SAN GINES CHOCOLATE SHOP, A LOVELY PLACE TO HAVE A HOT CHOCOLATE WITH CHURROS

One dish that you can not miss if you come to Madrid is “hot chocolate with churros”. Spanish hot chocolate is made with dark chocolate and is thick and delicious. Chocolate and churros is a pair that you must eat together. One without the other leaves you feeling less than satisfied.

Usually Spaniards eat this dish for breakfast, but it can be enjoyed throughout the entire day, as in the merienda meal (in the afternoon) which makes it a rather versatile snack. Before dinner as an afternoon snack or maybe after dinner as a yummy dessert some hot chocolate with churros seems like a great option. Of course you can buy this dish at many of the bars or cafes, but if you really want the best, you have to go to a chocolatería.

There are several good chocolaterias in Madrid, but one of the best and most typical is CHOCOLATERIA SAN GINES.

This small shop is located in a small street next to Puerta del Sol, the centre in Madrid, in the walkway of San Ginés. This traditional chocolate shop has been in the works since 1894. In spite of its less than prominent location, a mixed crowd of locals and tourists find their way here every hour of the day.

It is an attractive space, with velvety green seats, marble tables and lots of mirrors. There is no menu because it is obvious what people are going to eat. One can order a coffee or a slice of some baked goodie sitting on the counter, but this is not why people come here. Because it is so popular, you have to expect to wait a bit for a table at any hour.

If you plan on going to the San Ginés chocolate shop you must go during the afternoon or at night because it is the only time they are open. In fact, the shop is open daily all night. So when the late nighters exit the bars and dance clubs, they all head to San Ginés to put something greasy and sweet into their empty stomachs. If you want, you can add some powdered sugar.

Here you will get a hot boiling mug of chocolate rich in flavor and color. With it you will be able to dunk the crisp and hot churros into the chocolate, which provide the perfect vehicle for delivering more richness down our gullets. The prices on this as well as their delicous cakes are very reasonable and they are great if you want to try some traditional food. And it is perfect for cold winter days!

¡Buen provecho! Bon appétit!

SOME JOKES TO GET US INTO THE CHRISTMAS MOOD

Christmas is getting near and I thought some jokes would be great to help us getting into the Christmas mood. Here you are!

Damn climate change!

THE END  (for now..............)

RAMÓN CASAS, THE CATALAN ART NOUVEAU PAINTER

Ramon Casas i Carbó was a Spanish artist and painter born in Barcelona (1866-1932). He was famous by his portraits, caricatures and paintings of the high society, intellectual, economic and political life of Barcelona, Madrid and Paris. He also became famous for his paintings of riots, as the framework for the repression of a demonstration in the streets of Barcelona. It was a graphic designer and his posters and postcards helped him to define the Catalan art movement known as modernism.

His style was consolidated in the post-impressionism. Excellent portrait artist, defines different types of women, such as Gypsy and others, as well as series of portraits in charcoal of leading intellectuals of the time, musicians such as Albeniz and Granados, writers such as Unamuno and Azorín, or painters like Zuloaga or Sorolla. He also expressed with his brushes interior anonymous cafes or street life, with all the spontaneity emanating from both the environment as their characters. His style was itself influenced by Manet, Whistler and Degas by the soft colors and the blurred boundaries that will evolve into a kind of painting's most colorful and distinctly realistic.

Casas is also one of the leading representatives of the Catalan modernism that reflects on billboards (Codorniu Champagne, Anis del Mono anisette and others) that performs for prestigious commercial firms, full of artistic sensibility.

And here I leave you some of the paintings of this artist, one of my Spanish painters favourites, by the way. I hope you enjoy!