Over the last 16 years I have been to many different corners of France. Here are my biggest tips and takeaways about traveling there. Part 1 covered my love story with the country, what to hit and what to skip on the beaten path, and best ways to discover untouristed, authentic France. 4. There is…
One of the best ways to spend a day in Rothenburg is shopping. I don’t even like shopping, yet Rothenburg is just so charming, welcoming and relaxed, that it imbues with joy even one of the most stressful and tedious [for me] activities. Tiny Rothenburg is a GREAT shopping destination. But you won’t find Prada or…
If you have been losing sleep over how to get your hands on all those amazing Russian crafts I wrote about last week, fret no more. Izmaylovo Vernisazh to the rescue! Vernisazh (derived from French “Vernissage” or a preview for an art show) is Moscow’s, if not Russia’s, biggest and best known market for all…
Moscow REALLY turned up Easter this year. Word on the street was, city officials have decided that with all the #sanctions, ruble woes, Ukraine and endless winter the people needed some extra cheering up this year. And so, Christmas decorations stayed up all the way through March, only to be immediately replaced by Easter decorations…
What? Maslenitsa (“butter week”) is a half-Christian, half-Slavic pagan celebration of the soon-to-come end of winter that takes place for a week before Lent. Think Mardi Gras, or carnivals of Rio de Janeiro and Venice, but instead of ball gowns, beads and nudity you get traditional Russian games, folk music and dance concerts, a lot…
Can Amsterdam be done as a day trip? Only if your day starts at 6 am and ends at midnight, or if your whole plan for the city involves a stop at a “coffee shop” and grabbing a beer along one of the canals. If you want to get more out of the Dutch capital,…
It is true that with its mostly limestone-gray Gothic exteriors of the old town and limestone-beige Neo-Classical architecture of the last two centuries Brussels is architecturally more somber and buttoned-up than a lot of it European neighbors. But take some time to hang around it and you will discover a million ways that the city…
For weeks before my Crimea trip my mother was imploring me to check out the farmers’ markets in Novy Svet and Sudak, for the freshest fruits and berries in all the land! The markets did not disappoint, and I tried everything from the in-season strawberries and raspberries, to homemade cheeses and sausages. I cannot even…
Or, Part II of Moscow’s Cost of Living (go here for Part I – The Cost of Going Out). Grocery prices in Moscow vary widely from one store to the next. In the area where I live there is only relatively large supermarket – Azbuka Vkusa (Alphabet of Taste), well-known for its sky-high prices and…
One of my favorite things about the holiday season in New York is the unveiling of the window displays of Bergdorf Goodman, the poshest and fanciest of all the posh and fancy department stores in the world. Every December I would rearrange my post-work commute so that I could swing by the BG store on…
Home & Away 