Alcaçar de Brioga is not a place that you will find on the typical map of Spain. It is a collection of people in various regions of Spain who participate in the Society of Creative Anachronism (SCA).
What is the SCA?
My friends and family know a little about the SCA, but for those that don’t, it is a medieval and Renaissance recreation society. Are you still wondering what that is? The SCA is an international organization whose members have varying levels of interest in the Middle Ages and Renaissance. Members typically choose a kingdom, a name and a time period for their persona. SCA groups organize events–mostly on the weekends–so that fellow enthusiasts can gather, have fun, and share their interests. I started learning a number of my hobbies because of my participation in the SCA, such as fencing, embroidery, and sewing, and I have met many friendly and interesting people through the organization.
Alcaçar de Brioga
While there are SCA groups spread across the United States, especially in the major cities, all of Spain’s members form one small, friendly group, Alcaçar de Brioga. I contacted a couple of officers in their group before heading to Oklahoma for the holidays, and they invited me to an event called Parias last Sunday.
Las Parias
Three members drove in from Alicante–Antonino (Balduin de Valke in the SCA), Gema and Juan Miguel, and two came from Madrid–Javier (Aldred) and Julio. Javier was kind enough to give me a ride, Gema showed me how to shoot a bow, and everyone was very friendly. At the end of the day, we also chatted with Diego, another SCA member who lived nearby. It was a crisp, sunny day spent in good company.
Originally, the event was going to take place at the castle ruins of Almonacid de Toledo which you see above, but the recent snow prevented us from being able to take the road up to the castle.
The group drove to another town, and we spent the day outside the Church of the Virgin of the Assumption in Casalgordo (now part of Sonseca). In this photo Julio and Antonino are fighting with Gema and a local policeman watching.
We shared bread, cheese and sausages together for lunch, and in this photo you can see everyone. Going around the circle clockwise starting with the front-left: Juan Miguel, Antonino, Julio, Javier and Gema.
There was another pleasant surprise on Sunday. I met Gregorio and his son Iván who go out shooting photos every weekend. They spent the morning taking photos of the fighting, and they also loaned me a telephoto lens to use with my camera during the morning.
Gregorio took this photo of his son Iván and me.
You can see some of Gregorio’s other photos on his blog: http://grebarsan.wordpress.com/2009/01/11/alcacar-de-brioga/#more-149
Here are some of my photos of the day–many taken with the telephoto lens:
Javier
Julio
Juan Miguel
Gema
Antonino
Antonino, Juan Miguel and Julio look at a piece of chainmail.
Javier and Julio after Julio won the prize of the day, a 13th-century coin with Arabic writing.
Gema and Juan Miguel enjoyed the day together.
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I spent the holidays with Puck and family in Oklahoma–arriving December 24th and coming back to Madrid January 1st. A week with Puck was the best present possible, and it was wonderful to start the new year together. We enjoyed our time with our families, especially with our pup Shakti and with our darling nieces and nephew. Thanks to the Internet, we even had a chance to see our Australian nephew. Among my treasured Christmas presents is a lovely ring that my niece Brenna bought for me.
Today, I was surprised when I opened the curtains and saw snow on the ground. I grabbed my camera and walked around the neighborhood. Snow is fairly rare in Madrid, and this was the heaviest snowfall in the last 10 years. The flakes were large and fluffy and had covered the untread ground in white. Madrileños and tourists had come out to enjoy the snow–throwing snowballs, making snowmen and taking photos.
The Plaza de Oriente sits next to the Royal Palace (Palacio Real) and has gardens bordered by statues of past Spanish kings. In the center is the fountain you see with a statue of Phillip IV, and on the other side of the plaza is the Royal Theater.
The Royal Palace was built in the 1700s by the Bourbons and is still used for some official functions. The front gates of the palace open to a large courtyard, and you can see the Spanish flag flying.
Facing the Royal Palace is Almudena Cathedral which took almost a century to build and was completed in 1993.
The parks and plazas were decorated with snow sculptures, and I’ve included several of them below to share:
This ice princess was enjoying a day in the Plaza de Oriente with her favorite doll.
Not far from the ice princess was this fellow with a cigar in his mouth and two snowmen in progress in the background.
A tiny snow sculpture was even on the cathedral.
A family of snow bunnies was hopping through the Jardines de Sabatini park behind the palace.
And another snow rabbit was sitting on a bench.
This snow cat watched the visitors pass by its bench.
And this snow turtle was also lazing around in the park. Snowbathing perhaps?
This little fella with a large orange nose was ready to greet the dogs running in the park.
A snowman family posed for photos in front of a street by the Plaza de España.
While there were many more snowmen of all shapes and sizes, the above were some of my favorites. On my way home, I passed through the Plaza de España which is just a couple of blocks from my house.
The Plaza de España is beautiful as the lights turn on, and the snow continues to fall.
There is a lovely fountain with two statues of women on it in the plaza.
On Sunday (Dec. 7), I went to Toledo with Rorro and Amaia and their two sons Arturo and Diego and with Miguel, another fencer. Puck and I both met Rorro and Amaia in 2004, and he showed us around Madrid. Rorro has always made us feel welcome. He often gives me a lift to practice on Saturday, and he has a lovely family. I enjoyed getting to spend the day with them, and it was especially fun to play with Arturo and Diego.
Amaia with her two boys. Some of the swords in the display are originals from the 16th and 17th centuries.
It was a cloudy day with a light drizzle at times, but there were lots of people walking the streets of the old quarter. Toledo’s streets wander up and down with lots of narrow paths between buildings.
One of the narrow streets with balconies.
There are often street performers in the large cities of Spain and in the metros. In Toledo, one of the performers–Ana Alcaide–played an instrument that from a distance sounded a like a cross between a harp and a violin (to my rather musically-challenged ear). It was a charming sound. She gave me a postcard with the URL of her website: http://www.anaalcaide.com/, and you can hear her here on YouTube.
Ana Alcaide performing on the streets of Toledo.
For those interested in musical instruments, I took a photo of it:
The instrument was called a keyed fiddle (viola de teclas in Spanish and nyckelharpa in Swedish).
Toledo was once famed for its swords. Today, tourists often buy the (relatively) cheap swords that have been made to be hung on walls, but in some of the stores you can find swords made to be used by historical fencers and sometimes originals from 400 years ago that are on sale for a good chunk of change.
Here is the sword display in the front window of the store Moreno Fernandez.
We also went into the Church of Saint Thomas (Iglesia de Santo Tomé), and I got to see El Greco’s (The Greek’s) famous painting "The Burial of the Count of Orgaz" and listen to a taped description about it.
It was one of those magical moments when you realize that the painting you have seen in books and on the web is right there before you–where it has been for hundreds of years, where a steady hand painstakingly painted it. It also represents the strange mixture of past and present which is all around. The Count of Orgaz was buried in the 14th century; El Greco’s representation of it is from 16th century; and here I am listening to a recording about it, reading about it and looking at it in 2008 (the multimedia experience). Here is a link to the Wikipedia site about the painting, and the Church also has a website: http://www.santotome.org/ (You’ll need Flash for it to work, and the English link wasn’t working for me.).
In spite of the overcast skies, it was a lovely day filled with good company.
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Mom with Lady
Today is my mom’s birthday. My mom is an amazing person. As far back as I can remember, my mom has cared…not just about me, my siblings and family but about people. When someone needed a hug or comforting word, she was there. When someone needed help, she tried to give it. When someone was far away, she wrote and called. There was always an extra plate and room at the table. There was always extra space where someone could sleep. She has opened her home to people in the past, and because of it, my family isn’t limited to those related to me by blood or marriage. When she sees a dog on the side of a road, she stops and tries to catch it so she can find its owner; that’s how my parents’ dog pack has grown.
When I reflect back on my life, my mom has been there for every important moment. Even if she couldn’t be there physically, she was there–in e-mails or phonecalls, excited for my achievements, comforting when there were disappointments. She has supported me, nurtured me, believed in me, and disciplined me when needed. It’s one of the blessings I have carried with me through the years that I know I am loved. That’s no small gift.
My mom is retired, but that doesn’t mean she’s any less busy. I still see her helping people, reaching out to those around her. She now has a passle of grandchildren she adores, and she tries to be there for them, just like she has been there for us. I am fortunate to have a mom like mine and to have such a giving person as an example in my life, and while I can’t be there in person to celebrate her day with her, I am there.
Happy birthday, Mom. I love you!
If you’ve been reading my husband’s blog, you’ll already know we’ve had some disappointing news. I couldn’t bring myself to post about it for a few days. After two amazing months spent together here in Madrid, events (economic crisis, visa issues, etc.) have conspired to keep us separated by a few thousand miles for most of the next 10 months. The adventure we had been looking forward to sharing, now has to be shared primarily through e-mails, video chats, and blogs.
Despite our recent news though, I still feel lucky.
I remember the day I first saw Puck–singing with his band in the autumn leaves in front of Theta Pond. The light in his blue-green eyes caught my attention, but it was our first conversation that really hooked me. He’s continued to amaze me, and our years together have been full of happy memories.
Puck and Mary
That isn’t to say that we haven’t had our challenges. Some even seem relevant to our current situation. When we were dating, I spent a summer in Mexico and later 6 months in Seville, Spain. Puck came to visit at the end of my semester there, and it was as if we hadn’t been away from each other a day. Puck proposed a month after I got home on a bridge at the same pond where I first saw him.
Our wedding day
I have learned so much about living life from my husband. He’s creative, brilliant, and perceptive, plus a wonderful mixture of spontaneity and forethought. He’s taught me the importance of quality time–just being together and enjoying a movie, a walk, or just snuggling. He’s one of that unique brand of engineer who not only knows his stuff but is also good at explaining complex concepts and problems to us non-engineers, including children. He’s great with kids and a favorite uncle among our nieces and nephews. He’s amazing at getting children doing group activities–reading books to them, teaching them silly dances, and playing games.
Puck bought all our nieces a copy of "The Paperbag Princess" and had them decorate their own paperbag dresses. They had him read the book to them twice.
Puck teaches the girls to do the twist.
Puck both tells and writes a good story. I treasure the poems he’s written me and those moments when he pulls me over to dance with him and sings to me. He has that rare ability to laugh at himself, and he’s always challenging me to try new things. I remember a stressful semester back in undergrad right in the midst of final exams when he showed up at my dorm room with paints and canvas for us to fingerpaint. It was a great stress-reliever. Puck is also the one who taught me to fence, and he’s always finding fun projects and activities for us to do together.
Those are just a few of the things I love about my husband. He’s my best friend, and he often knows me better than I know myself. In our years together, we have supported each other’s dreams. Puck today is taking his written exam for his Fencing Master’s at San Jose State University, and I am here in Spain doing research into early modern Spanish swordplay for my dissertation. With 5,741 miles between us, I too am a bit glum he’s not at my side, but he’s always with me…until the end of our days.