La Birreria - A new addition to Valencia's craft ale scene

The craft ale revolution seems to have spread to all corners of the globe, ensuring a glass of local, small-batch brewed beer can be found in most places. This goes for Valencia as much as anywhere else, as my boyfriend and I discovered when we were visiting to coincide with La Tomatina Festival this summer.

In the centre of the city, we stumbled upon The Market, offering a good selection of brews including some we had heard of and a few new to our pallets. This little place close to the Central Market had all the makings of a great craft beer bar - a bit dingy inside, an upturned barrel on the street used as a table and a friendly and knowledgeable barman keen to match the right beers with his clientele.

While we enjoyed a few beers here, a real find came a little later on when we were exploring down the route of the former river towards the sea. Keen to check out the ultra-modern buildings that had been built down there we took a wander, but decided to stop for some lunch on the way. The receptionist at our hotel had recommended a few places to get a traditional paella, but at the height of the summer we found most of them were closed. Eventually we got to Raco de Turia, where we had a delicious lunch, but we walked past La Birreria as we wandered about the area.

It was closed due to the hour (lunchtime), but we vowed to stop by on our return journey later that evening, which we did. This lovely little modern bar serves up artesan beer from Valencia, Spain and the wider world and we later found out, was just three weeks old.

Sitting at one of the tables in the street we watched as a member of staff laid a small table for a party. It turned out that the celebration was to mark the owner, Roberto's, birthday. As we sat and tried various beers, including a sea water one called Boqueron, we were welcomed into the festivities and given morsels of tapas and birthday cake. Surrounded by Roberto's friends and family, the atmosphere was really fun and inclusive.

If you are in Valencia and are a fan of craft beer, be sure to head a little way out of the historic centre of the city to find La Birreria. We are sure you will receive a welcome as warm as the one we experienced. And we wish Roberto and his staff lots of luck in their venture. It deserves to do well.

The well-fed pescatarian samples paella in Valencia

Until this summer I had never travelled to Valencia, but there were a few things on my bucket list for the city that I couldn't ignore and right at the top was paella. Obviously food can be entirely evocative of a place and knowing that this rice and fish dish originated in Valencia I wanted to try one and have the ultimate paella experience.

No pressure then! In order to try and minimise the risk of the outcome of this exercise being disappointment, a paella recommendation was needed. Luckily, the receptionist at our hotel was forthcoming and highlighted a few reliable establishments in various parts of the city. As we wanted to head down to the City of Arts and Sciences we decided to check out an area she recommended just off the former riverbed, which has been transformed into a beautiful park.

Despite there being a small cluster of restaurants scrawled on the map in biro by our friendly receptionist, each one we came to was closed. This is a common problem in Spain during the summer months, when many establishments shut up shop for a few weeks for staff holidays. It was getting late in the day for lunch when we finally found Raco del Turia and the welcoming sight of lights and people inside. It was coming to the end of their lunch service, but they were happy for us to order and we took our seats outside on the pavement.

Eating paella in Valencia is not something to be rushed and while our huge pan of the speciality was being prepared, we enjoyed some smaller dishes, including squid and a delicious salad. When the steaming dish arrived, it was a vision of bright yellow with the seafood distributed across the top. What amazed me was how thin the layer of rice was, allowing it to be cooked evenly over a massive surface area.

From a selection of paellas on the menu we went for paella de mariscos - prawns, cuttlefish and monkfish and it was delicious. The rice and fish were both cooked perfectly and it was quite unlike anything I have ever had before, despite loving all of the ingredients that ended up on my plate. The bright yellow comes from the all-important saffron, which is a much more delicate flavour than its intense hue would suggest.

Safe to say that the paella experience lived up to expectations. So much so I bought a paella pan from a hardware store we walked past the following day. Despite saying it serves two, it was a fraction of the size of the one our authentic paella was brought to us in at Raco del Turia, but that is probably a good thing as I wouldn't have been able to slide it down the back of my rucksack quite so easily if it had been larger! I look forward to plenty of paella suppers at home to evoke leisurely lunchtimes in Valencia.

Love where you live: Newcastle's Long Play Cafe

Wandering into Long Play Cafe on a Friday night, the Stone Roses can be heard from a record player in the corner, people are chatting and enjoying their cups of coffee and a sense of calm can be felt throughout the establishment. It's hard to believe that just metres away the first of Newcastle's Friday night revellers are starting to get into the swing of the evening ahead. This cafe on the Quayside is a haven for real music lovers and coffee aficionados alike.

Long Play has now been open for two weeks and has already received rave reviews from those who have ventured inside. Taking on a part of the popular Popolo bar between 8am and 8pm each day, it serves up Lola's Coffee and vintage records in equal measure.

For those feeling a little peckish, there is a simple menu on offer, with everything from all-day breakfasts to deli sandwiches and jacket potatoes to choose from. Sensibly, a small number of things are being rolled out, so that they can be done well. Although I didn't have anything to eat on this occasion, I'll certainly be back to try the bagel with scrambled egg and smoked salmon. There is also a selection of freshly baked cakes to choose from.

Customers are encouraged to browse the racks of secondhand vinyl for sale and can select records to play on the cafe's own system. Upholstered chairs and pieces of carefully selected vintage furniture have been used throughout the venue to give it a welcoming and comfortable feel. Frames containing record sleeves add to the music-lovers' vibe and are dotted about the place.

Full disclosure

Jackson and Nella who run Long Play Cafe are friends of ours, so I was always going to be predisposed to liking it. But coffee and records; what's not to love?! And these two have the credentials to start up such an enterprise. They are heavily involved in the local music scene. In fact, Nella is in the band Kobadelta. And Jackson was until recently running popular cafe/sometimes music venue Blakes. This venture has therefore been fully considered and undertaken by two highly capable chaps.

How to find Long Play Cafe

Located on Sandhill, Newcastle Quayside, the best landmark is the Swing Bridge, which is directly opposite Long Play. It's impossible to ignore the fact that the Riverside venue is also just across the road, as this link with music continues the theme set out for the cafe.

Long Play Cafe can also be found on Twitter and Facebook

Highlights of the Edinburgh Fringe 2015

Having a sister living in Edinburgh does not just provide the perfect excuse to visit this fine city, but also means free accommodation during the Fringe. For anyone who has looked into heading to the Scottish capital in August or has made it a reality, it is safe to say this should not be underestimated. With thousands of performers and audience members swelling the population throughout the month, finding somewhere to stay can be a difficult and expensive exercise.

With my sister and her family away on holiday for ten days during the festival, my retired parents basically relocated to their house. Mum and Pops are huge lovers of the Fringe and see a wide selection of free and ticketed events every year. This worked out perfectly for me, as they had the time to go through the phone book-thick programme and work out an itinerary for my visit and book tickets - now that's service.

Foil, Arms and Hog

There are occasions when you go and see something at the Edinburgh Fringe and it is only afterwards that you realise it was the funniest thing you will see all weekend and perhaps, all year. This was the case with Foil, Arms and Hog and their Skiddlywup show. Fresh from my train, we headed to the venue and took a seat. My parents had been in Edinburgh a few days by this point and were into Fringe mode, but I still had work on my mind and needed to relax.

Foil, Arms and Hog was perfect for this. From their carefully crafted jokes and clever use of props to hilarious accents and audience participation, these lads had it spot on. They dealt well with an early heckler and involved other members of the crowd in a way that was funny, but not disrespectful - a difficult balance to achieve. One participant, Jake, was returned to again and again throughout the show to great effect.

Jokes about bouncers going on dates, medical musical chairs and the comedic disappearance of Sophie Johansson were all highlights. Mum and Pops booked tickets for this year's show based on how much they had enjoyed their act in 2014. Take my advice: if you are in Edinburgh in August 2016 and Foil, Arms and Hog are performing, be sure to go and see them. You won't be disappointed.

Austentatious

On previous trips up to Edinburgh and Manchester I have tried to see Austentatious - including when it first appeared at the Fringe and was a free show. It seems that third time is lucky and we managed to get tickets. This hilarious improv show is different each time and based on plot suggestions from the audience. Able to attract huge crowds at the Udderbelly venue, finally getting to see it was not a disappointment, with some of the laughs coming from the bizarre situations the unpractised nature of the show put the cast members into.

The "lost Jane Austen work" that one of the actors plucked from a top hat of suggestions was The Unicorn's Wedding. A classic tale of love between both the human characters and their equine counterparts. It's easy to see why the format has proven so popular and lovers of classic literature, as well as comedy, will get plenty of enjoyment from it.

Around the World in 80 Days

Oxford University Dramatic Society's (OUDS) version of Around the World in 80 Days was charming and innovative. Just eight actors portrayed all the parts, using various props to change the settings and their characters along the way. The highlight of the show had to be the appearance of a lovingly realised elephant, created out of an upturned wicker laundry basket, with fans for ears and a series of 45s strung together for its trunk. Plungers were pressed into service as the elephant's feet trudging along - very effective.

Jimmy McGhie

Jimmy McGhie is more of the classic one-man stand-up that many people have seen before. While he may be one among many, he is still good at what he does. Much of his comedy comes from quite a dark place and a difficult relationship with his father, but while this may sound awkward, in reality it made it very personal and there were elements that everyone in the audience could relate to.

McGhie is another Edinburgh performer who knows what a strain doing the same show every day for nearly a month can be. He touched on this, but while obviously sticking to a well-planned overall structure, he bounced off the audience too. Whether it was the soon-to-be-father sat next to his heavily-pregnant partner or the woman who jumped in with a substandard punchline to one of his jokes, he got everyone involved and made the show unique.

The Edinburgh atmosphere

Being in Edinburgh during the Fringe is a fantastic experience, as the whole city swells to welcome some of the most interesting and talented people the UK and wider world have to offer. As well as the comedy, there are a lot of plays to see, music and street art all going on everywhere. The smallest and most obscure places are turned into venues - sheds, barges and camper vans - with something to see at every turn.

The Edinburgh Book Festival is also on at the same time as the Fringe, with lots of events being held around that. Its marquees are set up in Charlotte Square and there is a lovely bookshop to browse even if you don't make it to any of the author speeches or signings.

A trip to Mother India for dinner and a pint at the Bow Bar are the other two things that complete my must-do activities at the Edinburgh Fringe. It's an exciting time of year in the Scottish capital and one everyone should attend at least once. Just don't book too many shows too close together, as that can be exhausting. Factor in some wandering time and you will have an incredible visit.

Oxfam stewarding is a great way to do a festival

All quiet at the end of the night shift at Fire Tower Echo

When an earthquake shook Nepal just weeks after my parents returned from visiting the country, the importance of international charities really struck home. Many people they had met were affected by the situation and many will not see their lives return to normal for a long time.

One way that charities, such as Oxfam, can raise money is by providing stewards for music festivals in the UK. They are given the equivalent of an hourly minimum wage for the work their volunteers do and these helpers get to experience a festival while doing good at the same time.

Pops and I are big music fans and festival veterans, so this year decided to offer our services up to Oxfam and volunteered for Womad. It turned out to be a great decision, leading us to meet some wonderful people and have a truly positive stewarding experience.

How do you get a picture of the Womad sign with nobody else around?

Do it at 7am after a night shift

Having never stewarded before and not attended Womad either, the whole thing was new to us, but we were welcomed into the stewarding fold and quickly felt at home. One of the nicest things about stewarding is that Oxfam has its own campsite and you are immediately surrounded by friendly faces. Not only this, but there is a marquee where you can sit and chat to fellow volunteers, showers and onsite catering, which was provided at Womad by Nuts.

The Oxfam campsite has a very special atmosphere

We were all told in advance to bring our own crockery and cutlery, as disposable items such as these would not be provided. Nuts piled up our plates with huge mounds of delicious food at much cheaper prices than those that could be found in the arena. Each steward is given a food voucher for every shift they do, which also helps to keep the workforce going, with hearty falafels and masses of salads for me and steak and chips for Pops.

Seeing the sun come up at the end of our night shift

Stewarding a festival is not the same as simply attending one as a punter and eight-hour shifts should not be entered into lightly. The benefits of experiencing a festival in this manner far outweigh the hard work, however, with some small and large perks coming as part of the bargain. It is really nice for example, to be able to explore the site before the customers arrive; to recognise the faces of the people you wristbanded in the rain, now that the sun is shining; and to make lots of friends with fellow volunteers.

In return for working the festival, Oxfam stewards get to see some of the acts, without having to buy a ticket. Not knowing what shifts we would be given in advance, we didn't manage to see Count Drachma or Aurelio, but we did get to see the likes of Souad Massi and a Kathkali performance. You certainly can't grumble about that.

Kathkali performers from Kerala in The Big Red Tent

The weather at this year's Womad has seen it dubbed by many as Womud, but luckily Pops and I were prepared. We spent a very soggy eight-hour day shift wristbanding people in the rain, as we were decked out in wellies, overtrousers and waterproof coats. No matter whatever the weather, Oxfam stewards soldier on and we all got through it together. A sign went up in the Oxfam marquee saying that anyone flooded out of their tents could sleep in there, although it appeared nobody needed to make use of the invitation.

It is also almost impossible not to remain vigilant while not on shift and help the public even when not wearing your Oxfam tabbard. Not only did Pops and I help when we spotted someone who had fallen in the mud, but I gave directions to people who were lost and generally got involved at every opportunity.

On leaving Womad, we said goodbye to the friends we had made in the Oxfam campsite and started to head off towards the car. One of the main organisers of stewards at Womad thanked us for our help, which echoed an attitude that was felt throughout the whole festival, with those in charge being very communicable and appreciative of the time people had donated.

Make a difference - steward for Oxfam

There were 400 Oxfam stewards at this year's Womad festival, making some £70,000 for the charity. During the summer festival season in the UK, Oxfam makes more than £1 million through stewarding. This is a huge amount for just three shifts per person. To find out more, visit the Oxfam stewarding website.

How to pass 7 hours in an airport

Essential items in the fight against airport boredom

There are a number of reasons why you might end up spending seven (or another number) of hours in an airport. It could be that your flight is delayed, or like us, your flights were so cheap that you have to change a few times on your way home.

In our instance, the seven hours were at Brazil's Sao Paolo Airport and the prospect of heading into such a vast city just to try and get back within the time frame was too much to contemplate. So we decided to pass them in the terminal building, and actually, they went pretty quickly.

Our entertainment system

When I was growing up and we travelled a lot as a family, my dad always carried with him an old tobacco tin of his grandfather's, which contained all the necessary items required to keep a small group of people entertained when travelling. They fitted in perfectly, with two pencil sharpeners to fill a gap. I remember the intent look on a boy's face as my dad sharpened a pencil for him with one of these items on a trip to Malawi.

Knowing that we would have such a long time to wait I decided to create my own version of this tin before leaving home. I packed a set of cards, six dice and instead of the pencil sharpeners, two rubber pigs. Along with these materials, I also had to hand the instructions for a number of games to play with them (thanks to Pops for providing these). It's amazing how two small pigs can keep two grown women entertained for such a long time. Any travellers who have not encountered Pass the Pigs should look into this quirky and easily transportable game.

     

Dice games in Sao Paulo Airport

The dice also got used, with classics Yahtzee and Farkle going down well. For anyone not familiar with these games, it is worth learning the rules and packing a set of dice on your next trip. You never know when you might get stuck at an airport or find yourself with only a few Uruguayan pesos left on a wet evening in Colonia.

People watching

Airports are fascinating places, with plenty of people milling around and trying to achieve various outcomes. After spending 11 days in several countries on our trip, we enjoyed working out where the different people were from. There were far fewer mate cups and flasks, as we were no longer in Argentina or Uruguay, but the thick soles of some of the women were a give-away that were from one of these countries, as we had spotted them throughout our trip.

Eating

Seven hours is a long time to go without food, but this can be further complicated by not having any money to purchase anything. This can be particularly tricky if you are in an airport in a country different to the one you have been visiting. We had been in Brazil for half a day on this trip, but had spent all of our reales at Iguazu, so needed to find an alternative source.

One solution was to exchange some of the Argentinian pesos we had left, but the cambio at the airport wanting to charge $17 to do this, making it not worth it at all. Despite the fact there were ATMs displaying the names of our banks on them, our debit cards did not grant us access to any cash. In the end we chanced it and ordered some food and found we could pay by card. If this hadn't worked, we were going to be a bit stuck and undoubtedly, hungry.

Other ideas

There are plenty of other things that you can do to help pass the time at an airport, including:

• Reading
• Catching up on your travel journal
• Shopping
• Checking into an airport lounge
• Getting a massage
• Having your nails done
• Writing your postcards and desperately trying to find a post box

Game rules - courtesy of Pops

Farkle

• A game using SIX dice for any number of players.
• The aim is to reach a target score (say 5,000 points).
• The key to the game is to decide when to bank your score, as if you do not score you lose all your score for that turn.
• What gives you a score? – 1 is 100 5 is 50
• Three 2s = 200, three 3s = 300, three 4s = 400, three 5s = 500, three 6s = 600, BUT three 1s = 1,000 AND 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 = 2,000. All these scores have to be thrown with one throw of the dice.
• Throw all the dice, but you must keep at least one scoring dice (a1, a 5 or 3 of a kind, etc). Keep a mental record of your score, throw the remaining dice (if you wish) and add on the score from this new dice. You must score with each throw or you will forfeit all your points for that round. If you use all six dice, you can throw again and add on to this mental score, but there is always the chance you could lose all your points accrued in that turn if you fail to score. When you decide to stick that score is then written down and used to head for the target score.
• You can pass any unused dice to the next person – if they choose to use those dice then your score from that round becomes theirs. E.g. if the dice were passed to you and the person passing had just scored 350 and you rolled the dice and rolled a 1 you would then have a score of 450. You do not have to accept the unused dice and may simply start again with all six dice.

Yahtzee

• A game using FIVE dice for any number of players.
• The aim, to obtain the highest score of all the players.
• There are 13 rounds of play and 13 ways to use the dice for one of the ways of scoring – but you may decide to forfeit one of the ways of scoring if you cannot fulfil a way of scoring.
• With each throw, you first throw all 5 dice. You may keep some or all of these dice and throw the remaining dice twice more. You then have to decide which of the 13 rounds you are going to score against. 
• With the top half of the scoring sheet (i.e. 3 x 1; 3 x 2; 3 x 3; 3 x 4; 3 x 5; 3 x 6) if you exceed or reach the target score of 63 you get an additional bonus of 35.
• What each term means:
• Yahtzee: 5 of the same number
• Full house: 3 of 1 number and 2 of a different number 
• Low straight: 4 numbers in order e.g. 2, 3, 4, 5,
• High straight: 5 numbers in a row e.g. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 
• Low score and high score: Throw as above, the only stipulation that the low score must be less than the high score

Why I don't want to travel full-time

As a travel writer and blogger, I see a lot of posts from people who are on the road full-time hoping to impart wisdom onto others, so they can do the same in a sustainable way. I have been very lucky to travel a lot throughout my life and despite a number of longer trips, I have always come home.

While a little part of me would like to be constantly travelling, I know that I am not really that person deep down. I love packing my backpack for a trip, having enough time to explore a place properly and at some point want to live abroad again, but I also love coming home.

The feeling that I get when I see the Angel of the North is incomparable to any other. With limited flights from Newcastle Airport available, many of my trips start and end with a train journey and catching a glimpse of this strong representation that I am nearly home always gives me excited butterflies.

If work requirements and money weren't obstacles I would undoubtedly travel more than I do now, but I don't think I would pack up and head off for good. I love where I live and am close to my family, as well as truly believing that the north-east of England is a fantastic place, so think I would always want to return here.

While it is easy to look upon the lives of those who travel full-time as the perfect situation, it is also important to realise that such a lifestyle is not for everyone. I am the type of traveller who needs the time between trips to process and fully appreciate all that I saw and experienced, as well as a few home comforts and cuddles from my nieces and nephew to keep everything in perspective.

When I was 22 I worked in a backpackers' hostel in Cordoba, Spain for a while and one of the best parts about it was meeting so many interesting people. What became noticeable, however, among those who were visiting Andalucia as part of a long-term travel plan or round-the-world trip was that a few of them were no longer able to take it all in.

It's safe to say that not everyone gets incredible experience overload, but it is easy to see how it could happen. When visiting fantastic places that are all very different and new one after another, it must be exhausting. There is no way to compare the beauty of a Mayan temple with a beach in Tarifa or a Klimt hung on the wall of a gallery, but your mind needs space to compute all of these things, or at least mine does anyway.

That is why I value the days when I look out over a grey Gateshead sky and see the new cygnets in the local park as much as my time travelling. I love going away, but also coming home and have the whole of my life to see the world, a small section at a time.