A Weekend in Rioja
Envy the Brits their proximity to Western Europe: multitudinous lands worlds away from their often dreary northern skies, but a mere hop/skip/jump away .
One such Brit who skipped recently was Anthony Peregrine, who wrote about his three-day ‘fruity’ foray into Rioja in an article that appears in today’s Sunday Times of London.
I actually don’t know if Mr. Peregrine is a British national or not, but his editors certainly are; American newspaper editors would likely avoid using ‘fruity’ as a descriptor the subhead. But that’s besides the point.
Point is: nice article. Mr. Peregrine drives down into Haro from the Basque lands, swings over to Santo Domingo de la Calzada across to Navaraette, Laguardia, and, finally, Longroño, grappling at first with bourgeois guilt, then letting go and taking it all in.
Are the British better travel writers than we? The delivery here is creative; the rhythm staccato, the tone slapdash, but it all manages to coalesce into a recognizable whole. Bravo. Check it.