i love this city

lisboaa week in lisbon was definitely too short, i always end up having a lot of chores, like meeting my accountant, going to the dentist, laundry, seamstress…doing all sorts of things we don’t have on island. so it gave me little extra time to see my family and closest friends.

still, it is always worth it, and being in the city itself fills me with energy – so i tried to absorve all of the good things i miss about lisbon – riding on the tram, walking on the sidewalks (called calçadas, they are the most beautiful sidewalks on earth!!), looking at the tiles (azulejos in portuguese) and admiring the views to the tagus river!

i-love-this-city-2 i-love-this-city-3

i-love-this-city-4

i-love-this-city-5

the food is always an important component too, and although i always go for fresh fish, shellfish, portuguese pastries, and sushi – there is one favourite spot my portuguese friends know i have to go to – casanova.i-love-this-city-6

i-love-this-city-7it is owned by an italian and located by the river. i’ve been coming here since they opened in 2000, and they have the best pizzas on earth – yes, i feel confident saying it! i like so many of them that i usually order half and half – the casanova, the funghi or the pesto. i love their starters too – the scamorza affumicata, the bresaola, the bruschettas…the home made iced tea is unbeatable, although sometimes i go for the prosecco. and to finish off the panacotta is delicious and light – i know, not in calories though.

oh, life would be so much easier if i had casanova in turks and caicos….

it’s always packed, so it is best to go in between meals.

i-love-this-city-8

ps – you can see other posts from my previous trips to PORTUGAL.

back on island

Miami | myseastoryhey friends, we just came back from a short weekend in miami. we got our fix of shopping, people watching and a few nice food spots too, and only an hour away from provo. will be sharing pics later on this week.

in the mean time, we are getting ready for christmas. spending christmas away from home and without our family will be, let’s say, a whole new experience. but the fact that we don’t have to face the cold, the traffic and all the shopping stress, i confess, is kind of nice.

how about you, is it important to spend the holiday season with your family, or are you used to being away?

hope you all have a fabulous week before christmas, hopefully with a little bit of sun too!

la minervetta / italy

when we travel we always like to stay in al least one special place, after having worked for more than 10 years in luxury hospitality, i really enjoy analyzing how hotels go the extra mile to be the favorites – how does it make it a better experience.

la minervetta conquered me from the very first sight, when i stumbled upon it on tablet hotels (we like choosing the hotels for our trips through tablet, and you?). we tried to book it when planning our honeymoon, but it was fully booked for the whole stay – not strange since it’s a 12 room boutique hotel and september is high season…

but when i want something so bad, i think positive, i do all i can to get it…(ok, and i get on all waiting lists possible and bug them for possible cancelations every other day!) and a week before traveling the hotel was opening a new room – available to book!

the hotel doesn’t have a restaurant, but breakfast, served in the terrace, is as good as it can be. i could have breakfast, with the stunning views to the bay of napoli and mount vesuvios, all day long.

the decor is incredibly stylish, with the perfect mix and match of blue and red marine stripes, sicilian ceramics all over, and corals and conch in-between.

the location is perfect, perched above sorrento’s harbor, we adventured down the steps for dinner, and  walked back from the city centre after having gelato – but basically just wanted to hang out in the hotel.

ok, we only had one night to enjoy it, but it was well worth it and a good start of our vacation before heading across the bay to the crazy city of napoli.

hotel la minervetta sorrento’s website

and other places i stayed and liked.

alexandre farto | london

last time in london, whilst walking through brick lane, i stumbled upon this image. at first it looked like a graffiti and then i realized the image was carved on the bulding’s wall.  i find it fascinating!

i soon found out that the artist, alexandre farto, aka vhils,  is a portuguese painter and grafitter, known for his faces sculped on walls. his work can be found on the streets of london, moscow, bogota, new york and la amongst others.

he is also the artist behind the silver elevator in bica, lisboa – remember this post?

first image by me, second via alexandre farto’s website

viajante / london

i like casual places to eat, with simple and fresh flavours and a happy atmosphere. but sometimes i like to try out restaurants where i am surprised with the experience,  the mix of flavours and the textures i would’ve never thought of.

viajante is one of these, it has been on my bucket list for a while, and i finally got to try it out on my last trip to london. plus, it makes me proud, to try out a michelin star restaurant in london, by nuno mendes, a portuguese chef.

we booked for sunday lunch, and since we were on a lower budget, we went for the three course meal. if you add up the different amouse bouche before and the petit fours to end the meal, it wasn’t such a small lunch after all.

there were three amouse bouche – thai explosion (not pictured) – amaranth with sorrel, the tamarind and popcorn made a surprising texture – and potatoes with yeast and lardo, would have never thought of yeast flavour, and it’s good!

bread and butter, a reminder of how good bread can be, with smoked and ham flavoured butter.

the main dishes were warm mackerel with red pepper juices and soaked bread, and turbot with seaweed sofrito and seafood rice broth.

we were then served a sorbet to clean the palate, pickled and raw cucumber with reduced milk sorbet, another amazing surprise.  and dessert was milk in three textures, which i thought was simple, yet perfect to allow for a couple of petit fours to follow.

to end the meal we had a freezing olive oil toffee snap frozen in liquid nitrogen that melted in our mouths (sorry, it was too hard to wait to be pictured), and the chocolate and cepes mushroom truffle.

i specially liked having lunch with a view to the kitchen where our lunch was being prepared in total silence, as if the chef’s work was all synchronized. the service was very friendly, attentive and discreet.

viajante, 3 course meal for lunch – GBP 35 per person

note – i am no food critic, i simply enjoy food and sharing meals with friends.

first photo by conde nast traveler, all other photos by myseastory