Category Archives: summer

change of plans

05 Wednesday Jun 2013

Posted by in london, spain, summer, travel, trips

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suitcaseWell, maybe. Remember my Northern Spain Adventure? I’m having second thoughts now that summer vacation time is almost here. Mostly because it’s not the kind of trip I want to do alone. I think there would be too many amazing moments that I’d want to share with someone. And I think it’s the kind of trip that is best done with a car, so perhaps better another time when I can go with someone who wants to do the same thing and who can also drive. The thought of me on my own catching buses and trains and then just hanging out alone in new places I’ve always wanted to visit somehow doesn’t appeal.

Having said that, I am still determined about taking my first ever proper holiday, as in, taking more than a few days off and not working while I’m away. So I may spend a whole two weeks in Málaga (if I can get Manolo’s apartment – still waiting to hear back) which would be different from my past quick getaways, and it would allow me to do some day trips while I’m there. I don’t mind exploring on my own but I think it will feel more relaxing to do this from a place I already feel at home (and I could take Smudge with me). I’m hoping to do this during the last two weeks of July, so fingers crossed.

I’m now thinking of also taking a week or so in August and doing a quick London & Bristol visit. Because who knows what news the September PET scan will bring? So I really want to make the most of this summer, even if I don’t do the northern adventure.

What are your summer plans?

más mephistos!

29 Monday Apr 2013

Posted by in retail therapy, shoes, shopping, summer

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mephisto-anemoneYes, I do tend to talk about my feet a lot during the “footwear change” seasons of spring and autumn, but it’s always a challenge for me to find shoes and sandals I like that fit. You may recall that I solved last year’s sandal dilemma of only ugly Mephistos being available in the shops here by ordering this pair online, which was a surprising success considering my very hard-to-fit feet. So this year I am trying my luck again with these happy red ones.

Quite looking forward to their arrival.

Hope they fit!

off to córdoba (again)

27 Monday Aug 2012

Posted by in 20th anniversary, culture, spain, summer, work

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So you may recall that two weeks ago I was in a quandary about whether to go on this overnight trip to Córdoba, with Azar being so frail. And one of my problems about waiting to see how the old darling was doing was that I didn’t want to cancel the hotel at the last minute, since I was being invited to stay there. Then about a week ago I realised that I could always go on my own and leave Peter at home to look after Azar, which set my mind at ease. And then this morning came and we took a long look at Azar and thought – he’ll be okay overnight – so now Peter is coming with me. I hope I don’t end up regretting that decision, but the truth is that Azar has been eating well, doing his “business” regularly (though he sometimes misses the box), and drinking plenty of water. He mostly snoozes the days away, waking up to eat and get a cuddle, much as any cat his age would do. Poor thing is pretty much blind and that nasty tumour seems bigger and uglier every day, making it difficult for him to walk. But as he’ll be staying on his own in my bedroom, separated from the other two, he won’t have far to go to get everything he needs.

It’s still a tough decision but my gut tells me that Azar is strong enough right now to be fine on his own from 8 am tomorrow until 6 pm on Wednesday. Now if I can only keep myself from worrying the whole time!

We are going to be staying at the Palacio de Balío Hospes Hotel, which is stunning. They have also arranged for us to enjoy a flamenco guitar concert and dinner there, and we are also invited for breakfast. If it’s anything like the Hospes Hotel here, it should be amazing. But let’s not forget that this is primarily a work trip, which is the other reason Peter really should come along. During the day we’ll be revisiting places we’ve been before so that he can organise a couple of routes for his Seville Concierge day trips. And of course we’ll have to try out a couple of restaurants. When we were there for that day trip in June it was mostly to see the Feria and have a look at the new Patio Museum so I’m looking forward to seeing the Mesquita again, as well as a few other things I’ve never seen that Peter has lined up.

And so now all I have to do is NOT WORRY!

el aljarafe

20 Monday Aug 2012

Posted by in 20th anniversary, food & drink, sevilla, spain, summer, tapas, trips

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El Aljarafe is Arabic for “knoll”, and is the name for the cluster of villages dotting the hills just outside Sevilla. I rarely venture out there other than to go to IKEA (in Castilleja de la Cuesta), mostly because it’s a pain to get to by bus. It would actually be fun to do a day trip to some of the little villages out there some time if I can convince someone with a car to do this with me. But I digress…

I’ve only been to Salteras once, about 12 years ago, when I was invited to a special lunch at one of the “parrilla” restaurants there. About thirty years ago the first one – La Bodega – opened in Salteras and was such a great success that soon other places started copying its “formula” of offering a simple menu based on BBQ grilled meats served with “papas arrugás” and “mojo picón”. These are small potatoes boiled in a small amount of very salty water leaving the skins wrinkled and sparkling with salt, which are then dipped in a spicy Canarian sauce. Soon Salteras was full of these establishments and became THE place to go for fabulous meat & potato meals. Since then the menus have become more extensive while the number of restaurants has diminished. Now there are about five left and yesterday I decided to go out there and try one out.

After a bit of online research I chose La Resolana because I liked the look of their website and I especially liked that they had a “tapas corner”, which meant that Peter and I could try more dishes. So we trekked down to the bus station just in time to catch the 1pm to Salteras and when the bus driver pulled out of the station and put on some rock-a-billy music it started to feel like a proper Road Trip. We got held up for awhile in a village just outside of Camas when the main road became blocked by a funeral procession. I’d never seen this before and got one of those odd “I’m living in Spain” moments as I watched a crowd of at least fifty people walking slowly behind a hearse, with half a dozen pallbearers in the lead. It was a sad and beautiful sight.

If you go to Salteras from Sevilla by car it would take you about ten minutes. The bus takes about 25 minutes (or 35 with funeral) and we stopped in places I didn’t even know existed. Luckily we had been told which stop in Salteras to get off at, which ended up being just a few minutes walk to La Resolana. And well, we had a wonderful lunch. As it was a hot afternoon in August the place was pretty quiet, though I’m told it’s always packed out during the rest of the year. I can see why. The service was great, the food excellent, and at one point when a Twitter friend asked me exactly which part of the pig “pluma” comes from (yes, I tweeted the whole lunch) one of the chefs brought me out a book showing me the different pork cuts. After that we got some boozy sorbets on the house and I got to take photos of everyone for Sevilla Tapas. If you want to see all the great stuff we had to eat then have a look here:
La Resolana

It was only after I got home that I realised this had actually been another of my 20th anniversary day trip! And I’m now keen to explore El Aljarafe a bit more. If I can find someone to take me…

[also posted on the azahar sevilla blog]

so what do you do when it’s 51º…?

11 Saturday Aug 2012

Posted by in food & drink, sevilla, spain, summer, tapas, weather

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Well, if you are completely mad like me, and an Englishman like Peter, you go out in the midday sun!

Of course we didn’t know it was going to be 51º. The official weather forecast was much more conservative and said the high would be 42º, but you know, who lives at the airport? In the centre of Sevilla with the sun blazing down on narrow cobbled streets with very little air-flow it soon turned into a blast furnace. But I was determined to go and visit a little abacería I’ve been meaning to go to for years. Finally did go on a Saturday at the end of June only to see a sign posted outside saying they were closed for holidays – starting that day! I later found out that this was the first time in 15 years they’ve closed for holiday.

Anyhoo… when I saw an article in the local paper about the post-holiday re-opening party yesterday at La Antigua Abacería de San Lorenzo (on San Lorenzo day!) I knew I had to get over there. And I’m really glad I did. What a little curiosity shop of tasty delights! An abacería is a combination of provisions store, take-away delicatessen and tapas bar, and the best ones have been around forever and have a loyal and local clientelle. In fact, we were not only the only foreigners in there but also the only non-neighbours. Everyone was clearly on a first-name basis and the old guys hanging around the bar area made me feel like I was in a small village rather than in Spain’s fourth largest city.

After trying a couple of tapas I got to talking with the owner Ramón who was charming as heck and really keen to tell me all about the place and even about future plans, including cooking classes that will be starting up in September. I loved how he’d take an occasional trip through the bar with a tray of complementary snacks, and I also loved how they served the bottled beer in tiny ice buckets. And the tapas were very good! So all in all, a very worthwhile reason to go out in the very intense HEAT.