Blogosur Award

1-TDS award
Best individual Twitter account about Gastronomy in Sevilla

So this is it… my first ever award! I tell you, nobody was more surprised than me when I found out I had been nominated for this (by whom??). And then I won! Well, that really blew me away. This is so meaningful to me for many reasons, not least of which is that I was the only non-Spanish person to win (and possibly to be nominated). As most of you know, my Sevilla Tapas blog (which is now more of a listing or guide than a blog) began by accident about six years ago. Then I started with the @SevillaTapas Twitter account in 2009 and since then what began as a hobby eventually evolved into me doing the Sevilla Tapas Tours, and of course, becoming the Queen of Tapas. 😉 But seriously, being recognised like this by my adopted city and True Home in this world really means a lot to me. I am thrilled to pieces.

This year the 3rd @Blogosur Gala (#3GalaBlogosur) took place at the splendiferously elegant Lope de Vega Theatre. Journalists, designers, entrepreneurs, politicians, and of course bloggers and social network enthusiasts, gathered there on Monday for the event. I wasn’t able to attend because – natch! – I had a tapas tour booked that evening. And so my friend @SarayPineda who works for the Sevilla Tourism Board @CiudadSevilla and specialises in promoting gastronomy as a tourist attraction, very kindly agreed to go to the gala in my place. Which really was a blessing because although I was so happy to be nominated and would have loved to be at the Gala, I probably would have had a nervous breakdown having to go up on stage and look out over a full theatre of people looking back at me. Eep! Much better to have a poised and articulate person up there representing me! And one who shares the same goals.

The categories for best Blogs and Twitter accounts were: News, Fiestas, Culture, Technology, Personal, Fashion, Sport and Gastronomy (that last one was just added this year!). For a list of all the winners have a look at the Blogosur Blog.

Many thanks to everyone at the Blogosur Group and Twitteros de Sevilla – and Saray! – and also to D.O. Estepa for the lovely prize. And of course my heartfelt thanks to all the wonderful tapas bars and restaurants that have made me feel so welcome over the years and have allowed me to become a part of their world. Together we are showing the rest of the world that the gastronomy of Sevilla is not only diverse and delicious but is even a reason in itself for visiting this beautiful city.

Below is the prize that came with my award. I’m not sure whether to sprinkle it over my salad or dab it behind my ears. Isn’t it fab?  🙂

olive oil perfume

Extra Virgin Olive Oil from D.O. Estepa @doestepa

The Reluctant Feriante

more ferias

Since going to the Feria de Córdoba last year I seem to be turning into a bit of a feriante. Which is particularly odd as I don’t much like the massively famous (and massive) Feria de Abril here in Sevilla, though this year I ended up going twice – haven’t done that in years. I also haven’t been to the fabulous Feria del Caballo in Jerez for years – five to be exact – so I have booked off a couple of days next month to do that, in case I feel like staying overnight. And then I was told about the Feria de Primavera y Fiesta del Vino Fino in Puerto de Santa Maria, which started yesterday. So I think I’ll be popping over there on Sunday. But I’ll probably miss the Córdoba Feria this year as I want to go to the Patio Festival there, which finishes the week before. Ah well, can’t be everywhere. I have to say that I really prefer these much friendlier ferias with their casetas open to the public. And I like how the Feria in Málaga also takes to the streets and spills over to the centre of the city, though I haven’t actually been to the fairground there.  Maybe this summer. How many ferias have you been to in Spain?

Horse of the Day

horse of the day[click on image to enlarge]

Every Feria there is one horse that I fall in love with. This guy was actually way more magnificent than I was able to capture here – the ALL BLACK thing kind of works against catching all the gorgeous details. But he was gorgeous.

The other horse of the day that I missed taking a pic of was an amazing creamy white albino with a stunningly beautiful woman riding him – they went by in a flash and I looked everywhere to try and find them again to no avail. Now looking forward to seeing the spectacular horses at the Feria del Caballo in Jerez…

Northern Spain Adventure

northern spain

Last year around this time I started thinking about taking a trip along the northern coast of Spain to celebrate my 20th anniversary of living here, but various ‘life things’ came up and I had to put this dream on hold. This year I have decided to start planning this trip again in earnest and, if all goes well, I should be able to travel anytime during July or August.

I’ll fly from Sevilla to Santiago de Compostela and (so far) the plan is to go from there to A Coruña, Olviedo, Santander, Bilbao and San Sebastián. Then I’ll have to backtrack to Bilbao to fly home. I’ll most likely be travelling on my own by public transport and I hope to meet up with friends along the way.

So if you have any advice or suggestions about places to go, things to do, where to stay, etc. please let me know. Am happy to add places to my itinerary. And if you are going to be around any of these places this summer let’s meet up!