Back in 2020 when the world shut down, A and I – and my parents, who “bubbled” with us – dealt with the lack of travel, the lack of plans, and just the lack of anything to look forward to, with a series of travel themed date nights. Originally published here on The Royal Tour as “quarantine” date nights, the 30+ of these really got us through. We did one each week, and it gave us all something to look forward to, something to break up the monotony.
What I perhaps didn’t realize was just how much those weekly breaks meant to my parents as well. But ever since, they have remarked – not infrequently – how much they appreciated those date nights back then, and how they wish we could still do some now. So with the caveat that we don’t have as much time to cook (A especially doesn’t have two days to make elaborate desserts), we agreed, and decided the family Zoom Thanksgiving, for which the four of us are together in person, would be a good opportunity.
So that’s what we did. It is a sort of hybrid date night, and A got out of cooking because my stepfather loves pumpkin pie. But it reminded me just how easy and meaningful it is to add a special at-home themed evening to our routines, and that it is something we should endeavor to do – probably with my parents, lest we not hear the end of it – at least every so often when we have long periods here at home.
We chose Spain, the place A and I were when Covid first came onto the scene. Our itinerary for the evening is below, and I truly hope it inspires you to do your own special date night at home. (For the full list of all the date nights, click here.)
Spain-Themed Date Night
Eat: Paella
On that early 2020 trip, A and I took a paella making class in Valencia. Her sister then bought us a paella pan for Chanukah, but it was largely unused as the world shut down, since paella for just the two of us is an awful waste. Well, since one can put anything into a paella, and since it was Thanksgiving, we decided to make ours with turkey sausage and green beans rather than seafood. Spainsgiving!
The flavor was spot on – yes, we used saffron, as well as a terrific Spanish spice blend we had – but putting the pan over two gas burners on the stove didn’t build the crust of rice one normally associates with paella. I guess that’s something to tinker with next time.
Learn: The Animated History of Spain
One of the marks of one of these date nights has traditionally been a short documentary to learn something. And there’s an animator out there who does remarkable and cute animated histories of various countries. Click here to see it, and you’ll probably do as I did, heading down a rabbit hole of his other work.
Visit: The Goya Museum
Did you know that some museums are part of Google’s street view? The Goya Museum, in Zaragoza, is one of those, and while only a few rooms are able to be “visited” in that form, and not with enough magnification ability to be able to read signage, it is fun to explore a new museum from the sofa. The museum’s website has more information on the acclaimed Spanish artist, and more specific details on some of his works on display.
Watch: Goya’s Ghosts
You might have been curious as to why we chose to virtually visit the Goya Museum. Well, this is why. Our “main” activity of the evening was watching the film Goya’s Ghosts, about the artist. Starring Javier Bardem, Natalie Portman, and Stellan Skarsgard, it should have been good. It really wasn’t. The film felt disjointed, and with some fairly explicit torture scenes courtesy of the Spanish Inquisition, it was a bit of a tough watch. So if you decide to copy this date night, you might want to go a different direction for movies, despite the apparent historical accuracy of Francisco Goya as portrayed.
It was really a fun evening, full of Spanish food and culture, and of reminiscing about the times of weekly themed nights. And it was a reminder that sometimes the best travel experiences are the ones we have at home. Just not this film.
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