I was standing on St Patrick’s Quay in the town of Cork, Ireland trying to figure out where I would find the best pub for dinner when a man burst out of the store in front of me. We were of equal height, his thick hair was grey and curly and his chin a little too bristly to have been shaved that day. He stopped dead in his tracks and asked if he could be of assistance (the Irish are so friendly). His monologue of fine Irish pubs went on a mile a minute but I stopped him at […]
Ireland may not be a leader in the world’s haute cuisine but I didn’t have far to go to find great food in Limerick. There’s a new café on a busy street corner in the centre of town near the Shannon River. It’s called the Hook and Ladder Living Café. Manager Ashley explains the name is because the Café is constantly evolving. From seasonal foods on the menu to the wall of quality kitchen accessories (Yes, they’re all for sale), from the selection of baked goods coming from their in-house bakery to the line-up of cooking classes in the […]
So who would resist digging into this seductively delicious bowl of seafood chowder? Not me, that’s for sure. I’m in Limerick, Ireland looking for a good meal. I followed the Shannon River towards the ancient castle and stumbled upon the Curragower Seafood Bar. The Curragower is in a residential area, away from the hustle and bustle of the downtown area just across the Shannon. I walked into the tiny bar into a few groups of people huddled around little tables in the dimly lit, age worn pub. We seated ourselves by a frosty window and sipped on pints of […]
I’m in Berlin, Germany and it’s awfully sobering. In the centre of the city there is a timeline of Hitler’s reign of terror. The Holocaust memorial is saddening and the constant dedications to war, like Checkpoint Charlie, make you face the realities of how horrific humans can be. There’s no escaping it in this town. On this trip, I ate far too much in Prague, had fun in Bremen where I bought too many things and now Berlin. It stops me dead in my tracks. It makes you feel pretty sobered up and helpless. My mind won’t let go […]
It’s all a fairy tale, beautiful Bremen is more than a historic city preserved with all of its romance and magic, it boasts a tale by the Brothers Grimm; The Bremen Town Musicians. As the tale goes, there were four farm animals who had reached an old age and we’re no longer of much use to the farmer. So the farmer thought to kill them. The donkey, dog, cat and rooster ran away to become town musicians in Bremen, the city of freedom saying, “We can find something better than death anywhere.” According to the fairy tale, the Bremen […]
There is always something you do when you travel, a tradition you look forward to where ever you go. For some it may be long beach walks, for others it may be a special dish or drink, for me, it’s a foot massage. Depending on the country, it’s a mix of pampering, new experiences and fun. In Istanbul I went for a Turkish Bath, in Richmond, BC it was reflexology and in Prague, a Thai Massage. The little Thai spa on the Old Square looks a little shady is in colours of lime green and red. Giant fish tanks […]