Category Archives: friends

the return of pablito

26 Tuesday Nov 2019

Posted by in friends, sevilla

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

,

So okay, what were the odds? When I was last in Madrid a few weeks ago and heading for the train station I ran into my old friend Pablo, who was there visiting for the weekend. We hadn’t spoken for about five years (part of our ongoing tempestuous friendship spanning over 20 years). And so, to just randomly run into him in a city the size of Madrid, when I haven’t run into him at all during the last five years here, well, that was weird. So I said to him “THIS is weird” and he said “No, YOU’RE weird”, which kinds of sums up the very mature way we talk to each other. 😉

But somehow this led to us meeting for lunch today, so that Pablo could help out with some Tapas Research. I reckoned it would either go fine or we’d end up having yet another big fight and not speak for another five years.

But hey, it went fine.

We had a nice relaxed lunch at Tradevo Centro and caught up on the past five years, pointedly skirting a couple of possible ISSUES. Will we end up being friends again? You never know. But we have decided that we are good Tapas Research buddies, and Pablo even offered to take on the daunting task of helping me improve my Spanish accent in exchange for plates of my spaghetti carbonara. Watch this space.

Meanwhile, here are pics of me and Pablito taken in 1999 and 2009. Think we now need a 2019 one to complete the collection.

tbt – me at 44 1/2

21 Thursday Nov 2019

Posted by in casa azahar, friends, sevilla, throw back thursday

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

A surprise whatsapp photo drop from Lizzie yesterday! Me eighteen years ago (age 44 1/2) when I still had a jawline and only one chin. Photos taken during a memorable visit in 2001 when Lizzie and Stu stayed at my apartment in Barrio Santa Cruz (hey Lizzie, remember waking up late and missing the train to Málaga?). Also… I’m smoking! Wow, looks so wrong now. Thanks for the memories, sweetie.

sue style

20 Wednesday Nov 2019

Posted by in cancer, friends

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

,

I was shocked and saddened to hear that Sue Style died this past weekend. We had “known” each other on social media for years before finally meeting in person when she and her husband Monty passed through Sevilla in 2017. This is a photo from our afternoon tapeo. We had swapped cancer stories by email a few years ago, but I had no idea that hers had returned. Such a lovely and generous person. I’m so sorry we won’t be able to meet again.

an unexpected feast

19 Tuesday Nov 2019

Posted by in food & drink, friends, gastronomy, restaurants, sevilla, sherry, tapas, tapas bars

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

, ,

So there I was yesterday morning, settling in for a morning of writing with plans to take my WALK after lunch, when I got a message from my friend Gabriella (AKA Shawn of the North) that she and some friends were coming to town. That day. For lunch. In fact, she was texting me from the runway at Bilbao airport and wanted to know if I could recommend somewhere nice where they could eat before heading to Jerez. Tricky as they would be arriving when most (good) bars and restaurants close for the afternoon, and on top of that it was a Monday, but I knew La Antigua Abacería de San Lorenzo would be the perfect choice. And it was.

I was also invited to join them! Gabriella’s friends were a group of six, winemakers and tour operators from Rioja, so we hit it off right away. We opted for Lo Que Diga Ramón (What Ramón Says), a set menu that Ramón makes up as he goes along, and I paired our dishes with different sherry wines, giving the group a bit of sherry education before they hit Jerez. I also recommended that they eat at Mantúa while there, so they will be doing that tonight.

Needless to say I didn’t get any more work done that day. Nor did I take my walk. By the time we said our goodbyes (7-ish?) I knew I had a serious date with my comfy chair, Netflix and the cats. What a great day though!  🙂

Ramón & Carmen with son Ignacio

de perdidos al río

05 Tuesday Nov 2019

Posted by in friends, gastronomy, tapas, wine

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

, , ,

So I got this invitation to a wine salon being hosted at Taberna Alabardero and thought I’d pop over to see which bodegas were showing there. Then I found out that Esteban and Jota were also on their way and… well… I should have known it was not going to end with me trying a few wines and then going to do my 10,000 step walk.

Jota, Jorge, Esteban, me!, Domingo

I actually don’t like going to these events alone, and so it was great to be following Esteban around, especially as he knows a lot about wines and also knows many of the producers. Then we bumped into a couple other of his friends, Domingo and Jorge, and somehow became a group of five moving from table to table.

Continue reading →