Thats A Wrap!

This blog is another very emotional blog... because last night was a very emotional event... our last cooking class! El fin del curso!

Taking this cooking class was one of the best decisions I made while here in Valencia. I love the experiences I had while in the class: making new friends, learning new techniques, learning new vocabulary, practicing my Spanish, and eating delicious food (of course)

The class was particularly interesting because we were so diverse, and diversity is hard to come by here in Valencia! We were literally from all over the globe: New York, Maryland, Valencia, Germany, Mexico, Argentina and Japan! All united by a love for cooking (and eating) By the end, we were a nice little family who only saw each other on tuesdays.

While at our last dinner, we all shared what was our favorite and least favorite dishes, and we shared lots of drinks and lots of laughs.

Although it was extremely difficult to chose, looking back, my favorite dish was the Merluza in an orange sauce. Other peoples favorites included the Chicken/Artichoke soup, and of course, the Paella like dish was the favorite for Valencians. (For complete pictures and captions click here for Margaux's album!)

I can not choose a least favorite dish... but what I CAN choose is a least favorite PREPARATION for a dish... it occurred on our last class. Maybe Gustavo wanted to go out with a bang or something, like a grand finale, but I really think I could have lived without watching live eels get their heads chopped off, then chopped into pieces, and see the squirm for another 30 minutes until they were boiled in a hot savory broth.

I am going to treasure my librita de recetas probably for as long as I live, and I have already prepared a handful of dishes (or slight variations because I have no desire to eat canned quail, that still needs to be boned)

Something else I will treasure forever:

MY DIPLOMA!!!!! Graduate of the Intermediate cooking class!! (can I add this to my resume?)


Now for the question that I ask after the end of everything good that must come to an end :
What Next????

That's easy! THE ADVANCED COURSE!