Exploring the Dehesa – Iberian Ham. What makes Iberian ham (jamón Ibérico) so special? Obviously the best way to find out is by travelling to Spain to Seville and then on into the countryside to the North, to the Dehesa. In our case that was to an area around Huelva, Cumbres de San Bartolomé, close […]
Palma Mallorca Food
The Food of Mallorca – Culinary Heritage and Must Try Dishes in Palma: I’m standing on the stairs leading down to an ancient kitchen in one of Palma’s bakeries, Fornet de la Socà. The baker standing in front of the now disused wood oven, the oldest in Palma, is carefully teasing out his dough for […]
Palma de Mallorca – Sun, Sand and Special Shops!
Emblematic Shops in Palma de Mallorca: (invited press review) What comes to mind when you think of Mallorca? For me, it’s beaches, nightlife, bars and restaurants. A holiday vibe and a happy place with a great Marina. We can easily forget is that places like Palma existed before the Brits arrived and for that matter […]
Boutique Hotels Palma de Mallorca – Brondo Architect Hotel
Brondo Architect, a Quirky Boutique Hotel, Palma de Mallorca: Press Trip Wandering the streets of Palma de Mallorca with a guide, we stopped to look at a pair of buildings, Can Casasayas and Pensión Menorquina. My naive comment, that they looked like Gaudi provoked the response that the architect was, of course, heavily influenced by […]
Top Things to do in Costa del Sol
Beyond the Beach in Costa del Sol Introduction – Things you must do in Costa del Sol: With stunning sandy beaches, you may well have already considered a sea and sand holiday in Costa del Sol. If like me, though, you are the sort of person who likes having things to do, Costa del Sol […]
Weekend in Barcelona at the Cotton House Hotel
Short Break in Barcelona: Barcelona is a ‘must visit’ destination so the opportunity to experience a weekend winter’s getaway combined with an invitation to stay at the glamorous Cotton House Hotel was too good to turn down. It’s a city you would need to spend a few weeks in to really get underneath its skin but […]
Catalonian short break
Exploring Catalonia – Terrassa, La Garriga and more: I was on the final leg of my journey through Catalonia and by now I had fallen in love with the stunning landscapes, celebrated art and architecture and the extraordinary warmth of the Catalan people I encountered along the way. La Garriga Spa Leaving the Osona region behind us, […]
Catalonia – Part 2
My journey through Catalonia continues to Osona…. Having left the charms of Berguedà behind me, I continued on my exciting journey through Catalonia where my entire itinerary was a complete unknown. In the hands of my guides, I became accustomed to arriving in new places with no idea what was in store for me… It […]
Discovering Catalonia – Part 1
A short break to Catalonia, Spain: Catalonia is a region of Spain that, other than from a couple of short city breaks to its capital Barcelona, has never been on my radar. Little did I know what I had been missing – read on and discover more of Catalonia with me! I have recently returned […]
Colonia Guell, a Gaudi UNESCO town in Catalonia
Colonia Guell – Catalonia: Just 25 kilometres inland from Barcelona, Colonia Guell is a UNESCO heritage colony town and is a working example of Antoni Gaudi’s architecture and Catalan Modernism design. Colony towns were modelled on the British industrial towns model, as the Industrial Revolution swept all across Europe. Eusebio Guell moved his textile factory to […]