Normal Service Has Resumed for 2012

Yes, I know, it’s been more than 2 weeks since our last update. However, you must realise that this is an indication of us having a marvellous time and little inclination to spend time writing about it, however we are now back in our yellow truck having a vino blanco and some yummy cheese.

Some of you followers are getting a bit demanding so it’s been good penance for you to go without for a while!!

We left our wild west town of El Rocio on December 29 and headed to Bonn to spend New Year’s Eve with family. It was hard to leave the sun and head for real winter. Bonn however was not so cold as expected and I had a new PUFFY coat to keep me warm.  The puffy coat is a marvellous thing for a girl from Perth.  NYE was spent eating delicious baked ham cooked by the wonderful nieces, Livy and Elinor, followed by a venture out into the cold to watch mad Germans letting off fire crackers all along the Rhine. We felt it appropriate to drink Sekt at midnight in the cold cold air.

By the Rhine on NYE

Next stop was Berlin. Initially planned just to catch up with my niece, we had the added bonus of seeing my sister, Pip, who flew from Oz to aid her daughter who had broken her arm ice-skating on Xmas day. Any excuse for my sister to travel to Europe!! It was so great to see family in such an unexpected place and to explore Berlin together.

Berlin was really cold, so the puffy coat became my best friend. We had a bit of rain but not so much as to dampen our spirit. There’s always a bar that is warm and dry.

We spent most of our time wandering around the main sites, following the path of the wall, exploring museums and tributes to all those that suffered at the hands of the Nazis and the east /west division. Berlin acknowledges all the trauma of those years so well and with such taste and compassion. Lest we forget.

Highlights included the dome above the Reichstag and the dome of the “Dom” or Cathedral, the first with a view of the parliament, the second a view of the domain of that parliament.

Sisters at the Reichstag

We ate well, but being German, the food was really hearty and too much for our waistlines. The last night saw us in a wonderful restaurant in the Nikolai Viertel (a characterful quarter) having a brilliant farewell meal of wild boar and venison accompanied by wonderful wine (Mosel, and Spätburgunder from Baden).

Our next destination was Seville, having left our yellow truck there in the hands of Antonio, who kept it safe and did a bit of work on it (the hot water system).

We had booked a hotel in town for 2 nights to have a look at Seville before picking up the truck and heading south but we fell in love with the town and decided to stay for 4 nights. God bless off-season prices.

Seville is everything you imagine it to be. Orange trees lining the streets, Spanish, Moorish, Mudejar architecture, wide wide streets, often pedestrianized, so pleasant to walk around. Of course there is the world’s largest church!! This was once a mosque and has the usual catholic reclamation cathedral added. The square metreage total is vast but most of that is the original Mosque, now a courtyard.

The real surprise in Sevilla is the Alcazar. This was once a Muslim stronghold and wonderful Moorish palace. The palace itself rivals the Alhambra for its size and beauty alone. To wander through its many halls is to behold a glimpse of sheer genius and artistry, with lovely vistas to the wonderful gardens. The best of it was the lack of tourists, which allowed us to really appreciate the beauty and peace of this place, which we weren’t afforded in the Alhambra.

Alcazar in Sevilla

We decided that my birthday celebration should be in Sevilla so Jan 11 was declared to be the day. We had seen a lovely and interesting looking restaurant the day before and decided that was it. We were not disappointed in the ex-Roman bath underground vault, which provided us with a sensational meal.

Entrée: Carpaccio of ostrich with rocket and parmesan for me (possibly the best thing I have ever eaten), and for Lawrence revuetlos con patates y bacalao (eggs, fish and potato).

Main: Confit duck with bitter orange sauce for me (French food in an Italian restaurant in Spain) and for L roast leg of kid (that could have fed 5 people).

Wine wise we are so spoiled here. We had a delicious albarino blend to start and a 1999 Gran Riserva Rioja, followed of course by PX dulce (my new love).

The whole meal was 130 euros, we would have paid that for the Rioja alone in Sydney.

The weather gods also smiled on us in Sevilla and the sun shone every day – it’s tough to have the pressure of eating and drinking in the sun for lunch each day, thinking it might be the last; the rain must come eventually…

Typical lunch in Sevilla 

We are now in El Puerto de Santa Maria, just south of Jerez – the sherry capital of world.

More to come…