back lengthen and widen, knees forward and away

Holiday to Barcelona and Girona organised by Steve and Pilar.  Here are some of the places where we eat:

Friday lunch, 23 October in Cerveseria Catalana in Barcelona.  Really nice, upmarket tapas restaurant recommended by one of Steve’s clients who lives in Barcelona.  Note the colonial uniforms worn by the waiters.

Friday evening, 23 October in Cafè Le Bistrot (yes, cafè with a grave accent) in Girona.  Beautiful location in the old part of town.  We all went with Catalonian pizzas.

Saturday lunch, 24 October in Hotel LLafranch in a little bay of the same name.  Alan will particularly remember the paella.  Beautiful little bay and the hotel has an interesting history:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/travel/destinations/spain/article3458475.ece

Sunday lunch, 25 October in El Pati (restaurant) in Peratallada.  I’ve never photographed my choice of food before, but one thing I’ve now learned, is to do so before you start eating.  What looks like a complete pig’s ear on the plate is in fact pig’s trotter pie and I simply had to try it having dined out often enough on having eaten Pierre Koffman’s signature pig’s trotter dish at Tante Claire and then Marco Pierre White’s homage dish to him when he was cooking at Harvey’s.  I had no idea what to expect and it came as round pie without crusty sides and with what seemed to be a burnt topping as you would expect on a crème brulée.  It was served simply with a baked potato to offset the richness of the meat.   Sublime.  End October and still clement enough to eat outside.  Couldn’t ask for more.

What else to remember from the trip: The Gaudi influence in Barcelona, the Dali Museum in Girona, Pilar’s all-terrain stiletto boots,  Ally’s love of all things Catalonian and kindness in speaking German with me, Steve and Pilar’s hard work in organising the holiday and the well thought-out itinerary, Kevin not keeping to the agreed shared-room code and not bringing striped pyjamas with him, Amelia’s excellent driving skills and keenness to improve her English, and Alan’s gratitude to me for looking after him when he was ill.  Great trip.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peratallada

I spent August in Prédefin.  No car.  Walking, hitch-hiking and cycling.  Here’s Kevin’s picture of the house:

AOD, Kevin and Sterry came out for long weekend and here’s a couple of restaurant photos.  First one is in Aux Amis de la Route on the Rue National towards Hesdin

And here’s one taken in L’Ecurie in Hesdin, which remains our favourite restaurant

Martin and Ozlem came out on the last weekend and I travelled back with them.  Here we are (again for me) in the Aux Amis de la Route Routier.  They also thought it was a great place.  The restaurant offered new variations (to us) on Kir Royales/Kirs.  Kirs with sparking wine (obviously cheaper than champagne) and with a peach syrup as well as the usual blackcurrant.  Nice!