¡Adiós Barcelona, Bonjour Paris

I have brought back a few extra kilos and left plans to return again. Gaudi  will have to wait,  Catalan cuisine another time. I still want to play golf in Seville, enjoy the beaches in late fall and tour the monasteries, but all that will have to wait. I'm home.  Back to four degree (Celsius) weather...feels crispy- actually downright cold. But it's good to be back!

Gastronomy in Spain: Kharma, Barcelona

This came recommended by the barman at Zahara.  Newly-opened, it’s a restaurant with a lounge bar. The food was really good- I feel like I'm a paid reviewer with all these positive reviews I have been writing, but Barcelona's dining scence has not disappointed. Still have not tasted authentic Catalan cuisine though. The restaurant was virtually empty- worrying at first but from the Roquefort mousse, duck spring rolls with hoisin sauce to the lamb burger, duck in an orange sauce on a bed of juilenne vegetables and a mushroom risotto, all fears were allayed.

Touch & Feel at Cosmo Caixa, Barcelona

Always tricky striking the right balance between the ideal entertainment for adults and kids when on holiday. Took the kids to the Cosmo Caixa Science Museum for the morning. As is typical of some of the science museums we have visited, it encourages the sensory experience for children. They can touch and feel, prod, poke and twist to their hearts' content. They enjoyed it. The 45 minute long 3D Show on Darwin's Natural Selection was a definite winner. It's always good when you can combine educational and fun in one phrase.

Gastronomy in Spain: Carpe Diem, Barcelona

CDLC, Carpe Diem Lounge Restaurant and Lounge Club in Port Olimpíc combined all my favourite things- lounge music of course, chilled wine and fantastic food. We have not been disappointed in our choices of restaurants so far, but for one exception not even worth a mention. 
Buddha carvings- the decor is all circa 2000- think Buddha Bar. Lounge music. Chilled wine. Great food. Sun on my face. I could have stayed the whole afternoon but we had the kids in tow and our five year old did not quite see the appeal of lounging all afternoon. Pity.
Offerings are Mediterranean and Asian dishes with Arabian and Morrocan touches.  A sushi starter and Wagyu beef carpaccio.

Salvador Dalí in his home country

Funny how I am more than happy to be the happy tourist in another city and not in the one I live in. Completely played to my role, camera and map in hand, gazing in amazement on what may appear to be random scenes to the locals and an overuse of my basic Spanish...Ola!
Pictures here. Then there was a visit to the Dalí  museum on Carrer dels Arcs, thought to mix up all the eating with a bit of culture.  It consisted of the private collection of his sculptures, drawings and sketches as well as a collection of photographs taken of this surrealist artist. I was more fascinated by photographs of this very eccentric artist though.
Note: The Dalí Museum in Figueres, the artist's hometown, is said to be one of the best exhibits of the artist's work. 

Wandering eye in Barcelona

'Churros & Chocolate' caught my eye

I tend to take fairly random photos when discovering new cities- or so they may seem until months later I see an image I captured on camera and it reminds me again of my trip - making my trips down memory lane even more memorable. Today we spent a fair amount of time walking around, taking random images and discovering Barcelona.
Here are a few images of Barcelona from my perspective.

Mojitos, tapas and sunshine

Being in Spain I feel like I should probably be having Sangria, but the Mojito has made a comeback onto my list of favourite cocktails for this week. Had some tapas at the waterfront today after Part 2 of our morning on the Bus Turistic. Kept it fairly simple, but it was surprisingly alright.  I say surprisingly because I am always wary of places that seem to cater strictly to the tourist. The food could have been arbitrary for all I cared – the sun my face was yet again all I needed.

Barcelona beckons

The Sagrada Familia

I would have been glad to just sit at a sidewalk cafe somewhere, people watch and feel the sun on my face. We escaped Paris for a few days to take in some sun and Barcelona did not disappoint. Did the tourist thing yesterday, the Barcelona Bus Turistic, Part 1.
Has early drinks at a lounge bar called Zahara near the Marina where we got a recommendation for Kharma, which was fantastic.
Loving the feel of the sun, and enjoying friendly Spanish hospitality- Mission: Savour Catalan Cuisine before we leave.

Zahara Lounge Bar, Barcelona

Friday night was our night of discovery. After our day out doing the tourist thing on the Bus Turistic, we had sundowners at Zahara- a lounge bar on the waterfront- not the glossy side, more the worn and weathered and less touristy. Had well-made mojitos, wine and listened to lounge music. I’ve said before that cocktails, sun and lounge music are the perfect chill out combination for me. Ola Barcelona!

Zahara Lounge Bar

Pg. Juan de Borbon 69

Barcelona 08003

Tel: +34 932 213 765

Wishing you happy holidays!

Merry Xmas, Happy Holidays, Happy Hanukkah...whatever it is that brings you together with your loved ones this time of the year. Do celebrate it well and hope it's a great one!

For us it will be a crispy one. Gave up a sunny, braai-filled, golf-playing South African summer this year for a chilly, vin chaud-fuelled, chestnut-roasting European winter. I do love the lighting and gaiety that comes with it all though.

Joyeux Noël!

Books: THE THING AROUND YOUR NECK by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Title: The Thing Around Your Neck
Author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Published: 2009
Genre: Fiction

I read this book in two days...I do enjoy short stories at times, it makes the progress faster and there is always the next story to look forward to if you are not particularly engrossed by one story. I first read Purple Hibiscus three years ago and fell in love with Adichie's writing. The Thing Around Your Neck is a collection of stories previously published in various publications. It tells of immigrant Nigerians, professionals, students, wives carving their way in the land of opportunity, America.

Feeling culinary

Yesterday I made  gravlax, a salad with a balsamic vinaigrette, magret de canard with honey and balsamic vinegar and dark chocolate fondant with chestnut cream for lunch. It was fantastic.
Yes, with a bit (ok, a whole lot) of help of course.
Spent the morning in a cooking class with some wonderful people, working through a simple yet ultimately delicious menu. Thanks Valerie for organising!
Learnt the value of using fresh ingredients with minimum spices for great taste.
This led me to a further search for cooking classes...should you not quite yet be ready for the Cordon Bleu Institute or Alain Ducasse's Ecole de Cuisine. There are many, varied and in English. Here is a brief list,  of the ones I have good recommendations of;
Cook'n with Class , La Cuisine Paris, and Promenades Gourmandes.

Gastronomy in Bastille, Paris

A month ago, before the chill started creeping in we tried Le Bastille, right opposite Place de la Bastille in the 4th. A pleasant surprise all round as it was the first restaurant we sat down at. The fact that it's right in front of the vibrant, popular and touristy square, I had half expected it to be over-priced and mediocre. It wasn't. This is often the case for us on those afternoons out, no prior planning, which often results in hasty choices being made because by that time everyone's starving. Pretty much hit-or-miss with regard to the restaurant selection - so far though there have been a lot more hits in our restaurant roulette.
Le Bastille serves up bistro food, so anything from croque monsieurs and salads as light meals to duck, beef, lamb. The service was good, the waiters friendly, atmosphere sunny and cheerful- it was a rare late autumn sunny afternoon. After which it was a  a stroll around the immediate neighbourhood and early evening drinks at a funky little bar call Le Préau, where I sampled my very first piscine - champagne served up with ice- Shock! Horror! A very summer drink not to be repeated again...why ruin a great glass of champagne by putting ice in it - even if the ice is made from the champagne itself. All in all, a great afternoon to add to the memory books discovering the 4th & 11th arrondissements.

The one where I'm a tourist

The nonchalance of the French is the image I have been going for for the last three months. I'm not entirely sure why, I just know that I did not want to look like a tourist. The accent when I speak still comes across as obviously foreign so my best bet was not looking like one- mind you with the camera I'm always lugging around, not sure I was succeeding at all. Well, tossed it all aside last week and decided that I need to see Paris from  a different perspective, not to that mention I got tired of being nonchalant when seeing the Eiffel Tower all lit up, or the bleu, blanc et rouge of the french flag billowing through the arch of L'Arc de Triomphe, when what I really wanted to do was to squeal and point with glee. I still stand and gawk in awe at boulangerie windows - in fact there is a Lenôtre in my neighbourhood that has become my favourite place to visit -to just stand and stare. I cannot feign the nonchalance of the French anymore, I am still in awe of this city.
Hopped onto the sight-seeing bus of  Les Cars Rouges last week. It was a real treat to unreservedly indulge the tourist in me. Took some great pictures, waved at the locals from my perch at the top (yes, I did) and got an entirely different view of the city. It was refreshing to just be le Sud Af in France.

Images from my morning here.

Books: THE TIGER'S WIFE by Téa Obreht

Title: The Tiger’s Wife
Author: Téa Obreht
Published: 2011
Genre: Fiction

In the Tiger's Wife, Téa Obreht retells the story of a tiger that escapes from a zoo during the Balkans war. Told through the protagonist, Natalia the story is both allegorical and entertaining enough. The sudden and strange circumstances surrounding the news of her grandfather's death, a medical doctor like herself, leave Natalia following the path her grandfather may have taken in the latter days of his life as a way to try and uncover answers to the mystery around his death.