After booking our accommodation in San Francisco via
Airbnb I searched for accommodation in Sicily and found
Anita B & B. There were four of us heading to Agrigento to visit the
Valley of the Temples and the B & B would meet our needs and seemed reasonably priced.
Good communication with Angela, who runs the B & B, meant we established that the Kiwi and I along with my parents would have the run of the B & B as it has two rooms, and there was secure car parking available for my parent’s car. Perfect!
View from a bedroom balcony
On the day of our arrival, I sent a text to Angela to let her know we were about half an hour away, as she asked for notice of our arrival. Unfortunately, the text didn’t arrive so we got to the B&B to find no one there. Mama called Angela and they chatted in Italian, with Angela confirming she needed a bit of time (she was actually making tomato passata when we called!) to get there and she would also need to make up the beds.
We went for a wander to check out the town and get some lunch, returned a couple of hours later to meet Angela, a lovely, warm and friendly lady who was apologetic for the wait and preparation required. However, we’d timed it well and she’d finished the preparation required for our stay.
large bedroom
The bedrooms are large, one with a lovely wee balcony and bright en-suite bathroom, the other with a large terrace with views down to the water. Both have air conditioning, a necessity! The room with the large terrace has a king bed and two single beds in there, along with a desk. The bathroom is off the hallway before you enter the bedroom. Both bathrooms were clean, their only down-side being the size of the shower cubicle – teeny tiny, don’t drop the soap!
Another bedroom
The lounge and kitchen area is to the front of the building, which you enter straight from the street. It is a gloomy room and the navy sofa and navy table cloths on the two tables don’t help the cause, it’s not a comfortable space but the chances are you will spend little time here. There is a television, a gas hob and fridge stocked with items you can purchase for a reasonable price. A coffee machine is there for your use, Angela giving us instructions although she comes in each morning to set breakfast and make coffee if you wish.
We had a pleasant stay here and it did all we needed it to do without fuss, in a clean and pleasant environment, reasonably priced and with a very pleasant and lovely hostess.
The only issue we really had was with the secure car parking. This is a street away and down the hill, only a few minutes walk, at additional cost. We were parking a large car in the garage but it’s an awkward L shape and with locals parking outside the doors Dad ended up damaging the paintwork of the car trying to park the car in the garage – a hassle we could have done without. Angela only charged us for one night as she understood the difficulty we had.
Posted in Accommodation Review, Travel.
Tagged with Accommodation, Agrigento, airbnb, Anita B&B, Bed & Breakfast, Italy, Review, Sicily.
By Paola
September 24, 2012
Trolling through the accommodation possibilities for Palermo, the
Hotel Vecchio Borgo stood out as a potentially decent resting place, all the more so due to their offer of paying up front to secure a €54 bed and breakfast rate – deal!
My parents arrived in Sicily before us, so checked in before picking us up from the airport. The secure car parking turned out to be rather complicated, with the garage being 20 minutes away and one of the staff would drive and park it and you needed to give notice of when you wanted your car back. Too complicated, especially when it was my parents own car, not a hire car and it’s a large car. When the staff saw it, they conceded to letting Dad park right outside the hotel, in the chained area and in clear view of the reception staff.
That sorted, onto the rooms.
The corner bedroom
As per the website, the rooms were rather elaborate however clean and pleasant. Our room was a bit more spacious than my parents’ room but it did the job. Staff were efficient and friendly. There is double glazing in the rooms, which is needed as our room over-looked a small piazza where the locals liked to hang out in the evening.
The surprise came in the morning, when we went down for breakfast. What a breakfast! There was a selection of cereals, fresh fruit, hams and cheese, rolls, bread for toasting, yoghurt, cakes and tarts, brioches and fruit juice. You placed your order for the type of coffee you desired, as you do in Italy.
All in all, this was a pleasant hotel, well situated for walking around Palermo sites and near shopping areas as well as very reasonably priced. Unfortunately, it’s opposite shared rubbish bins, and this being Sicily, the rubbish mounts considerably and looks rather unattractive, leaving the street feeling neglected and a tad rough, but it was fine. Continue straight up the street and in the next block you find nice apartments and good shopping!
Hotel Vecchio Borgo, Via Quintino Sella, Palermo
Posted in Accommodation Review, Travel.
Tagged with Hotel, Hotel Vecchio Borgo, Italy, Palermo, Review, Sicily.
By Paola
September 22, 2012
We got a deal through wotif for a one night stay at
The Blakemore Hotel, situated in Bayswater. The hotel is in a great spot really handy to Hyde Park, convenient for the Central Line tube stations and a pleasant neighbourhood of shops and restaurants.
We arrived at the hotel early, around 12 noon after our long-haul flight from San Francisco. Our room wasn’t ready so we confirmed that it would be ready for 2pm, per our booking confirmation. The surly receptionist told us that the policy is 3pm access so we replied that our confirmation stated access at 2pm, she hospitably snapped back saying ‘no, it’s always 3pm where does it say that’…so we showed her! After a long-haul flight and no sleep for 24 hrs this was the last thing we needed. She conceded, said we would get the room at 2pm so we left our bags and went out to find some lunch.
A thunder storm downpour made sure we got soaked so we returned to the hotel a little before 2pm and the room was still not ready…by 2.40pm we were sick of waiting and enquired again, to be told we would have to wait until 3pm! The Kiwi wasn’t having any of it, so it was sorted out and finally we got access to Room 15 feeling rather irritated.
recently refreshed room
The hotel appears to be going through a refresh and the room looked recently renovated, with a lovely big bed in a decently sized room. The bathroom looked flash, however as we used it we realised how badly designed it was! The soaker showerhead is placed so you end up soaking the floor of the bathroom and the loo, as the screen is too short. The shower and bath controls stick out at the side of the wall so you end up bashing yourself as you shower. There is no space for the loo paper holder, so it sits on the floor and potentially the paper will get wet from the shower! Another situation where it’s style over substance, but everything worked well and it was clean.
Stylish bathroom
Breakfast was included, and it was the usual suspects for a continental breakfast. No selection of teas though, and just big urns of prepared coffee which I didn’t touch as I couldn’t imagine it would be any good!
Really, the hotel’s selling point is it’s location and the price we paid through the wotif offer of £99 made it good value. Had the staff been a bit nicer and more professional about access to the room I would be raving about the place, although if I had paid full price I would have been most unhappy about the staff’s attitude. The wi-fi connection was a bit ropey and didn’t always work from the room, which was another irritation.
The UK hospitality industry may need to remind their staff what the term “hospitality” means. I have found on this trip that the language barrier has been an issue, where Eastern European staff are employed without sufficient English to truly communicate in an effective way and hospitable way. Certainly the Blakemore may need to remind it’s staff that a warm welcome is appreciated by customers and that there is a certain way to handle issues that may arise.
Posted in Accommodation Review, Travel.
Tagged with Accommodation, Bayswater, Blakemore Hotel, hotel review, London, Travel.
By Paola
September 21, 2012
While looking for accommodation in San Francisco I was surprised at the rates being charged. Exasperated, a google search ensued, where I came across the Airbnb website and started scoping out potential places to stay via this social media based accommodation site that describes itself as “a trusted community marketplace for people to list, discover, and book unique accommodations around the world”.
The Kiwi checked out the site too, and found a lady who rents out an ensuite room in her home in the Castro area of the city. We made contact, a few exchanges of emails followed, as we were new to the site we didn’t have a profile history for Kathy to check us out on, and then the booking made.
Our host, Kathy, is a great communicator and has anticipated her guests questions and the information they may require so you know exactly where to find her apartment through a variety of options, what will be available to use in her home and some ‘house rules’ of thumb to go by while you stay. We received emails in advance of our trip advising of websites to use for deals on things on in San Francisco, was given advice on the necessity to make bookings in advance – and she was right, we were too late to get a trip to Alcatraz as it was fully booked!
Bright bedroom
On arrival, Kathy is warm and friendly and her home is just gorgeously homely and stylish. The sunny, spotless guest room is a good size with a new bed, a desk and chair, two armchairs and a decent wardrobe space. The bathroom is gorgeous, with a fabulous shower over the bath, with lovely towels and a hairdyer provided for guest use. The wifi connection was fab, the hub is in the room!
Excellent en-suite
The apartment is on the top floor – what I would call the third floor – of a converted building and is well located for public transport with a stop for the F streetcar around the corner on Market Street and the Metro stop is about two minutes walk away. I am a light sleeper and the room was quiet, despite the proximity to a busy road. Kathy has information to hand and plenty suggestions for guests should they need it. In particular she has cards with recommended walks, including one in her neighbourhood which we did on our first afternoon there, and it was a great walk to get a feel and introduction to San Franciscan life,…including the naked dudes who wander around the ‘hood! Our stay was comfortable, relaxed, pleasant, reasonably priced and a great introduction to this different approach to finding accommodation. I look forward to staying with Kathy again next time we visit!
Posted in Accommodation Review, Travel.
Tagged with Accommodation, airbnb, bed and breakfast, Castro, Review, San Francisco, USA.
By Paola
September 18, 2012
When friends visiting from the UK drove down to Wellington to see us via the East Cape it brought to the Kiwi and my attention that we had yet to visit the area. So, this summer we set out to rectify that. We drove up to Gisborne, spent a few nights there then headed up round the Cape to Bay of Plenty. It seems the typical journey is to start from Bay of Plenty, but we like to mix it up a little!
East Cape is often billed as the place where you see the real New Zealand, the place that time forgot and were you get to see many Maori settlements. There is also suggestion that you may not feel welcome as Pakeha (Maori word or name for non-Maori New Zealander, specifically a white person) so I must say at the outset we didn’t find this at all.
What we did find was beautiful, unspoilt beaches, peace, tranquillity and relaxing vibe.
Anaura Bay
One highlight was when we visited a beach at Waipiro, which has a Marae located right by the beach. We were the only ones there on this stunning, white sandy beach with beautiful turquoise water lapping it’s shores. Then suddenly all these local kids hooned down from nowhere and spent over an hour mucking about and playing games, slowly their parents wandering down to either join them or have a siesta in the shade of the pine trees. It was lovely to see locals taking advantage of the beauty on their doorstep.
- Waipiro Marae by the beach
Rush hour at Waipiro Bay
Another special time was a lovely, long walk we took along the beach before breakfast whilst staying at Tokomaru Bay.
On the journey around the Cape we stopped at the Lighthouse on the most easterly point on New Zealand’s mainland, stood under what is considered the world’s largest Pohutakawa Tree, visited the Manuka Centre and saw lots of lovely vistas and quaint churches, not to mention ‘historic’ wharfs.
Quaint church
Another NZ must do.
Posted in Travel.
Tagged with Beaches, East Cape, New Zealand, NZ must do, remote NZ.
By Paola
February 6, 2012
We pulled up in front of the bright and cheerful Post Office B & B, then read the note asking us to call the hosts to let them know we were there. As I searched for my mobile phone a lovely, local man pulled up in his car, gave us a beautiful toothless smile and asked if we needed help or if he could call Bill for us. What a lovely start to our arrival in Tokomaru!
Lounge, with one bedroom off of it
Bill arrived and gave us a warm welcome and offered us the choice in rooms as we were there for two nights, then gave us a lovely glass of home made ginger beer. The charming Post Office is homely, with a large living area for guests to share and a small kitchen offering the opportunity to self-cater. A selection of provisions are available to make yourself breakfast in the morning, from fruit and cereal to eggs and bread.
Cosy bedroom
The bedroom we selected was smaller than the other double, but cosy and comfortable and closer to the bathroom than the other rooms, although lacking in hanging space for clothes. Due to the historic nature of the over 100 year old building, there are no en-suite bathrooms but you do get your ‘own’ bathroom to use with an excellent shower, although the bathrooms could do with modernising to get rid of that utilitarian feel and add a bit of comfort. A shelf to put toiletries on would have been handy too!
Perfectly located for the beach and a walk to the Toko Tavern (the only eatery in the village), the only downside to the accommodation was the noise of traffic all through the night – heavy vehicles carrying logs to Gisborne for shipping screech their way down the hill and break outside the B&B before turning the corner just past it on the way to Gissy, … light sleepers beware.
Bill is an outstanding host and an interesting man to chat to. On the way out of the bay we stopped outside the school he teaches in to admire the scarecrow he’d told us about. We got an invite to pop in but in city-slicker mode we refused as we had a bit of a trip ahead,… and needless to say 10 mins later we both conceded we should have taken the opportunity to pop in and say Kia ora to the kids! Opportunity missed, lesson learnt.
P.S. Bring cash to pay, or do an online payment – they don’t take credit cards or eftpos.
Te Poutapeta – The Post Office, 8 Waimana Street - Tokomaru Bay - Eastland - 06 864 5411
Posted in Accommodation Review, Travel.
Tagged with B & B, East Cape, New Zealand, Self-catering accommodation, The Post Office, Tokomaru Bay.
By Paola
February 4, 2012
Melting in the summer warmth, unsure which wineries were open we headed to the Gisborne Wine Centre to check out the local wines under one roof. Offering flights of a selection of Gisborne wines, we decided to take a different flight each so we could compare and compete for who had the best selections.
Sitting outside under the protection of a sun umbrella by the marina, we made our way through the wine flights, reading the tasting notes, deciding what we thought, comparing and scoring. A great way to get a flavour for the local wines with little effort and driving around required!
Flights and Food
Then the munchies set in so we ordered some olives, bread and oil and the most delicious Manuka Smoked Lamb with smoked mushrooms and peach chutney – wow! Fabulous.
Gisborne Wine Centre, Shed 3, 50 The Esplanade, Gisborne
Posted in Travel.
Tagged with Gisborne Wine Centre, wine tasting.
By Paola
January 30, 2012
On a sunny Sunday morning we went out in search of breakfast in Gisborne, struggling to find somewhere open! We found Cafe Ruba tucked at the end of the street, hiding behind a lovely tree which provides lovely protection from the sun.
Muesli and fruit brekkie
With a delicate tummy from being ill the night before, I was looking for something fresh to eat. I chose the Muesli with fruit and fruit toast, which turned out to be toasted ciabatta with jam. The muesli had large bran flakes and lovely dried fruit through it, with a healthy topping of beautiful fresh strawberries, plum and banana on top, with a side of yoghurt – perfect.
The Kiwi went for the cooked breakfast and got a decent plate of food with the usual suspects. All washed down with a good coffee, seated outside in the shade of the lovely tree this was a great start to our day!
Cafe Ruba, 14 Childers Street, Gisborne
Posted in Restaurant Review, Travel.
Tagged with breakfast, Cafe Ruba, Gisborne, Review.
By Paola
January 29, 2012
After a long drive from Wellington and two recommendations received from locals, without question we headed for the Fettuccine Brothers restaurant in Peel Street. With a bar on one side and restaurant on the other, at 9.30pm we got a table easily, although with it being the holiday weekend perhaps it may have been more quiet than usual Saturday nights.
Staff were efficient and the room pleasant. The Kiwi ordered the Agnello Codrione which is Rosemary marinated Lamb rump with braised cabbage & minted peas, red wine sauce and roasted pumpkin cannelloni ($32). The Lamb was cooked well and tasted great, the veg was nice although there was confusion on the cannelloni front as the Kiwi thought it was kumara, regardless of that it wasn’t cannelloni as my Nonna made it!
I ordered the Orrechiette Con Manzo, pasta with braised beef in a Chianti gravy with mushrooms & caramelised onions ($26). It was a good plate of food, although the pasta was overcooked – it seems pasta al dente in restaurants goes in the ‘too hard’ basket – with a nice, rich, beefy sauce but the more I ate the more I got an overwhelming taste of saltiness.
The dish had a generous shaving of Parmigiano over it – despite my Italian heritage I can’t eat parmigiano – and whilst it may be traditional to have the cheese over pasta, I think it wise to state it will be in the dish so we can say hold the parmesan, if we wish. Aside from my taste, I wasn’t convinced it really would add to this rich beefy dish anyway. Parmesan lovers may wish to disagree!
We skipped dessert, opting to finish off the meal with Limoncello – a very light, translucent drink arrived, in contrast to the lemony yellow I am used to, but it was delicious.
I can’t say for sure whether this is connected or not, but shortly after returning home from this meal I was violently sick. Saltiness. The Kiwi was fine.
Fettuccine Brothers, 12 Peel Street, Gisborne, New Zealand
Posted in Restaurant Review.
Tagged with Fettuccine Brothers, Gisborne, Italian food, New Zealand, Restaurant, Review.
By Paola
January 29, 2012
Friends were visiting from Auckland and they recalled going to Caffe L’affare on a visit to Wellington 15 years ago, so we took them back there for Sunday brunch.
Bustling as always, we just managed to get a table for the four of us without waiting for a table. We just had to wait for our coffees. A 20 minute wait as we contemplated the Menu, ordered and waited for our food thus putting us off ordering a second round of coffee for fear it taking so long to arrive!
The food was worth the wait. My pancakes hit the spot but in particular the Mince on toast our friend ordered was a hit! I wouldn’t order such a thing as I always think it sounds so bland but this looked amazing and our friend assured us it tasted fantastic… so next visit to L’affare I will be ordering Mince on toast! Here’s hoping the coffee arrives at the same time.
27 College Street, Wellington
Posted in Restaurant Review.
Tagged with brunch, Caffe l'affare, Review, Wellington.
By Paola
December 6, 2011
