Tag Archives: sevilla

pérez galdós revisited

10 Wednesday May 2023

Posted by in sevilla, spain

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perez galdos

Calle Pérez Galdós could be – should be – such a pretty residential street. Instead it’s a war zone with late night (all night) bars, their patrons (mostly students, local and foreign, many underage) spilling out into the street, shouting and “singing” and screaming, at times also fighting.

I lived at the end of this street for five years and during that whole time I barely slept. At first I joined my neighbours in calling the police and at times I even stopped police in the street on my way home at night and pointed out all the illegal activity going on. Nothing. They did nothing even though they could see 15-year-olds falling down drunk, huge crowds shouting, never mind that it’s not permitted to DRINK IN THE STREET. They did nothing.

In the end I gave up and moved. Today I passed by and see that nothing has changed. Why is this street being “protected”, whose palms are being greased, so that this illegal activity goes on every night of the week? It is not normal that a barrio as lovely and vibrant as La Alfalfa should have been thrown under the bus like this. What’s going on?

rick & me

09 Tuesday May 2023

Posted by in sevilla, tapas, tapas bars, tapas tours, tourism, travel

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rick shawn

I had a very special guest on Monday evening… Rick Steves was in town and, as I’ve had the honour of being mentioned in two of his Spain travel guides the past few years (recommended by his local guide writer), it was high time we met up in person. Can I tell you? Rick is a lovely guy and a total force of nature. I had no idea what to expect, whether he wanted a tapas tour or just to talk about me and what I am doing and the Sevilla tapas scene, maybe get some recommendations on other places he could add to his guide… turned out that, yep, he wanted it all! And honestly, it was so much fun. Looking back, we stopped in at 16 (!!!) tapas bars and restaurants over five hours. Not eating at all of them obviously (we only did that at two stops) but checking out the places, ambiance, menus, etc. with Rick scribbling notes as we went. It was definitely a night of heavy researching.

Our first stop to actually stop at was Casa Morales. Reyes Morales was just coming back from walking her dog and said we had to come in and have a cold beer and a tapa. And well, who were we to argue with tapas bar royalty? At the last stop of the night, Salmedina, we also stopped in to eat. Rick had tried to get in the night of the Copa del Rey match and, well, no way. But luckily not only was there a table available for us, both owner/chefs were there (usually they trade off). Jaime and Pedro welcomed us and suggested we just try whatever they wanted us to try, thus a small but exquisite tasting menu ensued. My god. Every bite was heaven. And I even got to give Rick a little sherry education.

What can I say? It was a Tapeo Extremo to beat all others, all totally spontaneous and fun. Have already warned him that next time we’re going to Triana… and now that I know what he likes, well, it’s going to be epic.

Rick, thanks again for everything. Being in your guide has been amazing and I hope to continue being a trusted source for you and your travellers.

rick me (2)

toldos 2023

05 Friday May 2023

Posted by in sevilla, spain

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toldos 2023 (2)

First time ever (in my thirty years here) that I’ve seen the street awnings up so early. First spotted mid-April and now the city is pretty much covered. Don’t get me wrong, I love them and think they should always go up this time of year but they usually start some time in June, and there was that one year it was put off until late July (way too late). The reason for being so efficient this year? I dunno… could it have anything to do with the elections at the end of May and an extremely ambitious mayor? Don’t you hate it when politicians treat you like you’re too stupid to see through their ruses? Would love to be proved wrong next mid-April…

toldos 2023 (1)

new airfryer bits

04 Thursday May 2023

Posted by in air fryer, casa azahar, homecooking

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airfryer bits (1)

I’ve found a use for my (now busted) oven. Storage space for all my airfryer accessories! I recently got the little pyrex ramekins to make mini yorkshire puddings because, although I more or less managed to rescue the batch I made over Christmas (when I discovered the oven was busted), these are a better size and shape. Still not sure what I’ll use the little tartlet pans for but look! I can fit four in the Storm Cooker so had to get those too. What’s your fave AF accessory?

airfryer bits (2)