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COLD BRUGES
I haven’t had the pleasure of actually going to Bruges in my life (yet), but I will say I passed it once on a train trip through Northern Europe and I remember sitting there, from my passenger seat on the train at the Bruges station thinking: “how beautiful is this? Wait, where are we?” It was Bruges. Even from the train window I could tell it was a special place. And, when I came across this article, it sealed it for me, well as long as I ignore the expected crowds: “The entire old section of Bruges is a Unesco World Heritage Site. In the center’s Burg square, the 14th-century Stadhuis (City Hall) has an ornate carved ceiling. Nearby, Markt square features a 13th-century belfry with a 47-bell carillon and a tower with panoramic views.There are tons of museums, from the Groeningemuseum, featuring Hans Memling and Jan Van Eyck to the Choco-Story Chocolate Museum.” Oh, yes, did I mention the Choco-Story Chocolate Museum is there too?
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NYC FOOD HÄLL
In case you were wondering, the Ä in the title is pronounced as though there is an E there. Anyhow, back to topic: NYC food halls. Great idea, from experience, if you’re like 14 people traveling together looking for a bite with everyone suggesting (needing) a different type of food, or if you need to pop down for a quick lunch, but you’re not quite sure what to get yet. For some reason, I also somewhat, sometimes, enjoy the community aspect of it. Everyone sits close to each other, you’ll be sure to engage in some small talk with someone else and, well, the food is usually pretty darn good at a decent price. In fact, I’m getting hungry now: “On the concourse level of The Plaza New York Hotel, this opulent marketplace is full of fine food purveyors and counter-style dining options, where you can feel a little fancy while having breakfast, lunch and dinner or when taking your order to go. Pick up some high-quality Kusmi Tea or purchase fresh-baked breads and delicate pastries from Boulud’s Épicerie or Pain D’Avignon Bakery. Or get tempted by the colorful macarons made by Ladurée or the richly-layered cakes from Lady M. Savory. Options extend to Pizza Rollio, whose approach to pizza-making is worth tasting, Tartinery, noted for its refined French fare, and Takumi Taco, a popular Mexican brand.” The Plaza Food Hall USA is one of my favorites. In the winter, grab a hot chocolate there and head straight into Central Park for a nice walk!
3
TAKE A KYRGYZSTAND
New business idea (I mean unless it already exists). Nice and easy travel journals like this one on Kyrgyzstan. You limit it to 16 pics and you send a snippet of information with each pic with a maximum number of characters. It definitely beats the 1600 pictures I get forwarded to me from a friend who just went somewhere new, with no context of what we’re even looking at. And with this, it opened up my desire to visit Kyrgyzstan. It seems like such an interesting country and from everything I can tell from the pics, 0 tourists. From Buzzfeed: “If you’ve never heard of Kyrgyzstan, then fortunately for you, I’m here to welcome you to the exclusive group of travelers who are in the know about this El Dorado of travel destinations. If a country could ever be called a “hidden gem” with zero irony or exaggeration, Kyrgyzstan would be it. “You know that feeling when you see untouched beauty? Crazy mountains with open valleys? It triggers you somehow,” photographer Albert Dros said about Kyrgyzstan for Lonely Planet.” How does that sound? Made me want to go, that’s for sure.
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AND NOW FOR A LITTLE HISTORY ON TRAVEL BLOGGERS
You may think travel blogging is a relatively new phenomenon. And, technically, you’re right if you compare it to the total age of the Earth. However, there’s evidence to suggest the first travel bloggers started “blogging,” or as it was known then “storytelling” way back in AD 1486. Isn’t that crazy? Someone went on a trip to Jerusalem and decided to draw the city and share it with their buddies. Imagine if we did that nowadays? You’d have to spend an extra month just trying to draw a map of the block! Anyhow, I found it fascinating to realize that all these “new” things we’re doing are not literally new – just facilitated by technology. From CNN: “Its vivid pictures of far-off lands captivated audiences when they were first published. And followers were keen to replicate Erhard Reiwich’s scenes of Venice and Jerusalem. Sound familiar? Not so fast. These pictures were published 500 years before Instagram. “Peregrinatio in Terram Sanctam” (“Pilgrimage to the Holy Land”) is said to be the world’s first travel guide. Written by Bernhard von Breydenbach, and illustrated by Reiwich, it was published in 1486. The pair swiftly became the world’s first travel influencers. Von Breydenbach’s travelogue — detailing the pair’s journey through Italy and across the Mediterranean — captivated readers. Reiwich’s illustrations were the first accurate images ever seen of destinations including Rhodes, Cairo and Beirut. Fifteenth-century Europeans were fascinated.”
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TOUR OPERATOR [SAID WITH THE MELODY FROM PHONE OPERATOR]
If you asked me or many of my friends even a few years ago, we would have said that tour operators are a dying breed. With more information and tools at our fingertips, we are now able to organize our own holidays without having to get a tour operator involved. We can still stay at nice places, experience what needs to be experienced, eat good food and so forth, all while keeping costs relatively low. Well, let me tell you. I was surprised to find out that a huge chunk of the world still uses tour operators and there’s research out there to suggest that after a little dip, they are becoming more popular. And, actually, I can get it. Sometimes I wonder how nice it would be to have everything planned for you, and with more tour operators aligning with the needs of a new demographic, there are more options on the table at relatively decent prices. And with that, I (and Condé Nast) offer in this week’s newsletter, the best tour operators in the world: “These travel operators and specialists promise to plan the slickest trips around, sorting everything from accommodation, transport and flights down to the tiny details you don’t want to think about on your holiday. With a near-perfect score, The Turquoise Holiday Company is the winner of our Readers’ Choice Awards; with travel expert Tauck, which has been in operation for more than a century, coming in second. Scott Dunn and Healing Holidays led the way when it came to the best travel specialists, with the scores below representing overall average levels of satisfaction.”
Thanks,
Joe Naaman
Managing Editor, Waywinds
Keep Exploring!