Venice Film Festival, the world's oldest, is back in the lagoon city with its 74th edition. It’s a steal-scener of a show in the city that is, for better or worse, a superior film set. It’s as surreal as Venice itself. Come and sleep in George Clooney's bridal bed, unless he's already in it.
Read MoreIn Cilento, the buffaloes, the best mozzarella di bufala and fine wines are keys to unlocking the hedonistic Southern Italian character. The enigmatic Ancient Greeks have a lot to answer for.
Read MoreThe enduring Russian love affair with the French and Italian Riviera has left an indelible mark. The Russians helped launch the Riviera as a winter playground and shaped the Riviera in their own image. And the Russians are still there.
Read MoreA taste of Cilento, south of Naples, Salerno and the Amalfi Coast, with a Slow Food trail centred on the sweetest figs, figs that are helping revive a sleepy region. The Unesco-listed Cilento National Park is also famed for the magnificent Greek temples of Paestum and the untarnished coast.
Read MoreAn East End food safari turns into a story of London immigration, a tale mostly told through street food. If this is `hanging out in the hood’, I’m all for it. Faux gangsterism aside, the journey from East End boozers to bagels and baltis is compelling food history.
Read MoreThis Champagne route from Reims to Chalons means conjuring up black magic with a red mullet so is not a classic wine and food tour. But as Champagne acts as a bizarre barometer of French health and happiness, these bubbles are always about far more than fizz.
Read MoreWallowing in wintry Tallinn reveals a city on the cusp of change. Come for moody medieval battlements and Baltic charm. Stay for the contemporary buzz, the eccentric museums and Modern Estonian eateries, along with the Soviet throwbacks and hipster hangouts.
Read MoreHow Swiss is Geneva? This sophisticated, French-speaking city seems at odds with much of Swiss-German Switzerland. Geneva has French brasseries aplenty and shuns country bumpkins. Is the city too earnest for its own good or is there a subversive streak in there somewhere?
Read MoreLondon’s burlesque scene is divinely decadent. From Soho to Mayfair, the tease is being put back into striptease. Don't forget your bedroom eyes or chainmail basque.
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