Cim I Tomba ... A Spanish Dish.

#Cim I Tomba#SpanishFishStew#CanCarlus

We experienced some authentic Spanish/Tossa de Mar cuisine the other evening ... it was so delicious!

The evening was cool but our Ecuadorian waiter, Juan/ John turned on the patio heater and soon it was 25 degrees Celsius creating a wonderful ambiance.

Cim I Tomba ( pronounced sim ee Tom bah ) is a fish stew ...

Potatoes parboiled in saffron infused water, the potatoes are layered with flour, onions, peppers and topped with Scorpion Fish fillets and a whole garlic bulb...then roasted in the oven... 

Delicious and Señor Honey wants to recreate the recipe ...

It was cooked / prepared in one pan for the two of us and then served table side on our plates.

        

Dinner was followed by our choice of dessert...

Señor choose tiramisu and I tried the "Santiago" cake ... An almond flavoured pie in honour of my upcoming pilgrimage walk.

                     

And again we were offered an after dinner drink on the house ... this evening we sipped "Melocotin" a peach flavoured liqueur. 

A nice way to finish off the evening ...  leading to a good night's sleep and soon we will be caught up with the time change!

Sa Tuna Sidetrip...

#SaTuna#CostaBrava#Spain

Tuesday ... 

After a good night's sleep and a delicious petit déjeuner at the Fasthotel in Toulouse, we hit the road by 8 o'clock and drove south through France headed for Spain.

Two and half hours later we crossed the Spanish border heading for Tossa de Mar on the Costa Brava.

About two weeks earlier a page I follow on Facebook posted a wonderful photo of a location north of our eventual destination.

Below is the photo I took ...

Surprisingly, Señor Honey (while in Spain his name has changed) decided that a sidetrip to Sa Tuna for lunch was in order.

With the help of "Molly" (our GPS) and some navigational assistance from the front passenger seat (that would be me) we finally found the idyllic village of Begur and descended to the bay.

A billboard poster welcoming us in the parking lot ... from here we have yet to see the bay/water.

The photo I took when we reached the bay.

After a stroll through the village down to the waterfront, we settled on a restaurant for our first Spanish meal.

I ordered a tuna salad ... fresh tuna, roasted red peppers, sun dried tomatoes, onions, hard boiled egg but no lettuce ... while Señor had grilled sausage and fries.

We completed our meal with Creme Catalan...

We wandered around the bay and narrow cobble stoned streets and walkways ...before heading on to our final stop of the day "Tossa de Mar".

Hotel Diana (Casa Sans)

#TossadeMar#HotelDiana#PandoraandtheFlyingDutchman

After our three hour sidetrip to Sa Tuna we continued to our destination the "Hotel Diana"  in Tossa de Mar which is an outstandingly well preserved Art Deco style building.

*"The building has an unusual sea facing facade, with Modernist gargoyles representing the four seasons, trencadis mosaics made from glazed shards, and wrought iron similar to that found in Gaudi's Casa Vicens in Barcelona. 

... Most of Antoni de Falguera's original decoration is preserved.

The magnificent stained glass windows ... and the spectacular fireplace are absolutely characteristic of the Catalan Modernist style.

The marble staircase and the fountain with it's Frederic Mares sculpture of Diana the Huntress both belong to a later period, after Casa Sans was acquired by the Vilallonga family in 1930."

* above info from local tourist info brochure.

It faces the beach and bay with views of the walled town and the main entrance is in a small square.

Our room overlooks the square... 

               

After a brief rest we strolled through the Historic Center and decided on a restaurant for our first evening meal in Spain. 

"Tapa A Tapa" was at the end of a narrow alley way...

As we had a significant meal at lunch, we opted for a lighter fare with some Spanish wine and later we were treated to a homemade Spanish liqueur, Orujo (similar to Limoncello) on the house by the restaurant owner.

An enjoyable "Welcome to Spain" which led to another very good night's sleep!