Heaven on a Hill, Ham on a Rock - 2007.02.18

Went on a moderate hike today with Amnon, I managed to retrace the last (great) hike I did at Monte Bello almost exactly. The weather wasn't nearly as nice as the previous trip, but something else far made up for it. Up on top of Black Mountain, we sat against some rocks and shrubs for shelter, and broke out the picnic Amnon carefully packed while looking on the view. A juicy crunchy Fuji apple. A glass of tonic with meyer lemon, some peanut butter + sambal sandwiches, and a vacuum pack of Iberian Ham, 5 Bellota.

As was in Paris, it was difficult to describe in full the feelings of elation and divinity upon ingestion of the ham. There were finger smacking. There were unintelligible noises. There were discussions on which wine or nuts would go best with these ham, how we could go about visiting an Iberian pig farm; and the subtle differences between these and the Paris-bought ones (these were sweeter, softer taste; paris was more rich, nutty [chestnut/acorn], and had a longer finish). In short, there was a little heaven on that top of a little hill.

Ham on a Rock..