Día del Jamón

Part of living and making new friends abroad is that you agree to things on a regular basis that you might not normally do in your country.  In general, I think this is one of the best parts of spending time away from home, since it really allows for discovery and sometimes unexpected delight.

It was in this spirit of adventure that I agreed to go to the Día del Jamón festival in Villanueva de Córdoba, a small pueblo about an hour and a half from Córdoba by bus.  For those of you who don’t speak Spanish, Día del Jamón literally means The Day of Ham.  The festival is a huge event for this small village, and it was highly publicized in Córdoba with posters that looked a lot like apocalyptic doomsday warnings to me.

In any case, my new friends Becky and Emily decided that this would be a great cultural activity, so we boarded the bus on Saturday morning ready for an adventure.  Becky lived and taught in Córdoba last year, so her love for Spanish food is well developed.  While I adore most types of cuisine, many of you know that I haven’t eaten ham (or any type of red meat) for over ten years.  To make this trip even more interesting, my friend Emily is a vegetarian.  Therefore, this trip shall henceforth be known as The Day We Rode a Bus for Three Hours to Watch Becky Eat a Lot of Ham.

please tell me you agree? 

Becky and Emily

My 7€ bus ticket was totally worth it though, because the people of Villanueva de Córdoba are serious about their ham.  After navigating our way through the tiny whitewashed pueblo, were treated to an impressive exhibition center filled with ham artwork, models, and samples.

ham leg on display

ham cutting competition

ham fountain

ham rose

decorative ham

Emily modeling the ham trophies

Becky enjoying her ham

And no, I didn’t try any ham.  I have been told repeatedly that this resolve won’t last in Spain.  For example, Auri told me, “I don’t really eat a lot of meat, except ham of course.”  Still, I feel like if I made it through Día del Jamón, I the rest of this year should be a piece of cake.

On the subject of culinary delights, tomorrow Auri is inviting her friends to our piso to meet me and eat paella!  Updates to come!