For the longest time I have really, really wanted to go to Menorca. I don’t know why, I’ve just had it in my head that that was where I wanted the next family holiday to be. I probably saw it on the telly and thought it looked like a paradise that was easy to get to. Also, I was vaguely aware that there was good food to be found!

Getting There

We got there the usual way, EasyJet from Bristol. It worked out to be about £400 cheaper than flying via Flybe from Exeter, which annoys me because I could easily walk to Exeter airport from home.

Where to Stay

I spoke to a friend who went a year or two ago. She told me where she’d stayed and where she wish she’d stayed instead. The wish place was Ciutadella. It’s just under an hour by car from the airport, which is pretty much the entire length of the island.

We Airbnb’d it. I won’t tell you which villa we stayed at cos we didn’t like it. It looked the part but not only was it on a busy road, it also reeked of must and damp. It’s such a shame because it was a beautiful space, the gardens were big and the pool was lovely. If they’d looked after the inside like they did the outside, it would have been perfect. It was only a ten minute stroll to the nearest beach (Sa Caleta) and a supermarket wasn’t that far either. We booked in February, if we’d done so a few months earlier there probably would have had a better crop to pick from (I fell in love with a farmhouse surrounded by beautiful fields but nope, someone else had got their mitts on it first).

What we ate

Menorca has a reputation for its very good food. Therefore I assumed it would be dead easy to find a cheap little cafe or restaurant that local people loved. We didn’t eat out at any of those wherever they were. One place (a cafe in the main square of the capital city, Mahon) barely served real food at all, it was nasty. I also disliked the food at the restaurant we went to in Fornells. We chose a busy one (that’s what I thought you were supposed to do) but it was half arsed. I had stuffed aubergine as it’s a Menorcan classic but it was some disappointing brown slops on a plate. The other place we tried was in Ciutadella and it was the nicest. We ate grilled cuttlefish and patatas bravas and we enjoyed that, even with the party of ants that had joined us at our table.

It boiled down to this: we couldn’t afford to eat in the restaurants that give Menorca its good food rep. I didn’t get to eat the caldereta de langosta that I had my heart set on because it was too expensive. It’s sad day when you can’t even afford “peasant” food.

The markets? Sooo good and loads of fun!! I really enjoyed using some dodgy Spanish to ask for what I wanted (a huge change from my chickening out on last year’s trip to Spain). We went to the fish market in Ciutadella twice. We came back with loads to put on the bbq and it was delicious. Then there was a food market on the Saturday morning too where we bought locally made bread with sobrassada, eggs and some fruit n veg. We took it all back to the villa and had a lovely lunch with yummy stinky cheese that’s made on the island as well.

I almost forgot the fish market/deli in Mahon. That was fab but I was too full of crappy omelette from a crappy cafe to enjoy all the pretty tapas. We got a couple of things but dammit, I wanted it all! Gutted.

Meh, I didn’t research and paid the price. I’m forever cursed with being a lazy food snob.

Oh, I liked the gin a lot even though it’s “not real” gin (it’s distilled from wine not grain). It was interesting, refreshing and tasty. I liked it with schweppes, not lemonade as is traditional in a pomada. Came home with a bottle of that, some vac packed cheese and sobrassada. Yum.

Stuff to do

You go to Menorca to go to the beach. You just do. It has loads of them. Beach too full? Walk to the next one. That one full? Pop across to the next etc… This is another reason why it’s a good idea to come in the half term hols. I gather that in July and August Menorca is heaving with people. Like sandy sardines in a tin. We avoided all the ones near resorts assuming they’d be busiest. We parked at Son Saura twice. The first time we went to Bellavista, which was very nice but the next time we parked here, we walked a bit further to Es Talaier. It was stunning. A beautiful, beautiful beach. There were a few jelly fish but we swam in the warm water anyway. The boys had never swam in the sea before and were beyond excited! I, however, didn’t swim too vigorously because a boob would bounce out the bikini if I got too enthusiastic.

Oh, and Mitjana is gorgeous too. Sort of. There was a big group of loud teenage school kids on a trip plus a load of crusty seaweed spread across the shoreline. We walked further on and found a teeny cove to climb down to but I bust a flip-flop, which put me in a mood and there was nowhere to sit apart from a small spot next to Ugly Naked Guy.

Caves! There were cool caves. Man-made by real cave men! We all really liked it here. The youngest boy absolutely loved clambering all over these. And you do have to climb a little bit to get to them. Good views when you’re at the top. I don’t think I’d want to live in a cave but they were fun to stop by.

What else? I dunno. We went to Fornells but thought it soulless. Very grey. The littlest boy said it was like being on the moon. It wasn’t bad but it didn’t do it for us.

I’d like to have tried a couple more towns such as Es Mercadal and Ferreries. We ended up running out of time and felt like it wouldn’t be much of a holiday if we were rushing round trying to squeeze in as much as possible. The aim was to take it easy so we missed out on a few things.

I did go shopping though! Got some new shoes! Oh my, they are so comfortable and I’ve worn them everyday since I got them. If you find avarcas, get yourself a pair. I’d like all the colours of the rainbow, please!

In Ciutadella I found three (or even four) fabric shops and two places that sold yarn. Can you believe I didn’t buy any?! It’s not a woolly sort of place. The yarn wasn’t Spanish, so I wasn’t interested. OK, there was some Katia in an indoor market in Mahon but that’s not what I wanted.

Conclusion

It’s more expensive than Venice! I feel naive for not knowing. But I’ve been and I’m glad of that. Box ticked. We’ve got some saving to do now. No more holidays abroad for quite some time. It’s been an indulgent couple of years. The children are old enough to buy us some freedom so we’ve been taking advantage of that. I also received a little bit of money when Nanna and Grandad died; I think they would have wanted me to enjoy it. I certainly did! Thanks N&G for Amsterdam, Spain, Venice & Menorca! It’s back to camping in Dorset!

A few more pics below.

xxx

It’s about time I got another crochet chat out, so here is Episode 29 of the Zeens and Roger Crochet podcast.

Immerse yourself in some crochet chat this week!

In this week’s crochet podcast, I share a few delightful things. Check out the photos of yarn and new crochet projects below, too.

Links To Crochet, Yarn & Everything Else!

The Venice blog post. I went to Venice! It was wonderful. We were drooling over the food. And I found yarn shops!

Hotchpotch Granny purse tutorial – I put together a video tutorial showing you how to make a magic knot, how to crochet this purse from the bottom up and how to add lining to your crochet purse.

Mesh bag pattern. A free pattern – Super simple and quick to make this crochet market bag with one skein of yarn.

Holey Smokes no 1 is over on Ravelry – My crochet shawl pattern

Cat pins, I love them! Check out Niaski and Peskimo on Etsy. Both are local to me, and both are amazing designers.

John Arbon Textiles. Proper woolly wool!

Qing Fibre, Garn Surr, Easy Knits, Countess Ablaze

😀

 

This time last week, I was in Venice. It is the most beautiful city I have ever seen. It was awesome, I was literally in awe. Every five minutes, someone heard me say, “This place is amazing, I love it!” The husband started getting annoyed, “You’ve already said that.”

Have you been to Venice? It’s amazing, I love it!

Venice on a Budget

I went expecting to say goodbye to a lot of cash and, if necessary, sell my soul. Yet, our budget didn’t burst its banks at all. This wasn’t actually going to be a post about how you can do Venice on a budget; it was just going to be my usual thing of whacking up pictures and saying what a nice time I had. However, I want you to go to Venice too, and I don’t want you to dismiss it because you think it’ll cost the earth. It doesn’t have to.

Getting To Venice Cheaply

We did Ryanair on the way there and EasyJet on the way back. This wasn’t my job. Another person in our party of six sorted out flights. He found the best times and prices. It didn’t occur to me to choose two different airlines, but this saved us money. We booked in November/December, so I can’t remember how much it was, around £100 pp return from Bristol. Just over, I think.

Once you’re at the airport, you can get a water bus, but it’s half the price to get the train. We wanted to be fancy, so we got the bus. A private taxi would be even fancier, and they really zooom across the water!

Where to Stay in Venice

It’s Airbnb all the way for me. My job was to find accommodation, and I didn’t bother looking anywhere else. Seeing as we were three couples, we needed a three-bed place. This was also booked in November/December, and I think that was too late. Many suitable apartments had already gone, and there weren’t loads of choices for nice places.

The best bet is to leap on flights as soon as they’re released and book somewhere to stay at the same time. Don’t dilly dally. However, we did manage to find clean accommodation with a nice view out the back and three bathrooms. It was right near a stunning-looking hospital in a pretty square with plenty of bars. Nowhere took more than fifteen minutes to walk to. Unless you got lost. Which we did. Frequently.

What We Ate in Venice

Oh my goodness! Everything I ate was fabulous. The only thing I didn’t care much for was the gelato. I don’t know if I had a duff one or if it’s because I’m normally all about umami, but I didn’t like the dense texture. The gelato I ate was just very sturdy ice cream! If we’d have had time (and emptier bellies), I would have gone to the Boutique del Gelato; apparently, it’s top notch.

Venetian Cicchetti!

Cicchetti!! Wowsers, I loved all of it, even the salt cod and pickled fishy things! Cicchetti is a bar snack, a bit like tapas, and you need it in your life. We went to several places to get our fill, and each time we also ordered prosecco. Yuuuum!!!

Stand at the bar and eat, or you can sit too. You might have to pay extra to sit though. Cicchetti is cheap, and you can easily fill up on it for a few quid. Try All’ Arco for traditional/local and also Acqua e Mais for a cone of deep-fried calamari and shrimp. If you’re on a super tight budget, this sort of thing is great, and you don’t need to go mad on the drink (which definitely bumps up the cost). Having said that, a bottle of prosecco is pretty much the same price as a pub here, so much cheaper than I thought it’d be. And so much tastier.

Dinner Isn’t Always Expensive In Venice

Waiters will tell you that you must order seafood. They’re not wrong. It’s what I ate both nights, and it was delicious. The first night we went to a restaurant we’d found on TripAdvisor.

In we went, winding our way through tables whilst chatting to the restaurant guy about reservations. As we talked, he escorted us right past all the diners, through the kitchen and out into the alley at the back. We thought we’d been kicked out, but actually we were waiting for a table. Others were already there, snacking on chilli pesto gnocchi and little glasses of spritz.

We were given the same and told how to hold our plate and glass. A few minutes later, the guy we’d spoken to introduced us to a bemused-looking man in blue gloves and an apron. We were told to follow him. We did and ended up in another restaurant, a two-minute walk away.

At the Tratorria Alla Scala there were no tables for six, so they got some other diners to budge up and in we squeezed. We got complimentary glasses of prosecco, grissini and gorgeous garlicky tomato bruschetta. Main meals were around 18 euros, which I think is ace, especially as we paid that much for dinner in Amsterdam last year and didn’t get any extra stuff (not even a smile).

I can’t remember the name of the restaurant we went to the second night, but it was a lot of sharing platters, and ours were delicious. Oh man, I ate way too much in 48 hours. I haven’t even mentioned the sneaky chips, pizza, sweets, pastries or any of the other things I stuffed in. I couldn’t sleep the first night cos my tummy was so full. Yet I still didn’t spend that much money! Honest!

And I bought lovely yarn! (Not from the posh wool shop though, as I had Pretty Woman experience in there, so… big mistake, huge!).

Stuff to Do in Venice

I think it’s safe to say that this was very much an eating holiday. I’m a big foodie, and my bestie’s husband is a chef, so it was always going to be about food. That means we didn’t have time to visit other islands or go into any of the touristy places you’re supposed to visit.

If you wanted to go up the tower in St Marks’ square, though, I think it’s only 6 euros. The Basilica di San Marco is free to enter, as are a couple of other places. Just standing in St Mark’s Square is breathtaking, you don’t need to spend money there! You don’t even need to go there at all. The whole of Venice is amazing to just walk around and gawp at.

One thing which was total bucket list territory was a ride in a gondola. It was made cheaper by the fact that all six of us squeezed into one boat. Our tour needed to include a goggle at the Bridge of Sighs, but the bloke we chatted to said it didn’t work into his 30-minute route. We wangled a 45-minute trip for 120 euros. Usually, they’re thirty minutes for 80 euros. I know it works out the same, but still.

The alternative was spending more on one hour or finding another fella who was nearer to the prison. Whatever, it was worth every penny. We all loved it, I even got overexcited when I saw a little crab perched on the side of a canal! If you want the gondola man to sing, you have to pay extra, but I would probably pay for him not to sing.

Luckily, our guy only came out with interesting facts about what we were seeing. He even knew where George and Amal got married and had their do. Real Venetian culture!

Things I wanted to do but didn’t get the chance? There’s a market by Rialto bridge. I’d like to go there. Next time I’d go to art galleries too and time it with Carnevale! That sounds like an alright weekend…week? There is loads to do and I did what I wanted to do, saw the things I wanted to see and came home happy.

Basically, if you want to do Venice on the cheap don’t spend money in the San Marco area and you’ll be fine. Eat cicchetti and get the train over. Also, you don’t have to have your accommodation on Venice itself. Burano or Murano would probably work out cheaper. There you go. Boom. Bargain holiday in one of the most beautiful destinations in the entire world.

All pics are my own or the husband’s, taken on our phones. xxx