Category Archives: trips

going for it…

22 Friday Jun 2018

Posted by in andalucia, getaways, health & happiness, holidays, travel, trips

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So after the HUGE DISAPPOINTMENT of not getting my CT scan results yesterday (though I DID get to ride in a Jaguar XF!) I have decided – fuck it – I’m just going to go for it. I’ve been putting off making any summer travel plans. You know, JUST IN CASE. Because if I suddenly needed surgery or treatment, well, then I’d lose deposits and/or entire payments for hotels, flights, etc. Given that I’m not feeling too badly and that nobody seems to know what is going on… I have decided to book my summer holidays! Today.

First up… three days in Granada in mid-July. It’s been over three years since my last visit and I really want to catch up, and also hang out with Gayle @granadatapastour on her home turf. From there I will carry on to Málaga for a few more days. Not sure for how long yet, but that is flexible as I am staying at a friend’s place.

Then… a week in San Sebastián at the end of August! I have been planning to visit my friend Gabriella @tenedor (aka Shawn of The North 😉 ) for YEARS. And now it is finally going to happen. I will also spend a day or two in Bilbao, that bit is still up in the air. But I am going to book my flights and then the rest of it I can sort out later.

And so, excited and nervous. Apparently I have the next oncology appointment on July 5th, though I wasn’t given a time and was told I will have to sort that out myself. In the meantime, life goes on… I hope…

what you (maybe) don’t know about trip advisor

09 Saturday Jun 2018

Posted by in sevilla, spain, tapas, tapas bars, tapas tours, travel, trips

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This image comes from a much more detailed article about TripAdvisor, written two years ago (and well worth reading). What started as a type of extortion directed at hotels and restaurants back then has now extended to include local tour operators.

I recently noticed that the listing info on my TA pages, such as website links, phone numbers and email addresses, had disappeared. I also dropped 3 ranking spots overnight. Also, you can no longer answer direct questions from readers with any of that information in it – just like on AirBnB it gets filtered out.

So now only people who list their tours with Viator (TripAdvisor’s online booking app), and pay them a 25% commission, will end up with top ranking. They are also going to start factoring in monthly Viator commission earnings into their ranking algorithm, so the people paying the most commissions to TA will end up on top.

Well, I certainly can’t afford to pay a 25% commission to these bloodsuckers. For each tour I already pay 21% VAT, 15% income tax, admin fees, guide fees, and of course all that fabulous food and drink. My profit margin does not allow me to give 1/4 of it away to TripAdvisor just so I will show up at the top of their lists. Yes, I could put up my prices like many have… except, no way am I going to do that. I am totally against ripping off my guests just to appease that greedy beast, even though I know it would probably bring me more “traffic” and tours.

I can only hope that discerning travellers are going to see through this vile ruse. Many already tell me that when they see promoted Google ads they go right past them and look for the organic search results, even up to 3-4 pages. Happily I am still on the first page when people google “tapas tours seville”. Likewise, I think people are going to realise that the listed TripAdvisor “top food tour companies” in Sevilla and elsewhere are simply those who have paid to be there and have nothing to do with genuine quality.

Equally vile to me is when I see new-on-the-scene corporate food tour companies in Sevilla boasting that they “promote small local business”. No. They don’t. It’s obviously the other way round – these companies wouldn’t have a job without the bars. All the places I go to on my tours don’t actually need my business – they are all thriving family-run establishments that are always packed out. Though these days many of them are often full of copycat food tour groups, which is actually destroying what made these places special in the first place. I’ve even heard of one company that demands that bars PAY THEM to bring in tapas tour clients. WTF? It’s like living in the Upside Down.

So much greed. So little integrity. Me? I’m holding my own and working on ways to develop my food and wine experiences so that people can pay honest prices and get the best quality I can offer, as well as allowing me to make a living. I am playing the long game, even though at my age I’m not sure how long that game will actually be. These short-term opportunists disgust me, and I am certainly not going to play their game. Well, let’s see what happens.

bodegas luis pérez

07 Wednesday Mar 2018

Posted by in andalucia, food & drink, gastronomy, getaways, sevilla, travel, trips, wine

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I had been wanting to visit Bodegas Luís Pérez for a while, and finally got my chance on this trip to Jerez with friends Peter @SVQConcierge and John and Jane Bachner King. Although firmly inside the Marco de Jerez, it’s not, in fact, a sherry bodega, but rather produces red wines, once just as important as the white Palomino Fino sherry grape, but lost long ago for a variety of reasons, the coup de grace being delivered by the phylloxera virus that devastated European vines at the end of the 19th century.

The bodega was founded in 2002 by Luis Pérez, former enologist at Domecq and professor of chemistry at Cádiz university, when he bought the Hacienda Vista Hermosa, a farmhouse on the hill at the top of the Pago de Corchuela outside of Jerez, and began the work of planting the new vineyards with red grapes. These days the bodega is mostly run by the Pérez children, Willy and Fátima. Willy’s new project is producing vintage unfortified sherries, as they used to be made before the trade and shipping demands of the last few centuries that led to the development of the present day solera and criadera ageing system. I tasted some of these sherries at the Cuatro Gatos Wine Fest a couple of weeks ago and they are very special indeed.

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carnaval chiquito

28 Wednesday Feb 2018

Posted by in andalucia, food & drink, gastronomy, getaways, tapas, tapas bars, trips

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To be honest, you couldn’t pay me to go to Cádiz during Carnaval, so when Peter and I made a last minute decision to ditch El Puerto for a Sunday afternoon in Cádiz I was relieved that the celebrations had finished the previous weekend. Or so I thought! When we got to Hostel Casa Caracol to drop off the suitcase (a great service, and just a short walk from the train station) the guy at reception informed us that we had arrived just in time for Carnaval Chiquito, a kind of “last hurrah” until next year. Oh boy…

Our plan had been to do a three-stop tapeo at some of our favourite bars, as well as take a walk along the beach, and then stop in at the splendid Cafe Royalty before catching the train home. And well, we did manage all that, but both the streets and the bars were absolutely heaving (though to be honest, the bars are probably that busy on a Sunday anyhow). We totally lucked out with the weather, with the predicted rain holding off until after we got home, and warm enough to walk around in shirtsleeves. So it turned out to be a great afternoon and made me realize that I really have to visit Cádiz more often.

one perfect lacy tortillita de camarones at El Faro

three-bar tapeo: chicharrones de Cádiz at Casa Manteca
chocos & prawns at El Faro
grilled presa and stewed abanico at Cumbres Mayores

fabulous picatostes at Café Royalty

La Caleta beach and the Cádiz Balneario

christmas lunch in málaga

16 Saturday Dec 2017

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The traditional Málaga Christmas lunch has taken place at many different locations and with different people over the years, but the one constant has always been these two, my lovely friends Arpy & Fred. This year it was just the three of us and we managed to get an early table at the fabulous Mesón Mariano, which was new to A & F. The place has been booked solid for holiday meals for over a month, but we got there right at opening time (expecting to sit at the bar) and were told we could have a table if we left before the booking came in. Which gave us an hour and a half, which was plenty of time to enjoy the following…

Garlicky clams, braised artichokes “montillana”, albondigón in almond sauce, and baby goat chops al ajillo. Because we had started lunch early I realised that I could probably comfortably catch the earlier train home, so I would arrive at 8 pm instead of 11 pm, and so that’s what I ended up doing. But we still had time for a penúlitima outside on the terrace of Mesón Cofradia. It all worked out perfectly and was a great way to finish my short-but-sweet Málaga getaway.

it didn’t rain!

15 Friday Dec 2017

Posted by in andalucia, christmas, getaways, Malaga, malaga getaway, travel, trips

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For the past week the forecast for Friday in Málaga was for RAIN. So l dutifully packed my umbrella but then faced a dilemma. Should l pack the book I’m presently reading (in case it rained) or an extra pair of shoes (in case it rained). There was only room in the suitcase for one (don’t ask) and in the end l opted to bring the book.

But then it didn’t rain. In fact it was a gloriously sunny and warm day. At first l was a bit unsure about what to do since l had nobody to go out and play with. All l knew is that l wanted my day to include a quick trip to Atarazanas market and a post-lunch drink on the terrace of the Gibralfaro Parador Hotel. And so first things first. I got to Atarazanas at 12.00, perfect for a quick beer and “brunch” snack (a grilled skewer of prawns and monkfish). Then l headed to the port with the idea of getting in a bit of a beach walk before lunch.

It’s been awhile since l actually walked along the port. Usually l either take the park or the Paseo de las Sorpresas to get to Malagueta beach. But today l also wanted to walk to the lighthouse so that meant venturing further along the quay. My god, what a mess (so no quay pics). I hear they are planning to put in a massive Hard Rock Café next to the Pompidou (guess they’re not expecting that contract to be renewed). What was initially an attempt at offering high end shopping with diverse dining options is now a sad array of cheap sunglasses and casual clothing shops along with the usual fast food suspects: Burger King, Dunkin Donuts, KFC, 100 Montaditos. So Hard Rock will fit in just fine. But really, what a sad mess.

Anyhow, l continued my walk down to the lighthouse and then along the beach until l reached the iconic Malagueta sign. By then it was time for lunch.

Luckily l had a recommendation from my friend Ania, and somewhere l had never been to – La Odisea. Unfortunately the dish l HAD to try (according to both Ania and Joanna) didn’t come as a tapa. So l ordered a media ración of the presa with peanut sauce and mushrooms, and it really was delicious. But after that l couldn’t eat anything else, so l headed out to catch the bus up to the Parador.

I was lucky to find the one table with this lovely view free, so l spent a pleasant hour enjoying a glass of wine in the sun. Then l walked back to the centre. Got there just before sunset and almost went to the Marriott AC rooftop bar to watch the sun go down but was told l had to buy an 8€ ticket to go up, which included a drink. WTF? So l headed home instead and relaxed there for a couple of hours before l took a final evening stroll to enjoy the lights. What a perfect day.

christmas málaga getaway 2017

13 Wednesday Dec 2017

Posted by in getaways, Malaga, malaga getaway, travel, trips

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One more sleep until the annual Christmas Málaga Getaway. As always, looking forward to seeing the fabulous lights again. This incredible photo was taken by my friend Victor @welovemalaga last week, from a very strategic location.

This will actually be a mini-getaway, just two nights instead of the usual week away, but I plan on making the most of it, with a couple of Christmas lunches planned, visiting friends, etc. Yay!

postcard from archidona

26 Saturday Aug 2017

Posted by in andalucia, friends, getaways, history, holidays, Malaga, malaga getaway, triana, trips

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I always love taking day trips with Victor @welovemalaga when I am visiting Málaga, and this time we chose to go to Archidona after I discovered that Victor had never been there. A rare treat for me to show him something new! As Peter @svqconcierge would be arriving in town Saturday morning we decided that would be a good day for all three of us to go, though I should have done my homework better as we missed the opening time for the Virgen de Gracia convent and castle. But we went up the mountain anyhow and were treated to some spectacular views.

We also had lunch at Arxiduna Restaurant, uniquely located inside caves in the main square (also unique for being the only octagonal square in Spain). I’ll be updating their page soon. I’d let them know that I was coming back and booked a table and, well, we were treated like royalty and given a special tasting menu. But more on that later.

On the way home Victor took a detour through the beautiful Montes de Málaga, a magnificent natural park and, as always, I learned so much more about this region and its history. Victor is not only a fount of knowledge but a gifted story teller. By the time we got back to Málaga we were zonked, so Peter went to crash at his hotel and I came “home” to shower and spent a lovely evening in Netflixing. The only thing missing was Morcilla…

Peter & Victor in Plaza de la Victoria, ArchidonaRestaurante Arxiduna

just trying to help…

25 Friday Aug 2017

Posted by in andalucia, food & drink, getaways, Malaga, malaga getaway, spain, travel, trips

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So I was in the Atarazanas Market yesterday and saw a couple of tourists looking over the display of various meats in manteca, which for those of you who don’t know are meats preserved in pork lard, often (but not always) coloured and flavoured with paprika. The man even leaned over to smell one of them at which point the vendor came over and said in his best English, “That is pork meat in butter!”.

Trying to be helpful I said to the couple that it was actually lard, not butter. Then I explained to the vendor that he was telling them it was pork in mantequilla (butter), not manteca (lard), and we all helped him with pronouncing this new word. The couple went away happy and the vendor said to me, “So what are you, a teacher?” And then he said, “I always say butter to them and they always understand me perfectly.” Well, I tried…