SLOVENIA- GREAT EMERGING DESTINATION

This pint sized country sandwiched between Italy and Croatia is a stunner. It joined the EU in 1994 and adopted the Euro in 2007- it is one of the most affordable European countries that I have visited. Why is Slovenia so special? I love countries that offer a great diversity in terrain over a small distance to cover- Slovenia has the Julian Alps, spectacular lakes, phenomenal caves and castles, a little Adriatic coastline thrown in, even...

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THE RAW TRUTH

When I was in Ghent, Belgium a couple of weeks back, our local guide ordered a dish which I was not familiar with. Beef Tartar- which consisted of raw beef, minced and then mixed with a raw egg, some mustard, pepper and Worchester sauce and eaten with a side of fries. I then found out that it’s a very common dish served in America too! Why Tartar, I wondered, and my research led me to very interesting facts. The Oxford Dictionary says...

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FLUID PERFORMANCE

One of the absolute must-sees of a trip to Vietnam is a traditional water puppet show. We saw one at the Golden Dragon Theatre at Ho Chi Minh City. The water puppet show dates back to the 11th century and had its beginnings in the delta of the Red River where flooded paddy fields became stages. The stage is set on murky water and the puppeteers are behind a bamboo screen manipulating a complex system of strings and bamboo poles. There’s...

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FACE READING IN CAMBODIA

I was in Cambodia last month, which has been on my travel radar for years.. so it was really a culmination of a long cherished desire. Angkor Wat was an amazing experience and the symbolism, architecture and the symmetry is mind-boggling but my high points were the two temples of Bayon and Ta Prohm. Bayon is at the centre of the Angkor Thom or the Great City. Bayon is a surreal mass of stone faces with an enigmatic expression and downcast lids....

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LILLIPUT LAND

Last week I was in the Flanders region of Belgium travelling through Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp. I was pleasantly surprised by Brussels which has a reputation for being a grey and stodgy city. And there was a really cheesy attraction that I thoroughly enjoyed- Mini Europe, a theme park near the Atomium filled with scale replicas of famous landmarks from across Europe. Mini Europe has about 350 models, giving you a kitschy whistle...

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IN THE MOST POPULOUS LAND IN THE PLANET!

Everyone’s talking about China...There is  great interest in China as a travel destination . Yes, it’s a wonderfully different destination and even given the food issues for vegetarians and the HUGE language problem this is one country which should be high on your wish list! The REAL attraction is the mind-boggling diversity of attractions. There is drama, colour, entertainment, noise and none of the glossy packaging of the West. Just remember...

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CUSTOM MADE HOI AN

One of the highlights of our trip to Vietnam was our time in Hoi An, in the heart of the country. This used to be a traders’ town visited by merchants from all over the world especially the Chinese and Japanese. Today it’s a slice of old Vietnam-a UNESCO heritage list town with more than 800 old buildings. What the town is better known as is a place where you can get custom made clothes and footwear ! The main street,...

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