My husband and I are headed to Andalucía in October. Our itinerary will take us to Sevilla, Córdoba, Granada, Cádiz and Conil de la Frontera. This will be our second trip to Andalucía; the first one was in 1981.
Kathy (Trekcapri) is also traveling to Spain this fall and I started making a list for her of Spanish souvenirs to bring home.
So, for those of you who have been to Spain, what things do you like to bring?
My (bilingual) list, so far:
saffron/azafrán - to make paella!
hand fan/abanico - great gift and easy to pack. My friend has one framed and it looks very lovely.
piquillo peppers/pimientos piquillo - yum!
castanets/castañuelas - these are sometimes sold decorated with a Flamenco scene
music - I love Spanish music!
Flamenco shawl/mantones - for personal use and they're also great as a decorative piece
leather wine bottle/bota - perfect for carrying wine to a picnic without the risk of broken glass.
sword letter opener from Toledo/ abrecartas - for opening those after-trip bills
wine, cava, cider/sidra (watch out, it's alcoholic), sherry/jerez (amontillado is my favorite)
almond nougat/turrón de almendras - comes in two types: hard and soft. I prefer the hard one known as "Turrón de Alicante"
Hi Maria, thank you for posting this great souvenir list. I am making a note of all the wonderful ideas that are already on your list and will definitely make note of all additional ideas that others may recommend.
Since I love Spanish music too, I'm definitely going to find something very cool and special to bring home. I also love the idea of the hand fans. This is a great idea to post a question for additional recommendations!
Posts: 790 | Location: California | Registered: 19 September 2004
What I bring home from Spain is Armisén (packets of salts to add to water to make it bubbly, also used as baking powder), chorizo (to cook with) and Powdered Milk.... ok, ok they are slightly weird things and nobody would bring these home as souvenirs but this is what I bring home every few months when I go María, que te lo pases genial!
If Javier won't come back of his own free will, then I try to bring back their clay cooking dishes, like the wide "cassarole" dish or the covered clay pot. Both can be used stove top or in the oven. kathyk
I second Turron. I second Saffron. + Barcelona fashion. Canned chipirones ensu tinta (canned food is a culture there, believe me!). Everone, leave Javier Bardem alone, he's mine !
Yes, even though Spanish food items are more available in our local shops now, we LOVE to bring home lots of tasty souvenirs. Returning from Madrid in May 2007 my husband and I brought these canned or preserved items:
olives (especially love arbequinas)
olive oil
marcona almonds
sardinas (canned in a variety of preparations)
pimentos de piquillo
anqulas (baby eels) -- my husband is dying to have these fresh, but we're never in Spain at the right season
cocido madrileno - Madrid's ubiquitous dish. We did manage to also bring home a shrink-wrapped package of jamon iberico bellota.
In addition, we sought out some CDs of the famous flamenco singer, El Camaron.
Posts: 491 | Location: Chicago | Registered: 25 April 2006
Originally posted by Shannon: Jamon Jamon Ruffles! (Yes, Ruffles potato chips that taste like ham. Yum.)
Caramels from Logrono.
Definitely saffron.
I have brought seeds for Pimientos de Padron home, but I can never get them to sprout.
I thought Ruffles was a European brand.
We usually purchase small plants of Pimientos de Padron as they can prove very difficult to grow from seeds. I know that is practical for you but the failed crop has nothing to do with the seeds or you. From Galicia you can also purchase two types of ceramics. Saradelos http://www.sargadelos.com/ They have numerous outlets around Spain too and the black pottery of Gundivos http://www.rectoraldegundivos.com/index.htm This one you can only purchase locally either at the pottery or at craft fairs. Then there is the wines and aguardiente.
If you Google Pimientos de Padron seeds, you can find an American seed source. I did this last spring, started my own plants, and now have a few plants in my Tennessee garden. They are now setting fruit, so I'll let you know how my experiment turns out. But I'd rather ne eating them in Santiago de Compostela.
I bought my pimenton dulce in a shop in Trujillo in the Extramadura -- the Dalia brand comes from that region.
I also like to bring home small remembrances from pilgrimage sites, like Santiago, Zaragosa, and Guadalupe.
Posts: 47 | Location: Nashville | Registered: 23 May 2005
Wonderful ideas! Many thanks María for starting this thread and to everyone. This is a great list of special items to bring home for all of us heading off to beautiful Spain soon . . .
Posts: 790 | Location: California | Registered: 19 September 2004
Hi Maria, good list to start. When will you be in Andalucia? My husband and I are going to Marbella the week of 10/10/08. We are staying at Marriotts Playa Andaluza. A friends daughter had vacationed in Spain years ago and she mentioned to me the sherry and hand fans but also flamenco dolls.
