We are VERY WELL in Barcelona Spain 🇪🇸!! But here are a few of my favorite local dishes that I kept eating over and over again! Since my private group tours are based on food & wine, you never have to worry about being hungry or paying for wine with meals! 🍷🍷🍷
I am BUSYYYYYYY planning the 2025 trips for Culinary Travels even though there are 2 more trips left for 2024! I want to give everyone enough time to plan! Can you guess this location?! The best way to see it will be the river because it is STUNNING 🤩! Stay tuned! 🇵🇹🇵🇹 #winetravel #foodandwine #CulinaryJourney
#SundayFunday This post is in 2 parts. 1st I’m going to talk about this cool toast we learned from our Catalonian guide while in Barcelona. 2nd I’m going to talk about Aperol Spritz since its #nationalproseccoweek 🥂🥂Toasting in Spain 🇪🇸 can be as easy as saying “Salud” OR you can do this 4 part toast which is much more fun! We learned it during our group farewell dinner in Costa Brava. The steps and phrases are:1. **¡Arriba!** (Up!)2. **¡Abajo!** (Down!)3. **¡Al centro!** (To the center!)4. **¡Y adentro!** (And inside!)I kept trying it around the table and I think I only got center and inside correct ✅ lol 😆 Now on to these huge & delicious Aperol Spritz! I recently posted about “Apertifs” in Italy 🇮🇹. They are used to quench the palate before a meal. During our tour of Northern Italy last October I drank Aperol and Hugo Spritz daily!! They are so refreshing. Well a key ingredient is Prosecco! This is a sparkling wine made in the Veneto region of Italy 🇮🇹. The same region as Venice. Since its National Prosecco Week I’m sharing the recipe: The ingredients for an Aperol Spritz are:- 3 parts Prosecco- 2 parts Aperol- 1 part soda water- Ice cubes- Orange slice for garnishTo prepare it, fill a glass with ice, pour in the Prosecco, then the Aperol, and top with soda water. Stir gently and garnish with an orange slice.Enjoy it this summer!Are you a fan of Prosecco? Join me on a Culinary Travels journey to learn about these traditional customs & beverages! I will be going LIVE on ZOOM this Tuesday!! Topic: Barcelona Trip Recap & Culinary Travels Q&ATime: Jul 2, 2024 08:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)Join Zoom Meetinghttps://us06web.zoom.us/j/84166915381?pwd=Ooaq0SAUVRMJnVh8AMaZXOBATikV6r.1Meeting ID: 841 6691 5381Passcode: Barcelona
#travelthursdays🌏✈️ flashback! Does anyone remember when I visited Bogota Colombia 🇨🇴?!
It was a very interesting experience. Admittedly I did not have time to do a lot of research before going. But I was excited to get to my 6th continent!
Here are some interesting facts about Bogota that I learned during my visit! Have you been there?
Sure, here are five interesting facts about Bogotá, Colombia:
1. **High Altitude**: Bogotá is one of the highest capital cities in the world, sitting at an altitude of approximately 2,640 meters (8,660 feet) above sea level. I couldn’t tell thank goodness.
2. **Cultural Hub**: The city is known for its vibrant cultural scene, with numerous museums, theaters, and art galleries. The Gold Museum (Museo del Oro), which houses the largest collection of pre-Columbian gold artifacts in the world, is a must-visit.
The famous artist associated with Bogotá is Fernando Botero. He is renowned for his distinctive style, often referred to as "Boterismo," which features exaggerated and voluptuous figures.
The museum dedicated to his work is the **Botero Museum (Museo Botero)**. Located in the historic neighborhood of La Candelaria, the museum houses an extensive collection of Botero's paintings, drawings, and sculptures. In addition to his own works, the museum also features pieces from Botero's personal collection, including works by other famous artists such as Picasso, Monet, and Dalí.
3. **Historic Center**: La Candelaria is Bogotá's historic center, featuring colonial-era landmarks, colorful buildings, and cobblestone streets. It's also home to Plaza Bolívar, the main square surrounded by important government buildings.
4. **TransMilenio**: Bogotá's bus rapid transit system, TransMilenio, is one of the largest and most efficient in the world. It has significantly improved public transportation in the city since its introduction in the early 2000s. I saw a lot of cyclists while I was there.
5. **Green Spaces**
I am good at drinking wine all over the world 🌍🍷🍷🍷On my recent group trip to Spain I drank a lot of Cava, white & red Garnache & Tempranillo. Yum. Follow me to learn all about food + wine + travel = Culinary Travels! #barcelonaspain🇪🇸 #culinaryarts #foodandwine
What are you addicted to? If I’m not traveling, planning travel, looking forward to travel, researching travel to eat & drink wine…I’m lost! 😆😆😆 Now I get to share this addiction with others with my group trips!!! Culinary Travels by The Sophisticated Life! #tslculinarytravels #traveladdict #culinarytravels
It’s 5’Oclock somewhere! And in Spain 🇪🇸 for us that meant any time of day lol 😆 At this private multi-course lunch on our way to the Penedes wine region, we had the pleasure of our guide teaching us how to drink from a Porrón! It looks like a decanter/watering can. It’s filled with wine or cider and you drink from it vs using a glass. It’s passed around at the table and adds to the festive atmosphere!! Check out the lady in the blue dress (me) 🥹🥹. Have you seen this done before? It’s common in Catalan & Basque cultures of Northern Spain 🇪🇸! #barcelonaspain #culinarytravels #tslculinarytravels
Have you eaten at a Michelin star ⭐️ restaurant? It’s our 4th night in Barcelona and we got dolled up to eat at Caelis in a private room that is BEAUTIFUL 😍!! I can’t wait to share more!! We can watch the kitchen LIVE! I love curating these experiences for Culinary Travels!! Are you going to join me for a trip in 2025? #culinarytravels #luxurytravels
Want to do something fun in Barcelona? Go shopping for Espadrilles! This was not on my initial itinerary but when one of the travelers brought it up, most of the group decided to tag along and ended up going to 2 stores to buy some! They had styles and colors that you can’t find in the US!! #barcelonafun #espadrilles #spaintravel
I have had the tastiest tapas so far in Barcelona! (Duhhh) surprisingly the first place I ate was a Japanese restaurant! Sashimi, beef tartar, scallops both topped with egg, the next place I had fried feta cheese in phyllo pastry, Iberico Jamon of course, tomato bread, and one of my FAVORITES-PATATAS BRAVAS!! #yum #tapas #culinarytravels
For the 2nd year of Culinary Travels Im coming HOT 🔥🔥🔥More luxury, more adventure, more wine, 🍷, more gastronomy… more everything!!! Let’s Go!!!! The adventure starts on Sunday in Spain 🇪🇸 #grouptravel #luxurytravel
I am busy and traveling and on a @delta flight (free wifi for skymiles members) but I had to post for #nationalwineday🍷 2024!!!!My absolute favorite place to go wine tasting in the US & the world is Napa Valley!! And 2 years ago I was on a solo trip there in heaven checking out these historic wineries! What you can’t tell from the pics is that I developed COVID 19 for the first time 1 day later and sequestered myself in an airport hotel. Dreadful!!! I notified everyone I did tastings with and they were all well. Whew. I’m glad it’s 2024. Grateful for vaccines. But my experience at all 3 places was wonderful and had something different to offer. 1) @farnientewinery is stunning and a classic Napa Valley estate. You can spend hours here touring and tasting several varietals since there are several labels under their brand. Definitely try the Cabernet Sauvignon 🍷2) @heitzcellar has a gorgeous setting and tasting room! It is very sophisticated! They are known for classic Napa Chardonnay & Cab. If it’s not broke why fix it?! Have you heard of “The judgement of Paris”?! Heitz Cellar participated and their “Martha’s Vineyard” Cabernet Sauvignon won 9th place among the American and French wines. And NO the wine is not related to the New England island lol 3) If you love bubbles head north to Calistoga to @schramsberg This was such a fun cave tasting! Our guide went over how sparkling wines are made and the tasting was done in the cave. I have been to Champagne France so the information was not new to me but their wines were and they were Delic! 🥂 @culinarytravels_thesophislife will be starting domestic trips in 2025. Could Napa Valley be on the list?!! Sign up for my newsletter to find out!!! #nationalwineday #winelovers🍷 #blackwinelovers #winewithfriends #tslculinarytravels #luxurywines #napawines #napawinecountry #napawineries #wineeducator Have you been to any of these wineries?
I had the most delicious Detroit-style pizza Buddy's Pizza today!! The crust was crispy and buttery and I loved the cheese and toppings. I asked for light sauce. Have you had Detroit-style pizza? #detroitpizza
One of the things I loved about Moroccan food was all the CARBS!! Yup I said it lol. They eat a lot of bread 🥖 and pastries and I looked forward to them everyday!! 😅😅 I can’t wait to go back with my Culinary Travels group in September to have them with my mint tea. 🍵 Have you been to Morocco 🇲🇦? #visitmorocco #morrocotravel
In less than 1 month I will be back in flight ✈️ for the start of Culinary Travels 2024!! So I’m looking back at some of the amazing experiences from last year. WE ATE VERY WELL IN ITALY 🇮🇹 We had sooooo many tastings & unique experiences like a chocolate making class & truffle hunting & a balsamic vinaigrette tasting & of course wine tasting & pasta making! It was all delicious 😋😋 If you love food & wine 🍷 then these tours are for you! Sign up to the newsletter to find out about 2025 tours! https://bit.ly/TSLnewsletter
