Venice is one of the most enchanting and beautiful cities in the world. Finding the best vantage points to look down on the city from a height gives you a great perspective and some truly magical views. Here are my top three places from which to enjoy that bird’s eye outlook. Fondaco dei Tedeschi Right ... Read more »
Libreria Acqua Alta (high water bookshop) is a charmingly eccentric book shop named for the flooding that afflicts Venice when water levels in the Venetian lagoon are high. The entrance, in a little courtyard with no name, is lined with tables and postcard stands, and probably at least one of the cats that consider the ... Read more »
Italy has more products of Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) than any other country, well over two hundred in fact. Grana Padano cheese and Prosciutto di San Daniele (ham) are two such products, both made in the north of Italy. These products have been made in virtually the same way for many hundreds of years, ... Read more »
Some places feel a lot like home, others far less so, but most of them are home to someone. The exceptions I’m thinking of are the deserts and wildlife reserves I’ve visited in Southern Africa, the Galapagos Islands and the Falkands Islands, where there are few if any (human) residents. But when I’m visiting somewhere ... Read more »
You probably won’t be surprised that a huge part of the joy of travelling for me is in trying the local cuisine. In some cases, the destination is almost secondary to the food! Almost! I also like to learn about the local culture – and religion is often intrinsically linked to that, even if only in ... Read more »
This Smoked Cheese Gnudi recipe is from Giancarlo & Katie Caldesi’s book Amalfi Coast, where it is titled ‘Gnocchi Ripieni’. Although these aren’t actually stuffed (ripieni), the alternative name comes from the way the cheese centre melts in the mouth, giving the impression of gnocchi stuffed with cheese. We love this recipe and have made ... Read more »
We packed a lot of excellent eating into our short trip to Parma, where we discovered the origin of Parma ham and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Masticabrodo Situated in Pilastro, a small rural village about 15 kilometres from the centre of Parma, is a small trattoria-osteria called Masticabrodo. The village is virtually in the shadow of the ... Read more »
In a recent post about Parma ham, I explained about my invitation to learn more about the production of two of Parma’s most famous products – the ham and Parmigiano-Reggiano, parmesan cheese. You can read a little more about what it means to have a PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) status, in that previous post. ... Read more »
A few weeks ago, I was invited to Parma by Discover the Origin, to learn more about the production of two of Parma’s most famous products – Parma ham and parmesan cheese, known locally as prosciutto de Parma and Parmigiano-Reggiano. Both have PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) status, which means that only products made in ... Read more »
The Place of Onions, in old Lille. After last night’s rainstorm the intense sticky heat has broken and today is cool, breezy, fresh… I love it! A drop of… [more]
We went to Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire at The Void this morning, an amazing VR experience where we got to be Rebel Alliance members going undercover as… [more]