As we approach the Feskekörka or Fish Church, overlooking the Rosenlund Canal, we can see how it got its name. The brick building that houses Gothenburg’s Fish Market was built in 1874 with Gothic arched windows under steeply pitched eves giving it a somewhat ecclesiastical air. The building was considered quite futuristic in its day with an open interior and no supporting columns and it originally housed the fish auction for the city which was later moved to a new location in 1910. Since then the Feskekörka has been home to the Fish Market with a number of stalls selling fresh fish, ready-prepared fish dishes and two restaurants, including Restaurant Gabriel that we’ve come to visit.

Feskekôrka (Fish church) in Gothenburg

As we arrive only just in time for our 1 o’clock lunch booking at Restaurant Gabriel, we by-pass all the glass cabinets with interesting looking fish on ice and hurry up the stairs to the mezzanine restaurant level at one end of the building. At the top of the steps we are greeted by the tall owner John Malm, wearing drainpipe jeans and DMs under his chef’s jacket with a close cropped beard making him look like a rather trendy fisherman. (Of course my husband spotted the Breitling watch well before I did). We squeeze in among the closely packed tables to be seated with a balcony view over the fish market below, from where we observe the ebb and flow of business in the fish market and a steady stream of people coming up the steps hopeful of a table.

Feskekôrka (Fish church) in Gothenburg

We study the menu card until Johan assures us that it’s only a guide to what’s on offer and that he can cook anything that’s fresh and tasty in the market today. We start with a shot of frothy fish soup to chase down a lightly cooked mussel and then get on to the oysters that Johan recommends since they are at their peak in December, before the waters off West Sweden become too cold. I feel I can trust his judgement as he’s won countless oyster opening competitions in Gothenburg and Stockholm and was the winner of the oyster opening championships in Galway, Ireland in 2010. “How many oysters would you like?” asks Johan. “Just a few to try” we say, not sure if we are true oyster lovers, so he brings us 3 each and opens them at the table, demonstrating the oyster opening techniques that made him a prize winner.

With Johan Malm the co-owner of Restaurant Gabriel Feskekorka in Gothenburg

Apparently it’s not just about speed in these competitions but about making sure that the shell doesn’t get broken and that you can separate the oyster cleanly from the shell without nicking the delicate flesh with your knife. I’m mesmerised by Johan’s deft hands opening our oysters and even happier after I’d eaten my 3 oysters washed down with a glass of champagne. The best way to eat oysters according to Johan is as natural as possible – with just a squeeze of lemon. These were hand caught yesterday and with something so ultra-fresh it would be a shame to mask the flavour. The trick, he assures us, is to make sure that you chew the oyster properly to get the slightly metallic flavour of the sea and perhaps an aftertaste of water-melon! It seems rather a shame that the oyster that took between 5 and 7 years to grow to full size is swallowed down in a nano-second. Take a look at the video of me eating oysters at Restaurant Gabriel

Oysters at restaurant Gabriel in Feskekorka Fish Market

In between courses Johan tells us how he grew up helping his father in the restaurant; ‘’I got my first chef’s jacket when I was only four years old” he tells us, proudly showing us the framed photo of himself as a child dressed in the chef’s whites. He left Sweden to live for a while in South America and in Spain, before returning to run the restaurant together with his father, Gunnar Malm. I asked Johan what makes the seafood so special in Gothenburg and why there are so many fish restaurants in the city. “It’s a long tradition”, he explained, “We have the water all around us and so fish has always been a major food for us. The water is highly salted and at this time of year the fish grow in deep, cold water and that makes them very fresh and very tasty”. You can hear my interview with Johan Malm in my Gothenburg Podcast.

Our next course is a fish smörgåsbord;  a selection of small fish bites served on a large slate platter to share between us. Of course the herring plays a leading role here, as it’s a staple food in Sweden and one that is typically served at Christmas, washed down with snaps to cut through the rich, oily flavour. Every family has their own special way of preparing the herring, Johan tells us, and we taste the classic style with onion, a sweet and sour sauce with cucumber and a herring with tomato and horseradish salsa – just like Grandma might make. There’s also the fried herring on crispy bread that’s another Swedish speciality – we’d tried something similar at the Strömmingsluckan Herring Cart at Magasinsgaten. There are waxy potatoes and some flavoursome Swedish Västerbottenost cheese that’s a bit like a creamy cheddar, to add a salty element to the meal. It’s all washed down with locally brewed Ocean beer and a shot of snaps.

Johan breaks off to discuss some wedding arrangements with a couple who will be having their reception in the  Feskekörka – after the doors have closed to the public, there are often catered evening events in the central hall down below and later when we are leaving the tables are being set out for that evening. “What else would you like?” asks Johan, and as we eye the cold water from the canal outside, ready to overflow the banks and the grey rain-soaked skies, we shiver a little and ask for something warming. We get just what we need, a bowl of saffron-yellow thick fish soup arrives, with mussels and chunks of fish at the bottom. Just the thing to sustain you on a winter’s day in Gothenburg.

Restaurant Gabriel in Feskekôrka in Gothenburg

Restaurant Gabriel in Feskekôrka in Gothenburg

I ask Johan to tell us the story of how he came to be competing at the Galway oyster-opening championships which he won in 2010. In Gothenburg they had a contest between all the different restaurants that serve oysters, to promote the fish restaurants in the city. As Johan was the winner, he qualified for the Swedish championships where he came second enabling him to go to Ireland to attend the Galway contest. He enjoyed himself so much that he decided to keep going back until he could become the world champion which happened in 2010. He admitted that after opening so many oysters his hands were pretty sore by the end of the competition.

It’s nearly four in the afternoon and I can see the stalls below are starting to pack up so we decide it’s time to leave our heavenly meal at Restaurant Gabriel to have a last look around the Fish Church. There are big bowls of crayfish and lobsters, slabs of fresh fish and plenty of tasty samples to try at the stalls that sell fish dishes to take away. Even if you’re not eating at either of the two restaurants (the other is Kajutan) I reckon you could taste your way round the fish market and in summer buy your picnic to eat by the canal or in one of the nearby parks. The seafood is one of the great specialities of Gothenburg – everyone from the man on the street to the Michelin star chef will tell you so – from the crayfish parties of August to the winter oysters to the endless varieties of Christmas herring – and where better to try the Gothenburg seafood than in the Fish Church itself.

Restaurant Gabriel, Feskekörka, Gothenburg – Facebook Page

Feskekörka Website

More good things to eat in Gothenburg

Eight Swedish Foods to try in Gothenburg – Video
Chocolate with Sea Salt – A taste of West Sweden at Flickorna Kanold in Gothenburg
Gourmet Gothenburg – Our Michelin star meal at Basement – Video

Visitor Information for Gothenburg or Göteborg

• The local tourism site Göteborg.com is full of information on the best things to see and do
• For information on West Sweden visit the West Sweden Tourism site or follow them on Twitter @WestSwedenTB or on their Facebook page and you will find their blog at ExploreWestSweden.com
• Another useful site for all things Gothenburg is I Love Göteborg
• If you plan to do a lot of sightseeing it’s worth getting the Gothenburg City Card which will allow you entrance to all the major attractions as well as public transport. Look out for the deals that some hotels offer that include a Gothenburg Card with the hotel booking.
• We stayed at the classic 5 star hotel, Elite Plaza Hotel which is in the Inom Vallgraven district and walking distance from most of the sights of Gothenburg.
• We took flights to Gothenburg from London Heathrow with Scandinavian Airlines who have 2 flights a day to Gothenburg’s Landvetter airport, a 30 minute taxi or bus ride from the city.
• If you’d like to use a guidebook during your visit to Gothenburg I’d recommend the conveniently sized Thomas Cook Gothenburg Pocket Guide which we used.

www.flickr.com heatheronhertravels’ Sweden – Gothenburg photoset

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

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If you live in Canada and are thinking about getting away for the winter, or at least a week or two, you are probably thinking about heading to Cuba, the Dominican Republic or Mexico. A recent survey says that these are the most popular destinations for Canadian travellers and there has never been a better time to head south for the winter. Seek out the vacation packages available that enable you to save so much that you may be able to stay an extra day or two.

Varadero, Cuba

Winter Sunshine in Cuba

Cuba has some beautiful beaches where you can relax and enjoy yourself. Cayo Coco has private resorts, 5 star hotels and fantastic vacation deals that will not break the bank. Varadero is one of the most popular resort destinations and is extremely comfortable. Stay at the Iberostar Laguna Azula which is an all inclusive resort that has 6 pools, 8 restaurants and bars, a nightclub, theatre and a kids club. Have a massage at the spa or workout in the fully equipped fitness room. Located on a small private island, Hotel Barcelo Cayo Libertad Club Premium has everything you need for a spectacular holiday. You can go snorkelling, play beach volleyball or enjoy cocktails at the pool-side bar.

Sunset Royal Decameron, Riviera Nayarit

Winter Sunshine in Mexico

Another popular southern destination for Canadians is Mexico. The weather is beautiful all year round and you can find some excellent vacation packages that will leave you with plenty of spending money for your trip. Head to Los Cabos in Baja and catch that elusive marlin that you have been dreaming about, or book a flight to Riviera Nayarit which is the newest destination in Mexico. Stay at the Hotel Emporio and get a room with an ocean view. You can dine on fresh seafood as you bask in the sun on your own private beach.

Cordillera Central in Dominican Republic

Winter sunshine in Dominican Republic

Vacations in Dominican Republic are known for white sandy beaches and relaxed lifestyle. Get out of the cold and book an affordable vacation deal. You can stay at the newest inclusive resort in Punta Cana. The Hotel Riu Bavaro has plenty of activities which include windsurfing, kayaking, snorkelling and sailing. If you want to get away from the crowds for the day take a drive to Constanza. Pack a picnic lunch and enjoy the region of La Vega which is 1200 metres above sea level.

Start planning your winter holiday and book your tickets. With so many vacation packages at your fingertips you will have a hard time deciding if you want to go to Cuba, Mexico or the Dominican Republic.

My thanks for this article to Bernard Prince from travel agency VarVacation.com. You can also reach him on Facebook and Twitter

Photo Credits: Los Cabos, Baja by memoflores, Varadero, Cuba by Iker Merodio, Royal Decameron, Riviera Nayarit by EtienneT, and Cordillera Central by raunov.

More places to visit for Winter sunshine

Swimming, surfing, snorkeling – best beaches of the Dominican republic
Our top 5 Sights on Awesome Aruba
Spotlight on Cabo San Lucas in Mexico – what to do and where to stay

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

Don’t miss out – subscribe to Heather on her travels

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If there’s a fine line between a neighbourhood that’s trendy and up and coming or slightly dodgy and worth keeping your wits about you, then Nørrebro in Copenhagen must be treading that line. But if you’re a gourmet at heart then this area of the Danish capital is worth exploring, with a number of great food destinations that I discovered when I was there last spring.

Coffee Collective in Copenhagen

In Copenhagen, Coffee Collective is synonymous with a passion for coffee. Although their coffee beans are sold all around Copenhagen, there’s only one small shop with a few ouside tables where they brew the coffee and that shop is in Nørrebro. Apparently, the queues sometimes stretch right down the street as Copenhageners who care about great coffee come to get their coffee fix. The owners use a Direct Trade model, working with farmers in Brazil, Guatamala, Kenya and Panama to pay the best prices for the best quality coffee. Coffee Collective has won numerous awards for their coffee – it’s fair to say that they live and breathe coffee!  However long the line, their baristas will always take care to make you a great cup of coffee.

Coffee Collective, Jægersborggade 10, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark

Claus Meyers Bakery in Copenhagen

To enjoy with your coffee you might want to pop across the road to the Claus Meyer Bakery where you can buy one of  their fruit slices as well as the rustic Danish bread – these guys are passionate about their sourdough.  I visited the Claus Meyer factory on a previous visit to Copenhagen for TBEX – where we saw the sourdough breads being made and then followed on with a tour of the Meyer Vinegar Brewery for a tasting of everything from blackcurrent flavour to a syrupy aged balsamic. The bakery is owned by top Danish chef Claus Meyer who’s  a gastronomic entrepreneur and leading light in the Nordic cuisine movement to bring back seasonal Scandinavian produce, as well as co-founder of Noma, known as ‘The Best restaurant in the world” Phew with such a culinary pedigree one would hope that the bread would be a cut above.

Claus Meyer Bakery, Jægersborggade 10, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark

Relae restaurant in Copenhagen

For top food at affordable (for Copenhagen) prices try Relae restaurant – a brasserie where the style is simple and stylish, with no frills in the decor and service but it’s all about the food. The head chef and co-owner Christian F. Puglisi has worked at Michelin star restaurants such as El Bulli and Noma, but the atmosphere here is much more laid back. Although I didn’t eat here, I did pop in to take a look and I hear the food is something special, with an inventive set menu that offers good vegetarian options.

Relae, Jægersborggade 41, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark

Kiin Kiin in Copenhagen

Complete your food tour of Nørrebro with a special evening at Michelin star Thai restaurant Kiin Kiin. When I met the owner Henrik Yde-Andersen he told me that when they first opened, the area had a rather dodgy reputation so they took something of a risk in opening such a classy restaurant. Henrik worked for several years as a chef in Thailand and brought his passion for the cuisine back to his homeland – his signature dish is frozen red curry with lobster salad and unusually for Asian food he uses his training as a sommelier to marry great wines with the Thai dishes. If your budget can’t stretch to Michelin star prices, don’t worry as right next door there’s his neighbourhood Thai curry cafe, Aroidee,  which is always packed with locals. The cafe started because Henrik hated any food going to waste and used to sell inexpensive take away curries from the kitchen door, but when the queues started stetching down the road, it was time to open Aroidee. You can read my interview with Henrik Yde Andersen and hear the interview as part of my Copenhagen podcast

Kiin Kiin and Aroidee, Guldbergsgade 21, 2200 Copenhagen N, Denmark

More things to enjoy in Copenhagen

Bike + Train = Adventure in Copenhagen 
17 Podcast – Our long weekend in Copenhagen
In search of the perfect Smørrebrød – in Copenhagen

Resources for visiting Copenhagen

• You’ll find plenty of information about places to eat and things to see on the Visit Copenhagen website
• There is a free Visit Copenhagen Mobile phone app available for iPhone, Android and other smartphones
• If you plan to do a lot of sightseeing then check out the Copenhagen Card for free entry to 65 museums and attractions as well as free public transport around the city
• We stayed at the modern, stylish Ibsens Hotel, set in the arty and up and coming Nansensgarde neighbourhood near the Copenhagen lakes.

Thanks to Wonderful Copenhagen for sponsoring our weekend in Copenhagen.

www.flickr.com heatheronhertravels’ Copenhagen – Food & Drink photoset

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

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When you start a holiday, you’re always eager to see as many sights as you can, but if you get too excited, you end up seeing them all, and if you’re holidaying over the course of a week or fortnight, you find yourself bored with a few days still to go. Fortunately, when visiting Cardiff, you won’t have that problem.

Visit Cardiff, Capital of Wales

Many people don’t have the time to go on a week-long break, but day and night breaks can be just as relaxing. You can take in plenty of sights, with time left to have a meal at one of the Welsh capital’s outstanding restaurants before retreating to one of those comfortable, welcoming Cardiff hotels for a great night’s sleep.

As you would expect from a capital city, Cardiff is jam packed with attractions. It has numerous parks, sporting and cultural venues, historical sites, top-class shops and eateries, all of which make the city a fantastic place to spend a weekend in.

Wales Millennium Centre

The Millenium Stadium, the home of the Welsh national rugby union team, is one of Europe’s largest purpose-built sporting venues. As well as hosting top-class sporting events, the stadium also hosts concerts for rock and pop groups, plus the amazing Welsh National Opera.

Cardiff plays host to Wales’ National Museum and Art Gallery, which puts on various exhibitions with relevance to both the local area and the wider world. Admission is free, so if you’re holidaying with children, this is an ideal place for the whole family to visit.

Shopping in St David's

Parks are plentiful in Cardiff, and if you’re looking for a peaceful weekend, then a stroll through Bute Park on the edge of the city centre, or Roath Park, which lies within its leafy suburbs could be the answer. Cardiff has more parkland per capita than any other major city in the UK, so you’re spoilt for choice.

Other attractions of note include St. David’s Hall, which is one of the country’s best concert halls, the magnificent Cardiff Castle and the inspiring St. David’s Cathedral. Shopping in Cardiff is a joy, particularly around precincts such as St. David’s, Royal Arcade and the Capitol Centre.

Cardiff Castle

Once you’ve taken in all the sights, then why not cap off your day by having a meal at one of the many top-class restaurants in the breathtakingly modern Cardiff Bay area. Eateries such as Signor Valentino’s, Bosphorus Turkish Restaurant and Miller and Carter Restaurant and Bar offer flavours from South Wales and beyond, and are guaranteed to re-energise you after taking in all the sights of this wonderful, underrated city.

Eating out in Cardiff

When you’ve finished your meal, then you’re able to retreat to a quality hotel such as the Ibis Hotel Cardiff Gate and sleep soundly in a freshly-made bed knowing that you’ve had the best day break imaginable, and if there’s anywhere you didn’t see, you can always come back for another trip.

Photo Credits: All photos by cardiffandco

More Things to see in Wales

Walking In Wales – 10 Easy And Inspirational Day Walks
Camping in sunshine and showers – on the Gower in Wales
A snowy break at Laswern Fawr holiday in the Brecon Beacons, Wales – video

My thanks for this sponsored post to Eurobookings.com, the European booking specialist

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

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If you’re flying into Gothenburg you’ll probably land at Landvetter airport if you’re flying with Scandinavian Airlines or British Airways and at the City Airport if you’re flying with Ryanair. Neither airport is very far from the city centre and although you can easily get a taxi, the cheap and efficient way to get into the centre is with the Flygbussarna coach service.

Take the Flybussarna to Gothenburg airport

Flygbussarna service from Gothenburg Landvetter Airport

• 3 departures per hour every 20 minutes
• The journey takes 25-30 minutes
• The bus stops at Korsvagen (near Liseburg Amusement Park), Park Avenue (On the Avenue near the Museum of Art), Kungsportsplaten (by the canal and main tram stop), Nils Ericson terminalen (near the main train station)
• You can pick up a handy leaflet at the airport with a map of all the stops or check the Google maps on the Flybussarna website
• The costs is 80SEK (€9, $12, £7.50)  one way, 150SEK return (€17, $22, £14)
• You can book in advance or pay on the bus. I probably wouldn’t book the journey from the airport but I might book the return journey just in case the bus was full.
• The bus does not take cash but takes major credit cards
• More information on the Flybussarna website

For the Flygbussarna service from Gothenburg City Airport

Maritiman museum in Gothenburg

We flew to Gothenburg with SAS who have a couple of flights a day to Gothenburg from London Heathrow which is ideal if you’re planning a short break as we were. Of course getting to and from the airport is only a means to an end and if you want some ideas on what to enjoy in Gothenburg why not;

• Explore the Gothenburg Christmas markets and shop for unusual food and design gifts – we especially enjoyed the Haga market, but Liseburg is the biggest and most sparkling.
• Watch the Christmas Julfilm projected on the facade of the Gothenburg Museum of Art and if you’re lucky you might get to hear the singing Christmas tree choir in Bältesspännarparken (sadly we missed it due to the windy weather)
• Visit the Feskekörka (Fish Church ) where you can admire all the fresh fish and buy tasty deli dishes as well as trying the seafood in one of the two restaurants – we loved Restaurant Gabriel where the owner Johan Malm introduced us to the delights of West Swedish oysters.
• Try the fried herringwith mashed potato and lingonberry sauce – the classic Swedish combination at the Strömmingsluckan herring cart in Magasinskarten
• Enjoy a Fika break with a steaming mug of coffee and enormous cinnamon bun in one of the cosy coffee shops around town.
• Treat yourself to a gourmet blow-out at one of the five Michelin star restaurants in Gothenburg – we loved our meal at Basement where I interviewed the head chef Camilla Parkner.
• If you’re there at Christmas, enjoy an extended Christmas buffet or Julbord at one of the many restaurants and hotels, such as Elite Plaza where we stayed, that serve all the traditional Christmas dishes throughout December
• Warm yourself with a hot chocolate with chili at Cafe Kanold and stock up on Gothenburg truffles topped with sea salt at their shop nearby on Viktoriapassagen
• In summer visit the Maritiman Maritime Museum in the port area and wander around the courtyard of the Kronhuset nearby – an old artillery store that’s one of the oldest buildings in Gothenburg
• Pop into the Gothenburg City Museum or Stadsmuseum to learn all about Viking history and see the remains of an old Viking longboat – the museum shop has some pretty gifts too.

More Visitor Information for Gothenburg or Göteborg

• The local tourism site Göteborg.com is full of information on the best things to see and do
• For information on West Sweden visit the West Sweden Tourism site or follow them on Twitter @WestSwedenTB or on their Facebook page and you will find their blog at ExploreWestSweden.com
• Another useful site for all things Gothenburg is I Love Göteborg
• If you plan to do a lot of sightseeing it’s worth getting the Gothenburg City Card which will allow you entrance to all the major attractions as well as public transport. Look out for the deals that some hotels offer that include a Gothenburg Card with the hotel booking.
• We stayed at the classic 5 star hotel, Elite Plaza Hotel which is in the Inom Vallgraven district and walking distance from most of the sightes of Gothenburg.
• We took flights to Gothenburg from London Heathrow with Scandinavian Airlines who have 2 flights a day to Gothenburg’s Landvetter airport, a 30 minute taxi or bus ride from the city.
• If you’d like to use a guidebook during your visit to Gothenburg I’d recommend the conveniently sized Thomas Cook Gothenburg Pocket Guide which we used.
• Visit the Flybussarna website for more information on getting to and from the airport

www.flickr.com heatheronhertravels’ Sweden – Gothenburg photoset

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

Don’t miss out – subscribe to Heather on her travels

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Brighton has long been the haunt of Londoners who are in need of respite from the Big Smoke. Graham Greene wrote about it in his famous novel Brighton Rock– an interesting insight into what it was like in a time when people went down in their Sunday best clothes and strolled along the promenade in a quintessentially English way.

Brighton Pavilion

It has always had an eccentric air about it. Just a look at the Brighton Pavilion attests to this. The Pavilion was built for Prince Regent between 1787 and 1823 so that he could entertain his mistress there. It was designed in a skewed Indian architectural style, the British having liked the architecture in India and attempted to copy it themselves. The result is almost comic, particularly in a classic British seaside resort.

Banksy policemen in Brighton

For sometime Brighton has been known as Britain’s gay capital too. There’s a good gay bar scene. Near to the station, behind (perhaps appropriately) a PVC cover, there’s Banksy’s portrait of two male policemen kissing, quite a nice nod to the community.

Brighton has what you want from a British seaside resort mixed with good pubs, restaurants and shopping. Along the seafront, there are a few fish and chip places including one that serves crab soup, which you will smell long before you see it.  However, the places along the seafront are more expensive than great well-known locations such as Bardsley’s on Baker Street.

The old Brighton pier – West Pier – stands, a charcoal husk just out to sea. It was opened in 1866. Maintenance costs led to degradation, which in turn resulted in the pier being cut off from the shore for safety. Storms after that led to parts of it falling into the sea and a couple of fires after that left it as what you see it today.

There are a couple of decorative iron pieces from the old pier in the Brighton Fishing Museum on the seafront. The pier visitors go to today is to the left of the old one. It has amusement arcades with slot machines and toy grabbing games, a helter skelter, ghost train and a couple of other rides as well as a tarot reader who works from a gypsy caravan on the pier.

Fish and Chips in Brighton

The city of Brighton and Hove is known for its cultural and arts scene and there are some cute galleries on the seafront as well as inland. There are also a few market stalls dotted about when the weather suits.

There is (contrary to popular belief) a great train service between London and Brighton. So while cheap car hire would be one way to get there if coming from London, you don’t really need it unless you’re sticking around for a while. Buses here are expensive enough that you might as well.

Brighton Pier

If travelling in from another part of the UK, trains are still recommended – as long as you book far enough in advance. The UK has the cheapest advance train fares in Europe but the last minute fares are among the most expensive.

This post was brought to you by CarHireMarket.com  and written by Liz Vega who writes mostly about Britain and loves the seaside.

More things to do around England

Ships and Shopping at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard
A walk around the harbourside in Bristol – Video
Hunting the Ash-black slug on Dartmoor – in Devon

Photo Credits: Brighton Pavilion by Fenners1984, Banksy’s kissing policemen by simonbooth, Seaside resort food by drchrispinnock,  and Brighton pier by EEPaul.

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

Don’t miss out – subscribe to Heather on her travels

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Gothenburg has a well earned reputation as a gourmet destination offering everything from wonderful seafood to traditional Swedish dishes to cosy cafes to sip a hot chocolate or have a fika break with a strong coffee and cinnamon bun. Here are some of the Swedish tastes that you might enjoy in Gothenburg and West Sweden;

I hope you enjoy my video below about the best food to try in Gothenburg

If you can’t see the video above about the best Swedish food, view it on my blog here

1. Inlagt sill (pickled herring)

Herring was staple fare for the fishing communities in the islands, inlets and archipelagos off the West Coast of Sweden. A watch would be kept for the plentiful shoals off the coast and the boats sent out to bring in the herring, which would be smoked, pickled or salted to sustain families through the long, hard winters. Many of the coastal towns also had factories and canneries that packed and preserved the herring and provided much of the local employment. In Gothenburg, especially in the winter you’ll find herring served in endless varieties with spices and sauces – everyone’s granny has their own family recipe that’s been handed down from their mother to daughter. At hotel breakfasts and buffets you may notice large bowls with different styles of herring and you can look out them at the counters in the Feskekörka fish market in Gothenburg. We enjoyed this fish and herring platter with four different types of herring at Restaurant Gabriel in the Feskekörka.

Herring at Restaurant Gabriel at Feskekôrka in Gothenburg

2. Snaps

On high days and holiday, at Easter, Christmas and during the summer crayfish parties and practically any time there’s an excuse, the Swedes will bring out the Snaps. It’s an aquavit with attitude that can be flavoured with fruits or drunk just as it comes.  O.P Anderson is a favourite brand and the snaps goes particularly well with the herring, cutting through the rich, oily flavour. You can hear a traditional Snaps drinking song on my podcast about Gothenburg. If you’re not a great drinker like me then a sip will be enough to warm you through, but a true Swede will knock back the Snaps with a hearty Viking toast, Skol!

Snaps at Restaurant Gabriel in Feskekôrka in Gothenburg

3. Oysters

We were in Gothenburg in December which is the perfect time to try the ultra-fresh oysters caught off the West Coast of Sweden. There are many fantastic seafood restaurants in the city but we tried our oysters at Restaurant Gabriel in the Feskekörka Fish Market (literally the Fish Church). The owner Johan Malm was the World Champion Oyster Opener in the 2010 Championships held in Galway, Ireland so I reckon that he should know a thing about oysters. Johan told us that although there are many ways to serve oysters, he always prefers them as natural as possible with just a squeeze of lemon to bring out the metallic taste of the sea. The trick is to make sure that you don’t just swallow them down but chew properly to get the full flavour. You can hear my interview with Johan Malm with all his oyster stories in my podcast about Gothenburg.

Oysters at Restaurant Gabriel in Feskekorka Fish Market

4. The Christmas Table or Julbord

In December and the run up to Christmas, many hotels and restaurants serve the Julbord or Christmas table – a buffet where you can try all the traditional foods that would be served at Christmas. There’s an emphasis on the pickled and the preserved that would keep you going through the winter, with plenty of herring, smoked salmon, cured meats and stuffed eggs. The old Swedish tradition was always to keep a pig and then kill it near Christmas. The Julbord can be eaten over an extended lunchtime or in the evening and is especially popular at weekends for families and groups of friends, to get you in the festive mood. We enjoyed the spread at our hotel, Elite Plaza served in the Swea Hof restaurant and I’ve also had a local Gothenburg recommendation for the Julbord at Sjömagasinet, situated at the mouth of Gothenburg harbour as well as  Salt & Sill which is 40km north of Gothenburg, and would be one to try if you have a car or are touring West Sweden.

Christmas Julbord at Elite Plaza Hotel, Gothenburg, Sweden

Christmas Julbord at Elite Plaza Hotel, Gothenburg, Sweden

5. Herring from a cart

If you’re on a budget and want to try a classic Swedish fish dish then make sure that you are in Magasinsgatan around lunchtime on a weekday to find the Strömmingsluckan herring cart open (it’s in the courtyard right by Cafe Da Matteo). The owner Thomas told us that these street food carts are very common in East Sweden but there are not so many in West Sweden so they decided to open one to serve traditional fried herring with creamy mashed potato and lingonberry sauce – it was yummy – if you don’t believe me watch the video!

Strommingsluckan van selling fried herring and mashed potato in Gothenburg

6. Take a Fika break – coffee and cinnamon buns

If you didn’t realise the Swedes are great drinkers of coffee, you’ll work it out as soon as you get to Gothenburg. The aroma of freshly brewed coffee wafts from coffee bars in alleyways and courtyards – in winter a cosy place to get out of the chilly winds and in summer a place to relax in a courtyard or park. Fika is what they call it in Sweden – to have a Fika is to have a coffee break, a chat with friends and pass the time of day, perhaps sustained with a cake or traditional cinnamon bun. The cinnamon buns are ENORMOUS swirls of sugary-spicy sweetness, reputedly invented at Cafe Husaren in the heart of Haga – you can’t miss them piled up the window on the main street of Haga Nyata.

In the neighbourhood of Nordstaden, not far from the port there’s Cafe Kronhuset in the courtyard next to the oldest building in Gothenburg, an old artillery store with copper shutters and some craft shops around the courtyard. Then there’s the local’s choice, Cafe Da Matteo with a small branch in the courtyard at Magasinsgatan and across the courtyard a larger branch where they make the bread and grind the coffee as well as a small branch in Viktoriapassagen. In the old working neighborhood of Haga you’ll be spoiled for Fika choice. We tried Cafe Kringlan, marked out by the golden bagel outside and the stunning selections of cakes, pastries and buns inside and then right at the far end of Haga Nyata we came across Le Petit Cafe with sea green chinoiserie wallpaper and vintage knick knacks – so very olde worlde Swedish.

Buns at Cafe Kringlan in Haga, Gothenburg, Sweden

7. Chocolate with sea salt

For chocolate with an unusual salty sweetness, seek out one of the Kanold chocolate shops . The one at the end of Viktoriapassagen is a cross between old fashioned candy store and boutique chocolatier with striped candy canes, marzipan pigs and melt in the mouth chocolate truffles with sophisticated and unusual taste combinations. The house speciality is the “Gothenburg Truffle’” invented by the boss of Flickorna (The Girls) Kanold, Jeanna Kanold, a charming lady who I found serving in the shop on the Sunday before Christmas that I was there. She told me how she invented the Gothenburg truffle which has a soft truffle centre topped with flakes of sea salt because she wanted a flavour that epitomised the taste of West Sweden with the ocean and the seafood.

Cafe Kanold in Gothenburg, Sweden

The Cafe Kanold just around the corner is elegantly styled with sparkling chandeliers and washed out Swedish blue woodwork. I can recommend the hot chocolate with chili flakes to keep out the cold and send you out with renewed energy for exploring Gothenburg. I’ll be amazed if you leave without buying a few of those tempting chocolates and cakes at the counter.

Cafe Kanold in Gothenburg, Sweden

Jeanna Kanold at the Kanold Chocolate shop

8. Michelin Star Restaurants in Gothenburg

I can’t go without mentioning that Gothenburg has a huge reputation as a gourmet destination and was recently crowned the Culinary Capital of Sweden with no less than 5 Michelin star restaurants to enjoy. We were lucky enough to eat at Basement, where I met the Head Chef, Camilla Parkner to find out what makes the food in Gothenburg so special. You can read my account of our meal at Basement and my video interview with Camilla in my article about Gourmet Gothenburg.

Heather with Camilla Parkner, Head Chef at Basement in Gothenburg

Of course, eating at a Michelin star restaurant can be expensive and something that most of us would reserve for a special treat or celebration meal but if you’re looking for the gourmet experience then do make a reservation at one of the top Michelin star restaurants in Gothenburg. They often offer a more reasonably priced lunchtime menu, or a cheaper pre-theatre or bar menu so you can still try them out if you’re on a limited budget. In addition to Basement, the other Michelin star restaurants in Gothenburg are;

28+ (Just next door to Basement) which started as a cheese shop; Kock & Vin for classic dining with Swedish ingredients and in the basement is a popular bistro and wine bar Bjorns Bar; Fond  in a glass building by the Gothenburg Museum of Art and Thörnströms Kök for modern Scandinavian and regional cooking

Restaurant at Basement in Gothenburg, Sweden

Death by chocolate at Basement in Gothenburg

Visitor Information for Gothenburg or Göteborg

• The local tourism site Göteborg.com is full of information on the best things to see and do
• For information on West Sweden visit the West Sweden Tourism site or follow them on Twitter @WestSwedenTB or on their Facebook page and you will find their blog at ExploreWestSweden.com
• Another useful site for all things Gothenburg is I Love Göteborg
• If you plan to do a lot of sightseeing it’s worth getting the Gothenburg City Card which will allow you entrance to all the major attractions as well as public transport. Look out for the deals that some hotels offer that include a Gothenburg Card with the hotel booking.
• We stayed at the classic 5 star hotel, Elite Plaza Hotel which is in the Inom Vallgraven district and walking distance from most of the sightes of Gothenburg.
• We took flights to Gothenburg from London Heathrow with Scandinavian Airlines who have 2 flights a day to Gothenburg’s Landvetter airport, a 30 minute taxi or bus ride from the city.
• If you’d like to use a guidebook during your visit to Gothenburg I’d recommend the conveniently sized Thomas Cook Gothenburg Pocket Guide which we used.

www.flickr.com heatheronhertravels’ Sweden – Gothenburg photoset

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

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Few things are as synonymous with Spanish culture as tapas, and few things have origins as steeped in mythology. There is the story of the ailing King Alfonso X, known as El Sabio or The Wise, who was nursed back to health on a diet of wine and tiny morsels. Delighted with the remedy, he ordered that everyone in Castilla should embrace this curative new diet. Nonsense!, others claim, the wise king decreed that taverns serve a snack with each glass of wine to prevent drunken brawls; tapas began as a civic, peace-keeping measure!

Try the tapas in Barcelona

Tapas traditions

None of this, however, explains the origin of the name. Tapa means lid and many claim it derives from the old practice of placing a slice of ham on the glass to keep pesky flies from falling into the wine. One story involves a visit by King Alfonso XIII to Andalucia, although in this case the cause for concern wasn’t the flies, but the flying sand. Afraid the strong wind would sweep the beach into the royal glass, the innkeeper covered it with a slice of ham. The king thought this ingenious, ate the ham, drank the wine and ordered another round, but this time with a different tapa (lid)!

Oro Catalan beer in Barcelona

The fact that these legends play out in Castilla or Andalucia is no coincidence. Both are famous for their tapas tradition: el tapeo or strolling with friends, stopping at different places for a drink and sampling the house specialty is very popular.

Traditionally, tapas were simple (olives, cheese, ham) and on the house when you ordered a drink, but their rise in popularity resulted in a proliferation of tapas styles. Whereas in Castilla, typical tapas include callos (tripe), potato omelette or croquettes, Andalusian tapas are far more seafood oriented: cuttlefish, pescaito frito (tiny fried fish), prawns, shrimp omelette. The Basques have a tradition of their own: here tapas are called pintxos and consist of a small slice of bread with different toppings, usually held together by a toothpick. Going from bar to bar sampling pintxos is one of the most social and entertaining ways of eating in San Sebastian.

Tapas recommendations in Barcelona

Although tapas are not a typically Catalan tradition, the practice has become popular over time and nowadays you’ll find all sorts of tapas restaurants in Barcelona, from authentic bars where locals pop in for a drink and a tapa to creative restaurants that have transformed tapas into the centrepiece of their dining experience. Finding tapas in Barcelona is easy. Finding good tapas in a place that doesn’t feel like a tourist trap is trickier. I have my three stalwarts – deeply local places where the food is good and the atmosphere unique: El Vaso de Oro, Quimet Quimet, and Bar Ramón.

Try the vermut at Quimet Quimet

El Vaso de Ora – beer and hearty tapas

El Vaso de Oro is in Barceloneta, the city’s old fishing quarter, and it takes its seafaring association very seriously. From the waiters’ white nautical uniforms with gold trim to the wooden lamps shaped like ships, El Vaso de Oro embraces the maritime identity of the neighbourhood. Even the layout – the narrow wooden bar where you have to squeeze past other patrons – recalls the confined cabins of a boat. In fact, there’s only one thing un-sea-related: the food. Sure, the tapas include the odd seafood item, but mostly it’s robust, hearty, inland fare: chorizo, morcilla and other sausages, cured ham, foie, sirloin steak with foie (the house specialty), Manchego cheese, salted almonds, pimientos del padrón (slightly spicy green peppers and pretty much the only vegetable on the menu).

The crowd matches the food. Robust, hearty, (mostly) men over 50 with bushy beards, a beer-drinking crowd of local regulars that come for good, no-nonsense food. The bar serves wine, but one look at the shelves of old, ceramic beer mugs and the motto el manantial de la cerveza or the beer spring on the coasters and you know what the beverage of choice is around here. Word has spread and you’ll see a smattering of younger patrons, a few foreigners too, who know that when it comes to delicious meat-and-potatoes-style tapas, El Vaso de Oro in Barcelona is one of the best bets around.

El Vaso de Oro, Carrer Balboa, 6 – 08003 Barcelona; 93 319 3098

Quimet Quimet – vermouth and local delicacies

Just like El Vaso de Oro, Quimet Quimet is a true tapas bar, where you stand, or perch on a stool, have a drink, eat a tapa and move on to the next place. Located in the Poble Sec in Barcelona, Quimet Quimet is even smaller and most evenings, patrons literally spill out onto the street. Sometimes it gets so crowded, you’re rubbing shoulders with strangers. But it’s absolutely worth it.

Montadito tapas at Quimet Quimet in Barcelona

At Quimet Quimet, tapas meet one of Catalunya’s finest traditions: fer el vermut literally: “do the vermouth”. Catalunya is known for its excellent vemouths, and Quimet Quimet has a delicious house variety – dark, herbal, spicy and just sweet enough. My favourite, however, is from the village of Falset in the Priorat. A fresh, light vermouth the colour of a sunset. The tradition of the vermut isn’t just about the beverage though. Traditionally, it was a lunchtime aperitif. The vermouth was prepared with a splash of soda or sifó and a slice of orange or an olive, served with olives, crisps, anchovies, salted almonds, clams or cockles.

Quimet Quimet serves all of these local delicacies…and so much more. The montaditos (another variation on small slices of bread topped with different ingredients) are exquisite – salmon, yogurt and honey; prawns and roasted red pepper; smoked sardine and sun-dried tomato, etc. – as are the cheese and cured meat assortments. Quimet Quimet is also a paradise for wine lovers and a great place to discover Catalunya’s wine regions, not just the commercially well-known El Penedés, but others like the Priorat, Montsant, Terra Alta or Empordá-Costa Brava. Although more obscure, these official appellations of origin grow interesting, autoctonous varieties and produce some of the Catalunya’s finest wines.

Quimet Quimet, Carrer del Poeta Cabanyes, 25 – 08004 Barcelona; 93 442 3142

Tapas at Bar Ramón in Barcelona

Bar Ramón – high energy and gourmet tapas

As much as I love the high-spirited energy of a bustling tapas bar, sometimes the occasion calls for a different dining experience. Sitting down to a meal, however, doesn’t mean renouncing tapas. Bar Ramón in Sant Antoni is without a doubt one of Barcelona’s most original local spots. The restaurant is a curious mix of new and old, local and international, creative and traditional. In a way, it expresses the personalities of its owners, a brother and sister team.

At first glance, Bar Ramón looks like most good, local bars: unfussy furniture, a long bar, a glass display of cold tapas. Inviting, cosy, not flashy. But then you hear the music – good classic rock and blues – and you notice the guitars on the walls and the photos of music legends. The colours, a little warmer and more vibrant than in most local bars and the aging, rock’n'roll regulars hanging out at the bar. Bar Ramón really is a place to hang out. Once you sit down and order a glass of wine, a blanca (beer in a white mug) or a vermouth, the spirit of Ramón takes over and you’ll order food and talk to people until suddenly it’s past midnight.

Bar Ramón in Barcelona

The crowd isn’t just locals or aging rockers. All sorts of people love Bar Ramón, and they flock to this hole-in-the-wall spot from all over town and even further afield. They have one thing in common: they’re secret gourmets. You’d never guess how great the food is from Bar Ramón’s unassuming, unpretentious look. The cold tapas are particularly creative: the other night, I had a salmon and apple pie, and roasted vegetables layered with flavourful, soft cheese. The hot tapas tend to be more traditional and offer a little journey to different corners of Spain: Galician-style octopus, fried cuttlefish, grilled prawn and pineapple skewers (a little modern twist), roasted potatoes with an ever so slightly spicy Brava sauce, and the Catalan classic pa amb tomaquet or bread rubbed with tomato, olive oil, garlic and salt. I really only have one piece of advice when going to Bar Ramón: bring a bunch of friends so you can order and try as many tapas as possible!

Bar Ramón Carrer Comte Borrell corner Tamarit; 93 325 0283

My thanks for this Guest post to Aisha Prigann who writes the BCNinternet Barcelona Blog about culture, leisure and tourism in Barcelona, including tips on accommodation and fun things to do in the city.

All photos by Aisha Prigann

More Spanish pleasures

The Moorish charms of the Alhambra in Granada
Seafood on the beach – at the Chringuitos in Spain
The sweet taste of Horchata in Valencia

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

Don’t miss out – subscribe to Heather on her travels

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On a chilly winter’s day in Gothenburg you might well need a hot chocolate to warm you through and you’ll find the perfect spot in Café Kanold. I might not go so far as to call myself a chocoholic but let’s just say that when there’s a box of chocolates in the house, my husband will hide it to help me resist the temptation of demolishing it in one go. So during our weekend in Gothenburg just before Christmas I was only too happy to find a chocolate excuse to escape the blustery showers and strong winds.

Cafe Kanold in Gothenburg, Sweden

As we wandered around the network of pedestrianised shopping streets, not too far from Hotel Elite Plaza where we were staying,we found ourself at the canal or moat that encircles the central area. Just in front of it on the corner is Café Kanold, all old fashioned elegance, washed out Swedish blue paintwork and sparkling chandeliers. We were just about ready for a mid morning break and I remembered that Cafe Kanold was one of the Gothenburg recommendations from my Hospitality club friend and Gothenburg local, Linnea.

Cafe Kanold in Gothenburg, Sweden

Kanold Chocolate cafe in Gothenburg, Sweden

Safely inside and out of the wind and rain, we sat on the cushioned banquette with pretty floral cushions and settled ourselves in for a warming hot chocolate – served with chili flakes on top for an extra kick, just as they do in Mexico. That counter of handmade chocolate truffles at the entrance was calling me and I couldn’t resist trying a few different flavours including the Kanold speciality, a soft chocolate truffle centre topped with sea salt, which has now become known as the “Gothenburg Truffle”.

Sustained with our chili hot chocolate we carried on round the corner  where we found the main Kanold chocolate shop on Södra Larmgatan at the end of Viktoriapassagen - a cross between an old fashioned candy store and a boutique chocolatier. The window could have been from a Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale with marzipan pigs all ready for Christmas and miniature paper cases with the toffee or knack that they serve at Christmas in Sweden.

Kanold Chocolate shop in Gothenburg, Sweden

Apparently the Kanold family came to Gothenburg from Germany in the 1890s and the brothers Anton and Fred Kanold started the chocolate business but over the years the company was sold off until none of the original family were involved. Then in 1998 Jeanna Kanold, whose husband is from the fourth generation of the Kanold family took over the chocolate shop on the corner of Viktoriapassagen and the brothers Kanold become Flickorna Kanold or “The girls” Kanold. I love the idea of “the girls” taking over the family business and injecting new love and inspiration into a world of chocolate. Ten years later and the chocolate production moved to the nearby glass roofed Salluhallen food market where you can watch the chocolates being produced in their workshop and last year the elegant Café Kanold was opened.

In the window of the chocolate shop I also noticed Jeanna Kanold’s face on the cover of a glossy cook-book that she’d recently published  called Med kärlek till Choklad or With love for Chocolate in which she shares her favourite chocolate and baking recipes from the Kanold family archives as well as the company history and traditions. Sadly it’s only sold in Swedish at the moment, or I would have been adding it to my Christmas list. The shop is a place that you really could be like a kid in a candy store with striped candy canes and twists, marzipan pigs and angels (I adore marzipan) chocolate discs studded with nuts and dried fruit and of course those delicious chocolate truffles.

Jeanna Kanold at the Kanold Chocolate shop in Gothenburg, Sweden

Sadly the Saluhallen market hall was closed when we passed but at the end of our weekend, on our way to catch the bus to the airport I popped into the shop again to buy a box of those salty Gothenburg truffles to take back home. I did a double take as I realised that Jeanna Kanold herself was serving in the shop, dressed in her traditional white frilled pinny and so I introduced myself and asked if I could take her photo which she graciously agreed.

I asked how she had come up with inspiration for the now famous ‘Gothenburg truffle’ with sea salt and she told me that she had been trying to come up with a chocolate idea that would epitomise the spirit of Gothenburg to take to a competition in Stockholm. As Gothenburg is so famous for its seafood, she had tried various fishy combinations, but after a while the lobster and shrimp truffles weren’t tasting so good. Then she had the inspiration of using sea salt to represent the ocean that gives a livelihood to much of the coast of West Sweden as well as the wonderful seafood that is a speciality of Gothenburg. Now the sea salt with chocolate has caught on in Gothenburg and I noticed at our ‘death by chocolate’ desert at the Michelin star restaurant, Basement also had a sprinkling of sea salt on the top. Jeanna’s special recommendation was that the sea salt truffles are wonderful served with champagne, which I wouldn’t need any persuading to try.

So there you have my Kanold favourites – hot chocolate with chili flakes to warm you and chocolate truffles with sea salt for the authentic taste of West Sweden. On a windy winter’s day in Gothenburg I can’t think of anything nicer.

Need to know about Flickorna Kanold

Website: Flickorna Kanold

The three Kanold premises are situated near the canal in the Inom Vallgraven neighbourhood. Café Kanold is at Grönsakstorget 1 and the Kanold chocolate shop is nearby at Södra Larmgatan 14 (beside Viktoriapassagen) while the workshop is in the Stora Saluhallen food-market at Kungstorget.

More things to enjoy in Gothenburg

Video of the Christmas film or Julfilm in Gothenburg
Staying in luxury with Mother Svea at Hotel Elite Plaza in Gothenburg
Gourmet Gotheburg – Our Michelin star meal at Basement in Gothenburg – video

Visitor Information for Gothenburg or Göteborg

• The local tourism site Göteborg.com is full of information on the best things to see and do
• For information on West Sweden visit the West Sweden Tourism site or follow them on Twitter @WestSwedenTB or on their Facebook page and you will find their blog at ExploreWestSweden.com
• Another useful site for all things Gothenburg is I Love Göteborg
• If you plan to do a lot of sightseeing it’s worth getting the Gothenburg City Card which will allow you entrance to all the major attractions as well as public transport. Look out for the deals that some hotels offer that include a Gothenburg Card with the hotel booking.
• We stayed at the elegant 5 star hotel, Elite Plaza Hotel which is a short walk from the Kanold shops in the Inom Vallgraven district and walking distance from most things.
• We took flights to Gothenburg from London Heathrow with Scandinavian Airlines who have 2 flights a day to Gothenburg’s Landvetter airport, a 30 minute taxi or bus ride from the city.
• If you’d like to use a guidebook during your visit to Gothenburg I’d recommend the conveniently sized Thomas Cook Gothenburg Pocket Guide which we used.

www.flickr.com heatheronhertravels’ Sweden – Gothenburg photoset

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

Don’t miss out – subscribe to Heather on her travels

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With its sparking coast, exotic cities and desert dunes, Morocco is a diverse and exciting country that feels a world away from Europe. Low cost airlines have transformed it into an easily accessible destination and the journey to Marrakech takes only three and a half hours. Morocco is consequently one of the best holiday destinations outside of Europe, providing a far-from-home feeling and plenty of adventure without breaking the bank.

The Markets of Marrakech

One of Morocco’s most appealing qualities is its magical city life, horses and carts still common in the streets, minarets and domes decorating the skyline. Most flights arrive in Marrakech, where visitors should stay at least a couple of days to experience this enchanting city, parts of which have changed little over hundreds of years. Exploring the markets is a treat not to be missed. Mountains of multi-coloured spices are sold between silversmiths and treasure-trove antique stalls.

White houses in Chefchaouen in Morocco

Leather goods, jewellery and handmade musical instruments are also abundant, and haggling for souvenirs is a fun part of the Moroccan shopping experience. At night, the main square is filled with snake charmers, story tellers and acrobats. Moroccan dining is world class, tagines of couscous, steaming vegetables and fresh fish served in lantern-lit restaurants around the square. Restaurant interiors add to the magic, terracotta, tile work and silver upholding traditional Arabic design. The Medieval city of Fes is also a highlight, as is the charming city of Chefchaouen, where the traditional hillside houses are all painted white.

A trip to the Sahara is an experience of a lifetime and guided tours on camel back are offered throughout the capital. On a two day trip, groups are led into the desert where large tents and a campfire are set up for the night. No matter what you are told about the clearness of the night sky in the Sahara, you will still be humbled and astounded when the stars come out, so many and so bright that they light up the desert. Sleeping on the sand is magical, guides pointing out constellations and shooting stars after supper. The stars are rivalled only by the morning sun, rising like a golden orb over the rolling dunes.

Camel guided tours in the Sahara

Morocco’s coastal destinations are the perfect place to relax and soak up the sun. Bohemian Essaouira is a famed location amongst musicians and artists, past residents including Jimi Hendrix and Bob Marley. Cobbled streets are alive with colour, North African rhythms and art pouring from cavernous shops. Surfing is a popular pursuit and the town has a laid-back vibe to match. For a classic beach experience Agadir is the destination of choice. A sun-seekers paradise, pristine sandy beaches hem the turquoise waters of the Atlantic. Resorts offer first class accommodation and family friendly activities including water sports and sightseeing.

Essaouira in Morocco

With breath-taking hiking trails in the high Atlas Mountains and world class skiing to boot, Morocco has all the components to make it one of the best holiday destinations in the world.

Many thanks for this guest post from Tom Volpe from Heading There, a guide written by travellers, for travellers

More holiday ideas in North Africa

Seagulls and salt spray in Essaouira – Morocco
Travelling in Egypt – Alexandria, Marsa Matrouh and Siwa
6 misconceptions I had about Alexandria – in Egypt

Photo credits: Essaouira by Primeroz,  Chefchaouen by Fulvio’s photos. Other photos by Tom Volpe.

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

Don’t miss out – subscribe to Heather on her travels

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On the roof of the Hotel Elite Plaza in Gothenburg sits the statue of Mother Svea, the warrior princess who personifies the Swedish nation, with shield on one side and lions on the other, ready to repel all those who might dare to invade her beloved homeland. From our room on the 5th floor just behind the statue, we had the same view as Mother Svea, over the green copper rooftops of the elegant buildings nearby and towards the nearby canal or moat that surrounds the central quarter of the city.

Hotel Elite Plaza hotel, Gothenburg, Sweden

The statue belongs to the time when the building was the office of the Swedish Fire and Life Insurance company, Svea who commissioned the building in 1890 bringing in all the specialist firms in the city to create a grand and solid building that was designed to impress. Clearly no expense was spared in the fine decorative stonework exterior, the marble columns and stairways, the patterned terrazzo flooring and sparkling chandeliers.

Florentine Hall at Elite Plaza Hotel, Gothenburg

Staircase at Elite Plaza Hotel, Gothenburg, Sweden

The Elite Plaza’s reception hall to the left as you enter was once the main insurance office and you can still stay in the luxurious Svea suite with beautiful wooden panelling which was once the private apartment of the General Manager, who could ascend his own private staircase like the emperor of this insurance empire. In the 1920s the building was expanded with the open atrium of the Florentine hall and later became part of the University of Gothenburg before being turned into a hotel in 2000. All this turn of the century elegance is far from stuffy and there’s a modern twist with designer furnishings and striking artwork around the public areas on the ground floor.

I hope you enjoy my video below about Hotel Elite Plaza in Gothenburg

If you can’t see the video above of Hotel Elite Plaza Gothenburg, view it on my blog here

After a long evening travelling from London Heathrow with Scandinavian Airlines we had arrived to find thick snow at the airport, but as our taxi got closer to the centre of Gothenburg it had turned to a light sheen of sleet on the pavement. After such a journey we were relieved to be welcomed into the hotel and directed to the glass lift that took us straight to the 5th floor once we scanned our key card – impressive from a security point of view but slightly irritating when it’s magic powers ran out on the morning of our departure. We were relieved to sink into our bed with one of those extremely comfortable memory foam mattresses and slept soundly to the distant rumble of trams in the street below.

Bedroom at Elite Plaza hotel, Gothenburg, Sweden

The next morning we had a better chance to check out the hotel before venturing out to discover what Gothenburg had to offer. Our superior room was a modern classic under the roof with sloping windows lined with silky soft curtains held in place by a brass rail. Living in a draughty old house as we do, we found the room on the warm side but luckily the large glass windows could be opened at the top to allow some fresh air. The neutral tones were highlighted with accents of deep pink and beige which I loved and rather wished I had a scarf like the pink and lime figured velvet throw on the bed. The room was a good size but divided by a low wall to mount the flat screen TV so that we could watch some trashy old movie while tucked up in bed – something we’d consider far too decadent to do at home but love to indulge in when we are away in a smart hotel.

Bedroom at Elite Plaza hotel, Gothenburg, Sweden

The other half of the room had a low arm chair and work area with a well lit modern white desk and an internet point with free internet access. As you can imagine the Internet was in regular use and I found it to be very fast which is always good to find even if you just want to check the opening times of a museum. I also used the wifi in the hotel to check things on my i-phone but found it a bit of a bore that I was given a handful of paper slips with impossibly long passcodes that only lasted a few hours – although at least we weren’t being charged for the wifi, unlike many luxury hotels.

We loved the bathroom which combined classic white marble tiles and a black granite vanity surface with modern sink and bathroom fittings. The bath was so long that I could barely touch the end, a great bonus for Guy who is over 6 feet tall and we both appreciated a long hot soak after our days out and about in Gothenburg dodging the blustery showers. There were plenty of nice toiletries and white bathrobes with a wired in hair dryer beside the large basin mirror, although there was a loose marble tile that had come away leaving a hole at the bottom of the bath. The flat fronted wardrobes blended into the wall but when open contained plenty of hanging and shelf space as well as an iron and ironing board, safe and mini-bar.

Bathroom at Elite Plaza hotel, Gothenburg, Sweden

After a good night’s rest it was down to breakfast served in the large Swea Hof restaurant which is  set in a former internal courtyard with a glass roof with dark green metal supports and walls of decorative plasterwork. The walls were painted in milky coffee shades with a black and white checkerboard tiled floor and softly padded dining chairs. The colour was provided by red figured velvet curtains sweeping across the inside of the doorway and banners of colourful artwork down the side of the building, with large modern still life paintings like the bowl of lemons or a montage of giant lilies.The dark green woodwork continued around the open kitchen with slightly art deco style light fittings and enormous cream shades hanging from the ceiling, the overall effect being of comfortable modern luxury.

Swea Hof at Elite Plaza Hotel, Gothenburg, Sweden

We really enjoyed the huge variety and quality of the breakfast buffet with everything you might wish for from nutty brown bread to local cheeses to fresh fruit, pastries and cereals. The only fault I could find was that the coffee was from a machine which seemed a bit unusual in such a high class hotel and you had to pay extra if you wanted something freshly brewed. We returned later to find that the hotel was offering a traditional Christmas table of Julbord which included all the foods that you might eat at Christmas especially endless varieties of smoked salmon and herring, with cured meats and pickles too.

Christmas Julbord at Elite Plaza Hotel, Gothenburg

Christmas Julbord at Elite Plaza Hotel, Gothenburg

The 5 star Hotel Elite Plaza is very well located in a central neighbourhood of Inom Vallgraven and as Gothenburg is not too large you can walk to most of the places you’d like to see or easily hop on a tram for any longer journeys. Turn left out of the hotel and you walk northwards to cross over the canal, passing the City Museum where we found some delightful gifts in the their shop to bring home. A little further and you’ll arrive at the Kronhuset, an old artillery store which is one of the oldest buildings in Gothenburg, set in a pretty courtyard with several craft and gift shops and the delightful Cafe Kronhuset which is a favourite spot for Swedish open sandwiches or a Fika coffee break with cakes and buns.

Bedroom at Elite Plaza hotel, Gothenburg, Sweden

Suite at Elite Plaza hotel, Gothenburg, Sweden

Soon you’re in the harbour area with the Maritiman outdoor Maritime museum which opens from April-October and the Gothenburg Opera house, also built on a maritime theme with the nearby Lipstick tower where you can get a bird’s eye view from the 22nd floor. Turn right out of the Hotel Elite Plaza and you’ll walk south down the main street of Västra Hamngatan passing the cathedral and exploring the network of small pedestrianised streets filled with interesting fashion and home-ware shops. Soon you reach the circle of canal where you might like to pop into the Feskekörka fish market (literally the fish church) where we had lunch at the wonderful Restaurant Gabriel or the glass roofed Stora Salluhallen food hall to do a bit of tasting and buying of lovely local Gothenburg delicacies.

Graffiti on the back of Mother Svea

Cross the bridge and you’ll be walking down Kungsportsavenyn or Avenyn (the Avenue) for short where there are plenty of bars and eateries and you’ll end up at the Gothenburg City of Art or can hop on a traditional wooden tram to take you the few stops on to the Liseburg Amusement Park. If you plan to do a lot of sightseeing it’s worth investing in a Gothenburg city card which will provide free entry to most of the city attractions as well as public transport and city tours thrown in. You can walk from Avenyn to the old working districts of Haga and Linne with pretty traditional houses and cobbled streets where you can browse for unusual gifts in the arty and vintage shops and we stopped for a well-priced seafood lunch at the Sea Bar, Sjobaren and later had a cosy coffee and enormous cinnamon bun at Cafe Kringlan.

We loved returning after our days of exploring Gothenburg to our cosy rooftop room at Hotel Elite Plaza where we had the perfect view of the back of Mother Svea as well as the rooftops of Gothenburg. The warrior princess must have had a face lift in the 1960s as we could clearly see the workmens’ signatures and dates on the back of the statue. Many of the hotel rooms are being renovated through the first half of 2012 which will bring an even fresher look to this lovely classic luxury hotel, but we hope that Mother Svea will remain to cast an approving eye over it all. If you’d like to stay with the same view of Mother Svea be sure to ask for room 504.

Hotel Elite Plaza, Västra Hamngatan 3, Box 11065, 404 22 Gothenburg, Sweden E-mail info.gbgplaza@elite.se

The hotel is a member of Design Hotels and it’s worth also checking their website for any special offers. You can also compare prices and book for Hotel Elite Plaza and other Gothenburg Hotels through Hotels Combined.com

 More things to enjoy in Gothenburg

Our winter break in Gothenburg – podcast
Gourmet Gothenburg – Our Michelin Star meal at Basement – video
Exploring the Christmas markets of Gothenburg

Visitor Information for Gothenburg or Göteborg

• The local tourism site Göteborg.com is full of information on the best things to see and do
• For information on West Sweden visit the West Sweden Tourism site or follow them on Twitter @WestSwedenTB or on their Facebook page and you will find their blog at ExploreWestSweden.com
• Another useful site for all things Gothenburg is I Love Göteborg
• If you plan to do a lot of sightseeing it’s worth getting the Gothenburg City Card which will allow you entrance to all the major attractions as well as public transport. Look out for the deals that some hotels offer that include a Gothenburg Card with the hotel booking.
• We took flights to Gothenburg from London Heathrow with Scandinavian Airlines who have 2 flights a day to Gothenburg’s Landvetter airport, a 30 minute taxi or bus ride from the city.
• If you’d like to use a guidebook during your visit to Gothenburg I’d recommend the conveniently sized Thomas Cook Gothenburg Pocket Guide which we used.

www.flickr.com heatheronhertravels’ Sweden – Gothenburg photoset

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

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Blackpool… For many, just the name of the UK’s most famous seaside resort is enough to make them cringe, conjuring up images of run-down games arcades and seedy bars packed full of binge-drinking teenagers. For me, it has always brought to mind the historic Pleasure Beach, one of Britain’s oldest amusement parks and still one of its most popular. Yet the town’s original success was built on its expansive coastline and long, sandy beaches – features that are still present today. With significant investments being made to try and rejuvenate Blackpool’s seafront, how do the man-made attractions stack up against the natural elements? And is either aspect enough to justify a visit?

Pier in Blackpool

I’ve dreamed of visiting the town ever since I was a small child, but being on the opposite side of the UK to our Ipswich home it fell into the category of “so close, yet so far”. Earlier this year, we decided to compile a list of all the places in our country that we’d neglected to visit. Blackpool was right at the top, and so it was that we spent two days exploring it this summer.

Natural attractions in Blackpool

Blackpool beach and tower

While the artificial aspects of the resort are hard to miss (a 65 metre tall roller coaster and 158 metre tall clone of the Eiffel Tower are never going to blend into the landscape), it was the extensive coastline that grabbed our attention immediately. Stretching on for over seven miles, it’s easy to see why trainload after trainload of working class tourists headed to the town following the construction of the first rail link in 1846. Few beaches could cope with the sheer number of visitors (tens of thousands every summer weekend in the 1920s) that descended upon Blackpool’s shores, but these ones could.

Of course, it was perhaps inevitable that the urban grime the workers were seeking to escape from would eventually follow them to the coast. A multi-lane road runs in parallel to the seafront, although there is at least a large promenade and a tram line to separate it from the sand itself. Row after row of bed and breakfasts and hotels clamour for the sea views on offer, and many are badly in need of restoration after years of battering from the sea breeze. There are some pretty buildings around, but Blackpool is never going to be famous for its architecture.

Does this detract from the seafront? I don’t think so. The lure of the seaside is as strong as ever, and the features that have attracted tourists to Blackpool for the last century-and-a-half are still very prominent. Whether it’s a family day out with bucket and spade in tow, or a just a relaxing stroll along sand that doesn’t seem to end, most people will find something to enjoy here. Even those most disapproving of the way the resort has evolved may not be able to resist a quick ice cream and a paddle in the surf.

Top natural attractions to visit in Blackpool include:

• Central Beach – the heart and soul of the town, Central Beach is an expansive tract of golden sand located right in the heart of Blackpool. For families, this is the place to go for sunbathing, sand-castle building and donkey rides.
• St Annes Beach – if you’re looking for a more relaxing spot away from the noise and bustle of Central Beach, St Annes offers a quieter alternative. Located a few miles down the coast, it’s a great place for a walk or a swim.

Man-made attractions in Blackpool

Of course, the variable weather conditions that ultimately led to British tourists heading to Spain and Portugal will still have a huge impact on your ability to linger outdoors. That’s where Blackpool’s range of man-made distractions come into play – and there are a huge number of them. From major attractions such as the iconic Blackpool Tower (which we were unable to visit due to recently-completed refurbishment work), Madame Tussaud’s waxworks and the Sea Life Centre (all operated by a single firm, Merlin Entertainments Group) to the dozens of arcades, tea rooms and pubs, almost everywhere you look someone is trying to extract some of your hard-earned cash.

The Pepsi Max Big One

I’ll be honest – for me, there is only one game in town. Having remained in family ownership for years, Blackpool Pleasure Beach still draws visitors to the South Shore like a magnet. First opened in 1896, it has outlasted the vast majority of seaside parks from its era by continuing to invest and improve. Several major rides have been added in the past two decades, while 2011 saw the opening of the £10 million Nickelodeon Land.  The park is also home to  the UK’s tallest rollercoaster, the Pepsi Max Big One.

While I am an unapologetically huge fan of amusement parks, it is not Blackpool Pleasure Beach’s modern rides that interest me. Instead, it is the vast array of classic attractions on offer, some of which date back to the early 20th century. This gives the park the feel of a living, working museum, rather than a simple tourist trap. The River Caves was the inspiration for Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean, while the Big Dipper roller-coaster was among the forerunners to today’s major thrill rides. It is the 1904 Flying Machines, though, that really caught my imagination. Still a great attraction today, it is difficult to comprehend how amazed visitors of that era must have been by this stunning piece of engineering.

Nickelodeon Land at Blackpool Pleasure Beach

Outside of Pleasure Beach, some of the best man-made attractions in Blackpool’s bewildering line-up include:

• Blackpool Tower – visible from all over the town, the Tower has recently undergone a major renovation which added the somewhat out-of-place Blackpool Tower Dungeons walk-through horror exhibit. Besides the stunning views from the top, though, the biggest draw remains the famous Tower Ballroom. Dominated by enormous crystal chandeliers, it still plays host to ballroom dancing nights on a frequent basis.
• Sandcastle Water Park – kids will demand a visit to Britain’s most famous indoor water park. Highlights include the world’s first (and longest) water slide featuring an uphill section, the Master Blaster.
• Grand Theatre - having opened in 1894, the Grand Theatre has shown impressive staying power and now features the official title of Britain’s National Theatre of Variety. The performances won’t always be to everyone’s taste, but the building itself is still worth a look.
• Blackpool Illuminations – introduced in 1879 as a way of extending the holiday season, the Illuminations sees over a million lights used to decorate six miles of Blackpool promenade.

Flying Machines at Blackpool Pleasure Beach

Overall, then, I would recommend a visit to Blackpool to a diverse range of people from lovers of the sea air, to casual history buffs, right through to hardened thrill-seekers. The town still has some way to go to fully clean itself up, and it’s hard to see it ever returning to its glory days. But as a nostalgia-inducing reminder of how the natural and artificial combined to offer fun-packed seaside holidays in years gone by, it still has plenty to offer.

Thanks for this guest post to Nick Sim from Theme Park Tourist, your guide to theme parks and amusement parks , featuring news, guides and reviews for parks all over the world

Photo credits: Blackpool beach and tower by diamond geezer,  The Pepsi Max Big One by Ingy The Wingy and Pier by stinksoup   Other photos by Nick Sim.

More delights up North

Getting to know LS Lowry at the Lowry in Manchester
Snowdrops at Lytham Hall in Lancashire England
The must see sights of Leeds

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

Don’t miss out – subscribe to Heather on her travels

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” The style at Basement is rough food “, I was told by the head chef, Camilla Parkner – strange, I thought for a Michelin star restaurant! But she quickly qualified; “It’s stylish-rough – we take food that you might eat for Sunday dinner at your grandparents but then we make it a bit more stylish” I’d come to have a chat with Camilla Parkner and try the dinner at Basement, to find out what makes Gothenburg the culinary capital of Sweden and how the city can support as many as five Michelin star restaurants.

Bar area at Basement in Gothenburg, Sweden

At Basement we found an understated atmosphere – down a couple of steps from the street level and you’re into a cosy bar area with tomato red walls, natural wooden tables and abstract modern lithographs on the walls. Camilla’s straightforward personality matches the mood of the restaurant – she seems modest and uninterested in any pretension, telling me that the food is great in Gothenburg because the chefs here are down to earth and stick to what they know and love. She brushes off her achievement of being the only female head chef in a Swedish Michelin star restaurant, saying that she is a head chef first, although she is happy to encourage other female chefs.

We move into the main room of the restaurant where the upmarket brasserie atmosphere continues with teracotta tiles, roughly plastered whitewashed walls and square red abstract paintings dotted around the walls. Camilla tells me that the owner Magnus Larsson collects art from the local galleries in the neighbourhood and I’m reminded of the Camilla Lackberg murder mystery novel I’ve brought to Gothenburg as holiday reading. Set on the West Coast of Sweden The Ice Princess features an elegant Swedish murder victim who owns an art gallery just around the corner from here on Chalmersgatan and sells striking red and yellow abstract paintings by the talented but alcoholic artist, Anders, much like the ones on the walls of Basement. There’s a kelim on the floor with chairs and seat cushions in washed out shades of dusty olive and burgundy with olive green glass candle holders on the white table linen.

Heather with Camilla Parkner, Head Chef at Basement in Gothenburg

Camilla tells me about the food at Basement which is known for it’s signature dish of slowly cooked roast meats – just like your Swedish grandmother might have cooked. “For 10 years we’ve always had a slow cooked meat dish on the menu at Basement” explains Camilla ‘”and that’s what we’re a bit famous for”. The meats are cooked at a low temperature of 85 degrees C for 16 hours making them succulent and tender and they are served with different accompaniments according to the seasons.

I hope you enjoy the video below with Camilla Parkner on what makes the food in Gothenburg special

If you can’t see the video interview with Camilla Parkner above, you can view it on my blog here

Fish and shellfish also feature heavily on the menu – how could they not in Gothenburg? Camilla confirmed what I’d already heard, that the deep, cold, coastal waters create the outstanding quality of seafood that the city is known for and told me she has never found a flavour to match it in the world. In the main restaurant area Camilla serves a Seasonal Selection tasting menu which changes every fortnight based on whatever produce is in season – as she said; “I’m not a person that always longs for the summer because I love every season and try to use the best from every season.”

For example, the menu that we tried later that evening included slow roasted suckling pig with a puree of apple and celariac with a crispy topping of fried green cabbage – a typical Swedish Christmas vegetable. There’s also a Wagner’s classic menu that changes only slightly and is a homage to former chef Ulf Wagner who has now moved to another great Gothenburg seafood restaurant at Sjömagasinet - the lobster salad is his signature dish. In the bar area at the front, where tables can’t be reserved in advance, a more informal and less expensive menu is served with just a couple of choices per course such as fish of the day or a slow cooked meat dish.

Restaurant at Basement in Gothenburg, Sweden

Each fortnight Camilla creates a new menu using the seasonal and local produce and then the whole team of waiting and kitchen staff sit down together to try it, together with different wines for each course, carefully chosen by sommelier Daniel Rodriquez to compliment the food. This gives the team a chance to adjust any of the flavours before it is served to the diners in the restaurant.

Later that evening, having watched the Julfilm (Christmas film) on the facade of the Museum of Art and being nearly swept away by the windy weather, we are blown back into Basement, hungry to eat some food and not just talk about it. Once again we are charmed by the relaxed atmosphere and find our table right opposite the open kitchen where we can observe the chefs at work. The action in the kitchen provides a fascinating side show with none of the clattering and chaos that I would expect if my own family was creating the meal. After a while I became hypnotised by the culinary ballet as the two chefs glide about with a look of intense concentration on their face, carefully placing a spoon of sauce here or a tiny sprig of dill there. Camilla and the rest of her team stayed in the enclosed kitchen behind where there was no doubt some more serious pan bashing going on.

Chefs at work in the open kitchen at Basement in Gothenburg, Sweden

We opted for the 4 course Seasonal Selection menu but if you were looking for a serious gourmet blow-out you could go for the 6 course version with additional courses of terrine of fois gras and a cheese course before the desert. Although the courses were small, we were full by the end and in fact there were a couple of extras – a ‘pre-starter’ and a ‘pre-desert’ as the restaurant apparently offers something a little extra on Fridays. We also opted for the wine tasting menu which is carefully chosen to accompany the food, with a different glass of wine for each course.

Our pre-starter was a few slivers of smoked salmon with a mustard mayonnaise sauce, a miniature wafer of rye bread and a small but delicious cup of frothy lobster soup. Guy was unimpressed by the tiny portion, forgetting that we hadn’t even started on the main menu;  ”I hope the next course is bigger than this or we’ll have to stop off for a cinnamon bun on the way home!”

The real starter was thinly sliced deer tongue that had been given the 16 hour slow cooked treatment with a sour cream sauce mixed with tiny balls of bleak roe that popped delightfully in my mouth. It made a very pretty picture layered with crunchy sweet miniature onions and  slices of yellow pickled beetroot topped with another crisp wafer of sourdough bread. The whole meal was explained to us in great detail by the charming waitress to the point that we thought she might tell us the name of the deer or point out the very slopes on which the grapes of our Austrian Kremstal Riesling wine had been grown.

Carpaccio of deer with sour cream and beet roe at Basement in Gothenburg, Sweden

Cured char with lemon sauce and linguine at Basement in Gothenburg, Sweden

The fish course that followed was cured char beside a neat coil of linguine which was covered over by the frothy lemon and cheese sauce, although I could taste more of the lemon than the cheese. The garnish was lemon tossed fennel and there was a pile of crispy fried shallots on the top, with the freshness of the lemon cutting through the fried garnish perfectly.  ”Almost as good as my lemon chicken at home” exclaimed Guy smacking his lips as we washed it down with the more full bodied Lorcher Kappellenberg Riesling from Germany. A few more glasses of this Reisling and we’d be in danger of falling in the canal on the way back to our hotel.

Between courses we took the opportunity to look around us at the restaurant which was now filling up. An elegant, casually dressed 30-something couple sat down beside us and then asked to be moved a moment later. We hoped that we hadn’t scared them away but were assured that they just wanted to sit beside rather than opposite each other in the more romantic softly-lit room towards the back. Most of the other diners were couples from 30s to 60s and looked as if they were there for a special meal together. On the other side of us were an older couple who looked on in amusement as I (discreetly, I hoped) whipped out my camera to take a picture of every course. We chatted to the sommelier Daniel who told us had practically grown up in his father’s restaurant, with his earliest memories from the age of 3 being the sight of potatoes baking in the oven.

Enjoying my meal at Basement in Gothenburg, Sweden

Our main course was the signature roasted meat dish that Camilla had promised me earlier – a cinnamon glazed, slow cooked neck of suckling pig served with a creamy and aromatic apple and celeriac puree. The meat was scattered with apple slices, small cubes of smoked pork and crispy fried green winter cabbage, with the seasonal apple flavours being used in different places within the dish. With the roast suckling pig we drank a light and fruity Pinot Noir from the Hahn winery in Monterrey, USA.

It seems that no Michelin star restaurant can resist a bit of drama with swirls of liquid nitrogen and ours arrived in the form of an extra pre-desert course. We were offered a marshmallow mouthful on a lolly stick – flavoured with Julmust, a traditional Scandinavian soft drink that looks a bit like coca cola and is only produced at Christmas. This was rolled in gingerbread crumbs and dipped in the liquid nitrogen to freeze it slightly, giving us a Christmas flavour Popsicle. Our waitress told us that the Swedish and Norwegians down the Julmust at Christmas parties if they’re driving and want something non-alcoholic. “It’s not sold in Denmark though”, she told us, joking that the Danes drink beer even if they’re driving! (You may gather that the Swedes were always being invaded by the Danes and have a bit of a love-hate relationship)

Slow cooked suckling pig celeriac & apple purée at Basement

Death by chocolate - layer cake with hazelnut icecream with nuts & violet

The real desert was Camilla’s version of Death by Chocolate, using the technique she had told me about of using the same ingredient in several different ways on the plate. The chocolate cake was made up of four different layers of chocolate brownie, truffle, mousse and jelly accompanied by hazelnut ice cream and mousse. The whole plate was scattered very prettily with dried raspberries, violet petals, pomegranate seeds and roasted pistachio nuts, making it more of fashion statement than a desert. On the top of the chocolate cake there was a sprinkling of sea salt, a typical Gothenburg touch that we had seen in the Gothenburg truffles at Cafe Kanold earlier that day.With the desert came a sweet red Italian wine – produced by Domini Veneti from the Veneto region.

Three hours later and we were feeling very mellow, having savoured every mouthful and enjoyed every drop of wine, just about making it back to our Hotel Elite Plaza without falling in the canal. The memory of our meal at Basement was of flavours in complete harmony and balance and the precision and care with which it was all created in the kitchen and served by waiting staff. We loved the informal atmosphere too and the unpretentious approach to food. Camilla Parkner got it right when she told us that the art of Basement is to take familiar flavours that you might eat for Sunday lunch at your Grandparents and then recreate them in a new, stylish, and totally delicious way.

You can listen to my interview with Camilla Parkner in my podcast about our visit to Gothenburg

Need to know about Basement

Restaurant Basement, Götabergsgatan 28, 411 34 Göteborg E-mail: bokning@restbasement.com

Basement is open in the evenings Tuesday to Saturday, closed on Sunday and Monday and at lunchtime.

Take a look at the Basement menus;  4 course set menu 675 sek, 6 course set menu 895 sek accompanied by a wine tasting menu 495 sek – these Seasonal Selection menus change fortnightly on a Friday. There is also a pre theatre menu which includes a glass of sparkling wine served 5.30-7.30 for 495 sek and the Wagner’s classic menu originally created by Ulf Wagner is 895sek. The Bar menu is served in the front room of the restaurant but you can’t reserve tables in advance – starters such as seafood toast with salad or terrine of fois gras on toast 115-169 sek, main courses such as fish of the day, slow cooked meat in red wine 179-249 sek and desert of the day 115 sek

(Currency Conversion; 1 sek Swedish Krona is currently aprox £0.09, $0.15 so the 4 course menu that we tried for 675 sek = £63, $99, 75 Euro)

You can read more about Head Chef, Camilla Parkner in this interview

Ready to try more Michelin star restaurants in Gothenburg?

The other Michelin star restaurants in Gothenburg are;

28+ (Just next door to Basement) Götabergsgatan 28, 411 34 Göteborg – the restaurant started as a cheese shop and cheese is still one of its specialities.

Kock & Vin Viktoriagatan 12 411 25 Gothenburg – Classic dining with Swedish ingredients and sometimes unexpected flavours. In the basement is a popular bistro and wine bar Bjorns Bar and they also own Familjen with a relaxed atmosphere and Swedish home cooking

Fond  Götaplatsen, 412 56 Göteborg – in a glass building by the Gothenburg Museum of Art, Swedish tradition with new flavours inspired by the Nordic landscape.

Thörnströms Kök Teknologgatan 3. 411 32 Göteborg - Modern Scandinavian and regional cooking

Visitor Information for Gothenburg or Göteborg

• The local tourism site Göteborg.com is full of information on the best things to see and do
• For information on West Sweden visit the West Sweden Tourism site or follow them on Twitter @WestSwedenTB or on their Facebook page and you will find their blog at ExploreWestSweden.com
• Another useful site for all things Gothenburg is I Love Göteborg
• If you plan to do a lot of sightseeing it’s worth getting the Gothenburg City Card which will allow you entrance to all the major attractions as well as public transport. Look out for the deals that some hotels offer that include a Gothenburg Card with the hotel booking.
• We stayed at the elegant 5 star hotel, Elite Plaza Hotel which is right in the centre of Gothenburg in the Inom Vallgraven district and walking distance from most things.
• We flew with SAS to Gothenburg from London Heathrow with 2 flights a day to Gothenburg’s Landvetter airport.
• To get a flavour of the West Coast of Sweden, you may enjoy the detective novels of Camilla Lackberg set in the coastal town of Fjällbacka and with references to Gothenburg
• During our visit to Gothenburg we used the conveniently sized Thomas Cook Gothenburg Pocket Guide which I can recommend.

www.flickr.com heatheronhertravels’ Sweden – Gothenburg photoset

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

Don’t miss out – subscribe to Heather on her travels

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There seems to be a trend in Europe for painting public buildings with light shows, so we were pleased to find that Gothenburg hosts a Julfilm or Christmas film projected onto the facade of the Museum of Art. We were in Gothenburg in West Sweden for a short break in December to get into the Christmas spirit and were hoping to enjoy a couple of free Christmas activities at either end of the main thoroughfare of Kongsportsavenyn or Avenyn – The Avenue for short.

The Avenue at Christmas in Gothenburg

On the facade of the Gothenburg Museum of Art or Konstmuseum a Christmas film is projected after dark throughout December and at the appointed time we walked down the Avenue with trees garlanded in blue lights and light-painted buildings. The snow that had covered the airport runway when our SAS flight touched down had melted away, giving way to rain and wind and we had to give up on our umbrellas as they kept being blown inside out. Guy managed to embarrassingly destroy two umbrellas this way that had been kindly lent to us by our Hotel Elite Plaza – oops!

I hope you enjoy the video below of the Christmas film at the Museum of Art in Gothenburg

If you can’t see the video above of the Gothenburg Christmas Film, please view it on my blog here

Christmas film in Gothenburg

As we reached the Museum of Art, crowd of people had gathered, sheltering sensibly under the overhanging roof of the building to one side to watch the film, while I bravely set up my camera and tripod right in front of the facade where I hoped to get a good view of the light show. We watched while Chinese dancers twirled, eighteenth century characters got off the tram to serenade us and aliens landed from the space ship – all in good Swedish fun.

I imagine that the two cartoon figures towards the end are politicians or public figures that are being poked fun at – perhaps you can enlighten me if you are from Gothenburg. If the film is a bit shaky in places it’s because the gusts of wind kept threatening to blow me over!

Christmas lights in Gothenburg

At the other end of the Avenue at Bältesspännarparken the winter wonderland of amusements was looking decidedly damp and the performance of the ‘Singing Christmas tree’ had been cancelled. I was rather disappointed, as I thought that this choir performing Christmas songs, dressed in green coats and red santa hats standing on a triangular stand (hence the Christmas tree name) sounded very jolly and just the thing to listen to while beating off the cold with a glass of steaming Glögg.

Visitor Information for Gothenburg or Göteborg

• The local tourism site Göteborg.com is full of information on the best things to see and do
• For information on West Sweden visit the West Sweden Tourism site or follow them on Twitter @WestSwedenTB or on their Facebook page and you will find their blog at ExploreWestSweden.com
• Another useful site for all things Gothenburg is I Love Göteborg
• If you plan to do a lot of sightseeing it’s worth getting the Gothenburg City Card which will allow you entrance to all the major attractions as well as public transport. Look out for the deals that some hotels offer that include a Gothenburg Card with the hotel booking.
• We stayed at the elegant 5 star hotel, Elite Plaza Hotel which is right in the centre of Gothenburg in the Inom Vallgraven district and walking distance from most things.
• We flew to Gothenburg from London Heathrow with Scandinavian Airlines, who have flights to Gothenburg daily from London into Gothenburg Landvetter airport.

www.flickr.com heatheronhertravels’ Sweden – Gothenburg photoset

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

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Think Munich and most European’s will quote their favourite beer (or rather bier) of the moment. This fun city – Germany’s largest – is renowned the world over for its hops-ridden hospitality over two and a half weeks every year. Indeed even on touchdown at Munich Airport you’ll find a year-round beer garden courtesy of Lufthansa (just in case, for a second you landed on Deutsch soil and forgot).

But of course there’s so, so, so much more to Munich than Oktoberfest. For a start there are the museums.

Museums in Munich

The new Zentrum Neue Technologien at The Deutsches Museum will appeal to nano and bio-tech lovers everywhere. There are fabulous flying bombs in the aviation room for a start. And for those who like to be more in control of their exhibits, the latest in touch screen demos.

Kids will love the Children’s World with more than 1001 toys and activities to keep them amused for more than their customary half an hour while transportation fans – especially flying buffs – will practically drool at the sight of the first-ever engine plane produced by the Wright brothers no less.

Aviation at the Deutsches Museum

Art and entertainment

Fancy some light entertainment? And we mean light. The acrobats and trapeze artists at the Variete-Theater on Maximilianstrasse use their surrounds as a vertical playground. It’s breathtaking, funny, fascinating and two hours 30 minutes well spent.

The artistic creations of 20^th and 21^st century masters such as Damien Hirst and Andy Warhol can be found in Munich’s Kunstareal.

Fairytale Castles and more

Stay in a real life fairytale castle with glittering spires and pretty turrets and which, thrillingly, once belonging to German Royalty. Indeed one of King Ludwig II’s castles – Neuschwanstein – was actually used to model the Disney version of Sleeping Beauty’s palace. There are more than 20,000 castles in Germany, most more than a century old.

Neuschwanstein Castle near Munich

For auto enthusiasts

For thrills galore head out onto the motorway or Autobahn. Yes, really. Reason is there’s NO SPEEDLIMIT. This seems strange for the European’s and American’s amongst us. But believe it, it’s true. You can go speeds of up to 300mph (and most BMW’s can) without fear of a flashing blue light descending on you.

While we’re on the subject of cars, BMW Welt (translates as ‘BMW World’) is quite simply stunning – for the design of the building alone, never mind the breathtaking exhibits. The massive 800 kilowatt solar roof panel on the huge hall gives the space a bit of an indoors/outdoors surreal experience. There’s all the latest in motor technology displayed within touching distance (indeed for most of them you can touch – even if furtively). Basically it’s a glimpse into automobile perfection.

BMW Welt in Munich

Of course you have to have money to be able to afford a BMW and Munich is indeed a city of affluence. The envious may even say smugness. But a lot of that is attributed to its football team – the world-class Bayern Munich. I don’t follow football and even I’ve heard of this modern-day Super Team which ruled world football in the mid-1970s after winning the European Cup three times in succession, thanks to former player and footballing legend Franz Beckenbauer.

Glockenspiels and Churches

Almost Grimms fairytale like is the Glockenspiel belonging to the Marienplatz in the Bavarian capital’s New Town Hall. Between March and October the little figures on this huge clock dance their way around their two storey clock theatre three times a day and are well worth a visit.

Close-up balcony view of the New Town Hall

The catholic Asamkirche – or St John Nepomuk Church – is second only in elaborate architecture (Baroque) to Rome’s Sistine Chapel, no less. No tourist is ever disappointed paying a visit to this spectacle of gilt, exquisite painting and opulence.

Macabre at Asamkirche in Munich

And then there’s the beer…

Ok, we can’t talk about Munich without mentioning beer at some point. One all-year-round attraction (and indeed there are many local regulars) is the Hofbrauhaus. This gorgeous, historical hostelry has been in existence from as far back as 1644!

Hofbrauhaus in Munich

It provides traditional German entertainment in the finest sense. At the Hofbrauhaus you can sip your beer, enjoying live music, while seated at a table which has played host to brewery visitors for more than a century. Not only that but you’re encouraged to carve your initials on the table!

The actual brewery and beer itself was founded by Wilhelm V Duke of Bavaria who didn’t like the stuff on offer at the time. Today’s brewery has a locked glass cabinet on display where locals store their own individual beer glasses (or Stein’s) ready to be used on their next visit.

This post is courtesy of Holiday Inn Meetings. Find the perfect conference rooms (Konferenzräume) in Munich with Holiday Inn Meetings – we’ve thought of every little thing.

More fun in Munich

The latest dirndl fashions in Munich
Visiting the Munich Christmas Markets – podcast
Empty splendour in the Residenz palace in Munich

Photo credits:  Deutsches Museum by Alf Igel, Neuschwanstin Castle by mwacker69, BMW Welt by To Uncertainty And Beyond, New Town Hall by Mr G’s Travels, Macabre at Asamkirche by theqspeaks, and Hofbrauhaus by cmozz

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

Don’t miss out – subscribe to Heather on her travels

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I wish a very Happy Christmas and holiday season to all readers of Heather on her travels and my friends around the blogsphere.

Merry Christmas - street art on Stokes Croft Bristol

I’ll be spending Christmas with my family and hope that you will also be enjoying a relaxing time with those you care for most.

Peace and love to all the peoples of the world and happy travels in 2012

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In Episode 20 in my travel podcast series I’m taking a winter break in Gothenburg on the West Coast of Sweden. We tasted our way through plenty of delicious food in between visiting Christmas markets and popping into the odd museum. We enjoyed our fika, the Swedish for coffee break, in several of the cosy cafes around town and tried the Gothenburg truffle topped with sea salt. We met Camilla Parkner, the head chef at Basement, one of the 5 Michelin star restaurants in the city and at restaurant Gabriel in the Fish market we learned how to get the best taste of oysters from the owner and oyster opening champion Johan Malm. And to prove that eating out in Sweden needn’t break the bank, we took a budget lunch at Sjöbaren – the Sea Bar in Haga and heard the drinking song that encourages you to knock back the snaps with a Swedish toast – Skol!

Link to audio file

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Reception at Hotel Elite Plaza hotel, Gothenburg, Sweden

Bedroom at Elite Plaza hotel, Gothenburg, Sweden

We flew with SAS to Gothenburg from Heathrow and arrived to find snow at the airport, although by the next day it had all melted. Over the long weekend we were staying at the Elite Plaza Hotel, a lovely 5 star hotel with an elegant, classical style, built in the 1880s as the headquarters of the Svea fire and life insurance company and converted in the 1990s into a hotel. Our bedroom was on the 5th floor, under the eves which allowed us a view over the copper topped roofs of Gothenburg towards the canal nearby.

We spent our first morning exploring some of the cafes and food venues in the Inom Vallgraven neighbourhood near our hotel. In the courtyard at Magasinsgatan we came across the Strömmingsluckan food cart which just opens for lunch to sell fried herring and mashed potato with lingonberry sauce – the owner Thomas told us that there are many of these food carts across East Sweden but not so many in West Sweden so they decided to open one in Gothenburg. In the same courtyard we found a small branch of the Da Matteo coffee shop  while across the courtyard is the bakery or Panetteria, where they make sourdough bread and where you can see the coffee being ground with huge bags on the floor in a separate room to one side.

Next we stopped close to the canal, at the elegant Café Kanold where we enjoyed a warming cup of hot chocolate topped with chili flakes to keep out the chilly wind and tasted a few of the Gothenburg truffles topped with sea salt, invented by Jeanna Kanold who has built up this old family business.

Strommingsluckan van selling fried herring and mashed potato in Gothenburg

Later that day I chatted with Camilla Parkner, the head chef at Basement, one of the 5 Michelin Star restaurants in the city and the only one that’s run by a woman; in fact she’s the only female head chef at a Michelin star restaurant in the whole of Sweden.

Camilla feels that the seafood is one reason why Gothenburg has such a great reputation for great food and also that the chefs here are down-to-earth and unpretentious in their approach to food – so they stick to what they know and love with really good results. Camilla describes the food at Basement as a little bit ‘rough’- but stylish-rough – meaning that they take the kind of food that you might eat for Sunday lunch at your grandparents but then give it a stylish twist. The restaurant is especially known for their slowly cooked roast meats. For the 10 years that the restaurant has been open there has always been a slowly cooked meat dish on the menu, which is cooked in the oven overnight at 85 degrees Celsius so that the meat gets very tender and is presented with a flavoured glaze.

The menu changes every 2 weeks and is based on whatever is in season, which is why they call it the Seasonal Selection. Camilla loves the changing seasons and tries to use the best from each season – she grows a lot of vegetables herself at home from March to November, which brings her inspiration and also her colleagues bring her ideas for the menu.

Camilla Parkner, Head Chef at Basement in Gothenburg

When asked whether being the only female head chef in a Swedish Michelin star restaurant should make her an inspiration for other female chefs, Camilla wasn’t so sure – she doesn’t really think of it as being a woman and a head chef – her focus is on just being a head chef – although maybe other women might look at her achievements and think – “Why Not?” – they could achieve this level too.

Camilla’s recommendation to visitors to Gothenburg would be to try the fish and the shellfish which she considers the best in the world. She may have eaten seafood all over the world but finds it doesn’t taste the same as here in Gothenburg – perhaps chefs in Sweden use more salt to cook their shellfish or it could be that the water is so much colder off the coast of West Sweden, giving the seafood a unique flavour. At Christmas Camilla will be serving seafood of course, with different kinds of herring and salmon and it will be washed down with Christmas beer and perhaps a snaps with the herring.

Bar area at Basement in Gothenburg, Sweden

Our starter at Basement in Gothenburg, Sweden

Later that evening at Basement we tried the 4 course tasting menu and were impressed by the attention to detail and the passion with which the combinations were put together. You can add on a couple more courses to make a 6 course tasting menu or if you just want some simple dishes there is a different menu available in the bar area where you can’t book in advance. We also tried the tasting wine menu which is carefully selected to complement to food in the tasting menu and changes each time a new food menu appears. Although it isn’t cheap at 675 sek (£62/$98) for the 4 course tasting menu and 895 sek for the 6 course plus 495 sek (£44/$71) for the wine menu, we felt it was good value if you are looking for a gastronomic experience, with complete harmony of food and wine. We enjoyed the slowly cooked meats for which Basement is known with neck of suckling pig and reindeer tongue marinaded in honey, with each course of food and wine being described in great detail to us as it was served.

Buns at Café Kringlan in Haga, Gothenburg, Sweden

The next morning we visited Kronhuset which is one of the oldest buildings in Gothenburg and was originally an artillery store, with the buildings arranged around a courtyard. In the Kronhuset or Crown House there was a Christmas Market with many different craft and charity stalls where we bought some Christmas decorations before coming into the Café Kronhuset to have a fika break with coffee and a cake. The atmosphere was very jolly and traditional with red tablecloths and a fire burning at one end.

Christmas market at Kronhuset in Gothenburg

At lunchtime we had ate at restaurant Gabriel in the Feskekörka fish market (literally the Fish Church) and had a chat with the owner, Johan Malm about the seafood in Gothenburg. We started with the famous Gothenburg oysters that had been caught the day before, accompanied by a glass of champagne and then we had a plate of different styles of marinaded herring followed by some fish soup, washed down with the local Ocean lager and snaps with the herring.

After lunch I learned from Johan that the seafood is a long tradition in Gothenburg – there’s water all around and fish has always been a major part of the diet in West Sweden. The water is highly salted and very cold here and in winter it’s dark most of the time so the fish grow slowly in deep, cold water and that makes them very fresh and tasty.

At Gabriel they serve mainly locally caught fish and shellfish and anything that is in the fish market can be served in the restaurant. There is a menu but it is just a guide for what you could eat and if you find something in the fish market that you’d like to try that’s not a problem. They serve oysters, mussels, herring and the fish served changes with the season depending on when the fish are at their best. The month of December when we were there is the perfect time for oysters before it gets too cold.

With Johan the owner & oyster opening champion at Gabriel Feskekorka, Gothenburg

Johan was the oyster opening champion in the Galway championships in 2010 and he told me how he came to be competing there. In Gothenburg they had a contest between all the different restaurants that serve oysters, to promote the fish restaurants in Gothenburg and Johan won that competition which qualified him for the Swedish championships where he came second enabling him to go to Ireland to attend the Galway contest. He had such fun over the 3 days that he decided to keep going back until he could become the world champion which happened in 2010. At the contest in Galway each contestant opens 30 oysters per heat although in the Nordic championships they would open three times that so their hands are pretty sore at the end of the contest.

Johan prefers to serve the oysters very cold and fresh (the ones he served us were hand caught the day before) and as natural as possible with just a splash of lemon. You can cook them as they do in the US and serve them with Tabasco, but Johan’s preference is to taste the natural flavours. His recommendation is that you must chew the oyster and not just swallow it down if you want to get the full taste and flavour.

Oysters at Gabriel in Feskekorka Fish Market

Feskekorka Fish Market in Gothenburg, Sweden

After our meal at Gabriel we hopped on an old fashioned wooden tram to take us to the entrance at Liseburg, the biggest amusement park in Sweden which at Christmas becomes the biggest Christmas market. We used our Gothenburg city card to get into Liseburg and found the whole park lit up with lights covering every branch of every tree (50 million of them and counting). There were lots of stalls and rides and we just caught the end of the ice show. As it was the end of the day we were rather tired and the park was very crowded so we didn’t stay too long and took the tram back to Haga where there are cafes and shops and cobbled streets – but at 6pm on a Saturday night it was dead with hardly anyone there – they were all at Liseburg instead!

Liseburg in Gothenburg, Sweden

On our first day we had tried the good value lunchtime menu at the cosy restaurant, Sjobaren (The Sea Bar) in Haga which is typically served in many local restaurants for office workers. This normally comprises a choice of salad which you help yourself to from the bar, bread and a main dish which is served with water and coffee. It’ a good way to try different local dishes if you’re on a budget, as for £8-10 you can get a hot lunch with salad.

We also learned about the Swedish customs around snaps – a spirit that’s drunk during all the main Swedish holidays at Easter, Christmas or in the summer at the crayfish parties – it works especially well with herring to cut through the slightly oily taste. You can sip it or drink it down and there are many snaps drinking songs that encourage you to knock it back with the Swedish toast of Skol!

Christmas marching band in Haga, Gothenburg

Cafe Kringlan in Haga, Gothenburg, Sweden

On our last morning we returned to Haga, the old working class district of Gothenburg with pretty houses and narrow cobbled streets where there are many interesting shops and cosy cafes that are the ideal place to have a fika – the Swedish for coffee break. This is where you might meet with friends for a coffee and a chat and perhaps eat one of the enormous cinnamon buns or the saffron buns that are served at Christmas. We found a space in Cafe Kringlan on the main street of Haga, where we tried a huge cinnamon bun and found a Christmas market of stalls selling interesting food with choirs singing and a marching band parading along the main street of Haga Nygata.

Jeanna Kanold at the Kanold shop in Gothenburg

Cafe Kanold in Gothenburg, Sweden

On the way to get the tram back to the airport I popped into the Kanold chocolate shop in Viktoriapassagen to buy some Gothenburg truffles as a gift and met by chance Jeanna Kanold who was serving in the shop that morning. Her family own the Kanold business and she is known in Gothenburg as the inventor of the Gothenburg truffle which is topped with sea salt and I asked her what was the inspiration for making the Gothenburg Truffle?  Jeanna told me she was going to a competition in Stockholm and she was trying to come up with a chocolate flavour that would epitomise Gothenburg and the West Coast of Sweden, perhaps some combination that included seafood which is so spectacular here. After a while the combinations of seafood weren’t tasting so good and then she realised that she could use sea salt to represent the sea and the seafood of Gothenburg. Now she’s started a trend for chocolate with salt and she told me that it’s particularly good to try with champagne.

After eating our way through some fantastic food, enjoying the atmosphere of the Christmas markets and seeing some of the sites of Gothenburg we’d highly recommend the city for a short break or for a longer visit to see something of the beautiful coast of West Sweden.

Places mentioned in the Podcast

Elite Plaza Hotel in Gothenburg – An elegant and stylish 5 star hotel housed in a 19th century building that was once the headquarters of a Swedish insurance company. Address; Västra Hamngatan 3 404 22 Göteborg

Strömmingsluckan – A food stand selling traditional fried herring with mashed potato and lingonberry sauce – only open at lunchtime on weekdays. Address: Magasinsgaten 17, 411 18 Göteborg

Da Matteo – recommended for excellent coffee with two branches in the Magasingaten courtyard, one of which is a Panneteria where they make sourdough bread and I’ve heard they do excellent pizzas. There is another small branch in Viktoriapassagen.

Kanold Chocolates – An old family business making chocolates and known for their Gothenburg Truffle topped with sea salt invented by Jeanna Kanold. They have a café on Grönsakstorget where you can buy some of the chocolates and a larger branch just for chocolates and hand-made candy nearby at Södra Larmgatan 14 (beside Viktoriapassagen) as well as a workshop in the Saluhallen food-hall. These are all very close to one another near the canal in the Inom Vallgraven neighbourhood.

Basement – One of 5 Michelin Star restaurants in Gothenburg and the only one with a female head chef, Camilla Parkner. The restaurant is open in the evenings serving a seasonal tasting menu and if you want something simpler you can sit in the cosy bar area which is not bookable in advance. Address; Götabergsgatan 28, 411 34 Göteborg

Gabriel – One of the two seafood restaurants in the Feskekörka fish market and is co-owned by Johan Malm with his father. He was the oyster opening champion in the international Galway championships in 2010. Check out their Facebook Page. Address; Feskekörka 411 20 Göteborg

Sjobaren- The Sea Bar situated on the main street at Haga which served excellent fish and seafood with good value lunch dishes. They also have a second restaurant at Lorensberg Address; Haga Nygata 25, 413 01 Göteborg

Liseburg – The biggest amusement park and Christmas market in Sweden with many rides and attractions for all ages – ideal for families.

Visitor Information for Gothenburg or Göteborg

• The local tourism site Göteborg.com is full of information on the best things to see and do
• For information on West Sweden visit the West Sweden Tourism site or follow them on Twitter @WestSwedenTB or on their Facebook page and you will find their blog at ExploreWestSweden.com
• Another useful site for all things Gothenburg is I Love Göteborg
• If you plan to do a lot of sightseeing it’s worth getting the Gothenburg City Card which will allow you entrance to all the major attractions as well as public transport. Look out for the deals that some hotels offer that include a Gothenburg Card with the hotel booking.
• We stayed at the elegant 5 star hotel, Elite Plaza Hotel which is right in the centre of Gothenburg in the Inom Vallgraven district and walking distance from most things.
• We flew to Gothenburg from London Heathrow with Scandanavian airlines, who have 2 flights a day to Gothenburg from London.

Music Credits: The entry music on the podcast is Venus as a girl by Andy McGee on Musicalley.com and other music was recorded on location in Gothenburg

www.flickr.com heatheronhertravels’ Sweden – Gothenburg photoset

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

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If you’re looking for a holiday in the sun in Cabo San Lucas, this guest article will give you ideas on the beach and accommodation options you’ll find in this popular Mexican Resort.

Medano Beach in Cabo San Lucas

On Medano Beach, lazy waves quietly roll onto the shore, washing over the feet of children trying to build a sand castle. Parents relax nearby, keeping a watchful eye on their children while enjoying the sight of boats sailing past one of Mexico’s most comfortable and friendly beaches. Just to complete the holiday experience, vendors pass by offering anything from temporary tattoos and jewelry to snacks and beach supplies to anyone who needs them. Restaurants and beach clubs like Billygan’s Island and The Office are popular with people passing by and looking for refreshments.

Medano beach in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

Whether you’re looking to relax in the sun, head out onto the water, or just settle down and watch people pass by, Medano Beach in Cabo San Lucas will probably meet your every need. It even has boats, jet skis, and other equipment available from shacks out on the water and luxury vacation rentals. Medano Beach is a bit of a nonstop party, but if that’s not what you’re looking for then try…

Lover’s Beach and Divorce beach

Lover’s Beach and Divorce Beach are more serene locations that can be accessed by Water Taxi (or similar transportation), and they’re located a little further away from the main entertainment areas in downtown Cabo. For a very reasonable fee, it’s easy to hire somebody who will take you out to the area, as well as show you which areas are safe for swimming and diving; you might even be able to do it yourself if you have access to rental equipment and know where to go.

Lover's beach in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

Once you’ve had your fill of excitement, Cabo San Lucas villas, hotels, and resorts are all options for sleeping after a day out having fun, but not all bedrooms were created equal. A traditional hotel is probably your best bet if all you really want to do is swim, relax on the beach, and perhaps go shopping in downtown Cabo; it’s inexpensive and will get the job done.

Casa Theodore, a luxury villa in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

Accommodation options in Cabo San Lucas

However, with everything from jet skis and kayaks to golf courses by designer Jack Nicklaus available in the region, you’ll probably end up missing out on a lot of things to do if the sun is all you’re looking for. If you’re going all the way to Cabo for a trip, you may as well do it right. The most effective way to get access to things in Cabo is to stay at a resort; places like Palmilla Resort offer fine dining, access to spas and recreation, effective concierge services, and other features that can help you get the best deals on activities in the region. The initial price tag may be higher than a hotel, but if you plan properly, you might end up saving a lot of money you might otherwise have spend on activities not connected to a resort. You should compare services, though, since different resorts offer different things.

From shopping to surfing and everything in-between, there’s no place in Mexico like Cabo San Lucas for a truly tropical vacation.

My thanks for this sponsored article to Lacure Villas who offer holiday villas in Cabo San Lucas and many other worldwide destinations.

More holidays in the sun

Diving and party time – a budget getaway in Cancun, Mexico
Swimming, Surfing and Snorkeling – best beaches in the Dominican Republic
Our top 5 sights on Awesome Aruba

Photo Credits: Medano Beach by Price Travel, Lover’s Beach by Minnemom,

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

 Don’t miss out – subscribe to Heather on her travels

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One of the delights of visiting the Royal Shakespeare Theatre at Stratford-upon-Avon is that even if you’re not seeing a play, there’s always some free exhibition to enjoy as you explore the theatre building. As I was meeting a friends for lunch at the Arden Hotel, just opposite the theatre, we popped over to look at the Thirteen exhibition of photographic images by George Chakravarthi.

Lady Macbeth from the Thirteen exhibition at the RSC in Stratford-upon-Avon

The premise of this artistic project is to capture the spirit of the thirteen unfortunate Shakespearean characters who committed suicide in his plays, for love, passion, honour or pride. The artist, George Chakravarthi takes the part of every character both male and female, dressing up in costume and the resulting photographs are overlaid with other images of texture and colour.

Cleopatra from the Thirteen exhibition at the RSC in Stratford-upon-Avon

The free exhibition is in the Swan room of the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, which you can enter through the Victorian entrance opposite the Arden Hotel and up the stairs immediately to the right. The room is in darkness, with each of the large images displayed backlit with striking effect.

We found the images rich and thought provoking – and even more interesting when you watch the video in which the artist George Chakravarthi explains his thought process for creating each character – watch the video here on Youtube.

Visitor Information

The Thirteen exhibition by George Chakravarthi is in the Swan Room at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre at Stratford-upon-Avon until 29 April 2012. Find more information about this and other exhibitions on the RSC website.

More things to enjoy in Stratford-upon-Avon

Afternoon tea at the Arden with Romeo and Juliet
Season and Wild – at the Waterside Brasserie, Arden Hotel in Stratford-upon-Avon
The Tower and other transformations – at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon

www.flickr.com heatheronhertravels’ Stratford-upon-Avon photoset

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

 Don’t miss out – subscribe to Heather on her travels

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I think it’s natural to forget about the beautiful world we live in. With all the amazing wonders of modern day technology, who cares how green the grass is, or how tall our trees stand or the colors of the birds that fly above or the wonders of the sea creatures that swim in the oceans. But one of the things about Oahu is not just the great many Oahu hotels that are in close proximity to the city center, but the amazing places you can visit, both natural and man-made, that will inspire even the cynics of this world. Take a trip to my three favorite Hawaiian look out points and I promise you, you’ll be inspired by the beauty and serenity of this world.

Diamond Head's View of Honolulu

Waikiki’s Most Beautiful Gem: Diamond Head

As the single most recognizable attraction in all of Oahu, Diamond Head is the perfect place for you capture a post-card worthy photo. Defining the island skyline for over 200,000 years, this 762 foot tall extinct volcano beckons to hundreds of thousands of travelers every year. And the best view of the island is offered atop the summit of this unique beauty, lending you a panoramic picturesque view of the island not available anywhere else. But please beware, the hike to the top is not an easy one by any means, so make sure you’re prepared with plenty of water, comfortable walking shoes and sun protection.

Remember, Remember This Day in December: Pearl Harbor Memorial

Not necessarily a “look-out” point in the traditional sense of the word, but an eye opening experience nonetheless. As the only naval base in the US designated as a National Historical Landmark, a tour of Pearl Harbor gives visitors the opportunity to visit the USS Arizona Memorial to learn about the historic attack and pay respects to the brave soldiers who lost their lives on December 7, 1941. Nothing will prepare you for the somber mood aboard the boat shuttle that will take you to the final resting place for many of the ship’s crew but at the same time, nothing will be more inspiring than to see the shrine built to commemorate the lives of these brave soldiers.

USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu

Under the Sea is Where You’ll Want to Be: Snorkeling at Hanauma Bay

If you think you’ve seen everything there is to see on land, you should consider taking your next adventure under the sea. Find yourself inspired when you witness first-hand the colorful corals that populate the ocean floor, watch the bright yellow tang swimming beside rainbow runners, and see and swim along with the state fish of Hawaii: the humuhumunukunukuapuaa.

Humuhumunukunuku fish

Hanauma Bay is known for their clear waters with a rich marine life that is the perfect place for beginner snorkelers. If you want something a little more advanced, Oahu has plenty of other beaches that have calm and clear waters for you to explore as well. But I can guarantee that the vivid colors you’ll see here will be unlike anything you’ve ever seen before.

A hike to Diamond Head, a day of remembrance at Pearl Harbor and an underwater adventure at Hanauma Bay are all beautiful ways you can explore the beautiful island of Oahu. I hope that with these three adventures, you’ll be inspired to seek out the other beauties of Hawaii, since there are just so many of them. Picking only three was a difficult task, but I hope that reading my short list will inspire a hundred other adventures. So go forth my friends and find other exciting Hawaiian adventures! Mahalo and aloha.

My thanks for this sponsored post to Aqua Resorts – for boutique and budget-friendly hotels and resorts in Waikiki, Oahu and Hononlulu

Photo credits: Diamond Head by RaSchi, Pearl Harbor Memorial by wallyg, Humuhumunukunuku apua’a by pQbon

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

You’ll also find our sister blog with tips on how to build a successful travel blog at My Blogging Journey

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