Tapas and a Camino Q&A
-with the Orange County Chapter of the American Pilgrims on the Camino
The day after my enlightening conversation and walk up the hill with Rodrigo, an email arrived, announcing the upcoming meeting of the Orange County Chapter of the American Pilgrims on the Camino. It would be a Q&A Session for Newbies like me and the chapter leader, Anita Baroldi, would cover the “who, what, where, when” issues of the Camino” and give “new pilgrims the opportunity to ask questions about every aspect of walking the Camino de Santiago de Compostela.” I was excited to meet other local lovers of the Camino. I couldn’t wait to again connect with others who shared the same interests and enthusiasm for this adventure and feel the same sense of belonging I had experienced at the National Gathering of the American Pilgrims in Santa Barbara a few months earlier.
As we arrived at her home displaying art and artifacts from her Spanish adventures, Anita greeted each of us with a warm embrace. She was petite, with short hair, about 68, and wearing cropped hiking pants and hiking sandals, looking ready to walk the Camino today.
Adventurous Women
As I looked around the room, rich with the aromas of exotic dishes, half of them were “sporty” types, comfortably wearing outdoorsy attire, while the other half looked like world travelers, with woven shawls across their shoulders, wearing rich textures, and exotic, dangly earrings and bracelets. Of course, since even having basic gear like hiking boots was a new experience for me, I was most drawn to the more bohemian types and thought about how much fun it would be to hang out with them, but I hadn’t seen anyone like them in the suburban “bedroom” town in the Inland Empire, east of Los Angeles, where I was staying with my parents now.
New Spanish Wine and Tapas
We each brought a tapa, the traditional Spanish appetizer, to share, and Anita poured us each a glass of Albariño wine. Since it had only recently made an appearance in the US, she read us the description on the label, “This is a delightfully refreshing white wine with bright citrus flavors and a subtle saltiness. Often called the ‘wine of the sea,’ because it thrives near the coastlines of Spain and Portugal.” Although I usually favored full-bodied reds, I loved the experience of a white with complex flavor that wasn’t sweet. Lovely for warm weather.
Anita waved us gracefully towards the dining room to sample the enticing spread of tapas. I knew the centuries-old story of how tapas came to be, when bar owners placed a small slice of bread on the top of a customer’s glass of wine to keep the flies out and later started adding a tidbit of food on top. By now in Spain, tapas could be anything from simple cheeses to grilled sausage, a slice of Serrano ham to the Tortilla Española (an egg omelet), ice cold Gazpacho soup, marinated olives, patatas bravas (a savory potato dish) or angulas (baby eels). Since the Spanish didn’t eat dinner till quite late, tapas were a way to stave off hunger for a while in the evening, while enjoying a glass of wine with friends. It would still be a few years before tapas became the trendy appetizer it is now, so I hadn’t had any since the Camino conference and eagerly helped myself to the enticing tidbits.
I had been nervy, to bring a dish that I had never prepared before, especially since it seemed like a very unlikely combination of ingredients, green and red grapes, cherry tomatoes, Kalamata olives, small balls of Mozzarella (Cilengene) and a mint vinaigrette, but I trusted the recipe since it came from the cookbook of a favorite Spanish restaurant in Santa Fe, New Mexico, El Farol. I wanted to try it immediately and was relieved at the divine, complex flavor. Once the others dared to take a few bites, it was a big hit, and to my delight, everyone asked for the recipe. (You will find it below.)
Our Adventurous Camino Guide
While we savored our new-found delicacies, Anita showed us a little video of her yearly Camino walks. She was a lively character and was so full of energy that as she talked, she seemed to be hiking in place.
She told us a bit of her story. “I started out as a high school teacher but after a few years of having to deal with very challenging students, I went back to train as a school psychologist. By the time I was 42, I had had enough of that and decided to follow my dream and fly airplanes. I loved it!” She raised her chin with pride.
“I was the first female pilot for a local airline, but after having to make an emergency landing in a field nearby here due to engine failure, my husband and I decided that I should find an adventure not dependent on parts or the competency of an airline mechanic. I was intrigued by what I was hearing about the Camino, so started walking 6 years ago. I’m planning to do the Camino del Norte this fall, for my 7th Camino. Friends ask me how Hubby deals with me being gone for 6-7 weeks every year. Before my crash, he would have complained, but now he gladly accepts this Camino adventure, knowing I’ll at least be on the ground.” People were smiling and nodding as she spoke, and I felt happy that I had found such an inspiring mentor.
When we finished eating, she directed us to the living room for our Q&A session. She answered all our burning questions, like what the accommodations were really like and how far we should walk every day. She stressed the importance of packing lightly, to take care of blisters immediately, and to bring hiking poles.
Next Month’s Meeting in Los Angeles
After seeing that there were no more questions, she announced, “You’ll want to make sure that you come to next month’s get together. We will be meeting with the Los Angeles chapter, in the home of a woman who walked the Camino last year. She lives in La Cañada Flintridge. I immediately recognized the name of the town and how it felt to be there when my grandmother took me there as a young child. It was a quiet, secluded, heavily wooded canyon and even though it was only a 20-minute drive, it was a world away from the hubbub and zooming freeways of downtown LA. An ancient sense of peace and longing flooded through my body. I couldn’t wait to experience its magic again and also connect with more fascinating, adventurous women. I especially wanted to continue conversations with the 3 women who were walking the Camino in late August, like I would be.
As we gave each other warm hugs at the door, many added, “looking forward to seeing you next month!”