Kotor, Montenegro

Located along one of World’s most beautiful bays is Kotor, a city known for traders and famous sailors.

The Old City of Kotor is typical of the Middle Ages; it is well-preserved urbanisation, built between the 12th and 14th century. Medieval architecture and numerous monuments of cultural heritage have made Kotor a UNESCO listed “World Natural and Historical Heritage Site”.

Through the entire city, the buildings are crisscrossed with narrow streets and squares. One of these squares contains the Cathedral of Saint Tryphon (Sveti Tripun), a monument of Roman culture and one of the most recognisable symbols of the city. It should be on your must-see list.

Unfortunately, it was a short visit here at Kotor, and we got a rain day, but that doesn't stop the sightseeing. The beautiful buildings are great to visit, shopping is good too, value for money here. The cheapest coffee of the trip 2.50 Euro. It didn't take long to tour the township and not being on a tour we just moseyed along and enjoyed the morning.

There are lots of sightseers with Tourism being the prime income source in Kotor. Enjoying the sights, we finally got fed up of the rain and decided to find somewhere for lunch and to enjoy the afternoon indoors.

We found a lovely restaurant that had a good menu, a glass of wine and a fabulous view. A great way to spend a rainy afternoon when on limited time from the ship.

I would like to return here to actually spend some time and discover more of Kotor. It's always good to have places you can return to and know you want to explore more.

Azamara Adriatic Sea Cruise

We chose the Azamara cruise line to sail the Adriatic Sea. This cruise line is one of the smaller lines of the Caribbean Cruise lines as the ship only has approximately 700 passengers on board. Being a smaller ship, you are able to go to ports and areas the larger cruise ships cannot, giving you the added bonus of touring places, not on the typical cruise line itinerary. This cruise line is more for the sophisticated traveller who wants to enjoy the culture of the destinations, and they are usually all like-minded, so you have a good group of passengers to befriend.

What I loved about this cruise line is that they are a cultural immersion journey where you get to stay at the port overnight to enjoy the city/town during the evening and night and experience more of the culture of your destinations.

The ship itself is just large enough to have your own space and yet cosy enough to meet new people and make friends. There are plenty of places to just sit back have a drink and relax, including your suite.

There is a choice of places to eat and enjoy different cuisines, whether you want a private dinner in your suite, an intimate dinner for two at a restaurant, or enjoy dinner with new friends in the dining room. The dining room has selections of regional menus that match the ports where it's docked.

Of course, there's always the entertainment from cabaret to casino, spa or pool. It's all there for you.

If you're fortunate to get a suite, it comes with added extras like a butler, afternoon snacks such as prawn platters or afternoon tea and a selection of alcohol in your suite.  

Being a smaller ship, you also get to know the crew who remember your name, your preferences and actually want to know about your day. I must say having the flexibility of staying overnight at our destination made the trip more enjoyable, no rushing back to the ship by 5 pm but being able to enjoy the local nightlife, especially in a place like Mykonos where it really comes alive after the sun goes down. The crew is on hand to welcome you aboard whether it's 7 pm or 5 am the next morning. 

I can certainly recommend this cruise line and will be cruising with it again in the not too distant future.

French Riviera

When travelling to France, a must is the French Riviera.
The French Riviera borders closely with Italy and Monaco.  Nice (pronounced Neece) is one of the best places to base yourself while you are exploring the area. It's quite a cosmopolitan place with influences from both France & Italy.
We stayed at the beautiful Hotel West End Hotel Nice, centrally located with a great view of the coastline. Easy access to the beach and a rather good buffet breakfast is available.

West End Hotel - Nice

We prefer to travel towards the end of Summer when the weather is not as hot, most of the Europe has gone back to work or school, and there are fewer tourists around. Although Nice has a very touristy culture, by this I mean many eateries that cater to western culture cuisine such as pizza, pasta, etc. there are still some fabulous areas that showcase the French way of life.

I would recommend that you walk through and enjoy the old quarter of Nice. Here you find artisan food and textiles and can experience life the way it once was with the small winding roads and beautiful buildings of the past.

Of course, just around the corner is beautiful Monte Carlo in Monaco. Definite a must see to experience how the other half live or maybe just want to be perceived. Although it's an expensive coffee or drink at the Cafe du Paris next to the casino, it's worthwhile to sit, and people watch. If you're a car enthusiast, then you'll be in paradise with all the luxury cars that cruise by.

Don't forget to visit the marina and walk along all those magnificent yachts and dream of the life that could be.

The lifestyle in France is relaxed and all about enjoying the moment, the food and social outings.

The French Riviera has something for everyone, and there are some divine towns to visit in the area, just jump on the train and travel along the coast in either direction and you'll find many surprises. Try a trip over the border to Italy or Monaco for a change. It's at your fingertips.

As the French are fond of saying Ces't le vie (that's life!)

Vienna, Austria

Our final destination in Austria had to be the capital, Vienna.

Main shopping mall

After spending so much time in the Austrian Alps it was difficult to adjust at first to the hustle & bustle of a thriving metropolis. It didn't take long though, before we loved being in this fabulous city.

We stayed at Derag Livinghotel An der Opera Karntnerstrasse 44 Innere Stadt Wien.  The hotel is 50mts from the State Opera and the Karlsplatz underground train station. A very good location. We booked standard rooms and were amazed at the size of the rooms. The room included a large lounge, bathroom and dining area. The only drawback is the one/two person lift but it's an easy walk
upstairs.

A great place to check out and learn about the history of Vienna is Schonbrunn Palace. Being winter it was great to be indoors on this particular rainy day and visit this 1441 room former imperial summer residence. The palace and Imperial family history are explained on the guided tours. The rooms are a showplace of the beautiful architecture and decor of the Rococo style at its best.

The food in Austria is one of my favourite things, we tasted and enjoyed many hearty meals that were ideal during the cold weather. Figlmuller Restaurant is well known for its schnitzels, they are larger than the plate and there always is a wait to get a table, but it's well worth it.  Another very lovely and traditional cuisine restaurant to try is Lugeck, or Cafe Schwarzenburg a traditional Viennese coffee house dating back to the 19th century, is a good place for breakfast. We loved that Vienna has a  coffee culture that's impressive, there are many speciality coffee houses you can try out.

If you want a great view and a good perspective of the size of Vienna, visit Donauturm. It's a quick train trip to get there and not overly expensive to go up. There are 3 levels to view from, the outdoor platform, the indoor platform, and the revolving restaurant. We happen there on an extremely windy day and had to fight the winds to use the outdoor platform, must say its was fun, though. After battling the winds we sat down for a coffee at the restaurant while we got a great view of all around Vienna as the restaurant did its rotations.
We stayed 3 nights in Vienna and that was nowhere near enough to see this beautiful city and its history as the centre of Europe. This is the cultural capital of Europe with its music and arts. This city is a must on any european tour.

Back to London, then home.

Zell am See - Kaprun, Austria

As mentioned in my last post, after leaving Munich we found ourselves caught in a large heavy snow storm. Having never driven through one before, it was an anxious time with low visibility, ice and snow covering the windscreen and freezing the wipers.  A trip that should have taken 2 hours became a 4 1/2 hour journey through snow, nightfall and dark mountain roads to our destination.
I'm glad that I don't have to live in an area that deals with this on a daily basis; I do enjoy living in a warmer climate and able to visit the colder ones when inclined.

Knew we were headed for trouble.

As beautiful as all the mountains we have visited so far, my favourite for the most picturesque town and ski area has to be Zell am See. This Winter and Summer tourist destination is breathtakingly beautiful. It's nearly picture perfect with the lake surrounded by the snow capped mountains. You just want to sit and reflect while you look out over the water.

We stayed at Romantikhotel Zell am See, Sebastian-Horl-Strasse 11, Zell am See, a traditionally Austrian 4-star hotel that dates back to 1493. This centrally located hotel is a short distance from Lake Zell. All the Austrian hotels we stayed at featured fabulous spa areas, some with adult only nude sauna and spa area or the family sauna and pool area.  Half-board was offered here, and as it was economical and let us relax in the excellent spa facilities before we ventured to our three-course dinner at the hotel's Metzgerwirt restaurant.

There are two main ski areas here, Kitzsteinhorn Glacier near Kaprun and Schmittenhohe in Zell am See. Kitzsteinhorn has 41 kms and Schmittenhohe has 77kms of ski slopes. Between the two you have varying degrees of difficulty that will have something for everyone.

Kitzsteinhorn Glacier

Schmittenhohe overlooking Zell am See

We enjoyed the Apres in the town's centre, you must try the Gluhwein or a schnapps will outside and chatting about your ski day. We loved the chocolate filled crepes sold at a vendor's cart, yum!  The local delicatessen had an excellent selection of local produce which we did partake in. The cafes on the slopes had a good choice of food on their menus for your ski break. Beer is always flowing morning, noon and night. The lifts are fast and comfortable, I especially liked the ski bubbles on the chair lifts on a windy day and even scored some heated seats! The cable cars or gondolas were very efficient, the one drawback in my opinion about these ski areas are other skiers. Courtesy is not foremost in the mind of a lot of the skiers. Between being cut off on the runs by experienced skiers (Beginners; it understandable due to lack of control), to being pushed aside by impatient skiers when trying to get on the lifts.  It left an impression of rudeness and arrogance of the skiers, especially the ones on vacation from other countries.

In the next post, we leave the mountains and head for the city of Salzburg.

Lech Austria

There are a lot of great deals and packages for holidays, but for some reason, the holiday deals that come out of England are fantastic in value. We were referred to a company called Ski Total that is English. The package we chose consisted of staying in Lech am Alberg, Austria, one of their most up-market ski resorts for seven nights accommodation, return flights and half board, at a very reasonable price. We understood our accommodation would be basic, but knowing the hotel from a previous trip many years ago; we decided to be nostalgic and stay there.


The company's organisation was good, but they did have restrictions and limits on luggage although they weren't as strict at the airport. We flew from London into Friedrichshafen Germany flying 'Fly Niki' (not a bad budget airline and you get a snack!) and then were bused to Lech am Alberg, dropping off other guests at different resorts along the way. From the bus, we were taken by taxi to our accommodation. The Hotel was exactly as we remembered it; nothing had changed! Looking around it did need some TLC, but it was adequate accommodation although there are none of the little niceties you get these days in most every hotel. In its heyday, this Hotel was one of the most sort-after accommodation in Lech and was known for its fabulous restaurant & food, sadly this in no more.

We settled in, were given some supper as we arrived late and got ready to head out the next day.
The cost of a daily lift pass was approximately 50Euro (or best value was six days for the price of 5).
It had just snowed enough to allow more runs to open, although not all were ready and the season had a late start. The ski runs are mainly beginner to intermediate skill, and there are some off-piste areas for the advanced skier. The resort does make snow as snowfalls average about 2.5metres a year, which doesn't compare to other resorts.
Lech itself is very pretty typically Austrian ski resort, home of the rich and beautiful. You will see the latest in designer ski gear at this particular resort. Apres and nightlife in Lech may not be as predominant as St Anton, but it hits the spot.

Lech Apres Nightlife

We found the best coffee at Baristro', an excellent seed-encrusted chicken salad at Pfefferkorn'  a delicious Salzburg nockerl at the Berg Hotel in OberLech and great apple strudel with warm vanilla custard at all the rest & coffee break places on the slopes. The food in Lech is excellent but can be pricey so if you're after a quick cheaper meal head for the butcher and have their Lerberkase rolls (I have to say they hit the spot!)

Lech am Alberg easily connects to Zurs & St Anton with a free bus that runs half hourly, so if the weather closes in head to the other resorts and check them out.
Next from Beautiful Lech am Alberg to the city of Innsbruck.

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Ah, Amsterdam, a city that caters to every way of life and finds nothing taboo. Its beautiful buildings and streets, it's endless canals and sophisticated ways. The perfect place to end our cruise and spend a few days exploring.

The diversity of this city is a wonder to witness; it's the type of place that sitting back and people watching can show you the extremes this town has to offer. Even though I've been here before, it's still an eye-opener for me. Your belief that you know what to expect in the redlight district is tested indeed; I now know more than before just by window shopping!

Decided to try some local fare in our area of Amsterdam. We were recommended to try Haesje Claes Restaurant that had Dutch cuisine, and we tried dishes that are local to the area. Trying the local cuisine is a way to understand the culture of the city. While Amsterdam itself is diverse, the traditional Dutch food is something I'm sure with which they can all agree. 

Having extra days in Amsterdam, we took a tour of the Windmills and local fishing towns. Although it felt like cattle driven through a tourist town, we did get to see some beautiful running windmills, a picturesque fishing village and how to make cheese & clogs.  If you can bypass the herding through tourist stores, you can still appreciate the local producers that make a living with the windmills, the cheese & the clogs. Included is cheese tasting with many flavours, also a stop to explain a brief history of the Netherlands.

 With the end of the cruise, and our time in Amsterdam we headed back to Rome to catch our flight back home. I enjoyed the trip, the slow, lazy way through Italy, the delightful places we stayed at, and the luxury cruise through the Baltic Sea. Another number of ticks off my wish list.

Regent Seven Seas - Voyager

I discussed this Baltic Cruise line in a previous post. I have been on a few different cruise lines, and it's not just the destinations, you need to take into account your preferences on the size of the ship, the typical traveller on board, family cruises, culture immersion cruises, luxury, age-appropriate, etc.

On this particular cruise, we decided to see if we could visit the ship's galley.  With our request granted, a group of approximately 20 people assembled to go the ships galley. The head chef took us on the tour through the galley and explained the mechanics of storing, cooking and serving the 700 passengers on board to the standard they need to meet.

The amount of bread baked daily is astronomical; fresh food is brought on board at every stop and usually consists of whatever is the local fare.  There are descriptions and pictures of how each plate is cooked and presented. The head chef comes in at 5 pm to do a run through, and all items on the menu are prepared and submitted for inspection. If all is satisfactory, then the staff get ready for the passengers selections. Before each meal goes out it must be like the picture, or they must start again and at the end of the night explain as to why their plates weren't up to par.

On board our particular ship we had a young but capable Swedish Captain. He was seen around the vessel often and was readily available. Our cabin being approximately three suites from the bridge made it more likely to bump into the captain, which we did. He was a delight to chat with and had a great sense of humour.

I would recommend that you choose your cruise line carefully as it can make the difference between a good cruise holiday and an excellent cruise holiday.  If you're interested, my new book on 'Who What Wear of Cruising' is to be released end of February. In it, I discuss cruise lines, dress regulations, ship terminology and tips on getting the most of your cruise. Please email me for more details at tanyalococo@gmail.com

Mennaggio Lake Como Italy

Driving from Tabiano to Menaggio took about 2 1/2 hrs via the Autostrada.  We took the scenic route along Lake Como after bypassing Milan.

Menaggio
Taking in the stunning views of mountains that dive into a beautiful lake with towns and villages perched on its edge made the drive enjoyable.  The road was narrow but comfortable to drive with stop lights in tight spots to allow one-way traffic.

Having decided to go to a less touristy town than somewhere like Bellagio but that was still a short ferry ride away, we chose Menaggio. There are quite a few different options in Menaggio, but we liked the look of the Grand Hotel Victoria Via B. Castelli 9/13 22017 Menaggio, Lago di Como Italia.

The Grand Hotel Victoria built in 1890 for travellers Summer vacation by the lake.  It encompasses a grand old style of class from yesteryear but still has all the modern facilities of this century. The onsite bar and restaurant have breakfast and dinner daily. The breakfast was an ample buffet selection, whereas the dining restaurant is a la carte. The meals were good but just lacked the Italian authenticity of the other local Italian restaurants.

Menaggio is a town on the western banks of Lake Como in the Lombardia Provence. It forms a triangle with Bellagio & Varenna across Lake Como.  The ferry regularly leaves for either passengers or car & passengers to cross. Tickets are easy to purchase at the ferry dock and can be bought per passage or day.

The Food
There are a few restaurants in Menaggio's piazza area that seem to rotate the days that they close. You can go from a top end restaurant to an osteria or a pizza/pasta place. We tried most but had to return to the Osteria Il Pozzo for their home style cooking.  After having many lovely dishes on our travel, we were looking for something simpler and asked even though it wasn't on the menu for a light pasta dish with Alio & Olio (oil & garlic). They were happy to oblige and brought us an excellent hand made pasta of Spaghetti Alio & Olio with a hint of chilli.

The Verdict

The Grand Hotel is a hotel of yesteryear with many British guests as it's on one of the Britain;s premier travel sites that caters for package deals around the world. Therefore, I found the hotel to be geared more towards that particular type of guest.

Menaggio is for the person who enjoys a quieter and more relaxing town with a lovely lake front and the convenience of being able to visit some lovely mountains for views, excellent hiking and Lugano Switzerland (a beautiful lake town) with ease. You can visit Bellagio, Varenna and some other cities quickly with the ferry, as well as get to Milan by train in an hour from Bellagio. A beautiful place to relax and yet be a short distance to the hustle and bustle of larger towns and cities.

Modena (Tuscany) Italy

Modena is about an hour by car from Tabiano.  This smaller medieval city is known for being the birthplace of Lucian Pavarotti, where Balsamic Vinegar originated and of course, the Ferrari museum.

Ducal Palace of Modena

Modena has some stunning architecture, the Ducal Palace of Modena is a great example of this local architecture and now housing a military facility. The centre and old part of town is beautiful to experience, the local food and craft markets lined the streets and being a Saturday all the locals were out for a walk and meeting up for a coffee, which cost less than 2 euros, less than other cities we had visited. Modena is a city not frequented but hordes of tourist as its neighbouring large cities such as Bologna and Parma are more sort after, but it has charm and is becoming well known for its culinary expertise.

Enzo Ferrari Museum

Modena is also well known for the Enzo Ferrari Museum a place you don't want to miss if you're into any cars at all.  Although the entry isn't cheap, I would say it's worth it. You can discover Ferrari and Maserati's intertwined history through the years at the museum. How it began for Enzo Ferrari and his love of cars to how he started the Ferrari empire.

 Modena is easy to get to, has great undercover car parking and small enough to see most of it in a day. Experience the cuisine, people watch, stop for a coffee in the piazza, enjoy the architecture and if you're fortunate to arrive on a Saturday, go and check out the markets, both the open-air craft market and the food market where you can grab a bite to eat and enjoy some fresh produce.

Visiting the Chianti region

Siena is a central Tuscan city with a fan shaped piazza - Piazza del Campo where all roads seem to lead. It's not as busy as the major cities but still has numerous tourists. The history of the city with its medieval brick buildings and the Palazzo Pubblico which dominates the piazza is well worth visiting.
It still has a medieval feel to the city and you can still get a sense of what it must have been like to live there in those times.
The symbol of Siena is the she-wolf that suckles the two infants, it is rumoured that the 2 sons of Remus stole that statue after their father was killed in Rome and ran to Siena. They were also said to have ridden a white & a black horse thus having Siena's flag with the white and black band.

Castello Di Verrazzano is a stunning winery in Greve, the heart of chianti country between Siena and Florence. The castle is over 1000 years old and still holds all its land. It has been recorded since 1150 as making wine. Held in the same family until 1958 when the last descendant passed away.

The wine tour is excellent, the information on the history of the castle and how the wine is made, following regional rules and historic traditions is wonderfully told by your tour guide. After the tour though the wine producing area and the cellars you are invited to learn the techniques of wine tasting.

This tour and winery is a definite must do and if you have time book the restaurant and enjoy the views and wine as well.

Antica Macelleria Falorni, Greve is a treat to your taste buds. If you want to taste some of the local cold meats and cheeses this well know butcher/deli is the place to go.  You can sit outside in the piazza or inside the store and enjoy a number of delicious options. We chose two different tasting boards to sample with of course a glass of Chianti classico, which proved to be as good as its reputation. Enjoying the beautiful afternoon will indulging in local produce proved to be a must on our list.

We were fortunate to be in Greve on the weekend of the wine-tasting & competition amongst the local Chianti region winemakers. The D.O.C.G (is the highest classification for Italian wines. It denotes controlled production methods and guaranteed wine quality) was judging the competition. 

A great way to sample the local wines amongst the many, many enthusiasts that attended.

This area was one of the highlights of this trip for me and I will return to explore the region more.

Tuscany - Chianti region.

Our Stay in the Tuscan Chianti region, was at a lovely Villa Il Pioggiale Dimora Storica via Empolese 69,San Casciano in Val Di Pesa.  Just 15kms outside of Florence this lovely historic villa is set in the rolling hills of Tuscany with a gorgeous views across it's estate.

   

The property is beautiful, it features a pool and spectacular scenery to sit, relax and enjoy after visiting the nearby cities like Siena or Florence. The outside area for the restaurant has a beautiful view across the valley. In the warmer months the outdoor area is used for both breakfast & lunch.

The Villa prefers to use its own produce for their restaurant and the produce has so much flavour it is has your taste buds dancing. The grape tomatos were so sweet, they could have been candies. The local region's produce is also utilised in their meals. They have a more rustic styled cuisine typical of the local region. They also have local wines and the Chianti Classico's on their list were delightful. 

The rooms are quite spacious and ours boasted a kitchenette in a multi level room, although we had views of the courtyard, the rooms proved to be very comfortable. 

The main salon is decorated of the period and well maintained. The Villa has little extras like a honour system bar.  The only draw back was their isn't a lift, so if you happen to have one of the rooms in the higher levels bringing your luggage up can be taxing. Fortunately I know how to pack well & light as it's part of my what I teach.

The Verdict, if you want to stay in the heart of the chianti region without being to far from the major cities, enjoy great local produce and wines while relaxing over spectacular views. I would definitely recommend this Villa. Just remember to travel light!