Spain: Beautiful Sevilla

One of the places I was most excited about in Spain was Sevilla. Sevilla to me embodied what Spain is: flamenco, paella, guitar music. I know Spain is so much more but Sevilla is essential Spain to me. After some web research, I found a great deal at the botique hotel El Rey Moro. Breakfast was included every morning and the staff was very friendly and helpful. They gave us great advice. I loved waking up each morning to the courtyard (see above) and enjoyed a glass of wine at the table in front of my room while reading a book.

We enjoyed strolling around the city and observing the architecture.

Memorials to Ferdinand and Isabella.They were directly responsible for Columbus “discovering” the new world.

Spanish snacks

Government building

Toro del Oro

Path along the river

Some tapas at Plaza Santa Ana across the river. When we first arrived it was a sleepy tavern with only a few customers. Within minutes the tavern and courtyard were flooded with churchgoers exiting the church.

The next morning we did some more sighting. We walked down to see the Basilica de la Macarena. This church, as well as many other Spanish churches, was very ornate. The basilica hosts the most revered image in Seville, the virgin Mary. This church is located in the neighborhood of the same name..that is also responsible for Los del Río’s hit song Macarena.

Nearby bell tower.

Drinking a beer in Macarena. I really wanted to do the dance but did not want to embarrass myself.

After our early day Macarena experience we wandered around more of Sevilla. We noted many orange trees (not for juicing and eating – mostly good for marmalade) and very cool Banyan trees.

Part of me is really against the sport of bull fighting but a visit to Sevilla would not be complete without a tour of the history of the toreadors. There is a long tradition there that seems to be slowing fading with time.

After hours of touring one must stop for afternoon tapas. This spinach and chickpea dish is one of my favorites.

Later on for dinner we had oxtail and fries

Below is the closest thing we got to authentic paella while we were there (unfortunately). Paella is traditionally served only at certain times and we couldn’t find reliable local advice on where to get the real stuff (most restaurant paella is pre-made and re-heated -> frozen crap). I was real disappointed about that.

And it was off to sleep to have the energy for another day of sightseeing…….

Summer cocktail

This is a nice, non-sweet, refreshing cocktail to enjoy during the summer.

Muddle 1 juicy backyard key lime with fresh mint (also from backyard). Add 1 shot vodka and 1 shot of St Germain’s. Fill to the top with ice. Fill rest of glass with water. Mix with straw.

Perfect for summer!!!

Spain: Sightseeing in Madrid

Spain was always on my bucket list of travel places to visit. However when I dreamed of Spain my thoughts leaned towards the Seville and Barcelona. I thought Madrid would be my least favorite part of my recent trip there but I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the sights and food.

We started off our most recent visit checking into the modern style Hotel Regina (see room above). The hotel was affordable and in walking distance to most areas of interest – including Puerta del Sol where we saw these ladies below trying to work the crowd.

We also saw elmo and others but could only deal with so many poorly made character costumes so we headed over to Plaza Mayor where we saw this really weird goat thing.

Bubble fun…..

Interesting frescos in plaza.

Later on in the evening we happened upon a used book store.

And a store all about SHUTTING YOUR MOUTH.

Puerta del Sol was much nicer in the evening. Many people gathering around socializing. Madrid is a very social city.

Walking back to our hotel.

The next day we set out for the Royal Palace.

Official designs of the royal palace.

After we visited the palaces we stopped for tapas. Olives and sardines are a staple of tapas cusine.

We also had some chicken and tripe soup.

And Churros con chocolate

If you wander around the city enough you will happen upon small markets like this one. I liked the war machines made out of bullets.

There was also a great supply of Greek sweets.

And some fur accessories if you need them.

Nice fountain near the market.

Some beautiful night views of Madrid.

And back to our hotel to bed.

If you want to experience more of the food night life of Madrid, visit the past posts of Mercado de San Miguel and Tapas in Calle Cava Baja.

Beyond BBQ – Downtown Memphis Day 1

The corporate headquarters for my corporation is located outside of Memphis. I have visited there a time or two. During my last few visits I never ventured out of the suburbs. During my recent trip I had the majority of my evenings free so I was able to explore more of Memphis. I feel lucky that I got to visit during the month of May. I belive that is the time of the year when Memphis is at its best. The weather is awesome and there is so much to do (if you get past the allergens).
I came in a day early for my trip so I could take part in the Beale Street Music Festival.

I started my downtown experience by dining at the famous Arcade Restaurant. History states that it was a favorite dining spot for Elvis Presley when he was alive. I took reviewers advice and ordered the sweet potato pancakes. While it was true that they were good I think I would have enjoyed them more if they were whole grain. I have taken a liking to whole grain pancakes so white flour pancakes taste too much like dessert for breakfast to me now.

I easily found downtown parking for $10 a day and walked down to the festival gate near Beale Street. I visited on a Sunday about an hour after the gates opened. There were no lines to get in but it was hot.

Photo credit: Taken from beale street music festival facebook page.

I decided to start at the Blues Tent close to the entrance to enjoy the shade for a while. The first act of the day was Dr. Herman Green. Herman is a spectacular saxophone player who still plays great at the age of 83. He has played with many notable blues legends but typically will do a set with the jam band FreeWorld at these festivals. Unfortunately they scheduled Herman Green and FreeWorld to perform at the same time this year. After enjoying Dr. Green for about 20 minutes, I wandered over to another tent to see the end of the set of FreeWorld.
FreeWorld is a fun jam band with a loyal following. They did some covers but even their originals were easily recognizable by the audience. I joined the energy at that stage and finished the set with them.
After they were finished I walked over to the stage where the Dandy Warhols were going to perform and caught the last few minutes of the energetic Latin band Los Rabanes. I can’t believe I have never heard of this ska-rock band. They had me dancing over to their stage with their version of “Electric Avenue”. They performed a few more covers and original songs with intense energy that made you feel foolish if you were in the crowd standing around. They were truly a fun band to watch.
While waiting for the next act I found a beer tent that had beers close to craft-beer like (since the event was sponsored by Bud). I picked up a Goose Island Urban Wheat Ale (Goose Island sits on the fence of big beer and craft beer anymore) and headed back to the stage to get a good spot for the Dandy Warhols. This was my first time seeing them live but I have enjoyed some of their tunes for a few years now. I was excited to hear their higher energy tunes when they were played; sadly the crowd was not. I suppose many in the crowd have never heard of them. The Dandy Warhol’s played a great set but it would have been just a bit better with a more excited crowd.
After Dandy Warhols I walked back over to the stage where Leftover Salmon was playing to catch their act. Leftover Salmon is a Colorado based jam-band that I have caught before at New Orleans Jazz Fest and other music festivals. They are fun to watch but I was getting hot standing around in the sun so I decided to leave the festival for the day. I took a re-entry ticket thinking maybe I would just hang out in a cool restaurant for a while and come back; but I was tired and I had to work the next day.

A couple of days later I headed back downtown to try to catch what I missed the first day.
However that evening I wanted to try to get dinner closer to my hotel. I stopped at the Hog & Hominy and enjoyed one of their delicious cocktails and pizzas.

I ordered the Bebop and Rocksteady – the pizza with sopressata and clams. I was curious because I have never tried clams on a pizza before. The whole flavor of the pizza was delicious, especially the sopressata, but the clams were chewier than I like.
After I finished my dinner it was off to bed early to make sure I got a good night’s sleep before work the next morning.

Madrid Tapas stroll on Calle Cava Baja

Previously I have talked about my food experiences at the Mercado de San Miguel. It is tough to top the food choices at the mercado but we were determined to find more good food.
For a tapas crawl experience, our guide book recommended we visit the restaurants of Calle Cava Baja in Madrid.
We started in the early evening down the street whereas most locals do not go out until after 9. We were able to try some places out before they got crowded. We made our way down the street and sampled as much food and beverages as we could for the night.