Alvaro

The shrimp are adult stages of Palaemon Longirostris (locally known as "camarones").

Butterfly, I guess that baby eels are still in season (season runs from November to March aprox.) In former times, it wasn't difficult to find them in many Madrid's restaurants. Nowadays, it is becoming increasingly difficult

For those interested in Sanlúcar and with some skills in Spanish, I'd suggest to read the modest contribution that forumite Jesús Barquín and I wrote a few months ago: http://elmundovino.elmundo.es/elmundovino/...icia=1107330493

Urta, also spelled Hurta. There are two things in which Rota is noteworthy. One is the local sweet Sherry made of an almost extinct red grape (tintilla de Rota). Having discussed this issue with Jesús Barquín a few days ago, we've got to the conclusion that it is almost impossible to find the real thing (although Lustau has a Tintilla de Rota in its almacenistas' range). Within the context of local agriculturists it is well known the high quality of Rota's variety of green pepper (specially when fried) A short list of restaurans/bars deserving a visit: Cádiz: El Faro, El Balandro Road from Cádiz to San Fernando: Ventorrillo el Chato El Puerto de Santa María: El Faro del Puerto Jerez: Casa Juanito, El Bosque, Gaitán, El Gallo Azul Sanlúcar de Barrameda: El Veranillo (traditional food based on local recipes) Cheers

Chipiona is not exactly beautiful but there are some points of interest. One of them is the local Muscat. The other is the local industry of dry-cured-fish (Mohama). I really like Casa Paco, in the port of Chipiona. Sanlucar is much more interesting. In Bajo de Guía (which used to be the old port), there's an impressive array of decent restaurants, all of them fish-oriented: the famous Bigote (excellent restaurant's bar too), Secundino, Casa Juan, Poma, Joselito Huertas, Mirador de Doñana. Although the local speciality is the impressive local prawn, it would be a mistake to neglect fish stews: cazón con tomate (shark with tomato), raya en Amarillo (skate in yellow sauce), corvina con chicharos (I haven’t found a good translation for Corvina, since there's confusion about different species. Anyhow, it is a great fish). Plaza Cabildo is the "official" town's centre. Balbino is a well-known hot spot, although it can be overwhelmingly crowded after 21.45. They have an impressive list of tapas. Shrimps omelettes are great there. Actually, Balbino's version of this traditional dish, is slightly sophisticated (probably, they have improved the local recipe). Just a few yards from Balbino, just crossing calle Ancha, Barbiana. Barbiana is a great place to taste unfiltered manzanilla (manzanilla en rama): excellent tapa of local potatoes (papas aliñas), and, sometimes, superb prawns. In the very same Plaza, La Gitana. It is a good alternative when Balbino is unbearingly crowded. They excel in fried fish (acedías, baby squid). Don't miss the superb -and old-fashioned- manzanilla Pastrana. Of course, don't forget the local market, near the Plaza de San Roque. Not far away, in calle Bretones, there's a tiny shop where you can buy different types of Sherry. If you like Manzanilla style, I recommend Aurora (Pedro Romero), Pastrana (Hidalgo), Barbiana (Delgado Zuleta), La Cigarrera (beautiful tiny bodega in the city centre), Manzanilla en Rama from Barbadillo (you can get it from Barbadillo's winery, which, by the way, deserves a visit), and San León reserva de familia (Argüeso). Don’t forget amontillados: Quo Vadis? (Delgado Zuleta), Don Pedro Romero Prestige (Pedro Romero), Amontillado Viejo Hidalgo (Hidalgo), Amontillado Viejo Pastrana (Hidalgo), Príncipe (Barbadillo) and Amontillado Viejo (Argüeso). And finally, the rare palos cortados: Jerez Cortado (Hidalgo), Palo Cortado Viejísimo (Hidalgo) and Obispo Gascón (Barbadillo). Finally, Casa Guerrero and to a lesser extent, Casa Pozo, both in Calle Ancha, should'nt be neglected if you sigh for sweets. Local specialities like tortas de polvorón, bollitos sanluqueños, cortadillos de cidra, carmelas, masa real, etc. are great. I also recomend Tony's tocino de cielo (Tony is a local ice-cream shop located in Plaza Cabildo). Cheers

Although hotels are good to very good in the Basque Country, I'd pay a close attention to the inexpensive and many times excellent rural guesthouses. There's a well organized net. I've spent a pleasant week in a guesthouse called Iketxe in the surroundings of Hondarribia. Take a look at: http://www.nekatur.net/ Licenciado Poza Street is one of the traditional hot spots for bar hopping in Bilbao. Another good area for this popular activity is the old part of the city (Las 7 calles). If you sigh for ham, La Viña is a wonderful option (although a little bit expensive). Of course, there are excellent restaurants in Bilbao, like Guría, Goizeko Kabi, Zortziko, Bermeo, and Club Naútico. For those preferring, unsophisticated restaurants and excellent food (fish), Itxas Bide, in the old port of Algorta, might be their place. If San Sebastián is unbearingly crowded, Hondarribia is more than a good option for bar hopping (it's just less than 15 kilometres away from San Sebastian). And the city really deserves a visit. Not to be missed, the famous Gernika's market, especially on Mondays. Although Gernika itself is far from beautiful, the surrounding area -the natural park of Urdaibai-, is spectacular. Charming small towns like Mundaka, Kanala, Elantxobe, Ibarrangelua, Pedernales, wild beaches like Laida and Laga, caves with prehistoric paintings in Kortezubi are not far away. Cheers