Keukenhof Tulip Festival, Amsterdam, Holland

It's only 3 months until the Keukenhof Tulip Festival kicks off once again (opens 24 March 2011). Here are some photos from the beautiful gardens in full bloom to inspire you.

A river of flowers

Pineapple tulip

Classic clogs

It is a beautiful day out wondering around the gardens and many people hire bikes to ride through the tulip fields and admire the Dutch windmills.

The gardens are located near Amsterdam and there is a bus that runs regularly from Amsterdam and direct from Schiphol airport.  There are cafes though I would recommend taking a picnic lunch like many of the locals.

Details: Late March is the start of the festival and April is a good time for full bloom.  See their website for price and further details http://www.keukenhof.nl/index/. If you are in Amsterdam at the right time of the year be sure to head out to the festival - even if you are not a tulip enthusiast!

Lake Como - Cooking Class, Varenna

On a lovely day in August I joined a cooking class in Varenna, one of the gorgeous villages in Lake Como.  Moreno's daughter picked me and an American couple up in the town square (just near my hotel which was handy) and drove us up the windy hill giving us beautiful views of the Lake and surrounding mountains.  The restaurant is set high within the hillside and during the break we got to wander around and admire the views.

View from outside the restaurant

Moreno is the chef who has been holding cooking classes for about 10 years.  When I was there we had 7 people participating so it was quite a nice intimate class size from various parts of the globe (Australian, American and Norwegian).  Everyone else were part of a couple, however, I wouldn't discourage singles heading along as everyone is welcoming, ready to learn and in holiday mode! So much so that five us all joined up to explore Varenna later in the day and for dinner.

The class ready to learn (and eat!)

Moreno in action

Three different pasta dishes were made including a northern Italian dish, large flat pasta dish and a risotto.  The dishes Moreno demonstrates change so I plan to go back next time I visit Lake Como.  The cooking class is demonstration based and you get to enjoy wine and antipasti while you watch (included in the price).  However, Moreno does encourage people to come up and help with different part of the process including the pasta making.

 

There are the three dishes we made - all very tasty but too filling to finish all three dishes! I think I will take a tupperware container next time I visit so that I can enjoy the dishes later and not feel like I'm wasting the food Moreno has spent so much time preparing! Here are the fruits of 'our' labour...

I would highly recommend doing this cooking class. It is extremely well priced (35 euros in 2010 but worth a lot more than this) and is a fun 4-5 hours.  I will be back there in a few months and this time round my parents will be joining me after talking it up so much!

Details:
Email Moreno to book in a class (held on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday or Friday)

info@ilcaminettoonline.com

I would recommend booking well ahead of your trip to secure your space as it is a great experience that was a highlight on my trip to Lake Como.  I didn't have time to visit the restaurant for dinner at the time but think I will add to the itinerary next visit.

Ciao and buon appetito!

Lovely Lisbon, Portugal

As a winter escape from London I booked in a long weekend to Lisbon where thankfully it was a good 10 degrees warmer than the UK.  We caught a cab into town (approx 25 euros) and were surprised while lining up that so many drivers were women. We caught an airport bus on the way back which only cost 3.75 euros.

Lisbon has 5 of the top 10 hostels in the world so we were intrigued to check out why they had received such a good wrap.  We booked into the Living Lounge Hostel which was well located to the main train station, a metro stop and some fab restaurants and nightlife.  On the first morning we woke to the smell of fresh hot pancakes and I started to understand why this hostel had received such a good wrap (mmmmm chocolate crepes - my guilty travel favourite!). 

We joined a free walking tour that the hostel hosted and these photos show some of the highlights including the neogothic elevador and cute petit yellow trams.

View from the elevador

Santa Justa Elevador 

The oddspot of rain played havoc with me and cobblestones, perhaps partly due to some good vinho. I recommend heading to Bairro Alto for dinner and some good cheap cocktails.  This area was very busy even in November (temp approx 15 degrees) and would go off in Summer! There are lots of bars and restaurants to choose from and some fairly good graffiti too.

Lisbon is a lovely sized city to explore and enjoy the local food - lots of cod fish dishes and definitely try the tasty Portuguese custard tarts. You can buy the custards tarts in a box (6 for 5.10 euros) so quite a good present to take back to work if you don't have to travel too many hours home.

Sao Nicolau, Cafetaria, Rua Augusta No.110, Lisboa

I would recommend Lisbon in winter and would love to go back in summer when the streets would be even busier with locals and tourists. Compared to London and other European cities I've visited Lisbon is very well priced when it comes to food, drink and transport.