Accounts differ, but
all testimonies agrees at least in the perennial presence of a cica
in theTemple. La Venencia is the bar where the Sherrycica, the
Goddess of Cica Consciousness resides, in José
Echegaray street. She is the current incarnations of the Goddess.
Other cats with different colours, most of them black, have lived in
the temple. As such, the bar has not changed a bit in decades. The
dust undoubtedly dates from the origins of time, or at least from the
beginnings of the marketing in Madrid of sherry and all the different
varieties of that Andalusian wines from the province of Cádiz.
No other beverage is served in the Temple, and if anyone read what
follows, it will be easy to understand the ritualistic reasons for
its retail. In this spiritual liquid the sun of the Atlantic ocean
shines, as in the eyes of the Goddess when she takes the liberty to
look directly at you. In that instant the liquid gold becomes the
sacrament of a mysterious communion, and the wisdom of the Cica
consciousness is passed onto you. The pilgrims then, bathed in the
holiness of the experience, can wander around Madrid, assured of the
benefits of the protection of the Goddess. As an example, you can
take the common and very civilised custom of serving tapas with every
drinkin the bars of Madrid. For those initiated in the mysteries of
La Venencia, the experience acquires a whole different dimension. In
their various wanderings around the picturesque areas of the centre
of Madrid, Szaloncica and Wandering Gata wisely took refuge in
different bars and taverns. A beer here, or, specially, a vermouth
there, refreshed them after their urban travels of shared discoveries
But every time that a little tapa appeared in front of them, in the
form of a small dish full of simple but juicy olives, or in the
brutal form of a morcilla, or blood sausage, they knew that the
offering was served to them with the utmost respect. The waiter
always whispered, in a strong Spanish accent, a prudent and easily
understandable “Miau!”.
