Ashman's Travel

A few pictures from previous holidays. Clockwise from l-r

World cup game in 2018, Kaliningrad, Russia

Overlooking the town of Nazaré, Portugal 2022

Church of the Saviour on Spilled Blood, St Petersburg, Russia, 2018

Jericoacoara beach, Brazil 2014

Kayaking off Cavtat Bay, Croatia 2022

Alongside this blog, I'll be adding the majority of the photo's onto my Facebook page which you can find here https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100092501345715&mibextid=ZbWKwL

Belfast Easter 2023

So after a ridiculously early start (alarm at 3:30) and bus to Bristol airport, flight set off a few minutes late but landed just about on time (08:05) at Belfast International in beautiful spring sunshine. Straight through the airport, turn left outside the main doors and onto the Airport Express 300 bus into the city, £8 one way £12:50 return.

Got to be honest, had no idea where I was getting off but jumped off at Donegal St in the Cathedral Quarter and walked towards my hotel, Premier Inn in the Titanic Quarter. Was only putting bag in storage as check in was wasn't until 3pm. 

Had a brilliant couple of hours around the hotel mainly inside the Titanic museum.

Some pictures around the Titanic museum. Will keep the inside of the museum for you to discover!

I managed to get checked in early and then used this cracking site https://www.gpsmycity.com/ to plan my afternoon. It lets you add the attractions you want to see then creates a walking route for you. This was my itinerary for the afternoon, with a few 'refreshment' stops along the way naturally.

Pics l-r

Albert Memorial Clock, Pint in The Crown Liquor Saloon looking at Europe Hotel (worlds most bombed hotel), Grand Opera House and Belfast Cathedral.

After a wonderful afternoon and early evening wandering the streets of this wonderful city it was food time. Quick search for a good steak restaurant and stumbled upon Alba Scottish Steakhouse. Can't lie, was a bit disappointed. Had to send first back as way over done, first choice of dessert not available either. The food I eventually did have was good and the staff were excellent at dealing with the issues I had. Free glass of wine and discount.

Not going to crucify the place, had it not been Easter weekend I'm sure it could have been much better.

After a hectic first day it was time for sleep...

After a decent nights sleep was breakfast time. There's not a lot on offer around the Titanic Quarter so after a quick look on google maps, opted for https://established.coffee/

Ended up being a good choice. A very nice poached eggs on toast with a lemongrass tea hit the spot after the previous nights indulgences.

Most of the second day was pretty much the reason I headed to Belfast in the first place. I'm a huge Game of Thrones fan and the Studio Tour is about 25 miles outside the City. For that reason I booked the tour and transport through https://www.tiqets.com/en/ 

Pick up was at 09:30 in front of Visit Belfast. 40 mins later we arrived at the Linen Mills Studio just outside Banbridge. If you've been to the Harry Potter studios, expect the same but all things GoT! I absolutely loved it. 

My only gripe would be the time of the return bus which was 14:15. As a single person, I got through the tour pretty quickly but did notice couples and families finishing around midday. The cynic in me thinks it's to get you to spend money in their overpriced cafes! I noticed there was a free shuttle bus every 20 mins that can take you you a retail park 10 minutes away so I had a walk around there before heading back. Lots of outlet stores so bargains available if you want. Check out the website here https://the-boulevard.co.uk/

On the journey back I bought a ticket for the Belfast Giants Ice Hockey match that was on that night at the SSE Arena (next to hotel.) I'd been to a couple of matches before and didn't massively enjoy but thought at £15 it was a bargain so was hoping for third time lucky. 

It wasn't. I'm not sure why but I just don't enjoy Ice Hockey. Left with the final third still to be played. The atmosphere has been good at all three games I've been to but the game itself is a let down for me! After another long day it was shop, bottle of red and hotel.

'The' Throne, the Night King and SSE Arena.

Final day was a walking day again. The troubles of this country are well known and I wanted to have a look around the worst affected areas. So after fuelling up on a buffet breakfast at https://www.barandblock.co.uk/en-gb/locations/belfast?cid=GLBC_40538460 I set offon my tour once again using the fantastic gpsmycity site.

Not going to lie, it's quite a sombre and emotional tour. Reading how innocent people, including children died during the conflict isn't the nicest way to spend a sunday morning but it was a good morning nonetheless. The stark difference from seeing the N Ireland and Union flags on Shankhill Road to seeing Republic flags draped from the windows along Falls Road was remarkable. 

These were the sites I visited.

Shankhill Road Memorial Garden, one of many murals along both Shankhill Road and Falls Road, A message on The Peace Wall and finally the Bobby Sands mural.

All in all I really enjoyed Belfast. The Game of Thrones tour lived up to expectations as did the city itself. Great atmosphere, some fantastic beers and most importantly plenty to keep you busy.

Bratislava, Vienna and Tallin April/May 2023

Bratislava.

It's not often I'm away more than 3 or 4 days at a time but due to two consecutive bank holiday mondays I thought I'd exploit the days off with a three city break.

There were no direct flight from Bristol so after looking at London flights and working out it was more cost and time efficient flying from Bristol I set off at 4:30 am on a Saturday morning. 

Departure was delayed due to fog at Bristol, but luckily I made the connection at Dublin with about 30mins until the gate closed. Always try and give a fair few hours between flights if you can, doesn't take much to make it all go wrong before the holiday even starts.

The flight to Bratislava went with no hitches and I touched down 16:40 their time. Through passport control with no delays and headed for the Airport-City bus 61. You need to buy a ticket from the machine before boarding. You turn right when exiting the airport and keep going until under the sheltered bit. Click on the €1:30 button then pay. 

All bus info on here https://www.bratislavaguide.com/transport/public-transport-bratislava/bus-61

After a long day, finally got to my Airbnb. Got unpacked chucked phone on charge and thought I'd have a quick drink in a craft beer pub across the road whilst phone was charging. That quick beer ended up being the rest of the night! Got chatting to a few people in there and it ended up being quite a messy night. Unexpected but absolutely fantastic. Those nights are the best. Details of the pub are here https://www.100piv.sk/

The selection of beers was incredible and the staff were brilliant. After a tiring day travelling, the perfect way to end my first night. I did pop down to the river to get a quick photo, not my best work. I wonder why! 

Drinking buddies at 100 piv craft beer shop, couple of cans kindly bought for me to go home with and a shoddy pic of Danube at night.

Day 2 was all about a busy morning on foot followed by watching my beloved LFC in the evening. The weather was very pleasant. After breakfast at my apartment I headed along the Danube riverbank and across the Most SNP (New Bridge) On the south side of the bridge is the UFO Tower. You'll understand why from the pictures below! There was quite a queue already just after opening at 10am but after a short 20 minute wait, I had paid my €9 to go up 95m to the observation deck. I always like cities with these, you get some absolutely stunning views and this was no different. 

I believe it's possible to walk around the perimiter. There's obviously also a restaurant at the top. All the details can be found here https://www.u-f-o.sk/

The UFO Tower and its views of the city.

After the tower I headed out along the shared cycle path on foot across to the Most Lanfranconi. It was a very pleasant and easy walk. Back on the north side of the river there is a Botanical Garden. Not my sort of thing so I headed for my next destination on one of my favourite forms of transport in a city, the electric scooter! Bolt run the scooter contract so you will need to have their app to use them. Destination was The Slavin Memorial, a tribute to Soviet soldiers who died in WW2. It also offers some incredible views of the city due to its hilltop location, hence the use of the scooter! 

Cycle path and the Slavin monument.

Lunch was calling so using google maps, found what looked a decent place along the route back into the city. Street Good is a small healthy cafe serving smoothie bowls, wraps and other snacks and drinks. I opted for the rainbow wrap and was really happy with it. The wrap was spread with a curry hummus and filled with fresh salad with a peanut based dip. My Tropical smoothie was just as good! They don't have a webpage but you can check them out on Instagram here https://instagram.com/streetgood_sk?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

Rainbow wrap 😋

After a quick walk around the Presidential Palace and gardens it was time to get back to Old Town to try and see where might be showing the football. This isn't easy in a country that absolutely loves Ice Hockey. Something we definitely don't have in common!

By the time I'd got to 17's BAR my luck was in and the football was on. Won't bore you to death with details but an excellent 4-3 win to Liverpool over Spurs! Will always remember that pub for that game! But they also had a fantastic selection of beers on tap and the food looked and smelt amazing. https://www.17bar.sk/ for details on what they have on offer.

Presidential Palace and gardens and the draught beer selection at the awesome 17's BAR.

After the game I looked at getting a bit of food. Wasn't massively hungry so opted for sushi from https://www.sushimushirestaurant.sk/

The one dish was enough for me at that point and after a quick drink back at 100 Piv craft beer, that was me for the night.

Tuna tartare

So my final full day in Bratislava. One of my hobbies both at home and on holiday is cycling so having seen the cycle paths already I thought I'd hire a bike after breakfast and get some good kms in the legs. There are a couple of bike hire places, I opted for https://bikerental-bicycle-rental-service.business.site/?utm_source=gmb&utm_medium=referral up in old town. Rado was great, just be aware you'll need id! 

After everything was paid for I set off for Devin Castle, about 12kms away. The plan was then to go to the freedom bridge and head back the same way. That didn't happen so not many pics of the castle unfortunately or the bridge!

Reason for this was the cycle route carried on through Austria and came back into Bratislava so I just ploughed on! It was a fantastic ride, with lunch at https://www.donaucafe.at/site/pages/de/startseite.php on the Danube riverside. Only downside was getting a puncture a few kms out from Bratislava, but these things happen.

Devin Castle, A church along the route and dinner by the Danube (perch salad)

After the ride I headed back to the apartment to freshen up and have a bit of r&r. As it was my last night I wanted to head out to a restaurant where I could get some proper traditional Slovak food. My Airbnb host advised me to head to Flagship Bratislava so I took his advice and wasn't disappointed. I'd read about and seen and smelt the garlic soup in bread (the smell in 17's BAR was incredible) starter that is very traditional so opted for that then ribs (not as traditional I know...)

Food was great, but for me it was a place more where tourists go than the locals. I wanted the real locals experience but hey, can't win them all.

The grand entrance to Flagship Bratislava, Garlic soup in bread bowl (cesnacka or cesnakova polievka) and ribs

After dinner it was a quick drink back at 17's BAR on the way back as had a relatively early start to get the train to Vienna in the morning.

I really enjoyed Bratislava. The city itself is quite compact but is easy to get out of there if you want a more chilled day. A definite dual purpose city where you can either be busy as hell or just relax walking or biking around. 

And onto Vienna...

After breakfast and sorting out the apartment ready for check out it was time to head to head to the central train station to get to Vienna. Timetables and tickets can be confusing at times (machines were useless...) so asked one of the ladies in the kiosk and she got me sorted. Cost was about €14 and was going to take about an hour. Was hoping for a scenic ride but to be fair there wasn't a lot to see, unless industrial parks etc are your thing! 

Check in was 2 pm at the Airbnb so I made my way in that direction and grabbed a spot of lunch on the way. Having not done masses of research on Vienna I had a quick look on google maps and decided I'd head to the nearest landmark and work my way round back towards the station. I knew that route would give me a few great photo opportunities. I honestly had no idea it'd give me countless more. Will take too long to name every building, statue or park I visited as there seemed to be one after another...

So after exiting Schottenor underground first port of call was Votivkirche. This wasn't on my 'list' but the two imposing spires caught my eye straight away. 

My final destination was the Belvedere palace about 3.5kms away. Honestly there is a ridiculous amount in between. Most pics I'll put on my Facebook page but here are few from that 1st afternoon/evening.

Votivkirche, Parliament building, Karlskirche, Belvedere Palace including statue in the gardens and finally Danube at night.

Whilst enjoying all the pleasantries of Vienna, dinner did need to be taken. As I was looking at my last directions towards the palace I noticed a micro brewery and restaurant called Salm Bräu. Not to miss the chance of a tipple (or five.. ) I had a great dinner there. Their website is https://www.salmbraeu.com/auszug-span-class-small-aus-unserer-speisekartespan/

Good food, great beer and quite a unique location.

Dinner and drinks tasting at Salm Bräu

So the only full day I had in Vienna (big mistake) and the plan was to grab some breakfast and head out to Schönbrunn Palace. I'd done a bit of a google on it and lots of people saying you could easily spend a day there. I was a bit dubious. I shouldn't have been. I was there nearly 4 1/2 hours and that's without any of the paid attractions. The place is massive! The buildings, the gardens and luckily for me the weather was spectacular. For details of all the activities and attractions here visit https://www.schoenbrunn.at/en/

A few from around the palace. There's so much more there...

Whilst at the palace I'd made a reservation for a late lunch at Augenweide. It was a recommendation made by my host and as it was relatively close to the apartment (phone was running out of juice) it seemed ideal. It classes itself as a Steak, Sushi and Pasta restaurant. Absolutely perfect if out with a big group as probably something for everyone but for me I was there for the steak.

Ordered mine as a medium rare. It came out probably slightly over bust tasted great along with a side of sweet potato fries and a rasberry tiramasu for dessert. All in all another great meal in a cool place made better with the open kitchen.

For menu details check here https://augenweide.wien/

Lunch, the open kitchen and the restaurant.

I didn't have too much of a plan after late lunch so headed back to the apartment with a bottle of red! Was hoping to find somewhere showing the Liverpool game but got no joy so it was a sushi dinner around the corner before heading back for the game on the tablet. Dinner was good despite me and two other people being in there for the duration. Not the prettiest of places to eat but it's about the food and that was decent. https://www.flugfischwien.at/

Great Sushi platter.

And with that the Vienna part of the trip was coming to an end. Good nights sleep after the football (Liverpool won again..😊) and in the morning I'd be Estonia bound...

Vienna astounded me. I really didn't grasp how big the city was before arriving. Would certainly recommend a minimum of two full days but go for three if you can. So much to do. For me it was a mix of the grand scale of everything in Moscow combined with the beauty of St Petersburg which makes it pretty darn worth a visit!

Tallin

After sorting apartment out and breakfasting it was off to the airport. Down to Landsrasse station to pick up the City Airport Train (CAT) I had seen this advertised for cheaper than the €14 I paid but that may be because of timing or getting it from the station.

Anyhow train all good, flight all good and landed in Tallin around 13:15. Strangely no passport control so headed straight for the city bus, no 15. Tram 4 could also take you there but was having work done when I arrived. Final stop is pretty much central Tallin, not far from Old Town. I was staying at the City Boxx hotel so just a 15m walk. Check in there was all automated, put details into machine and it will produce key card or cards if required. Was starving so went straight to LouLous after getting card and chucked gear upstairs whilst lunch was being cooked. I'd heard good things about the attached restaurant and it didn't disappoint, although food did take a while, had to have two drinks...the travesty.

After lunch and getting unpacked it was time to venture into the city. My first target was a pub called Koht. Unsurprisingly it was a bar with loads of different ales on tap. There is also a shop with a vast selection of cans and bottles. They claim over 700+ different beers available! The music was decent but maybe a bit on the heavy side for my liking! After getting a taste for it I did something strange. I decided to get away from Old Town and have a walk outside the walls. It would to too easy going from bar to bar, I wanted to see more.

Was a good decision. As expected some amazing buildings akin to what I saw when I was in Russia. Also some fantastic green spaces. There is also a fantastic market by the main train station. Loads of funky street food stalls along with your traditional fruit and veg sellers. Oh, and some bars upstairs! Have a look what's on offer here  https://astri.ee/bjt/  After a quick tour around the walls I thought I'd head towards another love of mine, the open water.

The Port of Tallin is off the Gulf of Finland and quite a busy stopping place for cruise liners. There were 4 berthed when I went down. Unfortunately there is a lot of buildings and space left to ruin down beside the Port. It's a shame as it could look so much better! Anyhow, after a mooch round there I went to the shopping center called Nautical. Main reason was to buy a wooly hat and some thicker socks. Was definitely on the chilly side!

I'd spotted a restaurant called Armudu on the way to Nautical which was near my hotel so after a quick shop headed there. It was an Azerbaijan restaurant so a new one on me! One of the reasons I stopped was the full window view out to the Port. It was nearly sunset and the restaurant was a great location. The food was great too, I had what I believe was effectively lamb meatballs wrapped in grape leaves with mash. All tasty and filling stuff. Didn't manage to catch the sunset after. Unfortunately some new build flats in the way! So that was it for my first day in Tallin. 

Estonia Opera Theatre, First view into the Old Town, only 752 beers to go..., food and view from Armudu restaurant.

And onto day 2. Had seen a very well reviewed restaurant called La Boulangerie nearby so I decided on there for my breakfast. A very nice prosciutto croissant, pain au chocolate and a latte was had and I was fueled for a good mornings wander.

Again I kept to the outskirts first to avoid the temptation of the many bars and cafes. And realising there is more to these cities than just old town. 

There really are some fantastic churches and buildings on the outside of the city walls. I took the opportunity to go up into some of the towers for the some of the best views available. A ticket to go up three different towers was €8. Tickets available at Neitsitorn. After a good couple of hours outside, I was finally ready to properly explore the Old Town. I adore these places. Just a complete maze of cobbled streets, cafes, bars and absolutely random shops. And as always a big square and church in the middle. I had lunch in The Estonia Restaurant in the square. Expected it to be quite overpriced because of the location but it was actually quite reasonable and lunch was very good. Their menu is here https://oldestonia.com/ 

The rest of the afternoon was spent just milling around having the odd beer here and there! Which,after a quick fix of food at the hotel, was pretty much the way the night was spent! These places look great at night and Tallin was certainly no different.

Ended up being quite a late night, got to bed around 2am! But an excellent night was had! 

After the previous late night shenanigans, not going to lie the following morning consisted of breakfast at LouLou's, sleeping and updating the blog and Facebook page. I did however book a tour at The Estonia National Opera Theatre for late afternoon. The sun was out again and it wasn't as cold as the last couple of days. Tried to find a rooftop bar but had no joy. The one attached to the Radisson Hotel, Issei looked fantastic but didn't open until 5pm. My tour started at 5:30 so sadly a no go, but check out some of the views and the great looking menu https://isseitallinn.ee/

After a quick beer I went off for the tour of the Theatre. It was very informative and despite the Theatre itself being quite small with a capacity of only around 800, being able to see where props are stored, painted etc was quite fascinating. Add to that understanding the cost of running such a place! A pair of Ballet shoes cost around €150 and will last about 12 performances. Not a lot of bang for your buck! They are looking at getting funding for an extension and I certainly understood why!

Next it was final drink in the glorious sunshine before dinner and football at Route 33. Good bar, food what you'd expect from a grill bar and another Liverpool win...3/3 on this holiday, maybe I should go more often! 

With that I headed back to the hotel to pack and get ready for my Bolt to the airport early morning. I was flying back to Bristol via Amsterdam with a 7hr 30 layover so I planned to head to the city for a gentle walk about and lunch.

Siimeoni Kirik, Estonia Theatre monument, Kino Sõprus (cinema), inside the Theatre.

I have been to Amsterdam before. It's a brilliant city. Had a few hours to wander about before catching my flight back to Bristol. Nothing planned for here, just a mooch to kill a few hours.

A few pics from Amsterdam. One bit of advice. If you want to go into Anne Franks house, booking is a must. Probably the busiest attraction in Amsterdam.

Istanbul and Batumi June 2023

Istanbul

So my main reason for this trip was to watch England U21's in the European Championships v Germany. The tournament was taking place in Romania and Georgia and thought the opportunity to combine two passions of mine was too good to miss. To get to Batumi where the match was being held, I had to fly in via Istanbul so decided to stay a day there.

After getting through arrivals I found my transfer and very much soon found that Istanbul is an absolute nightmare for traffic. An accident didn't help but I eventually got to my apartment early evening. I was staying in the Asian quarter near to Kadikoy in https://www.akinsuites.com/ 

The room was quite basic but had everything I needed for the two nights I was there. After an easy check in it was time to have a quick walk down to the port area then grab some dinner.

Port area, some local street art, fabulous dinner and a lovely sunset.

The restaurant I ate in doesn't have a website. It was quite basic, no menu. You get taken to the counter and select what you wish to order. Mainly seafood. I was quite worried about cost to be fair but really needn't have been. All the food and a couple of coke zeros (no booze in restaurant!!!) came to less than £10. Exceptional value and great quality. This is the location 

Balıkçı Lokantası
+90 216 346 40 14
https://maps.app.goo.gl/4EyaWg9Au9cjWREk7

Had a quick wander around after late dinner and headed back to apartment for some sleep. 

Day 2 in Istanbul was my only full day so I was going to make the most of it, or so I hoped...

First off I grabbed an Uber from my apartment across the river to the Blue Mosque area. Grabbed a very quick breakfast at https://hotelspectra.com/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwxuCnBhDLARIsAB-cq1oh6jlUmc6vYxC90MwDu1o3haFveTN76-UjWbQb3R9iXTuCLbu3C8EaAioREALw_wcB

After breakfast it was on to the Blue Mosque via a couple of very prominent columns. The mosque was stunning. Luckily they did let me in despite wearing shorts. As long as they're knee length they're pretty OK with it. The mosques just kept coming after that. Structurally they are so amazing to look at.

Örme Dikilitas column, Blue Mosque and other Mosques in the area.

After checking out the mosques, I headed across the Galata bridge. The amount of people fishing off this bridge was incredible. Also loved the fact there were restaurants underneath running the length of the bridge. I stopped for traditional Turkish coffee and an ice water before making my way to the Galata Tower. It was just under £20 to get in, a bit pricey but the views at the top were spectacular. Info here https://muze.gov.tr/muze-detay?sectionId=GLT04&distId=MRK

Drinks under the Galata bridge, the Galata tower and the view.

After visiting the tower things went a little astray. As you can see from the pictures, there was a massive police presence at the tower. That morning I saw more police than I had in my life combined. Not to be put off I set off to find an Ale Bar somebody told me of, The Opia Pub. This is when the police presence got disturbing. They were cordoning off pretty much every street heading into the centre. I managed to get to the bar only to find it closed! 

Due to the vast road closures, it seemed the only way to get to the docks to get ferry back across was walking around the city. Was a nice walk to the Kabatas port. Coffee stop and some great street art along the way. And Besiktas football stadium.

Street art and Besiktas stadium.

After getting the ferry back to my side, had a bit of a chill out at the apartment. I'm not brilliant with heat. Popped out later for a quick drink to watch the England U21's then a bit of a pub crawl back. Wasn't too late a night as had to be up for the next leg of the trip, Batumi in Georgia.

Batumi

Got the airport bus from Kadikoy station to SGH. Had a panic at the airport when having lunch as got a message that my hotel has been cancelled. Not ideal to say the least but managed to sort something else out, all the while being told by Booking.com the cancellation was a mistake!

Anyway, got to Batumi in glorious sunshine and a very scenic landing over the sea. Not going to lie, got robbed a bit with the taxi to the hotel. Cash machine said not enough funds but luckily had some Turkish lira to change up. By that point I just wanted to get settled in and get out and about so probably paid double what I should have.

I ended up staying at one of the (many...) Orbi hotels. They are everywhere. Was on the 43rd floor, had a view of the sea so was very happy. One thing I did notice straight away was the amount of building work going on. A lot of money is being pumped into this place. It's as if they are building all these high rise hotels to hide the not so pretty buildings behind.

View from apartment.

After getting settled into hotel it was time to get down the promenade and grab some food. Randomly chose a bistro looking place called Sukhitashvilo. Wasn't overly sure what I was going to have as the menu was purely in Georgian but I ended up with Georgia style pork with chimchuri sauce. Was very good. After dinner it was all about taking in the bright lights and goings on along the prom. I knew what awaited me at the end of my walk but it still took by breath away. The intricacy of the design of the Ali and Nino statue is incredible. Check out the video here..https://youtu.be/oQea4Z6pcRc?feature=shared

After a quick drink taking in the views it was time to get some needed rest so that was the end of my first day in Batumi.

Georgian style pork, the incredible Ali and Nino statue, the alphabet tower, I ❤ Batumi statue and the monument of dolphins.

First thing on the agenda on day 2 was to get a local sim card. Having done a bit of a google search, closest one to me was a company called Magti. Went to there shop at 50 Vaja Pshavela Street. About 20 mins later and less than £15 I was fully on their network and it was absolutely faultless. You will need ID to get a local sim.

Didn't really have much of a plan after that. Just walking about, getting lost, taking in the sights that I stumbled across. However the weather pretty much ruined any chance of doing anything. The rain came down ridiculously hard and didn't relent for 4hrs. After hiding under a canopy of a local establishment, drink in hand, I decided to just get back to the hotel. 

I downloaded the local scooter app, I think it was scroll, and rode back to the hotel. Honestly, I was drier getting out of the shower in the morning. 

Bordeaux and Biarritz, Sept 2023

So this was a trip long in the making. Based around the Rugby world cup. We had got 3 tickets for games in Bordeaux. Rather than staying in Bordeaux for the whole duration (world cup cities are pricey!!) we decided to head to Biarritz after the first weekend of games then travel back for the final game before heading home. So the we was myself, a very good friend Matt and his wife Emma. Known them both for years so was looking forward to spending some quality time with them as well as going our separate ways every now and again.

Met the others to get the airport flyer bus A3 to Bristol airport bus at 8 and we were pretty much through security and hour later. Boarding a plane full of Welsh fans (me and Matt apart it seemed) was an experience. The singing, the excitement was great. Josh Nvidi an ex Welsh international was also on our flight so that cheered the Welsh fans up even more. After landing and getting through security we needed to get into town. We quickly found out that the Bordeaux tram system is very efficient and excellent value. Got a 72hr ticket for €12 which you could use on trams, buses and the BAT boat.

After picking up our keys for our Airbnb we headed for our first, of many on the holiday, beer stops.

First beer of the holiday at L'Aparte 😋🍺

After our quick libation stop decided to head on down to the rugby fan park with a quick stop on the way at Place des Quinconces a huge square with statues and incredible fountains. Another, unscheduled beer stop happened before getting to the fan park via Miroir de l'eau which is opposite Place de Bourse.

Miroir de l'eau and Place de Bourse

The fan park was a disaster to be completely honest. Got in and left within about 5 mins. The queue for drinks was horrendous then found they were charging €25 for 1.5l jug. On top of that had to pay a deposit for the jug and pint cups. Plan then was to find a restaurant where we could eat and watch the game. Wanted to be with locals as it was the opener France v NZ. Had no real idea where we were going but ended up Place Meynard. Lots of restaurants, loads of TVs. Ended up eating and drinking the night away at https://rizana.fr/  a Morrocan restaurant. Food was great and considering how busy they were, the service was brilliant.

Great food and atmosphere at La Rizana

The French won the rugby so the locals were very happy. After the game we headed back to our apartment ready to move on to next accommodation in the morning.

After a quick breakfast, we headed off towards the Ibis Budget at Lormont. A bit out of the way but great value during the world cup. They managed to get us checked in early so we got unpacked, charged what needed charging then headed towards the stadium and our first game, Ireland v Romania. It was a roasting hot day so we managed to get some shade whilst having a burger meal near the stadium. 

It was game time. Getting to the stadium was easy enough, tram can drop you straight there or, like we did, you can get off by Le Lac and have a walk around the lake. We had agreed beforehand that if it was too hot we'd happily ditch this match as the result was a formality. And despite Romania scoring in the second minute, that was the case. Had great seats but we were about 5 rows from the shade and it was pretty unbearable in the sun. Was 36°c on the apps so probably over 40°c in the stadium so fair play to the players, not sure how they coped!

We headed back onto the tram and back into the city. Had no real plans apart from to cool down so we took a side alley in the shade and stumbled across a little bar which had the rugby on. When we got served proper ice water with our drinks I think we all agreed it was the best drink so far...it was that hot!!

After a quick freshen up back at the hotel, me and Matt went back into town to catch the England v Argentina game. Went back to same bar (can't for the life of me remember the name of it...) to have a bit of food first. Service this time around not as good but the food was decent. A French version of cheesy chips I thought...

French cheesy chips

After dinner we found The Black Flag

+33 9 51 31 49 22

https://maps.app.goo.gl/tnjnjdNLGFE8nhv37

Great little metal bar that has a big screen downstairs for the rugby. After a brilliant win for England it was back to the hotel for a good nights sleep. Game in Bordeaux following day was a 9pm kick off so I was off exploring sunday morning.

On one of the leaflets given to us upon arrival at Bordeaux airport, there was a map of what they called the heritage trailer. A great walk which goes to all the big hitting sights to see. You can find the route here THE BORDEAUX HERITAGE TRAIL https://www.bordeaux-tourism.co.uk/sites/bordeaux_tourisme/files/widgets/list/pdf/UNESCO_EN_2023.pdf

Grosse Cloche, Cathedrale Saint-Andre and Maison du Vin.

After finishing the trail and after a well deserved drink I set about finding somewhere for lunch. I absolutely love cheese so a quick google search led me here.. https://g.co/kgs/QgkLAj

Le Bistrot du Fromager was a great find, and they had the rugby on! After lunch had a quick drink with the others then we all headed back to the hotel for a chilled afternoon.

Lunch from Bistrot du Fromager

As efficient as the trams are in Bordeaux, it wasn't the most pleasant experience when rammed with thousands of rugby fans so we decided to grab an Uber to the stadium area in the hope of finding a bar to watch the evening rugby before attending the night game. The choice wasn't vast and we ended up sitting outside the Pullman Hotel for a couple of hours.

Emma was the Welsh one among us so the night game of Wales v Fiji was one we were all looking forward to. It didn't disappoint. Wales scraped the win albeit with some favourable decisions going their way! 

That was that for the first weekend in Bordeaux, in the morning we were off to Biarritz for a proper holiday where days are not dictated by rugby.

After checking out of our hotel, we got down towards Gare St Jean for breakfast then getting our train to Biarritz. Plenty of eateries near the station which do a standard local breakfast for around €9. We tried Le Terminus
+33 5 56 91 31 98
https://maps.app.goo.gl/nG43h5CHomoW2XeM9

Lovely breakfast at Le Terminus

After arriving at Biarritz, we got the local bus opposite the train station to our airbnb. Keys had been left for us so check in was easy. After a quick unpack, we decided to do a quick little shop as we were staying 4 nights. Then we went towards town. This was the part of the holiday that I personally (and Matt and Emma I believe) was looking forward to massively. Biarritz has a huge surf scene which I love. Not a surfer myself but love everything to do with it. Got straight down to the nearest bar to the beach Restaurant Biarritz Beach

+33 5 59 85 89 31

https://maps.app.goo.gl/oJ3wZK3RwUTwESE36

This ended up being a staple for me, having a few beers and coffees here just people watching.

Apartment view, Biarritz beach and a surfer.

One of the strange things we noticed is how much of the town was closed on a monday. Bars included. So when the weather started coming in we decided to head back to the apartment and have a night in playing drinking games and over indulging in junk food!!

The following morning after breakfast, we went our separate ways. Whilst I went south side of the town, Matt and Emma headed out towards the lighthouse. Weather started off beautifully, but around lunchtime it turned massively. I had to dive into a little restaurant to keep out of the torrential rain. Had a strange lunch of crepe and ice cream but I was dry!! Check out their Instagram here https://instagram.com/leblenoirbiarritz?igshid=NzZhOTFlYzFmZQ==

I caught up with Matt and Emma during a rare dry spell but the heavens opened again and we dived into another restaurant where they had lunch and I joined them for a beer. Their lunch at Bistrot Etxeko

+33 5 59 24 71 66

https://maps.app.goo.gl/Zmn8W9YUeZ2TjieL9

looked fantastic. I left them to it to check out another beach but the weather gods decided it wasn't to be an outside day.

My crepe, Matt's mussels and Emma's Chicken salad.

So after checking out the beach, the heavens opened again and it was obvious it was here for a while. Found a food market with a tropical looking bar to take refuge in. Messaged the other two and not going to lie, we pretty much worked our way through the cocktail menu that afternoon!! The food market is https://www.palmito-biarritz.com/fr

Some of the cocktails had!

Afternoon soon became evening and it was a boozy day. Ended up at our 'local' where things got a bit messier. Ordered 3 locally made vodkas, Emma decided it was more economic to buy 10. She wasn't wrong but not sure we needed them!! Anyway, great little pub Charlies Bar. A regular stop at the end of the day.

Charlie's Bar

+33 6 77 44 09 60

https://maps.app.goo.gl/GkkutejxtZjehWGt8

Drinks at Charlie's bar

Onto our final full day in Biarritz. Once again we decided to do separate things. My plan was a chill morning and a swim, lunch at the food market then a trip to ocean museum in the afternoon and a walk back along the coast.

The sea at the main beach in Biarritz is quite rough, so I had a quick google to try and find a calmer beach. My search came up with Port Vieux. It is a small bay so much calmer and a much nicer swim. After a quick change at home it was down to https://halles-biarritz.fr/ for lunch. A fantastic food market and a good lunch was had.

Port Vieux beach and lunch at Halles de Biarritz

After lunch I hopped on a bus to Cite de l'ocean an interactive museum celebrating all things to do with the ocean. I was massively surprised with how much I enjoyed this. There was a 360° VR dive with 700 sharks, a 360° VR surf run and much more. Find all the info here https://www.citedelocean.com/en/ 

After a few hours at the museum it was time to be heading back. Decided to walk the coastal path back as new there were some good surf spots along the way. I certainly wasn't disappointed. Some of the views were absolutely fantastic, most notably from a tiny little bar called Debololo. Bit more info here https://g.co/kgs/psihqtR 

Amazing views at Debololo restaurant 

After my slow wander back it was dinner time. Headed to Cote et Mer as their offer looked fantastic. Good food and great value.

After dinner it was back to the apartment for me to watch the rugby on the TV. I think it was the first time we had switched a TV on all holiday which is always a good sign! The following day it was back to Bordeaux for our final game of the holiday.

After settling into our final accommodation, we decided to have a wander around the city without anything really planned, which unsurprisingly meant a few pubs for the afternoon!! We had planned on having food at the local food court but ended up grabbing some supplies from the attached supermarket and sorted ourselves out at the apartment.

Drinks at Titi Twister and cocktails at Minus Pub

What we thought was our final full day (will be clearer later) was governed by the rugby, Chile v Samoa. We again had our separate plans but ended up meeting by La Cite du Vin. Sadly didn't have time to go in but it certainly looks worthwhile and something I regret not making time for. Details here https://www.laciteduvin.com/en

We had a quick refresher after meeting up then got the bust to the stadium. The area around La Cite du Vin is quite nice, some good looking bars and restaurants. 

Boat to La Cite du Vin (included in travel card), La Cite du Vin and odd Hat installation....or UFO??

We thought the game was going to be quite close but Samoa were smashing Chile when we decided to beat the crowds to get to a bar and watch the Wales game. We ended heading back towards La Cite du Vin and caught the game at Les Halles Bacalan
+33 5 35 54 44 82
https://maps.app.goo.gl/Z7LwZLpVVShUbLkY7 

A cool food hall area. Was a brilliant game to watch as well with Portugal pushing Wales very close.

Watching Wales v Poland at Les Halles de Bacalan, boat back to the main City and a turtle ?

After a walk through town we headed for dinner near our apartment at https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100091352178343

It is a decent bar, food was ok and had a few pool tables so a good end of night stop for us.

Food and drink at the Carnaval Cafe

Suddenly it was our final day. After breakfast we all pretty much chilled in the morning getting ready to hand the keys back to our host then it was lunch at the local food hall https://labocafoodcourt.eu/

Had a lovely curry but there's a lot on offer there. I love places with food halls, so much variety.

Lamb curry at the food hall

After lunch we had a final wander in town, diving in and out of bars or churches (me anyway) to keep out of the rain. Soon enough if was time to head to the airport. We decided to get off a couple of stops before so we could watch the Australia v Fiji game (which Fiji won 🙂) before getting our flight. That however was where it all started to go wrong. Plane cancelled, manic rush to try and get something sorted which we managed to do (and get fully refunded) and only home a day late.

Absolutely loved this holiday. Was planned for quite a while and enjoyed as much as I hoped. Was great to see Emma and Matt crack on by themselves and was nice to hear they'd look at going away again sometime soon.

Pula, Croatia 2023

Heading back to my favourite country but to the Istrian city of Pula. This time for a four night trip with my sister, Penny. After landing in Pula, got on the airport shuttle bus into the city. It cost €6 and drops you off not too far from the wonderful amphitheatre, a great thing to see as you step off the bus.

Decided to head towards the apartment and see what was around there, but was too early to check in so inevitably a beer was on the cards...

Got to near where the apartment was and sat for a drinks and a bit of food for sis at https://gaucho-pula.eatbu.hr/?lang=en 

Pula amphitheatre and drinks and food at Gaucho steakhouse.

After sorting things out at the apartment it was off into Pula. Had no real plans for first evening other than a random wander, food (and a drink..) then head to amphitheatre at night. After a nice walk taking in the old town and the castle we had a quick drink at Veritas Food&Wine

+385 97 656 3627

https://maps.app.goo.gl/YPAnVRh2Sd3FMdsaA

Looked like a really nice place for food but we wanted a more seafood restaurant for our first meal in a city made by the fishing industry. So we ended up at Bistro Alighieri

+385 52 381 984

https://maps.app.goo.gl/VY8ZHvgWf6DdWji3A

A great shout from Penny to eat here. Food, service and price all fantastic. 

Squid with potatoes and chard side.

After dinner we decided to head back towards the Amphitheatre in the hope it would look good illuminated. Had seen pictures before but it really was a sight to behold. After a bit of time walking around did the sensible quick shop and had a relatively early night knowing day 2 was going to be a long day!!

The amphitheatre at night. Truly stunning.

After breakfast, we had to get to the car rental place down on Verudela, attached to the Park Plaza Histria resort. Was an easy pick up, got given a little Renault Captur. After all signed for we headed off into the countryside. 

First destination was Kotli, a working watermill. Was hoping for a bit of a swim in the natural pools but there hadn't been much rain recently and the water did not look too inviting, despite the heat! Certainly not a wasted journey, some of the views we were treated to along the way were magnificent.

Amazing view of Vhr and the tiny hamlet of Kotli.

Next up was Motovun. Very selfish reasons for adding this on the trip. I'm doing a bike ride along the Istrian coast 2024 and this is one of the towns suggested to see along the way. It's on top of a hill and I have no intention of biking up to the top so cheated by driving there!

It's not possible to drive into the town so you have to pay and park a couple of hundred metres away. It was nearing lunchtime so we popped into the first restaurant we liked the look of. 

https://www.antique-motovun.com.hr/#restoran

Restoran Pod Napun has the most wonderful views and the food was good.

Food and views at Pod Napun.

After a hour of just taking in the streets and views we set off for Rovinj. This is a place a few of my friends go to yearly so was very much looking forward to see what it offered. Also an ex boss of mine was staying there with his wife so was hoping to catch up for a quick drink while there.

We got parked up and just looking at Robin from afar got me. The church on top of the town. Just looked stunning. Started to head towards my mates hotel and bumped into them on the front and had a beer at Bar Monte Carlo

https://maps.app.goo.gl/r6Ma11CNKiVq8npSATh

then me and my sister left Jerry and Jane to have food at https://restoran-lampo.eatbu.hr/?lang=en

Food was good, nothing amazing but the view was. Sat right on the front with an awesome sunset. Had to get back to Pula after dinner but am looking forward to heading back to Rovinj in 2024!

Rovinj and food from Restoran Lampo

The following morning was a beach day so after a quick google decided to head to Zeppelin beach. Looked like quite a few activities available but sadly just the bar open (not all doom....😂) due to out of season. Had a lovely few hours down there before a light bite to eat for lunch and shower and change before a 15:30 wine tasting experience! 

Gorgeous Zeppelin beach bar

The location for the wine tasting was quite out of town so we decided to get as far as possible on our favourite mode of transportation, the electric scooter. It's run by TIER in Pula so download the app and you'll be good to go. Scooted out to the city mall then had a 15-20 minute walk to get to Vina Benazic. 

After a brief introduction, Patricia got us started on the wines, all locally produced from their own vineyards based 40kms away in St Katerina. The wines were also paired with finger food and it was a really great afternoon/evening.

For details of what they offer, click here https://www.vinabenazic.com/en/

Great wine and food at Vina Benazic

With a few wines on board we got an uber into town and just had a few drinks, then I headed to The Old City Bar and Grill for the big Liverpool game!! Great place to watch football, had three different games on. Food looked fantastic as well. Check out their page here https://www.facebook.com/oldcity.pula

Our last full day was all about the kayak tour we'd booked, so after a chilled morning we scooted down to Plaza Valovine where we grabbed a light bite to eat at https://wakeparkpula.com/ 

Was great watching the guys and girls going round especially as there was a varying degree of success! After lunch we went to meet the rest of the group and our guide Drazjen. Luckily for us, a group of 6 were unable to make it so the tour ended up being just me and Penny and a lovely couple from Australia.

After a quick safety brief we set off in our kayaks. Had a brilliant time. Caves, beaches, snorkeling and cliff jumping. Absolutely loved the afternoon, was so well organised. We booked through https://www.gotoistria.com/ 

Kayak tour

After the tour we went back to have a couple of drinks and watch some more wake boarders, then walked through the campsite to catch the last sunset of our trip. Was well worth it. Scooted back to apartment, had a quick shower etc then went off for food where my sister went the previous night https://www.eistra.info/restoran-salon-1875/

Food was good, wine was better!

Saturday morning was all about making the most of the little time we had left before heading back to the airport. Had a quick little walk back up to the amphitheatre and surrounding as the sun was shining then it was time to check out!

Pula is a cracking little place. Istria on the whole seems a lot cheaper than further south of the country, Split and Dubrovnik especially. Rovinj looked absolutely fantastic and can't wait to go back next year. As always, Croatia just doesn't disappoint.

Final morning in Pula 

Malaga, Nov 2023

I had a couple of days holiday left and had to take them before mid December. Wasn't a massive choice in terms of flights that suited so ended up choosing somewhere that surprised me and people I know! Nothing against Spain at all, it's just I've holidayed there a fair bit and always like to try diffy countries. However flights to Málaga suited and a bit of winter sun appealed so I booked a Thursday to Sunday trip. 

As ever the Weston flyer to Bristol Airport served perfectly (£7 return, can't go wrong) despite the ungodly hour! Everything went like clockwork with the flights and landed in Malaga 15 mins ahead of schedule. Within half an hour I was sat on the bus heading to the city. Need to get Line A, details here. Cost of €3 https://www.malagaairport.eu/buses.php

I was a bit early for checking into my Airbnb so I decided to have a little wander down to the beach and then head for lunch a bit closer to the accommodation. The beach was absolutely glorious but the sea was a tad on the cold side. I had hoped to get in at some point but it just didn't happen ..

Gorgeous Málaga beach, lunch at Plaza de la Mercad.

Got checked in to my Airbnb ok, my host was awesome and had a few suggestions for me, namely a bar called Fabrica. Details of the beers they have on tap can be found here https://lafabricadecerveza.com/ Had seen a few places on the way up to the accommodation so plan was a few drinks in the city then head down to the marina area for dinner. With elthe early start it wasn't going to be a late one.

Fabrica bar and gorgeous yacht down at the marina.

After the relatively early night it was a day of exploring. My Airbnb was up near https://alcazabaygibralfaro.malaga.eu/es/ so that was the morning plan. Was absolutely beautiful up there with some beautiful views down onto the city.

Views and coffee and cake at the castle.

My afternoon plan that day came about after chatting with people on the plane over to Málaga. They were over to watch GB in the Davis Cup. I managed to book tickets for the semi final which ended up being Finland v Australia. I had never watched top level tennis live before so was looking forward to it. Was able to use one of the many electric scooters available to get across to the Jose Maria Martin Arena. Really enjoyed it despite the Aussies winning 😂

A fantastic day at the Davis Cup.

Another stroke of fortune was that the Christmas lights were being switched on that evening. So after scooting back to the city. To say it was busy is an understatement. Absolutely lovely but mental! Managed to stay to get a few nice pics but needed dinner. After getting away from the crowds I found a quiet street with a steakhouse on it. Sadly it seems OCHO is no longer open which is a shame. The food was fantastic.

Christmas lights and food at OCHO

After a long previous day I had a very quiet morning with breakfast and lunch at the apartment. So the afternoon was all about the football. Man City v Liverpool, obviously a huge game. Wandered down to Morriseys Irish pub, some great real ales and good atmosphere. Game ended up as a 1-1 draw. Afterwards I headed out for last few drinks in the sun.

Heading to Morriseys Irish bar and drink in the sun

I had food at the apartment that needed to be eaten that night but still found time for a quick bite on the way back and a drink with some more Liverpool fans 

Snack and beers with fellow Liverpool fans.

Enjoyed Málaga for the few days I was there. Think it's definitely somewhere I'd go back to with a trip to Ronda in the plan.

Gdansk March 2024

So this was my first holiday of 2024. I had a brief visit in 2018 on the way to Russia World Cup. Liked the look of it then although there was a lot of building work going on. So when I was looking at utilising bank holidays and Gdansk came up it was a no brainer for me. Wednesday flight out and returning Easter Monday. Luckily my parents live close by and often get me to the airport as they did on this occasion.

I was getting the bus into town so once through security you follow the blue line on the floor. This takes you to stand 1 for the 210 bus. Buy a single ticket for a journey up to an hour. It should take 40 minutes however lots of traffic and roadworks made it over an hour!! I wish I'd taken the train now...

The bus runs to Dworzec Glowny the same place the train goes. From there it was a 20 minute walk to my Airbnb. After unpacking it was time to sort dinner so I headed to Gdanski Bowke an old traditional Polish restaurant. Food was great and certainly plentiful and good local beer. Details here https://gdanskibowke.com/   After that I went to a local craft beer pub. A great selection of beers on offer but was just the one for me then an early night. https://labeerynt.pl/ 

Some of the beautiful buildings on the way in, food at Gdanski Bowke and stunning night time view from my Airbnb.

After a decent lie in and breakfast at the apartment, the plan initially was to grab a tourist city card and blast through Gdansk. However with some places closed and the weather not looking brilliant I decided to leave that for day 3. Whilst at the tourist centre , some sort of parade was going on, still not sure what!! After sorting a few things out I decided on a favourite tour of mine, a bar tour in the afternoon into the evening. There are some fantastic bars in Gdansk catering for pretty much anything from your cocktail bars and wine bars to your go to for sports Irish bars. I tried quite a few varieties and fair to say had a fun day. Had dinner at https://tawernadominikanska.pl/ Last stop after that was a crazy cocktail bar called Pixel. Really worth a trip if in Gdansk! https://www.facebook.com/PixelCocktail 

Parade in the Dlugi Targ (long market) and some more beautiful buildings.

Drinks in Gdansk, with a great view at the Hilton bar

One of the crazy drinks at Pixel

The following morning was all about walking about the city, using the City Card where possible. Naturally a few places were closed as it was Easter weekend but still got value for money out of it. The tourist information centre is on the main street, you can find details here https://visitgdansk.com/

Once again I used the very handy https://www.gpsmycity.com/

to find my way around the easiest way. As ever my go to places are churches. I just love the architecture of them. Also especially here, there were a couple of really interesting museums. Gdansk, specifically Westerplatte, was where the first shots of WW2 were fired (more on that later...)

Neptune Fountain with Gdansk Town hall behind it and the interior of St Mary's Basilica, Europe's largest red brick church

Bike ride from Trieste down to Rovinj

This trip had been a while planning. Wanted to combine my love of travel for my liking of cycling. And to do the majority of it in my favourite country, Croatia made this special. Had to fly into Venice and get the train across to Trieste where I'd pick my bike up. 

The plan was to arrive in Trieste Saturday, then bike to Piran, Novigrad, Porec and Rovinj. Would stay in each town for the night so it wasn't any massive distance but could have a leisurely ride with no rush. I was staying two nights in Rovinj and then getting the bus to Pula before flying back.

Trieste

I knew very little about Trieste apart from it was my starting point for my trip. After a hotel issue, I found I was very pleasantly surprised it. Lots of great architecture, busy port and a lively cafe scene. My first stop was to see Dario at https://www.elektratrieste.it/  to make sure everything was good with the bike hire. All was ok so ended up checking into my hotel around 4pm. After a quick freshen up I thought I'd try and squeeze a bit of culture in before heading for a drink or two in the glorious sunshine. Took a trip up to the castle and cathedral. Was well worth it. Up some steep steps but very worthwhile.

Cattedrale di San Giusto Martire, Castello di San Giusto and the Trieste War Memorial 

After that it was a quick walk down to the front. My initial plan was to have a quick couple of beers in the sun then find somewhere for football. Stoped off for a quick drink at https://www.caffetommaseo.it/

Could not believe the extras that came with it for free. 5 different pots of snacks and was also given a small salmon canape! Felt a bit guilty so had another beer there before moving on towards the marina. Was quite lively down there and good bit of music coming out of a marquee so grabbed a beer there and sat, feet dangling over the marina wall watching one of the big cruise ships sail off. Was a great atmosphere there and stayed for a couple. Despite the free food earlier, it was fast approaching dinner time. I do food out a lot when abroad and I always like to have at least one good steak dinner. A quick look on TripAdvisor and found one not far from the hotel, Argentinos. Steak was decent, nothing more to be fair. The Malbec was very nice and at €3 a glass extremely reasonably priced! Their menu can be found here... https://argentinos.eatbu.com/?lang=en

With that day 1 was coming to an end. Quick beer and ice cream stop on the way home and it was sleep time. Big day ahead.

Cruise ship leaving, Steak at Argentinos, Ice cream and beer, freebies at Caffe Tommaseo

So the day of biking had arrived. Had a few unforeseen issues on the lead up to getting a bike sorted but in the end got in contact with Dario from https://www.elektratrieste.it/

I had popped in the day before just to say hi and make sure every was good. Showed me the bike I was having and went through the extras I wanted, helmet, lock etc. Came with everything you'd expect, spare inner tube, repair kit, pump. Service was fantastic and after a while I was on my way, heading to Piran, Slovenia about 23 miles ride away. 

My trusty steed! 😊

Piran

As this isn't a cycling blog I'll get straight to Piran. After finally working my way into the centre, Tartini Plaza, I felt I would like this place. I'd got in a couple of hours before my check in at my Airbnb for the night https://air.tl/LaEugkbx 

I grabbed much needed food and drink at pretty much the first restaurant where I could park the bike up. That happened to be 

Kavarna "Piran"
+386 40 175 201 https://g.co/kgs/Xykbr4t 

Nice risotto, good beer but amazingly the water was what I was desperately in need of!! I rang my host after lunch and was told apartment wasn't ready yet but I could drop bags, bike etc off which was a great relief. For the next couple of hours I just wandered the streets with the odd beer here and there. It's a lovely place. Always little shops or a bar off some side street. It had the feeling of some places in Croatia I've been to. 

Food at Kavarna Piran and cool little side streets.

Once I'd got checked in and got everything including myself recharged, it was almost getting towards dinner time. I had a quick look at traditional Slovenian food and the one thing that caught my eye was the meats and cheese platters. I had wandered down by the sea earlier and a couple of places had caught my eye. One of these was the restaurant at https://hotel-piran.si/

The view on offer made me choose here and it wasn't the only thing that didn't disappoint. The meat platter was on the menu as a starter. I decided not to order a main just in case iit was a fair bit of food. It was the right decision. Absolutely loved it. Just about managed to get dessert in as well!

The view from Hotel Piran and the incredible starter.

After dinner I had a nightcap then back to the apartment. Really liked Piran, would be a very good day trip.

Novigrad (via Umag)

2nd stage of the bike ride saw me heading into my favourite country, Croatia to Novigrad. The most direct route wasn't massively to my liking (too many hills) so I headed first off to the coastal town of Umag. En route to Umag I stopped off at a lovely winery just north of a village called Vardica. It may have been a bit early but the white wine was good and the surroundings absolutely stunning! Winery details https://www.cuj.hr/

The fantastic Cuj winery

After the winery it was straight down to Umag for a bit of a stroll around and some lunch. I'd done no research whatsoever so didn't really know what to expect. I wasn't disappointed. Lovely little seaside town that mixed the old with the new. I had lunch at https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100069864698734

Sat about 12 ft from the sea, simple tuna steak and a beer. Perfect! Had dessert from a café as I left my bike and gear outside their place, seemed fair I gave something back!! 

Town of Umag, lunch at Konobo Garibaldi and dessert

After lunch it was on to Novigrad, the only place where I'd booked a hotel. The weather had turned slightly. Quite overcast, drizzling rain (nice for biking mind!!) so was a bit of a downer to start with. Despite the hotel being absolutely fine, actually getting in the sea (bloody freezing cold) and the pool the weather and lack of character really didn't do it for me. So after a quick wander into town I headed back to the hotel for buffet dinner and a night on the balcony drinking a bottle of red.

An overcast Novigrad! The umbrellas actually doing their job!

After a late breakfast and slightly later than scheduled check out, it was the shortest ride of the trip to Porec. Once again the direct route wasn't the flattest so on the recommendation of my host in Porec I firstly set off to a place called Santa Marina. Bar a lovely church in the town not a massive lot going on! New housing developments down by the marina and a couple of bars so after a quick pint I biked along the coastal route towards Porec. 

Corfu/Albania June/July 2024

After trying to book a holiday to one of the more remote Greek islands that worked out way too much hassle than it was worth, looked at Albania after a chat with a friend. Found you could fly to Corfu then get a ferry across to Saranda in Albania. Just 20kms south of there is Ksamil, a very up and coming resort with beach clubs galore.

So the plan was exactly that. Fly to Corfu, spend the night there then head to Saranda for two nights then get the bus to Ksamil for four nights. My first problem came when England qualified from their Euro 2024 group top and they kicked off 10 minutes after I landed at 18:50. So after I got through security I found the nearest bar which was straight opposite the exit and ended up there for best part of 3 hours. But we won so made it all worth it. After the game I just grabbed a taxi to my hotel https://www.sunsethotelcorfu.gr/

After the buffet breakfast which was included in the price, I had a quick wander just to check out the beach nearby. I'm not massively a beach holiday person but if there's one nearby I'll be checking it out. It was then time to pack and get to Corfu Port to catch my ferry across to Saranda, Albania.

Pool at the hotel and Alykes Potomas beach

I booked the ferries through Finikas, seemed to be the most recommended. Plenty of choices and journeys all day long, you can find all details here https://finikas-lines.com/

After getting through customs relatively quickly, it was still a bit early to check in so I looked for somewhere on the way to stop for lunch. There's so many places along the front. I ended up having a very decent seafood risotto and beer at https://maps.app.goo.gl/ZhMB4WKk7nkoN5Z16

Good tasting food and good value.

Lunch at Guma bar

After lunch it was time to check in. Was booked in https://cava-apartments.bedsandhotels.com/

I was on the top floor, the view was excellent and even better was there was a big screen which I could watch the football from my balcony from. It's as if they knew!! 

View from hotel room balcony 😍

The rest of the afternoon was taken up by swimming in the beautiful sea and avoiding the scorching sun. It was 33°c and I'm not very comfortable when it's that hot! After some chill time it was time to grab some dinner. Also wanted to watch the football so basically stopped at the first place that had it on which was https://maps.app.goo.gl/FopsuAnY18WqS6N48

Lovely couple of beers to wash down my pork shish kebab and garnish. And a decent game of football as well. With the next match kicking off I decided I was going to make use of the balcony and grab a bottle of red and watch from there! Was a great view and could feel the atmosphere, Portugal winning on penalties seemed to keep most, not me, happy!

Pork shish kebab from Nasto and football on big screen

After a decent omelette at https://maps.app.goo.gl/eMQC3kEwZLBNWi1p8

it was all about exploring. Had to morning as was walking and thankfully it was quite cloudy. Still warm but didn't have to contend with the scorching sun! First on the agenda was a walk up to The monastery of 40 saints. Costs 200 lek to get in. It's a relatively easy walk, gradual climb up to the top. Not only is it a decent place to visit but the views from up there are absolutely stunning. Sadly my views weren't the best but got some good pics.

Monastery and the view!

Next stop was Lekursi castle. Again a reasonable walk, happily for me past a rather nice Mosque. The castle has now been turned into Avery nice looking restaurant but sadly I was their to early to try the food out. Definitely worth going up there as views again are fantastic. Decided to have lunch at https://maps.app.goo.gl/gf2Hx9Fh3e4SWTk3A

I'd walked past on the way up to the castle so seemed like a good place to lunch. Food was decent and as most places I'd been to so far reasonably priced.