Shopping in Spain and Italy: Now the moment you’d hear the words Barcelona, Rome, Madrid the eight lettered word would immediately pop in your head – SHOPPING. As much as I dread saying this, but it was a no shopping holiday.
Okay, now don’t take it literally as even a random stroll around the streets of these cities leads its way to the stores where you’ll eventually end up buying something, just to ensure you don’t offend the Spaniards and Italians. But honestly, as much as I was tempted to shop while passing through the stores, shopping was strictly restricted to a few names: Maje, El Corte Ingles, La Rinascente, Gap, Petrizia Pepe, Sephora and Freddy.
Ok talking of Freddy, while strolling on the streets of London a few years back I accidentally bumped into Freddy (lol, no not a man but a store). My inquisitive self with a CSD (compulsive shopping disorder) ended up buying a few sweat pants and I have been in love with them ever since. Now Freddy is available only in Italy and London (from what I know). So again when I spotted Freddy on the streets of Rome, I rushed into store to only get out with their most comfortable sloungewear (their velvet pants can easily be camouflaged from a night dress to being a chic shopping ensemble). If you’re in Rome, Milan or London, definitely buy their yummy pants and hoodies.
ANYWAY.
So here’s just a little shopping guide from the very few hours I ransacked stores of Spain and Italy.
El Corte Ingles is a must go in Barcelona (La Ramblas) or any Spanish city. Its the Spanish version of Saks or Selfridges The departmental store houses high-street to the luxury brands including Maje, Sandro, Tory Burch, Valentino, Balmain et al, an interesting home section and well stocked beauty department. However I was pretty disappointed that a city like Rome did not have an equally good departmental store (La Rinascente was a disappointment, considering it is the biggest one in Rome and had limited stuff) …. When in Rome, if you’re looking for the crème de la crème in the fashion industry then head towards the shopping district near Spanish Steps (including via Margutta).
Hotels: Among all the hotels, I fell in love with Salvatore Ferragamo’s Portrait Suites in Rome. Housed in the fashionable district of Rome and just a stone throw away from Spanish Steps, it was a complete delight. More like a serviced apartment the service and attention to detail paid during the stay at Portrait Suites was unmatched.
A nice chocolate platter and handwritten welcome notes, small kitchenette (remember its a suite) with tasteful cutlery and equipment, plush yet minimalistic decor, Ferragamo shoes and pictures hung on the wall and situated right above Ferragamo store, opp Hermes, this hotel was a total delight. Loved the fact that the staff was very friendly and courteous without even an iota of snob (that you’d come across in most luxury hotels). And when you stay in the hotel you also get a 10% discount coupon and shopper’s service complimentary at Ferragamo store. Just too many reasons to stay in Portrait Suites (and no this is not a sponsored post).
In Barcelona, Hotel 1898 at Las Ramblas was also a great hotel. Superb location, great service and wonderful room (with attached balcony and even personal pool in the higher category room).
In Andalusia, Malaga was one of my favourite cities and their Marriott hotel was amazing. Great service and awesome location. It was right in the center of everything happening with a spectacular view of the port and a very nice rooftop pool and restaurant. It was close to the restaurants (and yes there was a vegetarian place Canadu just 10 min walk away).
Hotel La Fuente De La Higuera in the outskirts of Ronda (Andalusia) was one of my best stays ever. We stayed there for four nights and loved it completely. It is actually an olive mill converted to hotel. Spacious rooms with a very luxe cum country house feel, overlooking beautiful mountains. The great part of the hotel was its service, the staff was so friendly and offered unmatchable service. Even its owner was a very friendly guy with amazing hospitality. On our check-out day we realised banks are closed and we are short of cash for taxi and other emergencies. The owner was grateful enough to come down to hotel early in the morning and withdrew from his ATM against swiping our card and also arranged a taxi to Malaga. Who does that? Right,
For vegans and strict vegetarians, Bibliothe in Rome is another must visit restaurant. An Ayurvedic vegetarian cafe, Bibliothe serves Indian food (primarily) with some interesting desserts (I loved their banana bread) that were all 100% vegetarian (no egg).
Even Spain, which is considered a vegetarian’s nightmare, was absolutely no problem for me {yes I eat only in only-vegetarian restaurant and still I didn’t face any problem in Spain). Milan had plenty of vegetarian and vegan options. Govindas (veg restaurant of ISKCON) was awesome with delectable Indian thali and great location). We also checked out Rosmarino, vegan restaurant in Milan, and loved their food. There are plenty of other options too in Milan.
Andalusia which is famous for being primarily a non-veg belt, also pleasantly surprised us by the vegetarian choices we discovered. Canadu in Malaga was one of them. A great restaurant right in the center of the city with great service and good food.
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We’re heading towards the end of Diaries of Spain and Italy by SJ.
So voilà, dear readers here’s a small Diary of my Europe travel in winter. Ended 2012 and started off 2013 with a lowdown blogging, but this year I’m going to keep trying to be active with my experimental fashion sense and a lot of ranting that would hopefully make more sense than it did in the years gone by.
I am counting on you to stay as you are – smart with a love for ethical fashion and I hope to see more of you in 2013.
