A Great Meal and a Legend
The town of Navajas is a strange little town. According to my sources, it used to be THE holiday destination of all the rich and famous who lived in the grand capital of València, who, many years ago built themselves a bunch of really pretty homes to run away to when the city got too hot. These houses, or the ones that are still left, are stunningly beautiful and a total throwback to the roaring ’20s. I wish I had more photos of them to show you though … we were hungry and driving and I was trying to be the pilot and it’s hard to do that and take good pictures from a moving vehicle. Sorry! I promise I will make a special trip there one day just to look at the houses, many of which still look really good and some are undergoing renovations so clearly people still care. How many of their owners have them as summer homes I do not know, but they are pretty. Also, Navajas has the Restaurante Abrasador Altomira.
Restaurante Abrasador Altomira is nestled up to the side of the mountain looking over Navajas and it is very popular. We were very smart to have made a reservation, something I’m learning is a necessity in most places that are worth eating at, especially on weekends or special days like New Year’s Eve. I hope you won’t be too mad if I tell you a little about this meal. We all ordered Menú del Día because that allowed us to sample and share more dishes and menús are the most cost-effective way to dine. We started off with a bottle of a nice wine, followed by some sepia (cuttlefish) and patatas bravas. Next were a couple of different salads and some cannelloni. The next dish was pork cheeks but that disappeared so quickly I barely got a shot of them. And then came the pièce de résistance: the paella valènciana with chicken and rabbit, because it was New Year’s Eve and we were in València (even if not the city, this is still València) so the regional specialty was a must. We then had three different desserts (this time I didn’t want to share since I love crêpes and I’m very bad at sharing my favourite foods; I blame that on being an only child) and the traditional cremaets. This meal was amazing which was a great way to finish off the year, at least as far as great meals go. I do hope the next year brings more opportunities to eat this well.
Totally stuffed we piled back into the car to see the last item on the agenda: Salto de la Novia, a waterfall with a legend. We had to find it first and drive through Navajas but once again I didn’t get a chance to capture any of the homes, sorry. The entrance to the park was at the edge of town and well hidden but we found it and walked down the banks of river Palancia. First we came across stairs to another cascade, Cascada de Tío Juan, but they looked a little too perilous so we let them be. When we finally reached the main waterfall it became very clear why the place is considered so special. Nestled in the Cañon de la media luna (Halfmoon Canyon), the Salto de la Novia is some 60m in height and looks like a bride’s veil. The legend that goes with it goes something like this: (I cheated and used Google translate with many, many edit because, man, Google translate sucks):
Many years ago, when two young people were going to get married they had to undergo a curious ceremony to show everyone that they really loved each other. Some time before the wedding they had to play a game at a place where the river narrows and there, witnessed by everyone, the bride-to-be had to jump across the narrows to the opposite shore; if she succeeded, it was a symbol of happiness for the marriage and showed that she loved her boyfriend faithfully. If the leap was not successful, the marriage was considered unfeasible because it was believed that he would be unhappy. Convinced of this, the couple would break their engagement. For many years this custom must have caused terror among many truly-in-love brides, for fear of missing the jump or not having enough courage to try it. This fear wasn’t misplaced as one day, long ago, two betrothed, whose names have been erased by time, tragically ended up in this situation. They had come down beaming with joy to show everyone that they loved each other. As always, people waited impatiently for the jump; finally the bride got ready to jump, she gained momentum but lost her footing and fell into the river where she was engulfed in a powerful whirlpool causing her certain death. Upon seeing this, the groom immediately threw himself into the river to try and save his beloved, but no matter how much effort he made in his desperate attempt, he was soon engulfed in the whirlpool as well and moments later they were both swallowed by the waters. Hours later, the corpses of the unhappy lovers floated together to the surface. And on nights with a full moon, the murmur of the river seems to sing a sweet and sad song in which it regrets having killed those two beings who loved each other so much.
Ayuntamento de Navaja
Since the sun was setting, the light in the canyon was incredible and I kept trying to catch it prettying up the peaks. As I was doing that I caught a glimpse of some movement up high on the side of the mountain. To our amazement it was a trip* of some goats, perhaps wild, perhaps not, climbing the rocks. There must have been at least six or seven of them and they were all different colours: black, white, mixed … I did manage to record a little video of them and snap a few pictures though you can’t see more than one at a time in the photos: the buggers climb and hide really well. See if you can spot one here.
* trip is a group of goats
Once we returned home, tired but happy, we made a little food (including an incredible octopus) and got ready to wait for midnight. When it came we celebrated the New Year with 12 grapes (Ewa) and 12 sips of cava (Sagrario and I). The sips are a bit easier than grapes but just as valid and we hope to have lots of luck thanks to them. Calls home were made, a few tears shed (I get sentimental too, sometimes, and it’s weird to be having midnight nine hours earlier than usual), and generally a very good time was had (sorry for this passive voice, did I say there was cava?). Good-bye 2020, welcome 2021!
