Monday's music: The Slackers - Everyday is Sunday

Monday! Might be that you are a bit jet-lagged still with the time savings change but, yep, it is Monday again. I want to bring you today a song by the New York ska band The Slackers. I think they are a great band... and they are coming to Old Europe! Here you have the tour days, doesn't fit too well for me, but let's see if I can make it to Dordrecht. 

I have never seen them but I have heard that they are awesome on stage. I knew they were coming because I saw the flyer when I went to see The Real McKenzies and Circle J to Dordrecht some time ago, but still I am not able to plan something.

This song goes to everyone that is unemployed, too much people in Spain I am afraid... Well, I just hope you enjoy it:

Spanish food: Cocido Madrileño

From the very center of the Iberian Peninsula, from the "heart of the beast", from the hole of the Donut, capital of the Empire it arrived to the sunny Netherlands 90% of the ingredients to make one of the most delicious meals you can have, a "Cocido Madrileño" (with capital letters). I have been thinking for awhile but I cannot really translate it, let's call it "Chickpeas from Madrid".

And this, my friends, is why we were sent to the Earth

Monday's Music: Wings - Give Ireland back to the Irish

Monday once again, and again after a very nice weekend. On Saturday was St. Patrick's day, as most of you know St. Patrick is the main patron of Ireland, that great small island on the middle of the North Atlantic. I have only been once to Ireland, and was just a couple of days in Dublin, I have to go to visit the countryside, I have heard that is gorgeous.

Anyway, dedicated to all the Irish, I think it is time (it has been time since 1916) for Britain to remove their colony in Northern Ireland, and here it is a song by an Englishman talking about it.

Written by Paul and Linda McCartney for the late band of Paul McCartney called Wings:

Day trip to Giethoorn and Kampen

Last Saturday we were going to 's-Hertogenbosch -everybody calls it Den Bosch , why to put such a strange name to a city? Anyway, I am basque, I should be used to strange names-, the point is that we were going to spend the day in Den Bosch but they were working on the railway so there were no trains and I really didn't feel like going by bus so we decided to go to other place with the car.

A canal in Giethoorn

A friend suggested to go to Giethoorn, a village some kilometers north to Zwolle, the capital of the province of Overijsel, and after checking the guide we saw that was pointed out as one of the most beautiful villages in The Netherlands, and nearby there was another city that looked pretty cool so there we went.

Spring has arrived to The Netherlands!!

Now it is official, Spring is here!! It arrived last Sunday, it was a wonderful and unexpected sunny day so my girlfriend decided it was a good day for a bicycle ride somewhere around Utrecht. As I have said before I am extremely lazy guy, I was expecting to spend the day just lying in the coach or playing computer games or something like that but she decided that going out and enjoying the day was a much better option. She was right (of course).

Monday's Music: Negu Gorriak - Anima Zaitez (Bob Marley cover)

Here we are, Monday again after a quiet weekend. I deserved a quiet weekend after last one that was opposite to quiet and a busy week at the office. As I said before Negu Gorriak is a band I like a lot, they have 5 LPs and the last one -called Salam, Agur- is a cover album, they cover songs from bands that influenced them, like The Clash, Dead Kennedys or Bob Marley.

This song is a cover from Bob Marley's Line up yourself and I think it is a very positive song so here it is for everyone that is not going through the happiest moment of their life. Here you have the English lyrics, and the song, enjoy it:

http://www.goear.com/listen/84f7270/anima-zaitez-negu-gorriak

Best shop ever, the Bert's Bierhuis

There is a shop I like a lot in Utrecht and that's the Bert's bierhuis. This is a shop in the old town, close to the main canal of the city, and as its name says it is a Beer House. This place is a paradise if you like beer, they have so many different types of beers that you literally don't know what to buy! Always I go there I have problems not deciding what to take with me, but what not to take with me.

Sign of the temple, follow the light that leads to heaven

Monday's music: Betagarri - 1976 martxoak 3

Last Saturday was March 3rd, and I would like to tell something that happened in Basque Country in 1976. With Franco recently dead the Spanish situation was a bit chaotic, people wanted freedom and democracy but it was still not clear what was going to happen. Economic situation was not at the best moment so there you have the ingredients for a strike.