Month: June 2023

On Sunday May 14th, we met our guide Angel in Madrid. He will be with us the next 5 days. We take the train together to Sevilla. Sevilla is by far the best-known city in Andalusia. We had a city tour with (?) to the city visiting the unique Reales Alcazares palace and the amazing gardens.  The El Real Alcázar was originally built in 913 as a military fortress on the site of a Visigoth basilica. The Real Alcázar is the oldest palace in Europe still used as a royal residence.

The palace was amazing. It is known for its tile decoration. The two tile types used are majolica and arista tiles. They were mainly of geometric design inspired by arabesque ornamentation. Visually stunning and a lot to take in during one short visit.

After the visit to the Palace we took a slow walk to the Plaza de Espana. This huge, semi-circular building was built in 1928 for the Ibero-American Exhibition of 1929. It incorporates different styles of Spanish architecture and has a canal and four bridges in front of it (you can rent small boats to row the canal). Some call the Plaza “the Venice of Seville”.

Dinner was at the rooftop restaurant Recoveco.

Monday, May 15 – we visit the Royal school of horses in Jerez. We watched the training and learn about the famous dancing horses.  An institution dedicated to the preservation of the equestrian arts, in the Spanish tradition.

We visit Bodegas Tradicion, a famous sherry house in Jerez. We have a personal tour and tasting which was capped off by simply walking through the most impressive personal collect of Spanish art in Spain. Sipping sherry in the company of Velasquez, Goya and El Greco.

We had a very nice lunch at La Carbonara and returned sleepily to the Hotel Gravina. We had a short turnaround before we attended a Flamenco Show.

Tuesday, May 16 – we left the hotel early to head to Cordoba and visit the Medina Azahara. One of the most stunning historical sites in Cordoba.  We pick up our guide the animated Paco. He told us the Medina Azahara was a fortified palace-city on the western outskirts of Córdoba in present-day Spain. Its remains are a major archaeological site today. The city was built in the 10th century by Abd-ar-Rahman III.

After the Medina Azahara we drove directly to Cordoba, where Paco brought us to one of the famous “patios”. There was a traditional festival with the courtyards of the city dressed with flowers the previous week and we had a peek at a typical patios.

Lunch was at Bodegas Campos where we ate some local specialities. After lunch Paco lead the tour of the amazing Mosque-Cathedral of Cordoba. It is a mosque turned cathedral dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. It is visually stunning and clearly a work of architectural significance. The Cordoba Mosque stands as an example of a blend in culture and architecture of the east and west. Its architectural design has Islamic art forms uniformly blended with Christian elements.The architectural choices like the double arches, the horseshoe arch with a semi-circular arch atop it, designs with red brick and stone, are some of the key architectural elements that are world-famous.

We stayed the night at the Hotel Casas de la Juderia.

Wednesday, May 17 – we left the hotel early to make the trip to Baena, one of the major olive oil producing areas in Spain. We toured the facility of Nunez de Prado, and we taught about the process of making extra virgin olive oil.

After the tour of the facility we went out to the fields to see an amazing forest of olive tress. It was olive trees as far as the eye could see.

After the field trip we went to a cave where they prepared a very elaborate olive oil tasting for us. It was a little over the top, but the setting was amazing and the cave was dimly lit to not disturb the bats. It was a once in a lifetime experience.

We had a very nice lunch in the village and then went on our way to Granada. We had a heavy rain storm on the way with the temperature dropping 20 degrees in a short time. We survived to go to tapas bar and watch Man City beat Real Madrid. Hotel in Granada was The Aurea Catedral.

Thursday, May 18 – we visit the Alhambra. We met our guide Anna and were prepared to see the crown jewel of our trip. The Alhambra is one of the most famous monuments of Islamic architecture and one of the best-preserved palaces of the historic Islamic world. The name Alhambra, means in “the red” in Arabic, and is probably derived from the reddish color of the tapia, from which the outer walls were built.  Anna explained the palace represents a succession of Muslim rulers, where each tried to make the palace a little better and grander. It was a massive castle constructed over many centuries, it consists of gardens, fortifications, and sumptuous palaces.  The Alhambra became a Christian court in 1492 when the Ferdinand and Isabel conquered the city of Granada.  Thankfully the integrity of the palaces were not compromised.

The Alhambra complex contained numerous other structures, perhaps the most famous of which was the Patio of the Lions (or Courtyard of the Lions). This courtyard was so named for the central fountain, which is surrounded by twelve lions that spewed jets of water.

Other famous structures include the Hall of the Abencerrajes, which has a stalactite ceiling and is a legendary site where a noble family was said to have been murdered, and the Hall of the Ambassadors, a chamber where Islamic emirs (commanders) would negotiate with Christian emissaries.

Friday, May 19th – we head back to Madrid. Our Andalusia adventure comes to a close.

We spent 5 days in Madrid on our 2023 trip before we met up with Angel to tour the sights in Andalusia. The night we checked into the Hotel Wellington, Manchester City was playing Real Madrid in the semi-final of the 2023 Champions League. We watched the second half in the hotel bar and the game ended 1-1. Man City went on to beat Real Madrid. The hotel was situated in a lovely cosmopolitan area. It reminded me of the Upper East Side in NYC. It was also very near the El Retiro park which is a very large park that reminded me of Central Park.

Our first full day we did a city tour with Victor from With Locals. He was a great guide, very knowledgeable about the city and the history of Madrid. He was gracious and talkative and brought us to some historic bars (over 100 years in service) and explained how a short glass of beer came along with a plate of tapas for free, which for the most part were pretty tasty. When our tour ended, Victor set us up with another 100 year + restaurant near the Plaza Mayor – Los Galayos. We had a lovely lunch sitting on the outdoor terrace.

That evening with met our former neighbor Anish at Terracotta; we also met his lovely wife, Carmen, their son, Leo, and his sheepdog, Hanna. It was a great night to reconnect and reminisce.

The next day we ventured out on our own and went back to Plaza Mayor to eat lunch at the Mercado San Miguel, which is home to an amazing array of tapas.

We walked off lunch at in the El Retiro Park. Dinner was a little off the playbook. I had noticed an Italian restaurant near the hotel, Ornella, but was disappointed no one there spoke Italian. The food was passable, but we found better restaurants in the area.

The next day we did a tour of the Museo Prado with a Context Tours guide, Barbara. She was very knowledgeable and friendly. The museum is not too big; we spent 2 or 3 hours and felt we had covered most of it. Barbara took us immediately to Bosch’s Garden of Delights, which is one of the highlights. She also provided background information on Velazquez, El Greco, and Goya. After the museum we searched for a restaurant for lunch and discovered Tabriz, which served delicious Persian food.

After lunch we explored the Botanical garden – Real Jardin Botanico. It was a nice place to walk on a sunny day with lots of shade and plenty to see. Dinner was at Quintin, a hotel suggestion. Although the space was cramped, the food was very good.

Our last day before the trip to Andalusia, we went to Museo Cerralbo, which was the residence of the Marquis of Cerralbo and his family. A surprising place, it is a classic building from the end of the 19th century. The house is perfectly preserved with beautiful ornate interiors, furniture, paintings, Murano glass chandeliers, and an impressive armor collection. Our With Locals guide, Victor, had suggested the visit. After the museum, we texted Victor for a place to eat lunch and once again he was spot on and sent us to Sifoneria. We had some great food and enjoyed the charm of this old time bar.

Our dinner that night was at Pante which was unique experience in true Italian food in the heart of Madrid. It was also a 2-minute walk from our hotel. Pante comes from the volcanic island of Pantelleria, located 70 miles southwest of Sicily and 39 miles northeast of Tunisia. We had a delicious meal and were entertained by the guests at the wedding reception in the backroom.

After we returned from Andalusia, we spent one more night in Madrid before the flight home. We stayed at Roommates Alba which was a 10-minute walk to the Plaza Mayor and certainly had more of a downtown vibe than the Wellington. We made one more trip to the Mercado San Miguel and dinner was at a traditional Madrid restaurant called Capitan Alatriste (Angel’s suggestion). I had a delicious ox meat steak.

Madrid Restaurants:

Terracotta – ate there with Anish

Ornella – Italian, near hotel, but not worth another visit.

Tabriz – Persian restaurant near Museo Prado

Quintin – nice restaurant near the Hotel Wellington. Cramped seating but very lively.

Pante – Sicilian delight across the street from the hotel.

Capitan Alatriste – city center. Very nice place. Lots of tourists during our early dinner.

Los Galayos – near Plaza Mayor

Sifoneria – Victor’s suggestion near Museo Cerralbro.

Bari – was our first stop in Puglia. It was an easy train ride from Rome. Our first day we toured the old town with Eugenio, who was Yelenia’s guide. He was a bit slow and underwhelming. We did taste 2 types of focaccia, which are regional specialties, and got a good perspective of the city.

Matera was a day trip from Bari. We did an ape tour with Vito. We visited the city sites with the major vistas, toured a replica sasso in town, and went out to the countryside to see an original sasso that could date as far back as 2000 years. We had lunch at Bollicine, which was delicious, in a very authentic setting. We saw Massimiliano Gallo, one of the actors in the Italian television shows “Imma Tataranni” and “I Bastardi” walking in town.

Bari restaurants – Al Pescatore – Elizabeth Minchilli recommendation. Fish, Fish, and more Fish.

Giampolo – was recommended by the Dillman staff and was very nice. Best restaurant we ate at in Bari.

Cecchina -another hotel recommendation.

Aperativo place was La Biglietteria – we were there twice.

Dillman Hotel – perfect location, breakfast next door was excellent, and very helpful staff.

Polignano a Mare – We drove from Bari in about 40 minutes and checked into the beautiful San Michele Suite, a lovely boutique hotel that overlooks the famous Polignano beach. The staff were incredible – Monica at the front desk and the lovely Serena who provided the best breakfast in all of Italy.

Polignano a Mare is the birthplace of Domenico Modugno who wrote and sang the popular song “Volare.” The town is full of poetry and his words appear everywhere in town. We stayed 4 nights and unfortunately had rain for 3 days, but that did not hold us back. We did a quick tour of the town with 29-year-old Antonio, who was a little lackluster. He then drove us to Monopoli, where we walked all over the city and spent some time admiring the harbor.

We went to an olive oil tasting at Masseria Il Frantoio which was outside of Ostuni. We learned how to properly taste olive oil, and we were impressed with the overall quality and their marketing spin to adopt a tree for a year. The Masseria was beautiful with countless numbers of olive trees. We then went to Ostuni for lunch before our ape tour of the town. We ate at Porta Nova and probably had one of our best meals of the trip there. After lunch we meet our young energetic ape driver, Antonio.. He was a bit reckless; when it started to rain we were a bit nervous with his ability to stop the ape. This tour was no comparison the ape tour we did in Mattera. Very few memorable sights, which is disappointing because I had heard good things about Ostuni.

We toured Alberobello in the pouring rain and it our worst day weather-wise. We had a nice guide named Anna, but for some reason her husband, Carlo, decided to walk with us. He did not have an umbrella and was soaked. We are still scratching our heads as to why he came. We visited the Trulli village and stopped in one store and a church, but the weather got the better of us.

Restaurants in the Polignano a Mare area:

Antiche Mura – Seafood in Polignano. Lovely setting, we ate there twice.

Osteria Dei Pellegrini – our favorite lunch spot in Polignano. Battered baccala (better than jewish ghetto in Rome), spaghettone with clams and muscles.

L’Archibugio – Polignano – small cramped restaurant but good food and had plenty of meat options. We ate there twice.

Ristorante Porta Nova – in Ostuni. One of our best meals.

Morus – Polignano – all seafood. Entertaining head waiter.

Lecce – We left Polignano a Mare and traveled 75 minutes to get to Lecce. We stayed at the Palazzo De Noha. It’s a boutique hotel with 8 or 9 rooms and the service was incredible. Raffaella at the front desk was incredibly helpful, and would make an excellent tour guide.

We did a rickshaw tour with Anna to get acquainted with Lecce. She brought us to the Il Fornaio bakery, and we had the local treat called rustico. We also meet Yelenia, our trip planner, at the Strada del Vino and enjoyed some food and wine with her.

Our second day we toured with Francesco and made a number of stops along the coast. First stop was Acaya – a miniature, perfectly geometric fort which was inhabited by about 800 people. Then it was on to Roca where there is a picturesque swimming hole. Crystal clear water with the backdrop of the Adriatic Sea. Next we went to Otranto, which has an amazing castle and beautiful basilica, Cattedrale di Santa Maria Annunziata, with the most impressive mosaics on the floor of the church. The scenes include episodes from the Old Testament including a giant tree of life. We finished the tour with a visit to the lighthouse which is the most eastern part of Italy.

We did a day trip to Gallipoli, which is the western part of the heel. It was a lovely town to walk in and we had a nice lunch close to the sea. We also hired a boat one day from Marina di Leuca, the southernmost point of Puglia. This is where the Adriatic Sea and the Ionian Sea meet. Our boat capitan, Selvario, took us up and down the coast of both seas with great viewings of impressive caves, crystal clear waters, and schools of fish. We had a lovely lunch at Ristorante Fedele.

Restaurants in Lecce:

La Cucina di Mamma Elvira

La Pueta – hotel recomendation

Tabisca – hotel recommendation. Great steak cooked on salt slab. Ate there twice.

Gelato – Natale

Ristorante Fedele -in Santa Maria di Leuca

Vico Dei Sotterranei – hotel recommendation, but I did not enjot the meal.

Il Bastione – Gallipoli

Terrazza di Paridiso