Category Archives: trips

málaga christmas again!

12 Wednesday Dec 2012

Posted by in christmas, Malaga, travel, trips

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malaga christmas againThree years ago (was it really that long?) I spent a wonderful whirlwind pre-Christmas weekend in Málaga with Peter and Jessica. It almost didn’t come to pass, but thanks to my Christmas angel I got there in time and the three of us had a great time.

Last year I also got to catch the tail-end of Málaga lit up at Christmas when Peter and I popped down there for a couple of days to celebrate my birthday.

And this year I get to go again – next week! This all came to pass after doing a fun tapas tour last Friday afternoon with two friends from Chicago (Wendy & Belinda) and a solo traveller from New Zealand (Justine). Well, we all hit it off and had a great time. So much so that the three ladies met the next day to have tapas together, and then I saw Justine again before she left for Córdoba. After hearing me wax lyrical about Málaga Justine decided to put it on her list of places to visit and then I thought, hey, might be nice to have an excuse to pop down there again. But I didn’t want to wear out my welcome at Manolo’s place as I’m really hoping to be able to stay there for an extended holiday this spring.

So I asked a holiday rental site I’ve been in touch with over the years if they might have a place available for a couple of nights in exchange for an article and some social media lurve… and they did! I was hoping for a place in the centre of town, in order to have a different Málaga experience, but ended up with a beachfront place just up the road from Manolo’s. What the heck. It’ll still be Christmas in Málaga!

thursday in málaga

20 Thursday Sep 2012

Posted by in 20th anniversary, friends, Malaga, tapas, travel, trips, twitter

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The original plan had been to stay in Málaga two nights and return on Thursday. But then I found out that long time Twitter friends Fred @fredshively and Arpi @Andalucinda were actually going to be moving to town that day, so I made arrangements to stay one more night in order to finally meet them in person. But Peter still had to get back to teach a class and then take out a tapas tour, so we spent his last morning here going out to the Automotive Museum. Seriously. I wasn’t sure what to expect, and I’m not exactly an old car buff, but it had come highly recommended by several people so off we went. And what fun it was! I especially liked the hat collection. After that we picked up his bag at the apartment and went out for a last drink together before he caught the train back to Sevilla.

By then it was lunchtime and I wasn’t sure what to do as I don’t especially enjoy eating on my own, and I wasn’t sure where to go. So I took a wander around the centre and, after spotting a couple of likely candidates, I finally settled on one called Souvi Tapería because it just had a nice feel to it. And what a good choice that turned out to be. The food was amazing (that tapa in the collage is warm potato & truffle coulante filled with foie, served with boletus icecream) and it turned out that my waiter was not only from Sevilla but also from my barrio! When he found out about my tapas blog he said he’d introduce me to the chef & owner. I also ended up meeting the chef’s mother who was sitting at the bar and we had a great chat about Málaga, and swapped contact info. So it wasn’t a lonley lunch after all.

Then I came home to catch up on emails and do a bit of work and before long it was time to meet up with Fred and Arpi (Arpi is a writer and Fred takes fabulous photos). I really appreciated them coming out at all after spending the whole day moving here from the Alpujarras. And I really really appreciated that, when our first restaurant choice turned out to be a dud, Arpi let us drag her down the street to a cool little tapas bar “for one more” as that ended up being another delightful “discovery” for me. Anyhow, it was great meeting them after knowing them on Twitter for so long, and now I have two more lovely reasons to visit Málaga.

So it ended up being quite a wonderful Thursday. How was yours?

málaga afternoon

19 Wednesday Sep 2012

Posted by in 20th anniversary, Malaga, tapas, travel, trips

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Walking back from lunch this afternoon I saw this…

Been having a great time in Málaga, but it suddenly seems too short, that there is too much I want to see and do in too little time. I am already thinking of another time I might be able to come back for a whole week and spend at least some of that time doing nothing at all. It would be great to just spend a couple of days hanging out in the apartment, walking on the beach, and making snacky meals at home. But I am very happy and grateful for these few days this week. If you want to see what I’ve been up to there are photo tweets up on both @azaharSevilla and @SevillaTapas.

What have you guys been up to?

back to málaga…

17 Monday Sep 2012

Posted by in 20th anniversary, cats, Malaga, travel, trips

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Tomorrow Peter and I are heading off to Málaga for a few days. Well, Peter will come back on Thursday to do a tapas tour and I’ll stay on until Friday because I want to meet up with some Twitter friends who won’t be in town until Thursday. As usual we’ll be staying at Manolo’s fabulous apartment. You may remember that I postponed my Málaga trip in August because I couldn’t leave Azar, even with Peter staying at home with him. Now we can go together (next door neighbour Colm will be checking in on the young’uns) and it will be the first time in 17 years that I’ve ever gone anywhere without fretting about Azar. Even when he was young and in good health he was always so hard to leave, even just overnight, because I knew how much it upset him. It’s going to feel strange and sad, not fretting.

Anyhow, since everything is still so painful here, and this week is the only time until mid-October that I’ve got three free days in a row, I thought I should take the opportunity to get away. There are a couple of museums in Málaga I still haven’t visited as well as lots of places to revisit. The renovated wharf area should now be fully opened up and of course I will be dipping my toes in the Mediterranean.

But the first thing (a new “tradition” we started last visit), after unpacking and settling in, will be to go up to the Gibralfaro Parador Hotel and have a drink on their terraza while taking in the fabulous view (see pic). And then just enjoy a couple of days in my second favourite Spanish city. Well, as long as there isn’t another train strike, like today’s…

more córdoba!

08 Saturday Sep 2012

Posted by in 20th anniversary, spain, travel, trips

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I realised today that I haven’t posted anything here about my trip to Córdoba a couple of weeks ago – the one that caused me so much worry over Azar and leaving him overnight. Well, as you all know he was fine and, as luck would have it, the damn tumour didn’t explode until two days after we got back. I still shudder to think what would have happened if it had burst while we were away…

But it didn’t and Peter and I had a wonderful time. I have to say that Córdoba is becoming one of my favourite places and already I want to go back. I used to say to friends and tapas tour clients that it was a good day trip spot, or at the most overnight, but I each time I go I discover something new and find out there is even more to discover.

And then I run out of time.

This last visit was extra special because I was invited by Hospes Hotels to spend a night in their fabulous five-star Palacio del Bailío and enjoy a flamenco-themed dinner there. So… wow. It was my first ever five-star experience and I sure hope it’s not my last. Everything at the hotel was perfect and the hotel itself has such an interesting history that you feel like you’re staying in a historical monument – which is exactly what it is. Various treasures were discovered during renovations, such as old paintings hidden under wallpaper and Roman ruins in the basement (!!). I could’ve happily not left the hotel during the entire visit, but there were things to check out in town.

Peter came with me as he was doing research for his Córdoba day trips as Seville Concierge. We went to the Mesquita again, as we hadn’t been for a few years, and also to the the Alcázar for the first time. And of course we were keen to try out a couple of restaurants that came highly recommended, only to find that they were both closed for holidays. Instead we happened upon a real find – the world’s first “salmorejería”! Anyhow, I have written and posted photos about the highlights of this fabulous trip in various places, so you can have a look at them if you like. And meanwhile I’ll keep dreaming about returning to Córdoba soon…

My blog post on azahar’s Sevilla: Dreaming in Córdoba

You can see all the hotel photos here: Córdoba | Palacio del Bailío

And other Córdoba pics: Córdoba | August 2012

And if you’re wondering what a salmorejería is… Salmorejería Umami