Tag Archives: cadiz getaway

cádiz getaway march 2018

08 Thursday Mar 2018

Posted by in andalucia, food & drink, friends, gastronomy, getaways, spain

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A bit of a déjà vu experience, as Peter and I were just in Cádiz a couple of weeks ago during Carnaval Chiquito, but other than a couple of the “must dos” we ended up having quite a different experience. Also it was the first visit for Jane and John, and we were happy to show them around. After a quick trip to the central market, this was the rest of our day…

cold beer o’clock at La Sorpresa

snacks and sherry at Casa Manteca

tapas at Antonio Del Palillo and El Faro followed by a walk to La Caleta Beach

picatostes at Café Royalty

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

hotel convento

28 Saturday Jan 2017

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Stayed for the first time at Hotel Convento in Cádiz and, faulty shower door issues aside, we really enjoyed it. Located a short walk from the train station, it’s also close to lots of bars, central squares, and the Cathedral. The courtyard is stunning, and our room was quite spacious, clean and comfortable.

hotel-convento-2Full review coming soon on Azahar Spain.

eating cádiz

27 Friday Jan 2017

Posted by in gastronomy, getaways, travel, trips, welcome

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eating-cadizFrom new discoveries (thanks to Pilar & Antonio) to revisiting old favourites, as you can see, it was a very FULL three days. But my favourite foodie moment was meeting Paco, who’s been running the Mini Bar in Cádiz for 45 years. It’s impossible to spend money here, the seafood is fast, fab and fresh, with friendly service and nice wines too.

mini-barNew reviews and updates will (hopefully) be up on Azahar Tapas soon.

sea birds… and sea cats

26 Thursday Jan 2017

Posted by in andalucia, cadiz, cats, getaways

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cadiz-cats-birds-1So you really can’t go to Cádiz without taking this iconic postcard shot of the Cathedral with the pastel painted houses on the left, the sea in front of you, and preferably with a cooperative seagull passing by. Could’ve done without the ugly building crane on the left, but oh well.

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And just below this viewing spot dwell a crazy number of “sea cats”, who always look to be thriving. In fact, there are little cat houses put out for them, with food and water dishes outside them. Given the number of orange cats roaming around (even more out of camera shot) there must have been at least one big ginger tom out there having a good time recently.

cadiz-cats-birds-3Just above “cat city” I spotted several seagulls vying for ownership over a whack of small fish that were laying across one of the boulders. Clearly tossed there by someone. And then one of them posed nicely for me…