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Cultural/Gastronomic

Keeping the magic alive!

Every year in the weeks leading up to Christmas Day, conversation increasingly turns to the subject of whether or not we'll get to experience a white Christmas. Sadly, because of the temperate latitude that we enjoy in Ireland that is a statistically unlikely event. There are, however, many many places around the world (and particularly around Europe) where one can experience a picture postcard white Christmas — just like they do in the movies! Last

There’s ‘free’ … and then there’s ‘FREE’!

The word 'free' is one of the most powerful trigger words in the English language. It grabs our attention and forces us to read on further. It is a marketing guru's tool that many of them use to good effect. We, as consumers, are suckers though and when a lot of the claims of free this and that fail to live up to the hyperbole, we're left feeling foolish for having been duped — yet

Variety is the spice of life!

Imagine if you happened to find yourself in conversation with an overseas visitor of any nationality who was a regular visitor to Ireland but who always came to the same place. What do you think your reaction would be? You'd most likely say that Dublin (or Cork or Kilkenny etc.) whilst beautiful and well worth the visit was nonetheless not completely representative of all that Ireland has to offer. You'd most likely recommend that they

Perception is reality

The news — e.g. the commentary that you see on the TV or read in newspapers and magazines is a commodity and just like any other kind of commodity it is perishable and thus must be sold by its sell-by date. By 'sold' I mean distributed or broadcast. Describing the 'news' as a commodity that is bought and sold may sound counter-intuitive but it's true and because of its perishability, there is a constant pressure

The thrill that is History!

I'm Irish and very proud to be so. I think that for such a small country, we've made a disproportionate impact on the global stage. Both our history and our mythology are extremely rich — as is our almost unique culture — some of which we share with our Celtic cousins. There are times though when I travel, that I'm reminded of how all such things are relative and that by comparison with some other

All travel doesn’t have to be International!

I came into the travel business back in 1975 so I suppose that that makes me a 40-year veteran of the industry at this stage. Over the course of those 40 intervening years I have been blessed with the opportunity to travel all over the world and experience some of the most beautiful places on earth. But do you know what, I wouldn't trade any of them for the little piece of heaven that I

Blogtastic — The rise and rise of the travel blog!

With each year that passes and as more and more people enjoy the delights of international travel, it is inevitable that more and more travel blogs get written. Some blogs — like this one for instance — are an incidental activity to something else that is being done — in my case, running a travel consortium and trying to maximise the level of commerce being generated on behalf of key supplier partners. In many other

Scandinavia’s best kept secret!

When we think of former colonial powers in days gone by, we tend to think of European states Like Britain, France, Germany, The Netherlands and perhaps even the Austro-Hungarian empire. But a Scandinavian country? Surely not! Sadly, most people’s knowledge of European history tends to be seen through the prism of what British historians have written about and thus an important chapter of such history in which the Kingdom of Sweden played an important role,

The undiscovered France!

Despite continuing to be the most visited country in the world, it is perhaps surprising that there are still huge swathes of France that your average tourist knows next to nothing about! In the same way that spending a few days in Dublin does not constitute getting to know the 'real' Ireland, so too is it with France and believe it or not, there is so much more to France than Paris, the Cote D'Azur

If Toulouse is not on your radar — it should be!

Toulouse — fourth largest city in France and home to Airbus, manufacturers of the world's largest civilian airliner, the A380. This beautiful city suffers from anonymity and it shouldn't because on paper, it really does tick most, if not all the boxes. True, it does not contain iconic locations or structures such as the Eiffel Tower or L'Arc du Triumphe but in its own modest and unassuming way, Toulouse insinuates its way into your thoughts and

Heaven does exist — and it’s located in Tuscany!

I'm Irish and I've lived in Ireland all my life and I can't think of anywhere else in the world I'd rather spend the rest of my days — despite the weather, the politicians, the cute hoorism, the naked nepotism at every turn and a hundred or more other things that irritate me and cause my blood pressure to go stratospheric! We've got a great little country and our food  is second to none. We

The culinary landscape around the world is changing!

When we think of culinary excellence, we tend to think of places like New York, Barcelona, London, San Sebastian or Lyon. Countries like France, Spain and Italy have been — with much justification it must be said — lauded for centuries as representing the epitome of culinary art. In more recent years however, the centre of gravity has begun to move away from these traditional gastronomic capitals as tastes change; new processes have come into

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