In my post on the Cinque Terre, which you can (re)find here, I talked about a treasure that I discovered on this trip – it’s called Moneglia. Moneglia: how can I describe it? Charm, tranquillity and the art of good living. I set myself the challenge (an easy one) of giving you 10 good reasons for staying there, or at least for visiting: The village’s natural beauty is breathtaking. It’s…
Narrow little streets with the scents of the Mediterranean are a great place to create memories. The Cinque Terre have a fairy-tale geography; they’re a revitalising little world of colourful photogenic houses, and always and forever there is la Dolce Vita. On my trip to the Cinque Terre or “Five Lands”, I explored five villages that are fascinating, or even more than that. They’re geographically close to each other but…
The Turkish coast of the Black Sea, Karadeniz, with its incredible natural environment, its historic sites, its magnificent lakes, its mountains, its wooden houses and its high plateaux, is an infinitely peaceful place, with a refreshing climate and a coastline of rare beauty. It is relatively little known by tourists, but it is splendid! If paradise had a name, once again after this trip I’m convinced it would be “Turkey”….
Located in the village of Bresala, in the middle of an exceptionally fine area of jungle, the Kayon Jungle Resort had everything to make our stay a total “get away from it all” experience. I couldn’t even have dreamed a better environment for relaxing and taking my first flower bath. Or a more magical place to do a yoga course. How could anybody not go overboard about the luxuriant vegetation,…
I’d dreamed for a long time of going to Bali, island of the Gods. It’s so named because it’s a Hindu land in the middle of Muslim Indonesia, and also because the gods must have favoured it specially to make it so beautiful. Here you leave everything behind you, and lose yourself in what is essential. I went there with a girlfriend, and we booked via a travel agency so…
This is the chain of chilled food storage and distribution. Micro-organisms multiply rapidly in food at room temperature so the solution, to avoid food poisoning, is to make sure that the cold chain isn’t broken. Bacteria are everywhere in the environment, and some can affect the quality of products and be dangerous to health. Below 5°C, their growth is slowed down or even stopped. Maintaining standards for temperatures makes it…
As soon as I entered the Ritz-Carlton Istanbul, on this sunny Monday, I knew at once that this hotel would enchant me just like the other Ritz hotels. Ideally located in the very heart of the city, the hotel offers a magnificent panorama of the Bosphorus. How could anyone resist the magic of the place? When you’re surrounded by its Turkish-themed decor, it’s very easy to drift away amongst the…
For some months I was in a club with a very big membership – people who have difficulty sleeping. I’d been having trouble getting to sleep, and I’d been waking up in the middle of the night and then not being able to get back to sleep again. Being a supporter of gentle methods, that’s where I started to try to deal with the problem, with transformational breathing, meditation, herbal…
I’m having an interesting sports experience that I’d like to share with you. For the last three months, I’ve been doing Pilates on a ‘Megaformer’ machine at Community Megaformer studio. I take two courses per week, on top of my usual routine. The Megaformer is often confused with the ‘Reformer’, but the Lagree method is different. (Lagree is the name of the Megaformer designer and coach). With Lagree, you do,…
Do you know Vienna? I’ve just spent a few days in the Austrian capital. I walked in the footsteps of Empress Sisi and Crown Prince Rudolf, and I admired the fabulous palaces and magnificent gardens. I also had the good luck to see Madame Butterfly at the Vienna State Opera. In Vienna, the grand story of Europe is still ever-present in the 21st century. If you’re planning a romantic/cultural getaway…