The Magpie and Stump Hotel is a historic pub in the small historic town of Mintaro, South Australia. The town of Mintaro was established in the 1850’s to provide services to the teams transporting copper from Burra to Port Wakefield. The pub does good food (we particularly enjoyed the lamb) with Coopers on tap and [...]
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“Above there is heaven, below there is Suzhou and Hangzhou”. Hangzhou is the capital of Zhejiang province and was once a wealthy trading centre, reaching it’s zenith of influnce and power during the Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279). In the late 13th century, Marco Polo (the Venetian merchant-traveller) visited Hangzhou at the height of it’s glory [...]
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Lhasa, Xining, Golmud, Lanzhou, Xian and Chongqing provide the scenes. The Qinghai-Tibet Railway traverses the countryside and the starting point for the adventure is Lhasa. If you spend 3.5 days on a train in China you will start to understand the country and you will feel like you have shared a journey with millions of [...]
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On you next trip to China you should consider a special trip to visit the Hexi Corridor – the remains of the world’s greatest wall and greatest road snake side by side, forced together by parallel mountain ranges. Jiayuguan is almost but not quite, at the end of the Great Wall. The wall’s last 8km [...]
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The home of the South by Southwest annual music festival, Austin has long been a bohemian oasis in a redneck state. Austin is a great city for breakfasting: huevos rancheros (ranch eggs), pancake, quesadillas and other American staples. The Magnolia Cafe sits in the middle of “SoCo” (the South Congress neighbourhood). The Magnolia Cafe is [...]
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One of the must do things on a trip to Peru is to visit the “other picchu”, Huayna Picchu. The tough trek to the top of mountain also reveals jaw-dropping views. The view from the summit of Huayna Picchu is one of the most inspiring on the planet. Now and again the clouds disperse to [...]
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The Jean-Talon market (7075 Casgrain Avenue, www.marchespublics-mtl.com) is a sprawling tented marketplace in the city’s Little Italy area and is well worth a visit for experiencing the sights, sounds and smells. Make sure you visit the Boulangerie Premiere Moisson bakery (7075 rue Casgrain, Tel: 1 514 270 3701). You could also pay a visit to [...]
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Mount Royal dominates the city’s landscape and provides a refuge for locals who want a break from the city. The locals refer to it as ‘the mountain’. The pine-forested slopes rise up more than 200 metres. Check out the weekly drum festival – see www.lemontroyal.com/en
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An option to consider, when planning a holiday to the Caribbean is the tiny unspoiled Dutch island of Bonaire, which is just over 100km from Venezuela.
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The edgy capital of Jamaica is a great destination for those are less interested in white sandy beaches and more in music, art and food. Oh and Bob Marley.
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Although most travellers just use Santiago as a stop while on the way to the ‘four seasons of Chile’. They fly into Santiago and then as soon as possible take off again for cruises, treks, glaciers, skiing…
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