Seafood on the beach at the Chiringuito in Spain

What could be better than eating a plate of seafood with the sand running through your toes and the sound of the waves in your ears – that’s what you’ll get when you eat at the chiringuito or seafood beach bar in Spain.

These traditional restaurants are typically right on the beach and in the good old days it really was just a few tables on the sand under a makeshift roof, with the fish grilled on charcoal set on the top of an old fishing boat that had been filled with sand.

Nowadays, things are a bit more sophisticated and you’ll find yourself stepping up off the sand into the wooden floor of the restaurant, but the fishing boat barbeques are still there and typically used to grill rows of sardines on a wooden skewer.

If you’re settled on the beach for the day, you’ll be in and out of the chiringuito – buying drinks and ice creams, and taking a leisurely lunch or evening meal of great tapas or seafood dishes. The menu can be pretty varied but if you’re eating anything but seafood or paella, you’re really missing the point. There won’t be too much that’s fancy here – just super-fresh fish that’s quickly cooked, with brisk service and plenty of family groups enjoying their holiday meal.

I ate at a couple of different chiringuitos on my recent short break to Southern Spain, staying on the Costa del Sol at the holiday resort of Benalmadena.

The first was at La Gavotina, just one of a string of seafood restaurants that you’ll find if you walk down from the coastal road onto the beach promenade that runs all the way along from the Los Mollinitos (windmill) roundabout to the Puerto Marina.

As we’d met up with English expat friends at 7pm we were impossibly early for eating by Spanish standards, so we decided to sit at the beachside tables of the chiringuito to have a drink in the evening sun while we checked out whether we’d like to eat there.

At 8pm we settled into one of the restaurant tables with only a few young families for company but by the time we left at 10pm the place was almost full, the charcoal in the boat was stoked up and the accordion player was doing his rounds.

The next day we ate our lunch on Spanish time at around 3pm with my Spanish friend Ana at a restaurant that a friend had recommended especially for the boquerones fritos. These are large anchovies, cleaned and beheaded then deep fried in batter and delicious with just a squeeze of lemon.

I was initiated into the art of eating the boquerones; first you pick one up and carefully eat the fish from one side, then take hold of the tail to peel away the backbone, and eat the other side of the fish. The technique worked wonderfully well. Of course if you were polite, you might want to do it all with the knife and fork but this is a place where the enjoyment of the food comes before such niceties.

Our friends told us these were far superior to the small sardines grilled on the fishing boat charcoal, which they never bothered to gut. Observing a few diners painstakingly removing the bones, head, tail and guts for only a tiny mouthful of fish, I could see their point.

My friend Ana had a plate of Calamar friend in batter, with rings of the squid accompanied by tiny ones fried whole, which were also delicious and there were plenty of families being served large pans of paella. Our chosen venue for the best boquerones fritos around (according to the local knowledge) was at a restaurant on the other side of the road from the beach at Los Boliches in Fuengirola and if I ever find their business card again I’ll tell you more…

But really just look for the chiringuito anywhere on this coast that’s packed with Spanish families enjoying their seafood and paella! That’s all the recommendation you need.

This post is part of Wanderfood Wednesday hosted at Wanderlust and Lipstick – do head over to for Gac fruit from Vietnam and more foodie delights

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A beach paradise at Cabo Polonio and Valizas in Uruguay

This guest post takes us to Uruguay to explore the remote Cabo Polonio and beach at Valizas, as writer and film-maker Veronica Pamoukaghlian takes us back to carefree summer days of hanging out on the beach, surfing and drinking caipirinha with friends around a beach fire.

The first time I heard about Cabo Polonio was in the early nineties. Although only four hours away from the capital of Uruguay, which is home to half the population of the country, the place had been seen by few Uruguayans at the time and the scarce articles about it that appeared in the press made it sound as exotic as the far west may have seemed to the first English settlers on the Atlantic coast of the US.

The place was a paradise that could only be reached on horseback or using a jeep service run by a Frenchman who was a sort of local pioneer; he was just called “EL FRANCES” (the Frenchman).

The technical problem was a desert of tall golden dunes that separated the road from the beautiful shore. Ever since I read a particular article on a local magazine that no longer exists I began entertaining ideas of spending part of the summer there.

It is considered a rite of passage to adulthood in Uruguay to spend summers further away from Montevideo and closer to Brazil.

The greenish waters of River Plate start turning into the blue Atlantic ocean there, the beaches become more dangerous and mysterious, the surfing is good and there is always a fire on the sand after dusk, a drum caipirinha and, of course, the quintessential casual love stories and hookups of a careless summer.

My first time in Valizas, the closest beach town (you could hardly call it a “resort”), involved camping which I am generally not very good at. I had seen the Caribbean before, but I was instantly fascinated by the blue ocean and the sort of hippy lifestyle.

I remember very well the first time I did the walk across the desert from Valizas to Cabo Polonio. The solitude, the view from the Buena Vista hill, the little stream in the midst of the desert from which I drank the most delicious water, the cows casually lounging by the deserted shore, and my guide, the perfect place of my imagination, the castle island, in front of my favorite half moon of a deserted beach. I also remember a lonely naked tree and some crows following me at times and how everything spoke of infinite beauty with just the exact dose of danger and fear of getting lost, being taken in by a giant wave of the bluest shade, or falling prey to huge hungry birds.

One hour later, I was in Cabo. The lighthouse and the beach that is now my most beloved beach on the planet, after having seen Waikiki, Maui, Aruba, Mykonos, and the lot, welcomed me as if I had been there many times before, and I fell in love with a distinct quality that I don´t think I can put into words, you would just have to go there.

For better or worse, times have changed. After many visitors and many years, the dunes are now smaller, the simple life of the little huts with no electricity has evolved into more modern lifestyles, and last summer a friend crossed paths with George Michael there, this meaning that people from other countries have found out about the magical place, and it is no longer as quiet as it used to be.

The real hippies and penniless musicians and hippy necklace makers of the past have been joined by hordes of fashionable hippie chic Argentineans, Europeans, and Americans. The prices of rent have gone up so much that it is now more expensive to spend a summer in a good house in Cabo than in South America´s top beach resort, also in Uruguay, namely, Punta del Este, which is located only a couple of hundred kilometers away.

The good news is that repeated plans to build a five star hotel to disrupt the landscape of a little hill in the shape of a cape, with a lighthouse at the tip, and very few scattered houses facing the beaches on both sides, have been abandoned, and the original beauty that I discovered many years ago still remains.

Wherever I may be in the world, if there is a summer air and a quiet beach, I will always long for Cabo and the perfect days, the afternoons of swimming to collect mussels, the wine and cheese and delicious local tomatoes we used to call “the happy hour” at dusk, the neon waves at night with noctilucas, and the silence at times of no cars, no city noises, as if progress had never been and we were still able to enjoy the simple pleasures of life, a mate to drink with friends watching the sun go down, and all those things we used to do, the games we played, stuff you do when there is no TV, no Internet, no telescreens to watch your every move.

A safe haven, if there ever was one on the face of the earth, Cabo Polonio still feels like years ago when you visit off season, from late March to November.

My thanks for these memories of happy, hippy summers at Cabo Polonio to Veronica Pamoukaghlian who lives in Uruguay and writes at The Wander Life – “a blog from the heart, from a restless traveler”

More South American tales to enjoy

11 South America Backpacking with Indie Travel Podcast – podcast
Coca tea or Cappuccino – in Peru
Warm baths and waterfalls at Baños – in Ecuador

This article is originally published at Heatheronhertravels.com – Read more travel articles at Travel Blog Home

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11 South America Backpacking with Indie Travel Podcast – podcast

In Podcast 11 I talk to Craig and Linda from Indie Travel Podcast about their 4 months travelling with friends in South America, visiting Chile, Peru, Bolivia, Argentina and Uruguay. They pick out the highlights of their trip, and give some advice on travelling by bus, how to avoid scams and pickpockets and how they enjoyed staying with locals on this trip.

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Chile

• Craig and Linda flew into Santiago because of the cheap flights from Auckland in New Zealand. The city is surrounded by mountains and can be bathed in smog although Craig & Linda enjoyed their time there with museums and great street food.
• Patagonia in southern Chile has amazing scenery although Craig & Linda didn’t visit, as it is one of the most expensive regions to visit in South America and they didn’t have enough time.
• The island of Chiloé is a great place to relax and slow down, with a Pacific Island feel with food being cooked in underground ovens, and a place you can spot seals and dolphins.
• In northern Chile, the area around San Pedro de Atacama is beautiful although the town itself is a tourist trap. You can use San Pedro de Atacama as a base for trips into the surrounding area but as an alternative you can approach from the north from Uyunay in Bolivia. This region is known for its natural beauty with mountains and salt flats.
• Craig and Linda enjoyed an astronomy tour with a Frenchman who has set up telescopes in his house to view the very clear night skies in this area that has very little light pollution.
• Linda and a friend spent a weekend in Valparaiso in Chile with plenty of street art, funiculars and brightly coloured houses where the local government had commissioned open air murals around the town. They also visited Viña del Mar, the coastal resort of the region.
• Unfortunately, Chile is one of the most expensive countries in South America for food and accommodation, along with Uruguay and Argentina.

Peru

• Craig and Linda travelled by overnight bus from Santiago to Antofagasta and up to Lima and spent 7 weeks in Peru, 3 of which were in Cusco where they attended a local language school to learn Spanish.
• Cusco is not representative of Peru as a whole as it is very touristy, being the main jumping off point for trips to Machu Picchu. We discuss the pros and cons of visiting Machu Pichu which is a major site but also expensive and crowded by comparison to other sites that receive far less visitors.
• From Cusco they enjoyed a trek through the Sacred Valley, visiting local villages that were well off the tourist trail.
• Craig and Linda didn’t visit Machu Picchu preferring to spend time at some other lesser known pre-Incan sites near Trujillo such as Huaca del Sol and Huaca de la Luna.
• They especially enjoyed their time in the northern cities of Trujillo, Chachapoyas and Chiclayo and wish that they’d spent more time there than in Cusco.

Bolivia

• From Peru Craig and Linda travelled to the shores of Lake Titicaca, stayed at Cococabana and did some walking on Isla de Sol, a large island in the lake.
• They visited the Uros floating islands made from reeds that were constructed as a refuge for the local people but have now become a major draw for tourists and brought more prosperity for the locals.
• They had mixed feelings about La Paz which Linda loved as they stayed with locals and she enjoyed the street-food. Craig found the city dirty and felt unsafe as they were targeted with 3 pick-pocket attempts while they were there.
• From Uyuni in Bolivia Craig and Linda visited the salt flats for a 3 day 4 wheel drive tour staying in a salt hotel and ending at San Pedro de Atacama. They loved the amazing play with perspective, coral islands covered with cactus and the heat haze with the mountains in the distance.

Argentina and Uruguay

• Craig and Linda visited the Iguazu falls from both the Argentinian side which they found more developed but also more crowded and from the Brazilian side which had less visitors. The car to take them to the falls was arranged through their hostel and was only a little more expensive and more convenient than taking public transport.
• From Puerto Iguazu they took the bus to Montevideo in Uruguay where they stayed with a friend who took them to his grandmother’s Lake House. This was close to the popular beach and surfing resort of Punte del Este which was reputed to have the best surfing on Uruguay’s east coast.
• They also enjoyed Montevideo which was a relaxing place with plenty of culture and galleries, a contrast to the buzzing atmosphere of Buenos Aries. They also spent some time in in the town of Colonia in Uruguay.
• In Argentina Craig and Linda did some wine tasting in the Mendoza and la Plata regions but found it difficult to take part in the wine tasting unless you were part of a tour as the wineries would only open their cheapest wines to try.

Tips for travelling by bus in South America

• As they were travelling on a budget, Craig & Linda used long distance buses to get around, normally travelling overnight, despite the fact that Linda finds it difficult to sleep on buses.
• The standard of the buses were best in Chile and Argentina and in Peru there was also a wide range of standards with some very high quality buses.
• At best these buses can be similar in style to air travel with comfortable, reclining seats, airline style meals and drinks and even sometimes on board wifi.
• Depending on the bus, you can book semi-cama seats that recline 45-60 degrees, Cama with 160 degree reclining, and even full cama that lie flat.
• Craig and Linda suggest that you research your options and book with an bus operator that has a good reputation, even if it costs a little more.
• Always keep your valuables with you on the bus and keep hold of any day-packs , especially when sleeping.
• You may like a seat at the front of the bus that has more leg-room and you should also check the position of the toilet before selecting a seat to avoid unwelcome smells.

Couchurfingand meeting locals

• On this trip Craig and Linda enjoyed staying with locals through Couchsurfing.org – even though their options were more limited as they were travelling in a group.
• They combined this with staying in hostels which also gave them a break from speaking Spanish and an opportunity to catch up on the work for their Indie Travel Podcast site, as they also earn a living through the website.

Other Indie Travel Podcasts on South America

147 How to catch a bus in Chile and Peru
154 South American travel: Peru and Bolivia
155 – South American Travel: Chile, Argenina and Uruguay

Photo Credits: All photos by Craig and Linda and can be seen on their Mars-Hill Flickr site

More South American stories to enjoy

Relax and enjoy the cool lifestyle of Bahia in Brazil
Historic cities, natural beauty and a warm welcome in Colombia
03 Ecuador and the Amazon Rainforest – Podcast Episode 3

This article is originally published at Heatheronhertravels.com – Read more travel articles at Travel Blog Home

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A Comfortable Bavarian Gasthaus at Hotel Zur Post in Altötting

The Hotel Zur Post in Altötting is a large and comfortable 4 star Gasthof hotel that is perfectly located on the main town square of Altötting, right opposite the shrine of the Chapel of Mercy for which the town is famous. With 60 rooms, I imagine that this must be one of the largest hotels in Altötting and there are many different public rooms and eating areas to accommodate groups of different sizes, although the overall impression is comfortable and homely.

A gasthaus has been on this site since the 13th century although the current building dates back to the 17th century when it was redesigned after a fire, in Italian baroque style, by the same architect who designed the Nymphenburg castle in Munich. We enjoyed our 2 night stay at Hotel Zur Post in Altötting as part of a short break to visit the Oberammergau Passion Play and the hotel would be an ideal place to stop for a night or two if you were touring Bavaria and wanted to visit the attractive pilgrimage town of Altötting.

Restaurants and public areas

For sitting out in fine summer weather, there is a bar terrace at the front of the hotel for drinks and light meals, adjoining the grass and gravelled Kapellplatz square, where you can watch the world go by. If you want to eat al fresco with a little more privacy there is another courtyard restaurant terrace at the back of the hotel as well as a large dining room, an even larger function room complete with stage and several other dining rooms which could accommodate larger groups like our tour party. Facing the side street façade of the hotel is a shop selling clothes and accessories in traditional style including the pretty Bavarian dirndl dresses that are typically worn by hotel staff and by locals on special occasions.

On the same side, facing the street is the Bistro Gabriel delicatessen and coffee bar where you can buy local speciality produce and eat a plate of cold meats and salads or drink an expresso or glass of wine. We ate our breakfast and evening meal in an internal dining room with pretty red checked clothes and furnishings, hunting trophies on the wall and a tiled stove in the centre. It was very cosy and attractive room and perfect for a chilly winter’s evening although a little dark in the summer, so we ate in the main Post Speisesaal restaurant on the second night. Judging by the large reception room and the photos of the winter ball held there, this is a hotel that regularly hosts weddings and celebration parties although the overall feel of the hotel was of a traditional and family run establishment with many personal touches.

Dining Room in Hotel Zur Post in Altötting, Germany

Dining Room in Hotel Zur Post in Altötting, Germany

Bedroom and bathroom

Our room was on the first floor accessed from a wide corridor with antique pictures and furniture. The good sized bedroom had a slightly old fashioned feel with dark wood fitted bedroom furniture, headboard and side tables. There was a pretty glass chandelier and on the walls were a crucifix and some traditional prints, photos of porcelain ornaments and an oil painting of a floral arrangement – the sort of pictures that I’d expect to find in my granny’s house but wouldn’t be giving wall-space in my own (apart from the crucifix being a good Catholic girl).

The duvet covers and square continental pillows had white self-striped cotton covers and the bed was extremely comfortable. As seems to be common in European hotels, the double bed was made of twin mattresses placed side by side, and whether you ask for a double or twin beds, you usually get the same arrangement. There was a dark blue carpet, green patterned unlined curtains and a small table with a couple of red seated wooden chairs, as well as a fridge and large (as in bulky, not flat-screen) TV. Our bedroom had French windows which led up a couple of steps to a small balcony adjoining an internal roof terrace with plant pots and a small fountain which could be accessed from one of the upstairs reception rooms in summer. The overall effect of the bedroom was clean, fresh and comfortable if a little dated in décor.

The en suite bathroom was also freshly decorated in a modern white and grey theme. The sink had a grey mottled granite surround that was echoed in the black and white speckled floor tiles, with a large inset mirror above and a wired in hair-dryer. There was a deep bath with a powerful shower and a glass shower screen and the plain white tiles were edged in a grey and silver patterned border. At the side of the sink were the typical small bottles of shampoo, body lotion and soaps in a glass jar. The whole bathroom felt clean, fresh and modern and efficiently Germanic.

Bedroom in Hotel Zur Post in Altötting, Germany

Bathroom in Hotel Zur Post in Altötting, Germany

Hotel Staff

We didn’t have a lot of contact with the staff but the waiting and reception staff we met were friendly and professional and some spoke a little English. Having met so many Germans on my travels who speak excellent English I was surprised that many locals working in shops and cafes spoke limited English (although better than my German), so this is the perfect place to pack your phrase book and try and brush up on your German. We were able to pick up some tourism leaflets about the town from reception and the helpful receptionist gave us directions to the bike shop in town, where we hired bikes for our afternoon cycle ride to the Badesee.

Breakfast and evening meal

For breakfast our group was served in a separate room with a buffet selection of muesli style cereals, fresh rolls with jam and butter, the typical German spread of cold meats, cheese and boiled eggs and juices, and all the food was good quality. As we were part of a tour group, our evening meal was from a set menu that was included with our tour cost, and normally consisted of a home-made soup starter, a meat, fish and vegetarian option of typical Bavarian food specialities and a desert. The food was generally good although the vegetarian options were a little insubstantial for a main course – for instance my husband had a mozzarella salad that would have made a light lunch choice and left him feeling hungry. When you’re eating from a set menu that has been put together with cost in mind, it’s difficult to judge the best of what’s on offer, but I’d certainly be very happy to eat in the Hotel Zur Post restaurant again for a range of European and Bavarian dishes

Courtyard in Hotel Zur Post in Altötting, Germany

Reception in Hotel Zur Post in Altötting, Germany

Facilities

I’d spotted on the hotel website that Hotel Zur Post at Altötting had a small swimming pool and sauna and had packed my costume in anticipation of a trying it out. In the event we did get some swimming in the badesee (swimming lake) nearby but the early starts meant that we didn’t get the time to try out the pool, although others in our group did and enjoyed their swim. I don’t expect that most of the pilgrims coming to Altötting are as wedded to their laptops as me, but there was free WiFi available from the café that I could also pick up in our bedroom and I also borrowed a cable at reception to access internet in the room. I didn’t see any parking facilities at the hotel and none are mentioned on the website, so if you are travelling by car, I would enquire about this when you book.

Prices

As I stayed in the Hotel Zur Post at Altötting as part of a tour package, I can’t tell you the exact price that we would have paid for the room we stayed in and the meals we ate. However, the price of a double room, in the main building where we stayed, as published on the hotel’s website is €105-129. There do appear to be cheaper rooms at €88 available in the Gasthouse part of the hotel although I’m not sure where these are located.

I’d recommend the Hotel Gasthof Zur Post in Altötting as a great choice to stay if you’re visiting this part of Bavaria. The Hotel is traditionally and comfortably decorated, with pretty details throughout and while it’s a big hotel it is family run and seems to have a personal touch for its guests.

Hotel Zur Post Altötting, Kapellplatz 2, 84503 Altötting, Germany

More tales from Bavaria to enjoy

Wiener Schnitzel and cherries from Bavaria – Germany
Tips for seeing the Oberammergau Passion Play
A cycle and cool lake swim in the badesee- in Bavaria, Germany

www.flickr.com heatheronhertravels’ Germany – Altötting in Bavaria photoset

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Wiener Schnitzel and cherries from Bavaria – Germany

If you like hearty home-style meals and plenty of meat, then Bavaria in Southern Germany is your kind of place. I visited this part of Germany recently on a short trip to see the Oberammergau Passion Play and here’s a taste of what you might expect when you eat out in a typical Gasthaus or Biergarten.

Meat, especially veal, pork and sausages feature prominently on every menu in Bavaria and you’ll find plenty of roast meat dishes on the menu typically served with potato dumplings and salad or vegetables. I did find that practically everything came with lots of sauce or gravy, so if you prefer your sauce served separately, you’d better mention it when you order, if your German’s up to it. A very typical dish is the Wiener Schnitzel, a thin fillet of veal that’s coated with breadcrumbs and fried, served with a wedge of lemon and any chicken dishes would often be served with a wine or mushroom sauce.

Wiener Schnitzel in Bavaria, Germany

Salmon in herb sauce in Bavaria, Germany

When it comes to fish, the river fishes, such as salmon, trout or pike are often served with a herby cream sauce and rice.  After I’d had a few too many slices of meat swimming in gravy I decided that the fish was a more reliable choice if you prefer something lighter. I did enjoy the mixed salads, which in Germany seem to be more of a compilation of other salads, unlike the UK where you’ll get an uninspiring mixture of lettuce, tomato and cucumber. You might find that within one bowl you get a small serving of any of the following; sliced peeled cucumber in a vinegar dressing, mixed salad leaves, creamy potato salad, grated carrots and sliced red onions. One of my favourite lunchtime meals was a large plate of this mixed salad topped with deep fried potato pockets filled with soft cheese – as there was so much colourful salad to work though I didn’t feel so guilty about eating those crispy deep fried potato croquettes.

Roast Veal with potato dumplings in Bavaria, Germany

Cherries in the market at Altötting in Bavaria, Germany

When it comes to fruit and desert, cherries are the undisputed fruit of Bavaria although you’ll also find red and black currents, raspberries and strawberries in season. We bought a large punnet of raspberries in the market at Altötting for a picnic lunch before our cycle ride to the badesee,  but the dark, glossy cherries looked the most beautiful. If I’m honest, I found that when eating from restaurant set menus, the dishes all start to look a bit the same, but I think that we were hampered by a limited knowledge of German so we possibly missed some of the more unusual dishes. I found that when we shopped from a farmer’s market for our picnic, we were able to point out some more interesting things including small fried potato rosti cakes, a soft cheese flavoured with paprika and some little savoury pastries.

Of course, all of this hearty Bavarian fare should be washed down by a large beer, served by a waitress wearing the traditional dirndl and seated in a pretty biergarten with a view of the Alps in the distance. Prost!

This post is part of Wanderfood Wednesday – for curried flied rice and other foodie delights head over to Wanderlust and Lipstick

More tales from Bavaria to enjoy

Painted houses and wood carving at Oberammergau – in Bavaria, Germany
Tips for seeing the Oberammergau Passion Play
The latest Dirndl fashions from Bavaria – in Munich

www.flickr.com heatheronhertravels’ Germany – food photoset

This article is originally published at Heatheronhertravels.com – Read more travel articles at Travel Blog Home

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