Next Time Don't Ask...

Friday, after spending the day in Cadiz at the police station (getting my Spanish identity card) and kicking around the beach with a friend I met along the Camino de Santiago, I headed back to Ubrique and got ready for a fun night out. I have to admit after waking up at 5:00 am to catch the 6:00 am bus to Cadiz, I was tired by 10:00 pm, but managed to liven up and stay out till about 2:00 am. As we were leaving one of the bars, the owner recognized me and came over to tell me to bring all the new auxiliares de conversacion to the bar tomorrow (Saturday) as the bar was hosting a lunch. I said, “ok, we’ll all head down.”

So…on Saturday my roommate and I headed down to Morgan’s Irish Pub, grabbed the only table left, got two drinks, and asked for a plate of whatever they were serving. It appeared to be carne con salsa (meat in broth) but as I started eating it I decided it tasted a little funny and had an unusual consistency. I asked my roommate if she thought it was meat, and she said “yes.” A few moments later, though, she mentioned she didn’t quite like the consistency. So, I decided to ask the server if it was in fact carne con salsa or if it was something different. With a smile stretching across his face, he said it’s a traditional recipe and was “higado.” I think my face probably turned white, and he asked me “what? It’s good isn’t it?” I have to admit I lied through my teeth…and said “yup, it’s delicious.” My roommate saw my face and asked me, “what’s higado?” “Liver,” I said, “we just ate liver.”

I had my suspicions from the first bite I took, but three or four pieces later, once it was confirmed that it was liver, I was mortified. I’m not a huge fan of the idea of eating an animal’s liver. Even with an open mind, it doesn’t taste good. I spent the rest of the day disgusted that I had just been tricked into eating liver, drinking a lot of Aquarius (an amazing sports drink that tastes like lemonade) to get rid of the taste, and wishing I had followed the age-old advice of “sometimes it’s just better not to ask.” This would definitely qualify as one of those times it would have been better not to ask. Next time I won’t.

At the rate I’m going, it looks like there will still be plenty of new things to write about this year.