Tapas Feast

In celebration of the daily tradition we started while in Spain, we hosted a Tapas soiree at the apartment on Women’s Day. Mother Nature was clearly in a fantastic mood, as the weather was gorgeous and the company was even better. Accompanied by crisp white wine, we enjoyed the following home-made tapas – let me know if you would like the any of the recipes and I will mail them with pleasure:

-       Toasted bread with Aubergine & Red pepper dip

-       Garlic & Tomato brushed bread

-       Patatas Bravas with garlic aioli

-       Battered courgettes

-       Paprika toasted almonds

-       Croquettes

-       Dusted squid

-       Lemon grilled mushrooms

-       Serrano wrapped asparagus

-       Honey glazed chorizo

-       Orange & lemon zest marinated olives

Marinated olives - Image, my own

Croquettes - Image, my own

Of Course, we discovered all of these tasty nibbles while in Spain – the first stop being Barcelona. We arrived in this thrilling city rather late at night and feeling a tad bit grumpy, having to haul ass and luggage half way across the city, not certain of just how far down La Rambla our apartment was. When we finally met up with Mano, the owner, and settled into the authentic space in the Gothic District, excitement mounted at the thought of what the next few days would bring.

One of the most mouth-watering moments in Barcelona had to be the La Rambla Food Market. You really have to see, smell and taste it to believe it. It’s a sensory overload. From the stacked fruit stands at the front, to the live seafood in the middle, and the hanging cured meats and overflowing cheese shelves all around, a foodie can get all kinds of lost down this rabbit hole.

Fruit stand at the food market - Image, my own

Seafood at the market - Image, my own

My favourites were the cones of cured meat (new favourite = Serrano Ham); fresh fruit smoothies and a warm crepe dripping in Nutella (which I am sure is more of a French Tradition, but the sultry Spanish man who served it gave it some Barcelona flair).

No trip to this expansive city would be complete without a bird’s eye view of absolutely everything. Thankfully, the cable car from Barcelona Port to Montjuic offers exactly that. After admiring the skyline over one of many glasses of Sangria, we took a short bus ride down to the Poble Espanyol, a re-created Spanish town, taking all of the best and most notable architectural features of the country into account.

View of La Rambla from the cable car - Image, my own

Aside from the cuisine, architecture and art (the Picasso Museum is a must-see, as is the Dali Museum, just a two hour train ride out of the city) Barcelona’s beach is also pretty awesome, thanks to the warm Mediterranean water!

  

My favourite part of the city has to be the posh side, Gracia, where we stayed on our way back home – with the high street shops (so much time spent in Zara!) and the gorgeous people strutting their Haute Couture through the streets, if I was to go back, and I so hope I will, I will spend some more time in this neck of the woods, for it was also where we had the largest and most authentic tapas feast and learnt about all the tasty morsels we served on Women’s Day.

To attempt to sum up Barcelona in a few short highlights is not an easy feat, but if I absolutely had to, I would say:

Highlights:

La Rambla Food Market

Gracia shopping district

Day trip to the Dali Museum in Figures

Walking the vibrant streets at night

Barcelona street art - Image, my own

But I could have done without:

Those annoying men on La Rambla, trying to sell you crap you don’t need, making that terrible duck sound with some contraption in their mouths - I have since learned they are scam artists attempting to distract tourists in order to pick their pockets! Totes assholes!

But all in all, the most magical city, where a week is two short, but year would never be enough!

If you ever get the opportunity, go go GO!

x

Day five (or is it six?)

New leaf still successfully overturned, minus the following tiny indiscretions:

• The most sumptuous three-course meal at Don Pedro’s on Wednesday night – totally worth it. I highly recommend this brilliant little spot for a romantic dinner or a great meal with mates.   
• A Chicken Burger at Quiz Night at Fireman’s while finishing a disappointing 13^th out of 21 groups. Sad face.
• Too much wine (but I would be setting myself up for failure if I thought the new leaf was wine proof) – perhaps the wine and the 13^th place are inextricably linked. Hmmmm.

Otherwise the week has been filled with one or two gym visits, tons of stairs at the office (which I like to see as mini workouts) and some great home–made healthy meals. I tried out Quinoa for the first time and it was not gaggingly gross as I had expected. It was actually rather yummy – probably helped along by the 80:20 ratio of everything else to Quinoa. Steamed fish, chicken & zuchinni wraps and a few salads here and there rounded off the week. All and all it has not been a bad first week of “being better” (most of the time anyway).

And now that’s its 4:36am on Saturday and I have woken up from such a warm, cozy bed for no reason whatsoever, I thought perhaps it’s time I post something about my recent European Adventure. I think I’m ready to look at some photo’s without pining for Sangria and Tapa’s, so here goes…

We started off in Amsterdam and spent one wild weekend at St Christophers Hostel, a vibrant abode in the middle of the red light district and a short walk from Centraal Station. This place is simply the best – if you ever you are in Amsterdam, I suggest shacking up in the middle of the action. Especially when transport costs and the euro are not your friends.

Chris (the fiance) and I having a beer at the hostel - Image, my own

This was my second time in Amsterdam and equally as fun as the first. Beyond the obvious pass times in this liberal city, there are so many great sites, awesome museums, amazing restaurants, quaint architectural landmarks and hilariously funny people to keep you out of mischief. One such place is Vondelpark. I didn’t explore this green belt the first time around, so I was eager to see what one of the “top 10 things to do in Amsterdam in 48 hours” looked like. And I was pleasantly surprised.

I suppose all cities need an area for its inhabitants to jog, cycle and read under the trees, and as a city girl myself, I love a good bit of nature planted arm’s length from the concrete jungle. From an opera singer practicing in the park’s amphitheatre, to lovers on a bench, this park had it all and was a definite highlight of the weekend for me.

Our arrival at the park - Image, my own

Pretty building across the lake - Image, my own

Other highlights:

Cute Dutch blonde police officers (all in their early twenties and in uniform….)

The friendly people

A litre of cheese fondue

Could have done without:

The blisters from walking through every cobbled street of this amazing city

From Amsterdam, we jetted off to Barcelona…. But its 4:59am, and I need some sleep before the Super 15 Final, so I’ll save Barcelona for the next post.

Night

x