Do you know what Ireland’s most popular tourist attraction is? I wrote about it back in 2016. And it’s in the news again. So if you’re ready to embrace the ‘stache, you’ll enjoy this article!
Guinness Storehouse in Dublin. Image source: https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2018/01/14/577654344/behind-the-genius-of-guinness-irelands-most-popular-tourist-attraction
Good afternoon everyone, I hope you enjoyed reading about the amazing category 1 SPG hotel (3,000 or 4,000 SPG points per night) in San Salvador: Sheraton Presidente San Salvador Hotel. When we were not eating in the Sheraton club lounge or eating breakfast in the restaurant, we went on a day trip to a local volcano and pupusa restaurant. The whole tour with admission to the volcano and transportation cost $40 per person. Lunch was not included, but only cost me ~$7. We started the tour at our hotel, picked up another person at a nearby hotel, and then drove to the volcano (~30 minute drive). The volcano is in Parque El Boqueron. Here is a beautiful painting on a brick wall.
Good morning everyone, happy Friday! After a quick stop in Guatemala City with a 1 night stay at the Courtyard Marriott Guatemala City and a fun afternoon trip to the Guatemala City Zoo, we flew from Guatemala City (GUA) to San Salvador (SAL), the capital of El Salvador. We stayed at the Sheraton Presidente San Salvador Hotel using 4,000 SPG Points (it would have been only 3,000 SPG Points if we stayed on the weekend).
The property is beautiful, with lots of palm trees and country flags near the hotel entrance. The hotel is ~45 minutes away from the airport, so we asked the hotel to organize a taxi for us (cost was $30). After we checked out, we used Uber to get back to the airport for ~$21. Checking into the hotel was easy and we were upgraded to a nice room on the club floor thanks to my friend’s SPG Platinum Elite Status. We had access to the Club Lounge (great food and snacks) and free breakfast in the restaurant.
Sheraton Presidente San Salvador Exterior. Image source: https://www.starwoodhotels.com/sheraton/property/overview/index.html?propertyID=1597&language=en_US
Most cities are known for something, and for me, forever more, Lisbon will be known as the city of pastry! Is it all about the Pastel de Nata? Not at all, though I sure did enjoy my daily dose of nata :) If you haven’t already, please read Lisbon: The City of Pastry (Part 1). Pastries were everywhere in Lisbon. I’ve never seen so many pastry shops, pastelarias, and so many different kinds of pastries. The question became how to narrow it down to which ones to sample. I asked some born / raised / and still living in Lisbon friends to narrow it down for me. They suggested these four pastries: Tortas de Azeitão and Amêndoa, Mil Folhas, Jesuítas, and Pastéis de Tentúgal.
Every time I went into a bakery, I asked if they had these four so I could see what they looked like and perhaps try one. Before I tell you about each pastry, how I ranked them, and where I tasted them, here’s a bit of history about the egg-based pastry world of Portugal. It is fascinating and sets the scene for the pastry world you’re about to enter.
According to history, as I read on Milly’s Kitchen, “After colonizing Brazil and Madeira in the 16th century, Portugal began importing a steady stream of sugar (formerly a luxury destined only for the wealthy) from their plantations abroad. At this time, there happened to also be a large number of convents in Portugal using egg whites to starch their habits. All those elaborately starched wimples meant a lot of nuns with a lot of extra egg yolks. One of those nuns had the brilliant idea of combining the surplus egg yolks with the newly abundant sugar, and the classic eggy, sweet Portuguese convent pastry was born! Yet, despite the regional differences in pastry in Portugal, there is one common theme throughout every pastry in the country: egg yolk. Egg yolk is the magical ingredient that gave birth to Portugal’s famous pastry industry, with each region expressing their own innovative, unique and historical manner in which they use this one ingredient.”
Most cities are known for something, and for me, forever more, Lisbon will be known as the city of pastries! And some would argue that it’s all about the Pastel de Nata! Pastel de Nata is a Portuguese egg tart pastry originally from Portugal but also found in countries with significant Portuguese immigrant populations. Its main ingredient is egg yolks.
Pastries were everywhere in Lisbon. I’ve never seen so many pastry shops, pastelarias, and so many different kinds of pastries. The question became how to narrow it down to which ones to sample. I asked some born / raised / and still living in Lisbon friends to narrow it down for me. They suggested I start with the Pastel de Nata, and in particular, Pastéis de Belém. The pasteis de nata is Portugal’s most famous dessert and it’s found everywhere around Lisbon. But there is a catch. There is a secret recipe that’s closely guarded here at Pasteis de Belem.
On my first full day in Lisbon, a friend who lives there picked me up and off we went. Of course I let him plan the day. While walking to his car, we stopped for my second espresso of the day and it was only 9:30am. Those espressos go down way too easily! As he drove, I had a hunch where he was heading, and I was right. As we pulled into the parking space I saw Pastéis de Belém and knew we were starting my Pastel de Nata tour.
