After a steaming plate of fresh mussels has been set on the table to replace the mound of sautéed pimientos de Padrón (Padrón sweet green peppers) that we’ve just worked our way through, I reflect on how unanticipated moments like these make great travel. In front of me at the table is 2 Michelin-starred Galician […]
The Rabat-Tangier A-5 is a modern, four lane tollway traversing some of Morocco’s most fertile agricultural land, crossing several major rivers just before they finish their course in the nearby Atlantic, and passing beside the main coastal towns of what was once the Spanish protectorate of Morocco, namely Larache and the colourful artistic medina of […]
Picture this scene: seated under a pergola on a crisp but sunny morning in late November, I’m enjoying freshly made harcha and msemmen (panfried semolina and flatbreads respectively) drizzled with honey and olive oil. Clearly in the distance, the sing-song call and response of local Berber villagers is clearly audible, as they are underway with […]
Uruguay is of wood and marble, of grain and sheen; where rural charm sits at the table next to aristocracy and both happily have sand between their toes or dirt under the nail from the outdoor explorations of the day. Olive orchards, hillside wineries, cattle ranches and small fishing boats all populate this tiny pear-shaped […]
There was a time period at the end of the 70’s, when rock and roll belched up 15 minute ballads sticky with hairspray, and the efficiency of a 2-4 beat and counterculture got lost in the woods and egos of stadium shows. We ended up with “Paradise By The Dashboard Light”. Fortunately punk rock and […]
A few months ago, when there were still leaves on the trees and the temperatures hadn’t yet dipped below the freezing mark, my friend Susanne joined me on a research dig around the often overlooked country of Slovenia. Together we spent ten days roaming the land and trying to absorb as much as possible. While […]
Namibia delivers wide open spaces in a way that few other places on earth can. Dominated by a massive and ancient desert, the dominant image in people’s mind seems to be landscapes of unchanging and endless sand. While it’s true that there is a lot of sand (and I do mean a lot – I […]
I’ve just returned from an archipelago off the coast of Panama where a massive, privately-funded conservation endeavour is now being shared with the outside world via a top-tier hospitality project. And I can’t say enough good things about it. Genuine hospitality can be the perfect vehicle for the expression and transmission of culture. However, resort […]
Sometimes, when doing research you can kinda get lost in the prosaic, asking the same questions at each hotel you encounter on a site visit–how many rooms does the hotel have? Do you have interconnecting suites? Is there a 24hr gym? Is wifi included in the rate? It is important to shake free of these […]
If I had to choose a word to describe Canada’s West Coast, it could easily be crinkly. Shaped and scoured by massive glaciers, raging rivers and wild Pacific weather for millennia, the BC coast is one of the more spectacular pieces of wilderness I have ever laid eyes on. This crinkliness has shaped a unique […]
Remember dinner parties? The ever-gracious host. The ebullient storyteller who commandeers the conversation. The witty chap in a blazer – a date on his arm and a quip on his lips. The elegant lady in a well-tailored dress which flatters but doesn’t reveal. Her kid sister with a contagious laugh and plummeting neckline. Sigh. It’s […]
La Tournée des Grands Ducs (literally, The Tour of the Grand Dukes) is a common saying in France to refer to painting the town red, Dionysian style, or rather … Russian. The term has it roots in the habits of two Grand Dukes of Russia – Vladimir and Alexei – the mischievous sons of Emperor […]
About 45 minutes into the drive south from Casablanca, the landscape starts to change. Fertile agricultural land gives way to firm red earth and barren rocky soils. Waist-high stone walls of marine limestone punctuate the empty rolling hills. You turn off the new tollway for the old coastal road, beginning at the unattractive port town of Jorf […]
Let this be an ode to the non-tactile senses. To the joy of looking and seeing, the richness of listening and hearing. To being still long enough and staying put long enough to enjoy some of the world’s subtleties. About 15 years ago, I had burrowed my way into the professional world of travel. In […]
The story I have to tell begins in Portugal in 1881. A team of scientists from the Lisbon Geographic Society gather to undertake an expedition to the Serra da Estrela mountains some 300km away. The Serra, the highest point in continental Portugal (the peak at Torre clocks in just shy of 2,000 meters) acquired its main […]
I’ve never met a wine-growing region I didn’t like. But there’s a difference between producing wine and cultivating a wine culture, and the best measure of how successful a wine-growing region can be lies not just with the quality of the wines they produce, but how well the place weaves together the distinct threads of […]