Driving Over Lemons: An Optimist in Andalucia – Special Anniversary Edition (with new chapter 25 years on)

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We were unmistakably different, though. One day she took us to task over this. “Why can’t you be like everybody else?” she asked. “Well, we do what we can…” we replied.

Por mucho que me hubiera gustado describir cómo los dedos encallecidos por el trabajo del viejo Eduardo punteaban las cuerdas de guitarra como ni siquiera el mismo Orfeo hubiera podido hacer jamás, y cómo me había quedado embelesado por el dominio que los campechanos músicos tenían de sus instrumentos y por la sencilla belleza de la canción, no puedo negar la verdad: la múisca era un horroroso canto fúnebre, estropeado por los juramentos ponzoñosos de Eduardo cada vez que, invariablemente, Manuel perdía el compás. Padre e hijo se pasaron toda la actuación mirándose con el ceño fruncido, consumidos de cólera por la incompetencia del otro. One of my favorite travel books ever. Similar to "A year in Provence" but so much better! " — Kimberly, 9/1/2012 Q: You learned many new traditions and customs when you moved to las Alpujarras. For instance, Matanzas — what was that like? I had been sufficiently piqued by the Genesis débacle to do a little work on my drumming. To this end I engaged a teacher in Brighton, one Sammy Davis, who put me through my rolls, flams, ratamacues and double and triple flam-paradiddles. I practiced passionately ten hours a day, seven days a week, and at the end of a few months I achieved a certain competence. Accordingly I placed an advertisement in Melody Maker: “Gentleman, 21,” it read, “seeks position as drummer.”Lo mejor del libro es la naturalidad. Este extranjero viene y no idealiza al mundo rural, tampoco se idealiza a sí mismo. Tiene sentido del humor y se nota que ama el lugar en donde está. Eso hace que a una casi le den ganas de tomar sus pilchas y buscar su propio paraíso-no paraíso agreste. The magic of Spain is there in the language, with its copious admixture of Arabic, which for 800 years was spoken by everybody in the peninsula. It’s in the fruit and the trees – the pomegranate from Persia, the oranges from China, and almonds, saffron and aubergines. Not the greatest book on earth, and a bit slow at times,but interesting nevertheless. I'm just not really sure what the point was. " — Dee, 12/7/2013

Estaba tan lleno de entusiasmo y alegría que me sentía mareado. Cogí una naranja del árbol, la primera vez que hacía algo así. Resultó ser la peor naranja que jamás había comido." After a full minute, I decided to wait. I waited to see what happens after Ana arrived. Maybe she would be a mitigatjng force. She was. I waited to see when the previous farmer finished teaching Chris the Andalucia farming practices and introducing him to other Spanish farmers. I am glad I waited. Also other English transplants showed up in the narrative. And other European/outsiders also showed up, all teaching and learning together. Stewart's adventure in Andalucia is what dreams are made of and has been an absolute delight to read about. The lush gardens set within the mountains seems an idyllic location to set up home and he'll be the envy of millions 'living the dream'. " — Tim, 11/26/2013 A: Ana and I had farmed in England for many years before we came here. We knew about sheep and farming in Britain. Nevertheless, there was, and still is, an awful lot to learn. I have many mistakes, but I think that little by little we are making some progress.

A BRIEF BIOG

Far below, beside the river, I caught sight of a little farm in a horseshoe-shaped valley, a derelict house on a cactus-covered crag, surrounded by unkempt fields and terraces of ancient olive trees. Christopher 'Chris' Stewart (born 1951), was the original drummer and a founding member of Genesis. He is now a farmer and an author. A classmate of Tony Banks and Peter Gabriel at Charterhouse School, Stewart joined them in a school band called The Garden Wall, and they later formed another band with schoolmates Mike Rutherford and Anthony Phillips, called Anon. This band eventually became Genesis in January 1967. Stewart appears on the band's first two singles, "The Silent Sun"/"That's Me" and "A Winter's Tale"/"One-Eyed Hound." Although several demos from Stewart's time with Genesis appear on the Genesis Archive 1967-75 box set, he is not credited with playing on any of them. (Peter Gabriel seems to have played drums on a couple, and the Christopher 'Chris' Stewart (born 1951), was the original drummer and a founding member of Genesis. He is now a farmer and an author. A classmate of Tony Banks and Peter Gabriel at Charterhouse School, Stewart joined them in a school band called The Garden Wall, and they later formed another band with schoolmates Mike Rutherford and Anthony Phillips, called Anon. This band eventually became Genesis in January 1967. Stewart appears on the band's first two singles, "The Silent Sun"/"That's Me" and "A Winter's Tale"/"One-Eyed Hound." Although several demos from Stewart's time with Genesis appear on the Genesis Archive 1967-75 box set, he is not credited with playing on any of them. (Peter Gabriel seems to have played drums on a couple, and the rest do not feature drums.)