Notes from the Field: Top Trips from Around the World
This month we're debuting Notes from the Field, a new column profiling the world's best adventures and outfitted tours. Sometimes we just need a little inspiration—not to mention, professional expertise—to get us on the road, so we've pinged our extensive network of operators, outfitters, guides, and writers out in the field to get their take on the best new trips, experiences, and up-and-coming destinations. First up, a video profile of a new 2010 bicycling itinerary along Croatia's Dalmatian Coast from DuVine Adventures. DuVine was recently nominated by National Geographic Adventure as one of the Best Outfitters on Earth for 2009.
Got an amazing trip you want to share? Contact us via the Email Us link above!
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October 08, 2009
Taking It (Real) Slow at Caffè Al Bicerin in Turin, Italy
Taking it slow at Al Bicerin, Turin (courtesy, Città di Torino)
The historic Caffè Al Bicerin in Turin, Italy, is the purveyor of the city's signature Bicerin, a smooth blend of coffee, chocolate, and cream. Small and intimate, Al Bicerin is to be found in Turin's atmospheric quadrilatero Romano. Opened in 1763, this coffeehouse has served brain food to Nietzsche, Puccini, and Dumas. Duck in there after a day of sightseeing that should include a trip up the city's landmark 548-foot-tall Mole Antonelliana (also home to the Museo Nazionale del Cinema), where you'll get good views of this interesting industrial city and the surrounding Italian Alps. Recommendations for evening fare include the multi-course Slow Food masterpiece that is the rustic Osteria del Paluch in the Baldissero Torinese, the hills that slope up from the eastern bank of Turin's Po River. Stay at the urban-chic Le Méridien Art+Tech in Il Lingotto, a former Fiat manufacturing plant that was awakened by the genius of Italian architect Renzo Piano prior to the 2006 Winter Olympics, hosted by Turin. Now filled with the sound of flirting mallrats, high-tech conference facilities, a classy rooftop restaurant, and a museum housing priceless works of art by the likes of Matisse and Modigliani, the butter-colored Lingotto is a glossy symbol of Turin's urban renewal.
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August 21, 2009
Interview with Travel Writer David Farley: "An Irreverent Curiosity"
Pondering the mysteries of the Holy Foreskin in Calcata, Italy (David Farley)
David Farley is the type of travel writer who likes to really get to know a place before he writes about it. Case in point: He moved to Calcata, Italy, for a year to craft his first and latest book, An Irreverent Curiosity: In Search of the Church's Strangest Relic in Italy's Oddest Town. What prompted Farley's move to the quirky town? His mission to unravel the mysteries behind the Holy Foreskin (that would be Jesus's foreskin), which was reportedly stolen from Calcata in 1983. Farley has brought us tales from his time in Italy and the Czech Republic, and his work has appeared in The Best Travel Writing series, The New York Times, National Geographic Traveler, and Condé Nast Traveler. We were recently able to pick his brain about what it was like writing the book, his tips for travel-writing hopefuls, and his best piece of travel advice.
You’re best known for your short stories and articles about travel. What inspired you to tackle a book?
Originally, I wanted to take all the essays I wrote about living in Prague and try to have a collection published, but when I realized I probably only had about half a book’s worth of material, I decided I’d instead edit an anthology of travel essays (which turned out to be Travelers’ Tales Prague and the Czech Republic: True Stories). But it had been my intention to take on a book project all along—I just was waiting for the right idea to come along. And finally, when I heard about the village of Calcata and the Holy Foreskin, I knew this was the book for me.
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July 15, 2009
The Best Cross-Border Hiking in the Swiss Alps
ON THE BORDER: Hikers along the Swiss border (Gerry Wingenbach)
Usually the trail signs posted where I hike warn me about bears. This was different. “Beware: Route leads through Austria, carry identification.”
Switzerland may have the greatest train network in the world, but no visitor should cannonball through the extraordinary scenery. The Alps, which show no respect for national borders, were made for walking. And Switzerland offers some of the greatest alpine walks in the world, bringing everything you’d ever want to the game—friendly villages, easy-to-understand signage, dreamlike accommodations, and fuel for tomorrow's dining.
Our hike began in a meadow full of lively cows in Switzerland’s land of Gruyère and Emmental. The scenery was as rich as a Swiss chocolate bar and as easily consumed. It was the perfect overnight hike—one of those through-the-looking-glass adventures. And, yes, we crossed into Austria, then back into Switzerland.
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May 29, 2009
Mountain-Bike Scotland for Fun—and a Good Cause
RIDING HIGH: On the trail in Glencoe, Scotland (courtesy, Trailbrakes)
How's this for immersive tourism? Ride an adventurous S-shaped route from the southwestern tip of Scotland through the main cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow and on up past Loch Lomond, Ben Nevis (the United Kingdom's highest point), and Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands. The 500-mile route is part of an ambitious ten-day itinerary being offered by Trailbrakes, a Scotland-based mountain-biking outfitter. Covering over 50 miles each day, over 80 percent of the ride is off-road on a network of single- and doubletrack trails that is fast gaining world acclaim among mountain-biking aficionados. (Look below the jump for a Google map illustrating the approximate route.)
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April 23, 2009
Putumayo Kids to Release European Playground CD
Here at Away.com we are firm believers that music is one of the best ways to really immerse yourself in a locale. From the jazz of New Orleans to the samba and bossa nova beats of Brazil, it's an art form that hurdles language barriers, communicating the essence of a place as quickly as the opening notes of an iconic tune. And for children, music can become an instant passport to other worlds—without the hassles of airfare, terminal hopping, or even packing.
Putumayo, a fantastic label that has helped distill the abstract genre of world music into digestible introductory CDs, continues their global conquest of the knee-high set this May with their latest Playground series: European Playground. The songs come from all over the Old Country, from Sweden to Hungary, France to Scotland, Ireland to Italy. The younger set will find fantastical tales of teddy bears coming to life and a strong friendship between a cow and a mouse, while older kids can start to notice how other cultural musical styles like American folk and Caribbean salsa influence music from places half a world away. And, as an added altruistic benefit, a portion of the proceeds from all CD sales will be donated to the Brussels-based NGO European Federation for Street Children.
Check out some of our other favorite Putumayo titles:
French Cafe
Music from the Tea Lands
New Orleans
Acoustic Brazil
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April 06, 2009
Switzerland Tops the Ski World
The train to Kleine Scheidegg (Gerry Wingenbach)
The scenery is straight off a postcard—the extraordinary Swiss Alps, the sculpted slopes, the sense of getting so much of the world in one big gulp. It’s always a thrilling adventure. With skis or snowboard in hand you board the cogwheel train at Grindelwald, bound for the ski area of Kleine Scheidegg, directly beneath the Eiger’s infamous North Wall in the heart of the Jungfrau region. The cogwheel train grinds its way up the valley to the Eiger’s North Wall and, under the cover of several avalanche tunnels, delivers you straight to the jaw-dropping views at Kleine Scheidegg. A day like this can make your year.
There’s nothing even remotely like it at North American ski resorts. And that’s only one of the reasons why every skier and snowboarder should make a winter pilgrimage to Switzerland. The high mountain villages offer reliable snow, there’s a wide choice of resorts, and they’re easy to get to. Before leaving home get yourself a Swiss Pass. You can get anywhere you want in this Alpine country via rail, bus, lake steamer, or cable car. It may be the only country in the world where you don’t need a car.
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April 03, 2009
Enjoying Semana Santa in Andalusia, Spain
Detail above doorway in Córdoba's Mezquita (Alistair Wearmouth)
Seville's Semana Santa, held during the week leading up to Easter Sunday, is said to be one of Spain's finest festivals. No small boast in a country that put the fiesta in festival—from Valencia's orgy of tomato-slinging to Pamplona's famous faceoff with a herd of rampaging bulls. So first some journalistic disclosure: We left Seville the day the festivities kicked off, on Palm Sunday, a week before Easter.
What a travesty of bad planning, you're probably thinking. And, yes, some of the same thoughts entered my head as we clambered into our taxi for the short ride to the train station. Ranks of rickety wooden chairs were being assembled along the main street for that night's carnival and everyone in town, from the baristas to the street cleaners, seemed to have slipped into full-blown party mode for the big Holy Week celebrations.
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March 27, 2009
Great Swiss Skiing in Leukerbad
Leukerbad's scenic slopes (Gerry Wingenbach)
I want to tell you about Leukerbad.
Last Sunday I boarded a Swiss International Air Lines flight out of Chicago bound for Zurich. Nine hours later I was riding one of those set-your-watch-by Swiss trains rolling through Switzerland’s heroic scenery to the rugged Valais region, home to this cartoonishly magnificent country’s highest concentration of 13,000-foot summits.
The European Alps horseshoe their way around Switzerland, Austria, France, and Italy. But it is here, in Switzerland, where most of my best European ski days have been.
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March 05, 2009
Travel Lessons for Kids and Parents Alike
THE LONG HAUL: Hour 15 in transit with the kids at the airport (Fred Lee)
We had been traveling continuously for about fifteen hours, and been awake for at least eighteen since departing from Madrid. After a week in Spain followed by a week in Italy, we were looking forward to just getting back to Vermont, but had to contend with the physical and mental exhaustion of our journey home.
If it had just been my wife, Ruth, and I, we would have simply sucked it up and accepted our fatigue as part of the trip, but one look at our kids, Audrey and Nicholas (ages seven and five, respectively), trying their best to hold it together on the floor beside us, was enough to make our hearts ache. Traveling is hard, but when you travel with young children, the challenges can seem insurmountable.
To compound the matter, we still had about five more hours to go before getting home, including a two-hour flight to Boston followed by a two-hour bus ride to our car, then a half-hour drive home (the unfortunate consequence of living in the country). And, of course, our connecting flight was not only delayed, but a nasty storm had brought with it gale force winds and heavy rain, increasing our level of angst and frustration.
It is during times like this that I often ask myself, why do we do it? Why do we put ourselves through considerable duress, not to mention expense, to get on a plane and travel halfway across the globe, when life would be so much simpler if we just stayed at home and dealt with the many challenges of our daily lives?
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