Sunday, June 30, 2019

Climb



One Word Sunday

May 2019 - Florence Italy

This was quite the climb but worth the view! And the sun came out for us.


inSPIREd Sunday

Sally and Beth host inSPIREd Sunday!  


May 2019 - Barcelona Spain

May 24 Barcelona

The Church of The Virgin of Gràcia and St. Joseph sits at the northern end of the former village of Gràcia, a municipality now well-within Barcelona’s city limits. Located on the north side of the Plaça de Lesseps, the building was originally the convent church of a community of Descalced Carmelites of St. Joseph – hence the parish’s nickname as the home of “els Josepets”. The community was so well-known that, until renamed for 19th century Barcelona politician Ferdinand de Lesseps, the site on which it sits was also colloquially referred to as Josepets Square.


Originally the Carmelites had a rather large monastic complex downtown on the Ramblas, the Monastery of St. Joseph (1586-1835), which was later torn down to make way for the Boqueria Market. In the 17th century, the place was bursting at the seams, in part because of the vocational influence of the two great Spanish Carmelite reformers, Sts. Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross. The monks approached local magnate Josep Dalmau about obtaining an auxilliary site for the community, and Dalmau donated this site in the village of Gràcia, then some distance outside of the city.



The new monastery was formally founded in 1626. In 1628 the cornerstone of the original complex was laid, and by 1630 the first monks were able to move in; the first church on the site was finished by 1634. By 1647 the complex was largely complete, and the novices from the St. Joseph Convent on the Ramblas were sent up to study in their new digs in Gràcia. In 1650-51 an epidemic of plague struck the neighborhood, killing off many of the brothers. The surviving monks were taken back to the original convent and the site was abandoned for several years.


The present building, which is in a late Renaissance/Mannerist style, was begun in 1658 when the monks returned, and was completed in 1687.

During the 19th century anti-clericism reared its ugly head in Spain numerous times, and many religious communities were turned out of their monasteries; the Josepets were no exception. Because of the Napoleonic wars, the Josepets were forced to abandon the monastery between 1808 and 1814. After they returned, a new wave of plague broke out in 1821, causing the monks to go back to the Ramblas convent until 1823. Subsequently a new period of religious persecution by the Left arose, and the Josepets were finally thrown out for good in 1835. The complex was then auctioned off to the public in 1837, most of the buildings were torn down, and the rest fell into disrepair.



In 1868, following decades of complaining by locals about the need for an additional church in the north end of Gràcia, the former monastic chapel became the center of a new parish for the neighborhood, and was restored. Unfortunately, this was not the end of the building’s troubles. As occurred in many places in Barcelona, the church was sacked and burned by the Leftists in 1936. The parish re-formed in 1939 and held masses nearby until the church could be restored, and masses resumed just before Christmas in 1940.






Saturday, June 29, 2019

Mixed Salad

June 2019 - Toronto ON

When in Longo's on Friday, I was glad to have John with me, as chicken thighs and extra lean ground beef were two for one, I went back on Wednesday for more!



Tuesday we had a business lunch at Lena, a new Bonacini restaurant. The food was good.


John'a beef brochette with two quail eggs and frites.



Grilled octopus and sauteed kale.


Mosaics of Adelaide St. in a laneway.




Wednesday I dropped into the Royal York hotel for a pop up sale of clothing from the UK.



Nothing bought.


Thursday we went to Kensington Market and mooched around.






The neighbourhood is awash in murals, down every alley.






Elicser was painting this last year when we were here. Click here to see lots more of Kensington Market from last year.






Raptors fever continues.



John, taking the above photo, last year the gates were closed.


Lunch at the Burgernator, they do a gluten free bun.




We spent some time poking in the unique shops dotting the area.









Hot sauces.



Bunner's gluten free bakery.






Yarn Untangled.


Gardens are sprouting throughout our city.





One of the entrances to Kensington Market.
Generations of cats have been born in Kensington—you see them everywhere. In “Home Again, Home Again”, the cat and the kitchen chair evoke the comforts of home.


On Spadina, we missed it last week by Talie Shalmon.


Into 401 Richmond to see some new displays.
This was titled Land Line.




Friday I went shopping but didn't find anything enticing. John did a Costco run.


A couple of movies stood out for me this week. Lantana from 2001.



The Last of the Bombshell Blondes






I decided to try some online courses and started with The Art of Cathedrals from Yale University.
I also found a course on the European Paintings: From Leonardo to Rembrandt to Goya

We had Veal Parmigiana.
Clam chowder with these new biscuits Quick and Easy Cheese Puffs which we both really liked and so easy to make.
Since I had all this ground beef I made a batch of spaghetti sauce. I even had a small piece of pork belly left over so I ground that up and added it.
BBQ chicken thighs.
Steaks on Friday with salad as someone gave me a huge amount from their garden!



BOOKS
I have to say I finished Year of Wonders and absolutely loved it.
I also finished When the Lights Go Out and it took three quarters of the book before it got my interest. At the beginning, I just thought meh. I still wouldn't it was a great read.
Started Give Me Your Hand.


LINKING UP WITH
Beth hosts Weekend Cooking where you can post anything food related.
Saturday Snapshots is hosted by A Web of Stories.
Sunday Salon