Category

Assisi. A medieval Francisan commune in the heart of Umbria. Known for being the birthplace of the St Francis who founded the religious order in 1208, it has also been declared as aUNESCO World Heritage site. (Can I JUST say that I LOVE that all my Follow Your Heart Travel...

Essaouira. I knew I would love her for the simple reason that she is a coastal town on the west coast of Morocco. What I didn’t expect was to be absolutely smitten with her and her old medina charm, that even though there are travelers coming through her streets, she retains her...

 In October the harvesting of olives for oil is well on its way! We were in Umbria in Italy and our wonderful Italy Team Max , took us to Feliziani’s Oil Factory in Spoleto. With a long line of oil making in the family, the owner showed us a wall full of vintage photos –...

I remember when I first wandered this quaint village. It was autumn and we had scarves on and the fallen leaves from the trees crunched as we walked down the rugged paths that led through the village homes. “This place would be ADORABLE to visit, or stay, in the summer!!...

It’s iconic. We also see the canals FULL of tourists in their gondolas. Don’t get me wrong, it’s beautiful. But….I tend to go with the less “typical” ways to experience local life.   That’s why I was all about finding the traghetto station on the Grand Canal and try it out for...

You can smell it several shops away…this yumminess of scents from fruity, to musks, to florals. Kind of like when you know there is a LUSH store in the mall ahead somewhere – you can smell it in advance! La Botica de la Abuela Aladdin doesn’t have a website, but it really...

In countries where wine is made, there is always a place that is called “wine country”. Turkey has one, off the Aegean coast, outside of Kusadasi. Sirince (prounounced, sheh-ringe-eh) is a small village of about 600 in population. The name used to be Cirkince which meant “ugly”,...

One of the things I notice when I travel is that the best way to REALLY get the feel of a place is to visit their local market. It is here that you will see the locals, see the produce they are selling and see how real life is among the place you are in. It was no different...

I had the pleasure meeting Neco (prounounced Nay-Jo) 2 trips ago bringing some of my guests to Turkey. Neco has been in the carpet making business for over 25 years. He started as a young boy and into his young adulthood continued and today is one of the most well-known in his...

A must-see is definitely the Egyptian Spice Bazaar in the Old City of Istanbul. Yes there is the Grand Bazaar that I also say visit to say you visit, but I personally prefer the Spice Bazaar for actual shopping purposes – it’s where the locals shop and have shopped since it...