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Tag Archives: staycation

shutting down!

11 Monday Jul 2022

Posted by azahar in coronavirus, covid, health & happiness, home, work

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

covid, sevilla, staycation, work

sorry closed

Yep, again. You may recall that I finally got back to work again last September after more than a year and a half of my business being totally shut down, and without any government support.  In spite of being quite desperate for some income I was waiting until I got my second jab before facing the travelling public at close quarters. And things were starting to pick up when omicron hit early December and I made the difficult decision to shut down again December-January because, well, same deal. It just wasn’t worth the risk.

Since then travel has become “easier”, meaning that Covid prevention measures are mostly removed everywhere now. And so of course Covid B5 and other variants are running rampant, not to mention monkeypox. During the first two years of the pandemic I didn’t know anyone personally who had contracted Covid. Not here, not globally. But since about 1-2 months ago suddenly EVERYONE is catching it, and not a week goes by without a few friends getting sick. Including my flat mate Peter in mid-May. Talk about close to home!

And now with EVERYONE going on summer holiday, mostly not taking any precautions, and certainly not getting tested, I’ve decided to shut down again for the rest of the summer, just like I did last winter. No, I cannot afford to do this, but I also refuse to risk my health, my life, all because people can’t be bothered to care about other people.

This week I have two tapas tours with people who booked ages ago, so I will honour those. But after that… looks like I’ll be off work and staycationing at home until September.

staycation 2019

24 Saturday Aug 2019

Posted by azahar in casa azahar, cats, friends, home, sevilla, sevilla staycation, summer

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Tags

casa azahar, cats, home, sevilla, staycation

As I mentioned the other day, I’ve been on a staycation this month, since I don’t have any money coming in and can’t really afford a holiday. But I’ve been keeping busy and it’s actually been quite nice having some time off, taking walks, seeing friends, reading, netflixing with the cats (watch One Strange Rock!), cooking (still trying to perfect tortilla con “socarrat”). It’s also nice because the crazy neighbour is away all summer, so I can enjoy time at home without having to deal with her nonsense. Plus it hasn’t been super hot. And hey, I did have trips to London and Galicia earlier this year, so I’m not complaining.

Meanwhile, I’ve also been looking at what direction my business will take as the rapid growth of tourism over the past few years has totally changed what began (for me) as a “hobby that turned into a job” thing. Which has been fabulous. And since 2009 it’s also provided a decent living. Then I started We Love Tapas in 2015, but it was around that same time that Sevilla was suddenly inundated by new tour companies. And so, while I know I offer a superior experience, I realise I have to “up my game” if I am going to actually STAY in the game. So that is also what has been on my mind during this short hiatus, and I’m happy to say that some fresh possiblilites have presented themselves (both in my mind and in person). More on that as things progress.

How’s your summer been going?

triana sunset

20 Tuesday Aug 2019

Posted by azahar in sevilla, sevilla staycation

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

sevilla, staycation

Have pretty much been “off work” this month. By this I mean no tours, but as usual I keep busy working on other things. No money coming in though, so I’ve been having a staycation and enjoying some nice lazy days. Even getting some reading done! And I take a walk every day, either morning/midday or in the evening. Much cooler in the evenings, and I get to see scenes like this. How’s your summer going?

sevilla staycation – hotel casa 1800

01 Friday Sep 2017

Posted by azahar in azahartravels, getaways, hotels, sevilla, sevilla staycation, travel

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

azahar spain, hotel casa 1800, hotels, reviews, sevilla, staycation, trip planning

I lived in the house on the right for 18 years and remember when Hotel Casa 1800 @hotelcasa1800 was actually someone’s house. Now one of the finest hotels in Sevilla, I was thrilled to be invited to spend a night there this week. You can see my gorgeous room and a few other details below. Full review coming soon on Azahar Travels.

spanish roof

30 Thursday Jun 2016

Posted by azahar in hotels, sevilla, sevilla staycation, spain

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Andalucia, sevilla, sevilla staycation, spain, staycation

spanish roofIn 1990 I moved to an apartment in Bristol, England that had what I called my “Spanish kitchen”. It also had a view of a “Spanish roof” from my bedroom window. It was a Spanish kitchen to me because the tiles were terracotta, and the Spanish roof, that looked like this photo, was on a nearby building (not sure why because this isn’t a typical roof style for Bristol). Both those things kept me dreaming about moving to my new home, and then I got a job at a tapas bar there! I was convinced I was on the right path, so even when I was asked to stay in Bristol and manage the bar… I just had to go. I was reminded of my Bristol “Spanish roof” during my Staycation at the Doña María Hotel. This was one of the views from their rooftop.

azahar on twitter

  • sunday song – isn’t it nice to be home again youtube.com/shorts/98qMVLb… azahar.me/2023/02/05/sun… 1 day ago
  • caturday february 4th 2023 azahar.me/2023/02/04/cat… 1 day ago

sevilla tapas on twitter

  • @losfueros #bilbao #bilbaogetaway https://t.co/somZpfLC6Q 26 minutes ago
  • Carta... Buñuelos de bacalao Gambas plancha Merluza frita Ribs Euskal Txerri Wines... Abeica Abaris César Marquéz… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… 27 minutes ago

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