry before shopping for things we need to take on our trip around Menorca. Angel and I went out for lunch. There was a group of young, beautiful Russian girls at the table next to us. The were showing one another their purchases which included "G" strings. I rested for a couple of hours in the afternoon, but didn't sleep much. I spent much of the siesta reading about the shorelines of Menorca.

At 1700 Angel took me for a ride to Formentor, a rugged, rocky peninsula on the north shore of Mallorca. On the way there we drove along the shoreline of the Bay of Pollença to Talia d´Albercutx and Far de Formentor a light house on the end of the peninsula. This is a very beautiful part of Mallorca. Angel said he has photos of his parents on their honeymoon at the same locations we visited. It is apparent by their behavior that a lot of the couples here are newly weds or soon to be weds, and not all of them are young. A fitting observation on the day before my wedding anniversary.

On the way home we visited the hospital to get a grill from Ana, but after seeing it I decided it would be easier and not so messy to just heat the spare ribs up on the stovetop. Angel and I went back to his condo and began making preparations for the party. Angel wanted to share my spareribs with his closest friends. They began to arrive about 2030. Ana, David, Javier, Elena, and Lola joined Angel and I for dinner. We had the spare ribs of course (recipe below), Elena brought a salad, Angel prepared his famous broken eggs. This dish is actually french fries with garlic, and a cooked egg white, and a raw egg yoke broken on top. It is a very tasty way to eat french fries. We drank 2 bottles of very good Rioja wine. Angel cut up the rest of the melón con piel de sapo and poured some port on it. He also served some delicious pastry with the port wine he brought me from Lisbon. Everyone helped clear the table. They began leaving at 0030. Angel and I finished washing the dishes, and Angel fell asleep on the couch in front of the television. I went to bed about 0130. What a great day this has been.

Costillas
400 g tomate frito
200 g ketchup
200 ml vinagre
200 g asúcar moreno
100 ml miel
200 ml agua
10 ml chili polvido
30 g Maizana

Calenta tomate frito, ketchup, vinagre, asúcar, miel, agua, y chili hasta se herve. Agrega las costillas y las cocina para 2 o 3 horas. Mescla la Maizana con poca agua. Cuando es mesclado bien, agrega a la salsa. Cocina las costillas unos minutos mas y las serva.