Reset search
Tim Lynette WilkinsTim Lynette Wilkins
Edit route
Tim Lynette Wilkins

Tim Lynette Wilkins

traveled in 11 countries Read more
FollowMessageStatistics
    • Tim Lynette WilkinsTravelerJerez 2024

      Orange blossom time

      February 26, 2024 in Spain ⋅ 🌬 14 °C

      The last time we walked to the market we noticed that the orange trees that line all the streets are starting to have blossom out - next years marmalade! And the streets should soon be full of the scent of orange blossom.

      However we had torrential rain and gales overnight so i dont know whether the blossom will have survived.      Read more

    • Tim Lynette WilkinsTravelerJerez 2024

      Great things about Jerez

      February 25, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

      We had a quiet day yesterday after the indulgence of the night before but no-one else did. Jerez is now in full swing practicing for the Semana Santa processions. Several churches had their troops out carring the floats burdened with concrete blocks instead of the statues they will carry. There were also a couple of brass bands marching through the streets and playing in the plazas.

      There are also many tourists here now that come for the flamenco festival that started this week. This evening we went to a couple of our favourite tabancos - El Pasaje to see the flamenco show ( which was really good) and San Pedro, just round the corner from us, which specialises in hard to find sherries and simple tasty tapas. It is run by two old ladies who speak no English but we manage to get by.

      Football here is usually played on a Sunday, so today I took the bus down to the southern edge of the city to see my second team here play, Jerez industrial. A 2-1 win puts them firmly in the play-off places.      Read more

    • Tim Lynette WilkinsTravelerJerez 2024
      Moonset over Jerez
      RestaurantFloat practice

      La Carbona

      February 24, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 13 °C

      Last night we treated ourselves to what we think is the best restaurant in the city, at least the best we know of. It has a sherry pairing menu of 7 courses, each one with a glass of sherry designed to match with the food. It was as good as we remember, so pretty wonderful!

      On the way home afterwards we came across a group of men practising carrying one of the floats for Easter . Each church has a huge statue of its Saint, or the virgin mary, normally in solid silver and incredibly heavy. These are paraded around the streets at Easter, but they need 40 or 50 people to carry them, so they need lots of practice getting them through the narrows streets and around the tight corners. They practice mostly at night when there's less traffic.      Read more

    • Tim Lynette WilkinsTravelerJerez 2024
      Bodega barbadillo
      Inside the bodegaIn la cigarrera bodegaCastle in sanlucar

      Bodega Barbadillo

      February 20, 2024 in Spain ⋅ 🌙 19 °C

      For breakfast we went to the small cafe next door to our hotel. Its a place I really enjoy. Its full of locals at breakfast time, they serve a basic anducian breakfast of toast with olive oil and pureed chopped tomatoes , and an orange juice or coffee. We cheat and have butter and jam on our toast.

      We booked a visit and tasting at Bodega barbardillo, probably the biggest and most commercial bodega in Sanlucar. It was the worst visit we've had - it didn't really feel like the guide was interested and explained every thing badly. Then they gave us just three wines -a glass of white wine, which was pleasant enough, but hardly unusual, then a fine manzanilla aged in the solera for 9 years which was very good , but at 28 euros a bottle. Then finally a cream, and we don't go for sweet sherries so much. All very disappointing .

      Lunch was at different bodega that we've been to before, la cigarrera, small and very friendly with a restaurant in an interior courtyard in the sun, and with great food, and great manzanilla.

      Then back on the bus to jerez,
      .      Read more

    • Tim Lynette WilkinsTravelerJerez 2024

      Sanlucar de barrameda

      February 19, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

      Sanlucar de barrameda is one of the points of the "sherry triangle", along with jerez, and el puerto de santa Maria. Its on the mouth of the quadalquivir river and is famous for its manzanilla sherry, which is said to taste of a tang of the sea from the ocean winds. It is also famous for it's seafood, especially prawns. We have a booked a tasting tomorrow at bodega barbardillo, which we haven't been to before, and spent lunchtime today in the sun in one of the restaurants in the town square. All very yum!

      Then for dinner to a restaurant renowned for its seafood, and had phenomenal lagustines - just wow!

      The 45 minute bus journey from jerez to sanlucar, like all the public transport here, was on time and efficient, and is remarkable value at just 2 euros each!      Read more

    • Tim Lynette WilkinsTravelerJerez 2024

      Fundador

      February 17, 2024 in Spain ⋅ 🌙 16 °C

      For lunch today we booked a table at the Taperia de Fundador, the bodega that includes Harvey, Garvey, and Terry. Its restaurant is somewhere we've been before and is very good. We were not disappointed, its still really good, and strangely cheap. The wines of course were excellent, and for a special treat they had pimientos padron, which are normally everywhere but which we haven't seen anywhere this trip. Andy in the tapas restaurant in wendover (tres corazones) says that the harvest this year for these peppers has been really bad, and the prices have gone through the roof.

      We discovered that a fino dry sherry that we really like is garvey san patricio sherry, and to buy from the bodega it's just, only, really (!) 5 euros a bottle! We bought one. (Suprised?)      Read more

    • Tim Lynette WilkinsTravelerJerez 2024

      Cadiz

      February 16, 2024 in Spain ⋅ 🌙 16 °C

      There is a new archaeological site in Cadiz that we wanted to go to so we got up early (!) And got the train into Cadiz. The site is the phoenician port dating from the 3rd century BC, that was discovered when they were extending the basement of a flamenco bar, and with later roman and visigoth additions. The port was a dry dock for military ships, and the design was copied by the Romans all over the empire. It was interesting, but very small. Afterwards we took Pete to see the roman theatre, the causeway walk out to the Fort, and around the wonderful market.

      It's carnival week in cadiz , and the streets were full of people in fancy dress or outrageous clothes, and there was something on at the cathedral for all the kids.

      We had lunch in a restaurant we've been to before where the food is excellent, then walked back to the train station to go home.      Read more

    • Tim Lynette WilkinsTravelerJerez 2024

      Hake for dinner

      February 14, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

      Down to the market square this morning for churros and chocolate in the sunshine, followed by a cruise through the fish market to pick up something for dinner. We chose a nice big hake, that i can bake (new oven!) With garlic, parsley and fino.

      Excellent ! I don't know why hake isn't popular at home- the Spanish, like me, love it, and mostly it seems to come from cornish waters.      Read more

    • Tim Lynette WilkinsTravelerJerez 2024

      End of the rain?

      February 13, 2024 in Spain ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

      The rain continued yesterday up until lunchtime when we went to the airport to meet Pete. Having left Zurich at 7.00am he was pretty exhausted so we ate in last night - a selection of tapas including prawns and chistorra.

      This morning remained cloudy but not raining!. Pete went for a wander accompanied only by a map and managed to find his way home. Still cloudy but warm so we had lunch outside at Gabriela's, eating too much. By the time we got home the sun was shining and we spent the afternoon on the roof terrace. Could this be the start of a spell of good weather? Fingers crossed.      Read more

    • Tim Lynette WilkinsTravelerJerez 2024

      Sunday again, rain again!

      February 11, 2024 in Spain ⋅ 🌧 17 °C

      I had thought I may go to watch jerez's non-league team play, Jerez industrial, but the stadium is way over on the other side of the city, its uncovered, and its been raining all day again, so I'm staying in! Yesterday we went to the fish market, which is incredible and full of all kinds of fish we never get at home, so today we're cooking white prawns from huelva, and the big clams that finlay loves ( sorry finlay!)

      This morning I went to the cathedral with lynette., she went to mass, but I just wanted to remind myself what it looked like. They also have two paintings that i would like to see, a madona and child by murillo and the other by zurbaran of the young Mary sleeping. (Both local artists from andulcia). Sadly they are both in the vestry and this is closed to the public during mass so I didn't get to see them. They have a poster showing the zurbaran outside, so I had to make do with that.

      The biggest excitement of yesterday was the arrival of an oven! The one disappointment of this apartment was that it had no oven just a hob. We mentioned this to Javier, the owner, when we arrived and he said he would get one. Lo and behold he brought an IKEA oven and installed it so today we are roasting vegetables to go with the seafood. He really is a good host.

      So tonight's dinner is white prawns, clams, roasted peppers, aubergines and garlic, and papas alinadas - potatoes in olive oil and sherry vinegar .      Read more

    Get your own travel profile

    Free

    QR code

    FindPenguins for iOSFindPenguins for Android

    • 2025© FindPenguins
    • Home
    • About us
    • Group Tracking
    • Press
    • Terms
    • Privacy Policy & Cookies
    • Help Center
    • Legal notice