by Helen | May 8, 2019 | Renovation
As is quite usual here, we’re not connected to gas mains. If people do prefer gas, for heating or cooking, then you usually find that they have it delivered and huge canisters will be located somewhere about the property and we didn’t really fancy the eyesore or the faff. So we’re all electric here – and that includes the boiler. Or, to be more accurate,the water heater, which we inherited. This really old fashioned tank has been located in the outdoor cellar, a good place for it as it means that it’s not taking up space in the house. But that’s probably the only good thing about it.
Our current bath is tiny – it’ll be replaced by something much more substantial in the next renovation project – but the capacity of the water heater is so small, that we’ve never actually been able to do a proper fill up of the bath, with hot water, without also topping up with the kettle. That’s right, it’s one of those really old fashioned water heaters that empties and then fills up and you have to wait for the water to heat up again. Gawd! Luckily, the renovated shower room downstairs has sufficed and we’ve delayed on getting the inevitable boiler issue sorted. Until this weekend…
We hadn’t realised that quite a serious problem was brewing in the cellar until we spotted a small drip, drip, drip from the boiler. A call was made to our builder who said he’d come out as soon he could and a bucket was put under it – and we thought that all would be OK, for a little while. But, like with most renovations, things sometimes don’t go smoothly. And when they don’t go smoothly, there’s always more expenditure…
Yep, this is the sight that greeted us at the weekend. With the top beginning to blow and rusty water streaming over the sides, we knew that it was time to act. But, we’d never bought a boiler before. Although we’d obviously had new boilers in houses back in the UK, they’d always been sourced by plumbers who knew what they were doing. This time – although we did have advice from our builder – we had to largely sort it ourselves. Thank goodness for Google and translation apps.
Two years ago, we wouldn’t have known where to begin – buying a loaf of bread was a challenge in those days! But, where there’s a will, there’s a way. Having since navigated the purchasing (and subsequent MOTing and insuring and all of the complexities that this entails) of two cars, a new kitchen and bathroom and sorted out all utilities and broadband, we knew that we wouldn’t be defeated by a boiler. Renovating a house, we are now regular customers of Bauhaus, which is the equivalent over here of B&Q, and this was our port of call for a boiler.
The one thing that we noticed immediately was the difference in price between boilers here and back in the UK. Interesting blog, eh? BUT, when soooo much expenditure is going into a big reno, this difference in price is a GOOD thing. We feel quite proud of ourselves that we navigated this purchase of quite an essential piece of house kit, in a different country and in a different language – and now are very close to having a proper full tank of hot water. Which means, that for the first time since we moved here, just being able to turn on the tap and a bath can be filled. Without recourse to a kettle…
Next step is actually having it fitted. We’re reliant on a builder who is brilliant and who can speak perfect English – which is super important when negotiating building works – but who is also very busy, and so we have to be very patient. However, we are crossing our fingers that he’s true to his word and barring any unforeseen complications, arrives to tonight to install. We’re dreaming of that deep, hot bath…
update
Things here do often happen very slowly and you have to just accept it, generally and go with the flow. But, no so with our boiler. True to his word, indeed, our builder did arrive in the week and installed the boiler. What we’d do without him, we just don’t know! Establishing that network of trusted people – however small that network is – is crucial to living a new life in a new country. He’s introduced us to more people who have helped us to do things, especially with the house, that we would never have thought we could do. And, because he now knows us and we know him and there is trust between us, he does go that little bit further for us. Meaning that he called out to us – at no additional out of hours charge – and fitted the boiler one evening this week. Meaning that we can now have a shower again, and for the first time since we moved into the house, fill the bath to a reasonable level, without resorting to boiling a kettle…
by Helen | Apr 26, 2019 | Renovation
Although the weather is still not *perfect*, we’ve definitely come out of winter and hibernation. The woodburner is on less these days, our heaters are only switched on to get rid of the early morning chill, and we’ve even had a window or two open. The garden, which last year was largely a building site, is now starting to look a whole lot more presentable – and we are excited that this will hopefully be our big project this year. We can’t do anything major until our boundaries have been rubber-stamped by our local land registry, but this is now all in hand and we are starting to think about funky boundary walls and fancy and outdoor lighting and seating and all sorts of lovely stuff, which will make summer all the more special.
In the meantime, we’ve decided to do what we can to spruce things up. New bulbs and plants have been planted up and these are starting to grow, adding some colour in between the potted (for now) bamboos and shrubs. We’ve moved our two wisteria plants to the base of the huge wooden pole and these are now beginning to twist and curl and the first beautiful lilac fronds are beginning to to bud.
We’re renovating our gorgeous vintage wrought iron table and chair set, which we bought just after we moved here. It was white, but had previously been painted and the layers of hard paint were beginning to crack off and rusting had started – I did a quick made-do spray paint job, but didn’t prep properly. Two years later, it’s in a bit of a sorry state, so the long job of painstakingly removing all of the cracking layers of old paint (the spray paint has now faded) and sanding off the rust has started. I did originally spray it a dark charcoal, but as it’s faded, the original white has started to be exposed and it just looks a bit of a mess, so we’ve taken the decision that we’ll restore it to its former white glory. Hopefully, the weather this weekend will be kind and we’ll be able to crack on with the table and chairs.
But, we wanted some quick pops of colour over Easter weekend, so we raided our now-quite extensive collection of spray paints and got going on a variety of objects which are now dotted around the garden.
First up, was a bird box which we bought years ago from David Gavin Design in West Didsbury. It’s a metal box and it’s safe to say, we’ve never had a bird come near it, so we decided it had to be made a little more attractive for our feathered Istrian friends. A can of bright turquoise has certainly spruced it up, and it now matches our solar lanterns in the tree…
We have three plastic “stools” – at least, this is what we’ve always used them for – which were bought years ago in Habitat, and brought out with all of our belongings. They’ve always been outside and so were a bit weather battered, a bit faded in places, full of water (as they come part) and again, in a pretty sorry state. As the general idea was to create immediate colour in the garden, I opted for spraying them different colours – one the turquoise of the bird box, the second a tangerine orange and the third, a sunshine yellow. Again, what a difference for next to nothing, cost-wise…
We’re trying to get a bit more cohesion in the garden, colour-wise. Everything we brought over with us, was a bit mix and match, as never really had a plan back in our Manchester garden. So, lanterns are coming out of storage and all getting a make-over too…
Even the rusty old watering can has been blinged up…
We’re also going to be creating lots of little nooks and crannies and “secret” areas in and around the garden, and so are in the process of collecting some interesting objects to secrete away, and be half-hidden, amongst foliage.
We’re crossing our fingers that the weather now starts to be consistently warm and sunny, so that the proper riot of colour we’ve been planting, starts to emerge – and so that we can finish the first phase of the Garden Project…
by Helen | Apr 9, 2019 | Lifestyle
Italian supermarkets are generally very, very good. Produce is usually always very fresh, and locally grown – great for the carbon footprint – and often loose, so you can avoid the plastic overload. Fish, meats and cheese are often sold in the same way – loose, unpackaged and by the weight. Same with breads and pastas. Wine buying is a great experience too – as well as superb wines being a fraction of the price that you pay in the UK, they are also largely local to the area that the supermarket is in, meaning you can really get to know the wines and reduce your carbon footprint. So, mostly all good in Italian supermarkets (certainly the ones we visit) and plenty of options ditch the plastic.
Mostly. I say *mostly*, because come times like Easter, they go nuts. Utterly bonkers. As evidenced yesterday…
So, the Pasqua displays just completely blew all of the other good stuff going on, in-store, out of the park. Huge chocolate eggs, wrapped in layers of foil upon foil upon foil and smothered in bows. Plastic trays to displays chocolate bunnies and squirrels, wrapped in foil. These displays were piled high, in all of the food aisles – and were being added to, as we walked around. Huge forklift trollies were manoeuvering more into place as we shopped. This particular supermarket is in a small suburb of Trieste, just over the Slovenian border, so not a massive destination shop. I cannot imagine how they will shift all of this confectionary. However – and this is a massive positive – I do genuinely believe that anyone who buys these from Slovenia, will responsibly dispose of the packaging. Although by no means perfect, Slovenia in general, has a very commendable attitude towards recycling and it is quite tightly regulated.
But, I’ve never seen anything quite on this scale. I did think UK supermarkets went a bit made and embraced seasonal opportunities, but nothing like this! And, if you don’t believe, this was displayed in the entrance to the supermarket. Almost as tall as me, and a bargain at just 356 euros…
by Helen | Apr 3, 2019 | Renovation
To the front of the house, we have an area which is mix of concrete paving and grass. The grassed area, in particular, is a bit of a mess, as it’s where we currently park the cars. We’ve used bamboo plants to screen the garden as much as possible from the road – although to be honest, it’s not a busy road and so being overlooked isn’t a huge problem.
Our boundaries are currently being established legally, and once we get the plans back, finally showing where our boundaries are, we’re going to have a wall built, which will afford us more privacy and enable us to begin really sorting the front of the house. Most houses here use Istrian stone for walls but our whole house is stone and we want something that marks our house out as a little bit different. We love living in Istria and feel very lucky to be able to do so, but we’re not Istrian and so want to stamp a little bit more individuality on our new wall. Current thinking is a concrete construction, which will be rendered and painted – but with some little twists.
We have a lot more space around this house than anything we’ve ever had before. There is a communal right of way that runs alongside the house, although it’s very rarely used by anyone, apart from the local farmer who sometimes drives his tractor through. A small dry stone wall then separates the right of way from another communal strip of land which runs alongside the farmer’s field. This wall has never been looked after and so up until now has been covered in creeping ivy and moss, and stones regularly dislodge. Behind the wall, at the edge of the communal strip of land is a little copse – beautiful in the summer as the full growth hides all the dead wood and broken branches, but at this time of year, still a bit of a mess. So, in preparation for the big garden work, we’ve decided to take a bit of action, and by stealth, are tidying up this area…
As ivy and moss have been growing in the wall, we’ve decided to try and prettify it a bit and we’ve started to plant up alpine plants. It’s all a bit of an experiment, but fingers crossed, these will grow and flourish.
Left over from building work, we also had five, quite short, railway type sleepers which are really quite lovely – and we’ve decided to utilise these to create a bed, planted up with lavender and wild flowers. Again, we’ll have to wait and see if we can nurture these, but I have high hopes! In the corner of this raised bed, we’ve also found a home for the chimney stack which was removed from our West Didsbury roof when we had our woodburner fitted, and which has followed us to Istria. Even though we’ve pulled up all of the rambling ivy, the plan is to pot up some tumbling ivy which we hope will grown down the stack.
Because so much deadwood has been cleared, we’ve exposed ourselves a little bit more, so have have three dwarf conifers which will eventually be planted in the soil, once we can work out the best position for them – in the meantime, they’ll have to get used to large pots. And, when all is done and cleared, the beautiful French vintage wrought iron table and chairs will have a new home in the copse – it gets sun all day, so we’re liking the idea of being to have breakfast out here. But first, the set needs to be renovated as it’s very old and very rusty in places, with peeling paint. It’ll be a tricky job, but one we think will be well worth it…
by Helen | Mar 19, 2019 | Travel
Sometimes, you see somewhere online and you just have to go. No matter what. This happened recently when I discovered the website for the Hotel Grand Wiesler, in Graz, in the Styria region of southern Austria. When we lived in Manchester, the thought of seeing a hotel online, in another country, and planning a spontaneous trip, would have been fairly unthinkable, given that we’d have had to have found flights, hired a car and generally have taken a lot more time to do the trip. But now, we can just get in the car and drive – and that’s what we did recently.
In just over three hours, from leaving our house in northern Istria, we were checking into Hotel Grand Wiesler, on the banks of the River Mur, in Graz. The website gave us an idea of what the hotel would be like – it’s a stylish website and ticked all of our We Are Life Design boxes. Recently refurbished, the building was originally five separate guesthouses which were bought by Carl Wiesler in 1870 and turned into one hotel. It’s still a very grand building, with an imposing entrance, but not at all stuffy. In fact, it’s very contemporary and extremely quirky in places. There are apparently 102 rooms, but it seems very small and boutique-like and we definitely didn’t feel as if we were sharing the space with lots and lots of other guests. High ceilings and large open spaces give the impression of plenty of space and so even when we had drinks in the bar, and ate in the restaurant on the Saturday evening, we felt that we had space to breathe and soak up the surroundings. This is the hotel entrance, with “Jigsaw Falling Into Place” by Austrian artist, Clemens Hollerer.
The Speisessal Restaurant, which is open to the public, and clearly a popular place to dine, is a real visual feast, with bold artworks and installations. When we checked out on Sunday, the Soul Brunch was in full swing, with a DJ on the decks playing some very laid back afternoon tunes. Food, by the way, is exceptionally good – and definitely not overpriced.
Our room, on the first floor, overlooked the street behind the hotel – and what a pretty street it was too. Gorgeous shops including a florist and furniture & interiors and very interesting looking bars and restaurants, with much outdoor seating (rooms have double glazed windows so sound is not an issue) lined the street, and above, residential apartments. The pistachio coloured buildings are very old and very grand, and so for a nosey person like me, it was a thrill to be able to almost peek into them, when dusk started to fall and lamps were lit…
Our room was in the Independent Comfort category and it’s safe to say, it was large. With two huge windows, the room was flooded with light – blackout blinds ensure that no early morning rays waken you too early, though. The bed was super comfortable, and again, probably given the size of the room, very big, with gorgeous white bedding. Furniture is pretty simple – mostly white washed wood, again giving the room a very airy and spacious feel. It had everything you’d need for a short stay – fridge, safe, hanging area for clothes, a low cupboard with drawers, plenty of good lighting options (lamps and dimmers) and sockets and excellent wi-fi. The toilet was in a separate (very) small room, with a hand-painted Mexican Talavera sink sitting on a concrete plinth just outside. A very large walk in shower – and very, very powerful – was partitioned off by glass bricks and perspex door. This could be off-putting if you wanted to shower in privacy, but the size of the shower meant you could be behind the glass bricks and therefore obscured.
Although possibly not to everyone’s taste, one of the features I really liked, was the deliberately exposed plaster in places on the walls. This does seem to be a feature in all of the rooms, and works really well, against the minimalist furnishing and largely white plasterwork.
There are seven different categories of rooms in the hotel, ranging from Tiny Independent to Grand Suite. (Montage images : Booking.Com)
Secure parking is available in a public car park, at Griesgasse 10, which is conveniently located right behind the hotel – the guest rate is €15 per day, and tickets are issued at reception and paid for on check-out. Another bonus is that the hotel also includes a sauna, outdoor area, workout equipment and an Arabian tea room. The wellness areas is open daily from 7am-9pm and the sauna is open from 5pm-9pm, but you can use the wellness area outside of these hours, by prior arrangement with reception. Bathrobes and towels are available.
And, if your criteria for staying somewhere, is knowing that a few famous names have also stayed there, then Hotel Grand Wiesler is definitely the one for you – Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Rolling Stones, David Guetta, Marianne Faithfull, Billy Idol, Joe Cocker, Deep Purple and the Dalai Lama to name but a few.
by Helen | Mar 14, 2019 | Slovenia, Travel
Maribor is Slovenia’s second largest city, but that doesn’t mean it’s big, by any stretch of the imagination. Up until now, we’ve overlooked it, in favour of the capital, Ljubljana, whose appeal is immediate. It’s beautiful, full of well restored and well maintained historical buildings, with a winding river, fringed with weeping willows and a fairytale castle on top of the hill, looking down on the red roof tops of the old town. But, we decided to stop over in Maribor last weekend (Sunday evening) on our way back from Graz, in Austria. Although in two different countries, the two cities are only about half an hour from each other, so we arrived in good time in Maribor, hoping to get out and about and explore the city. Unfortunately, Sunday was grey and cold, unlike the previous day in Graz, which had been very spring-like – warm and sunny. The weather obviously didn’t help, but the outskirts of the city were a bit on the grim side. Very down trodden, and with definite reminders of the austerity of the not too distant past. We did wonder if we’d made the right decision, and whether we should just head home – but we’d made a booking and decided to give Maribor a go…
We booked an apartment online, and were delighted to find it was located in the above building (our apartment was the one on the bottom right, with the two big windows). 4 Flats is just what it says – four converted apartments, off a communal entranceway. However, before getting into the apartments, you have to go through the arched doorway, just to the left of the tree. The door is ancient – and could be described as delapidated, BUT it became immediately clear, once through the doorway, that this was a building with real history, and hence the doors…
Look at those walls! If these were in England, they’d probably be being preserved by English Heritage, but these are the communal entrance way, behind the great big delapidated wooden doors. There’s a cobbled accessway, and once the exterior doors are opened wide, residents drive their cars through here, to park in the internal courtyard. Amazing that a building like this, is just, well – there…
Our apartment was actually fab – quite minimalist, but all the right colours for me! Plus, lots of the original features had been retained, including the huge windows – which had an inner frame of double glazing, so absolutely no noise when they were closed.
Two of the other apartments were obviously not booked, and the doors were open, so I did have a bit of a nosey – and can confirm that the images on Booking.Com are completely accurate. All very lovely and well renovated.
It’s worth mentioning that there are parking bays all around the little park just outside the flats – and it’s free on a Sunday. (Payment – very inexpensive – begins at 8am Monday morning). Just across the park, with a view from our apartment windows, is the Slovene National Theatre, with performances of drama, opera, and ballet annually attracting the country’s largest theatrical audiences. We saw the audience leaving after the Sunday evening performance and it’s very clear that the Slovenes like to dress up for the theatre. Very grand, indeed!
The owner of the apartments met us and tried very helpfully to suggest where we could eat on a Sunday evening – although he did struggle, by his own admission, as many places, at this time of year, are closed on a Sunday evening. Nothing for it, then, but to get out and exploring Maribor. The historical centre is very small – and very, very, very old. You can really imagine what life must have been life in medieval times, as many of the buildings are literally teetering on the brink of collapse. We did spot one for sale, so if anyone fancies a bijou residence in Maribor, hit us up and we’ll get the details to you.
Narrow cobbled streets, like the one above, lead off one of the main sqaures – Glavni Trg – down to the Drava River, and the area of Lent. It did look as if the bars which line the river would be lovely in the summer, with plenty of evidence of outdoor seating, terraces and umbrellas already being put out, but it was a bit chilly – even with blankets – outside The Piranha Cocktail Bureau. The logo led us to this very stylish bar…
The interior is very striking, including backlit wall of bottles of spirits and liquers, and furnishings with lots of accents of black. I think I was most impressed by the toilets – scrupulously clean, and everything high gloss black. No photos unfortunately, as I still find it too weird to take photos of loos. We were lucky too, to get a very pink sunset – much welcome after the gloomy afternoon.
Just next to Piranha Cocktail Bureau – and this has been verified by The Guiness Book of Records – is Stara Trta, the world’s oldest vine, growing outside an old medieval house called Hiša Stare Trte, also known as The Old Vine House.
We did eventually find somewhere to eat – Ancora, an Italian restaurant. Suffice it was a pretty surreal experience, but I’ll leave that there.
Monday morning was bright and sunny, so we took the opportunity before heading off, to scoot around the historical centre. One lap of about 30 minutes and you’re done, but there are some sights really worth seeing, especially if you look up, above the street level shop fronts, which are mostly fairly dreary. But look above street level, and this is what you’re greeted with…
Also in Main Square is The Plague Column. Erected in 1743 to replace an older version, this monument commemorates the end of the plague, which killed over one third of the city’s inhabitants between 1680-81. The large monument, designed by Jožef Štraub, dominates Glavni Trg (the main square) and features a golden Virgin Mary on top of an eight metre column surrounded by six saints. It’s really very, very impressive!
So, what did we actually think of Maribor? To be honest, I’m still a bit undecided. There’s a definite palpable sense of history, and parts of the old historical centre are undoubtedly beautiful. It doesn’t have the sassiness of Ljubljana, or the coastal aspect of Koper. But, there’s something about it. It’s raw and a bit rough around the edges and feels like it’s not quite in 2019. It feels like a city that has a bit of catching up to do. However, when it does, I think that Maribor will be somewhere that should be on your destination wish-list. Until then, if you love history, you will like Maribor. And, if you need a new hat, you’ll definitely like it…
by Helen | Feb 18, 2019 | Italy, Travel
Our second accommodation on our weekend stopover in Padova was an apartment, slap bang in the historical centre, called Officine Cavour. Directions to the car park were great – but we struggled a little bit initially to find the actual apartment. It’s located in a small square called Piazza Camillo – perhaps the easiest way to locate it is to stand in front of the statue of Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, and it’s just behind him, to the left. We stayed on a rainy Sunday in early February, so the square wasn’t exactly alive. However, there was plenty of evidence that it’ll be a different story later in the year, as plenty of very nice looking bars and restaurants were in the immediate vicinity.
The actual apartment is located on the first floor of one of the historical buildings facing into the square. We’d exchanged emails with the owners and had actually arrived much earlier than the stated check-in time, but via the magic of remote access, we were able to get in, and out of the rain, and get warm. Always a good sign, when owners take into account circumstances and don’t stick to rigid rules.
We were super impressed by the apartment. Although not huge, it had everything you would need for a few days. There were only two rooms – the main area and the shower room, and both were so stylish. The attention to detail was fantastic and it’s clear that the owners have really thought about how to create ambience and comfort.
Anyone who’s had peeks of our renovation project in Istria, will have an idea of our taste, and this apartment ticked all of our boxes. We’ve painted our interior stone walls white, simply because it would have been a mammoth task to have them all cleaned up and looking like the one above. A little bit of me does wish I hadn’t been so impatient with the white paint, and given at least one of the walls a chance, but too late now. I’ll have to get my bare brick kicks in places like this! The bed was super comfy, and with that lovely velvet wrap around headboard, was a bit sofa-like when you re-arranged the pillows and cushions. Lighting was all very well thought out – dramatic spotlights in the ceiling and cool industrial lamps, dotted around the room. I also love a bit of faux foliage. I mean, what’s not to like? No watering and no maintenance and they live forever, so these big green plants did it for me, softening up the exposed brick wall and the industrial style furnishings.
The fridge was stocked with a little mini-bar, operating on an honesty bar policy – the welcome pack just asked that anything you took, you paid 3 euros for. We *think* the bottle of water was free, as it wasn’t in the fridge, so apologies Officine Cavour, if it wasn’t. We’ll pay next time we stay! There was also a generous stock of tea bags and coffee, with a Nespresso style machine. The kitchen area is well equipped – as well as the coffee machine, there’s a toaster, small hob with a couple of rings, kettle, dishwasher, plenty of very clean and well cared for crockery, glasses, cutlery and pans. Drawers were pristine – no crumbs, or signs of other visitors. Clearly somewhere that places hygiene and excellent cleaning high up on the agenda. There’s also a small table and two chairs, so if your stay is longer than a couple of nights, and you fancy rustling up a simple meal, it can be done.
This is not an impersonal apartment. As I said earlier, the owners have clearly injected personal style and have thought about adding details to create something very lovely. Additions like the glass jar, the Moroccan style rugs, tealight holders, mis-matching lamps all add to the decor and sense of individuality. Also, I have that glass jar, so big tick!
So, two things I love about the above photo. 1. The beams and 2. the hanging plants. Again, my boxes are ticked! Having spent the best part of the last year, treating, caulking and filling, undercoating and top coating, our wooden beams (and still not finished), it’s great to see old beams looking very pretty. Most of ours were far too knackered to ever have ended up looking this good in their naked, natural state. We do prefer ours now, in the soft cool grey satinwood finish, but a good old wooden beam is hard to beat. And, from our beams, I am creating, in various parts of the house, hanging gardens. These green glass globes are gorgeous – they are all over Istria (originally used for wine, people like wine here!) and so rather than having them as floor ornaments, I’m getting my macrame head on, and making hanging globes out of them. My beams aren’t going to know what’s hit them!
I really liked this cute desk set up in the window. How simple? But how effective? A shelf and a chair, with the long curtain pulling across in front, so when it’s time for bed, you can just switch off.
Bathrooms are often the make or break for me in apartments and hotels. I’ve been known to, at best, request a room change. And also, walk out. My maxim is, if it’s not at least as good as what we have at home, I’m not staying in it. (Which is why I really do my research before booking anywhere. Multiple walk outs, and I’d be walking home). But, like everything else at Officine Cavour, my boxes were ticked. Power shower. Separate rain shower head and additional removable shower head. Long shower trap (like I insisted we have), rather than plughole. Tadalak style walls and flooring. Underfloor heating. Everything white. Big sink. Gleaming taps. Good toiletries. Great towels – I even got over the two colours! Super, super clean.
This was a proper home from home. I like seeing things that I have, in places I stay – it’s always nice to see your taste reflected back. Like the tealight holder and the concrete apple. Like I say, a home from home.
Because we were only staying a night, we definitely weren’t going to cook. So, as we do in most places we stay, we decided to find an Indian/Nepalese restaurant – and Buddha Restaurant came out as the stand out place to visit. Reviews were amazing and it was only a ten minute walk from the apartment. Worth every step of the way – not a grain of rice was left at the end!
Mixed veggie platter starter, goan fish curry, lentil dahl, paneer masala, garlic naan, cumin rice and a bottle of Pinot Grigio – just over 50 euros. Utterly delicious. Could not recommend Buddha Restaurant enough.
by Helen | Feb 14, 2019 | Lifestyle
When I last blogged about the saga of our TV journey, it was early January and Mauro, from T-Com had been out and had given us a glimmer of hope that we could, one day, have fixed line internet. Meaning we could one day, at some point in the future, have TV like we used have back in West Didsbury. You know, the normal kind. For most of January, we muddled through with the fix we’d come up with, via a Manchester based company, where we were able to get UK TV via the laptop. It was a hassle and definitely not a long term solution, but we were pretty happy in the short term as at least I could my fix of Question Time.
And then, last week, out of the blue, Mauro returned. We’re still not entirely sure what he actually did, but it did involve climbing The Pole and we think it also involved “The Box” in the village. The one where all of the internet cables are and which we have previously told, “was full” – turns out, though, as we’ve long suspected, it wasn’t that full, as through some means, he finally managed to get us connected! Yep, after nearly 20 months of to-ing & fro-ing with T-Com, having to work with 4G internet (which was affected by weather conditions and dropped after a certain amount of usage, so definitely not ideal), we had FIXED LINE INTERNET! Hallelujah!
This meant we could, at long last, sort out the TV issue, and so back to the google searches to work out what the best solution would be for us. Excellent reviews were coming up for one box in particular – see here if you’re in a similar situation – and an order was placed on Friday 8th February. We assumed that as with everything here, it would take an age to arrive so didn’t get our hopes too high for a swift delivery. BUT, guess what arrived yesterday morning (Wednesday 13th February)? Only our new set top box! No bigger than the new i-phone, we couldn’t believe that this would deliver what we wanted – but with just a couple of cables to plug in, we were ready to go!
So, there we have it! Twenty two months since we set off on the journey to get fixed line internet to our house, and we are finally there. Maybe not quite as quickly as things happen back in the UK, but we don’t care now. The frustrating waiting is over and we are connected – and after nearly two years of Italian and Croatian TV, it feels so bloody good!
by Helen | Feb 13, 2019 | Italy, Travel
We often drive around the outskirts of Padova (Padua) when we travel back to Istria from Italy. We’ve always found it – even with Google Maps – quite a perplexing city to get out of. It’s not a big city, but the outskirts are a bit on the confusing side, so we generally use the big red tower as a marker. We’ve never really looked that closely at this tower, because it didn’t seem as if was of any relevance. Until very recently…
We’d booked tickets to see Massive Attack and they were playing at a sports arena on the outskirts of the city. Too far to walk to, we didn’t want to negotiate public transport or book taxis and we definitely didn’t want to drive, so accommodation in the centre – about 5kms away – wasn’t really an option. However, a quick search of hotels near the Kioene Arena included the red tower, above. Turns out it’s a Best Western hotel – the Plus Net Tower Hotel. We usually avoid chain hotels if we can. Not that we’ve anything against them – it’s just that there’s always so much other choice. But, this hotel was a 6 minute walk from the Arena, and reviews were really, really good so we booked a superior king room for € 89.25. To be honest, we weren’t expecting too much – so were absolutely delighted when we arrived and realised what we’d actually booked.
Parking is often an issue when staying somewhere – it’s pretty rare to find free on-site parking, and so we often have to do street parking or a car park. This isn’t a problem, as we do expect to pay if we are using our car and want to park it up somewhere – but, being able to do it for free, and not having to fight for a space, is a definite bonus. As well as lots of space at the front and to the sides of the hotel, there is also an underground car park. All free for users of the hotel. We’ve definitely noted this, as we drive back to England fairly regularly and always seem to return – usually via Padova – with a haul of goodies, meaning safe parking is sometimes a real consideration for us.
The hotel entrance is very stylish – spacious, with big, soft loungy sofas and cool lighting. I’m not sure how long this hotel has actually been open, but the interior is absolutely pristine. No suitcase scuff marks on the walls. Door handles and light switches were positively sparkling. All very impressive so far.
Room 507 – one of the superior king rooms – was quite beautiful, with caramel and cream interiors. The corner room was huge, with floor to ceiling windows on two sides, so it was light and airy. The bed was very big and super comfy, and additional bedding was stored in a cupboard. For anyone wanting to work when staying, there was a very cool desk, with an additional table and designer chairs. The bathroom was large and exceptionally clean, with a separate walk in shower.
We chose to eat in the hotel restaurant as there wasn’t anything else nearby, so we were taking our chances. However, this was in Italy where food is king. We’ve stayed in hotels in the UK, which were much more expensive than this one, and had food which could best be described as bland. This food was excellent and of a really high standard, with great choice. Not too much choice, which might have suggested that a lot of dishes were possibly frozen. Just enough to know that everything on the menu was fresh. A big basket of warm, freshly made bread was delivered to the table with oils, for us to snack on as we perused the menus. Always a good sign for me when a restaurant has the uber stylish Dag-Style menu covers…
Pumpkin Risotto and Three Cheese Macaroni, with a crisp bottle of Pinot Grigio went down very well. Incredibly tasty and just the right size portions. And for just under 40 euros, an excellent meal.
So, there you have it. A night in a chain hotel – great value for money, extremely comfortable, well designed rooms, an excellent restaurant and superb location for the Kioene Arena, where we had a date with Massive Attack…
by Helen | Feb 7, 2019 | Italy, Travel
Apart from Easter in Seville – Santa Semana – we’ve not witnessed a spectacle quite as amazing as the Venice Carnival. We arrived in Venice on a cold, misty February morning, having booked two nights in Venice. Not even considering what time of year it was. We stepped off the water taxi, not really taking in what was happening around us, but something caught our eyes…
Mingled in with the tourists and Venetian residents rushing around, doing normal things, were figures like the one above. Some posing elegantly, clearly used to being a part of this spectacle. Some were strolling along in pairs, groups. Some had even been doing their shopping – I’ll never forget the sight of a Casanova type courtesan, carrying his evening meal supplies in a Conad supermarket shopping bag. And then it dawned on us – it was February. Carnival time!
As we headed away from the Grand Canal and further into the maze of streets and alleyways and bridges, more of these astonishingly beautiful beings appeared. We were utterly mesmerised. Initially, it felt a bit intrusive taking photos, but we quickly realised that the whole point of the promenading was to be seen and photographed, so a simple “Posso?” generally resulted in a very striking pose…
And, just to debunk the myth that Venice is prohibitively expensive, especially over the Carnival, we also enjoyed an afternoon of free theatre and opera in St Mark’s Square. An absolutely exhilerating experience, and definitely one we won’t forget…
