[Sca-cooks] Pass times other than food

[Suey]

     The subject wasn't that but something like that.
     Anyway my big one is historical novels. My major is Henry IV of 
Spain who is my passion but as a pass time I read anything about 
historical people unknown to me when I think the author is historically 
correct. Here in Chile I normally buy books in Spanish. A friend claims 
I read one a week. Not true, I only read waiting for doctors 
appointments so I tell him, who happens to be an MD, that as he makes we 
wait so long it could be true :-D !
     My last one is by X.R. Trigo, a Catalan professor. The title is: 
Los Secretos der la Reina. It is about Queen Eleanor who supposedly died 
of the Bubonic plague in 1348. The chapters alternate between those of 
the 14th Century at the Monastery of Poblet in Tarragona, south of 
Barcelona (where my husband wanted to marry as it is so beautiful), and 
those of two historical researchers now in the 21st century who are 
blocked by the Abbot of Poblet from reading manuscripts which might 
'endanger the church' so to speak.  The researchers suspect that the 
queen was poisoned but have no motive. . .  That is likely because there 
are conflicting reports as to how much the Black Death affected what is 
Spain today. One side says that the Black Death occurred in northern 
Europe and very little in Spain. Others maintain that any illnesses 
causing death were labeled 'Black Death' when the physician could not 
explain why, especially in Spain. Thirdly,  poison was and continues to 
be an assessable means to get rid of unwanted people.
     As a researcher, I know the feeling! I got very close to hidden 
documents in Madrigal in Avila years back. The owner had documents 
hidden in the tunnels that Jews used to escape when Fernando the 
Catholic became outraged with them for supporting Henry IV's daughter in 
the Civil War that he and Isabel fought against her to usurp her throne 
after the death of her father. Everyone in the historic world pushed me 
hoping that he would permit me access. I was a failure. He never did 
take me down to the tunnels. I never was permitted to touch a document.  
Since he has died and my contacts have had to move elsewhere due to the 
recession.
     I remain passionate - starving to research my area of history.
Suey