Wine Regions in Aquitaine Southwest, France

Beautiful Saint Emilion is a historic Roman town perched on top of a hill surrounded by rows of grape vines and is the centre of the Bordeaux wine region. Saint Emilion reds (made from Merlot grapes) are known for their enticing depth of colour and flavour. The best Saint Emilion vineyards are on the slopes around the town and properties here are small, with almost a thousand crammed into a very small area of hillside, creating a tiered mosaic of vines. Some of the best producers in Saint Emilion are Cheval Blanc, Angelus, Grand Mayne, La Mondotte, Tertre-Roteboeuf and Valandraud.

The rest of Bordeaux spreads out below you from here, with enough grapes to produce more wine than the whole of Australia. Appellations like Saint Emilion, Medoc and Pomerol have given Bordeaux a reputation as being the worlds largest producer of fine wines, but this region actually produces a much larger variety of wine than many people think. As well as the famous reds, Bordeaux is also the home of Sauternes, the popular dessert wine and some dryer whites made with Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon grapes.

The Gironde river slices through Bordeaux and is a division in soil types as well as land. On the left bank near the estuary the Merlot for the Medoc Clarets is grown, then further south the Cabernet Sauvignon vines take over and you get into Pauillac country. On the right bank grow the fleshy Saint Emilion and Pomerol Merlots. There are also pockets of Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc grapes grown further inland.

Some of Bordeaux’s most prestigious names are Margaux, Lafite and Petrus, but appointments need to be made with these wineries during busy periods if you want to visit them. There are around 9,000 producers in this region so to avoid being overwhelmed you need to plan time in each preferred sub region and see them almost as individual regions, grouped by location and the patchwork scenery of vines in all directions. This whole area has a wine theme with winery tours and chateau accommodation a speciality.

Review by: Kat Mackintosh

Photo by flickr user filtran

Tombs & Memorials in Southern Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka

Countless monuments have been raised, over tens of centuries, in memory of the great scenes of Buddha’s life; but this one at Polonnawura in Sri Lanka was created in the 12th century on the king’s instruction, to honour his dying moments, when he achieved perfect peace: Nirvana.

Despite its prone position, the statue carries an air of enormous dignity and satisfaction, and appears to have emerged naturally from the streaked, grey, granite cliff behind it as though it were part of the environment. 46 feet in length, it lies across the front of a rock-cut temple, and shows the Buddha lying on his side, one hand raised to his pillow, with a placid smile on his lips.

Review by: larapiegeler

Photo by flickr user mckaysavage

Walking in Andalucia, Spain

I suggest the hike from Aguamarga to Las Negras. Requiring just 5 hours , this route takes you into a desert country by the sea. The path will take you to three hidden and wonderful beaches: Enmedio, El Plomo and San Pedro

Review by: Zervino

Photo by Zervino

Churches & Abbeys in London, United Kingdom

St Pauls Cathedral is an iconic London landmark, one which has famously survived the Blitz in WW2 while all around the city burned. Seat of the Bishop of London and the fifth Cathedral on this spot, it was built by Sir Christopher Wren after destruction of 'old St Pauls' in the Great Fire of 1666 - along with 50 other city churches, which makes London's church architecture the finest of any city in the world outside Rome.

The style is a more restrained, English version of the Baroque - English renaissance. The huge dome, a London landmark, was inspired by St Peters in Rome. Many famous figures from British history are buried here, including Winston Churchill, the Duke of Wellington and Admiral Nelson.

Review by: James Dunford Wood

Photo by flickr user Kieran Lynam

Flying, Gliding & Ballooning in Iquique, Chile

There is plenty of good paragliding to be had in Chile but the top spots, especially if you like distance, have to be Iquique and Santiago where the wind conditions coming in off the Pacific Ocean are perfect almost every day and a local pilot told me it hasn’t rained in 14 years. Iquinque is a great spot to begin or continue your training. There are huge sand dunes (600 metres) all around so you can land and take off from almost anywhere along the long ridge and there are good thermal updrafts that mean your take of point can be quite low, but you can still get some good height in the air. This is a good place for newer pilots to try their luck with thermals for the first time or to clock up hours in the moderate wind conditions of the mornings and afternoons. There is plenty of lift and if you fall off you don’t have to travel too far back to the ridge to take off again. If you’re after cross country you can soar along the top of the line of the Atacama desert cliffs which make for any easy route to follow. More experienced pilots will want to go further, probably out along the coast to see the beautiful, peaceful, sunsets you have seen pilots hovering over in so many photos. Flights of 180+ kms aren’t out of the question. This is another nice destination to fly with impressive cloud bases and plenty of space. It’s sunny, it’s a good sized town and the beaches and surfing are also excellent, it’s also part of a duty free zone, so it’s quite cheap. Apparently it’s won some awards for being one of Chile’s most attractive cities (this may help persuade non flying partners.). You can camp if you’re travelling on the cheap, the weather is ideal for it but you need to watch your security.

Review by: Kirk Browne

Photo by flickr user Blue Diego

Kitesurfing in Cape Verde

At less than 6 hours flight from the biggest European Capital cities, generously touched with trade wind and winter swells, the island of Sal is one of the best places in the world for surfing watersports, be it windsurfing, surfing or kiteboarding.

Santa Maria is situated on the southern coast of the island. Here the sandy and almost deserted beach that stretches for over 8 kilometers, combined with a steady side-offshore wind from the left (3-5 bft every day), makes the spot an ideal zone for kitesurfers of all levels. Beginners will find plenty of space where to launch and land their kites here. Advanced and expert riders can have fun at Punta Leme Velho just one kilometer upwind, famous for it's white sands and crystal-clear, turquoise waters.

Much of the year is reasonably warm (25°C/77°C) and dry, hotter and more humid (30°C/86°C) during the 'wet' season (July-September) not that rainy here.

If your travel mate is not that much into water sports, diving is some of the best in West Africa (Buracona Hole), and the salt fields of Pedra Lume are worth a visit. If you are looking for big nightlife, then head somewhere else: villages os Sal are quiet except for a couple of local discos at the wekends in the main town.

Review by: Marco Bauli

Photo by marcobauli

Wine Regions in Foligno, Italy

Umbria’s major wine, Orvieto, isn’t as popular outside Italy as it once was and most of the other wines produced here are unknown to international palates, so there isn’t as much wine tourism here as there should be, but this is beginning to change. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes have been grown here for centuries and are well suited to the conditions and wine makers have plenty of experience growing and blending the perfect local flavours, once celebrated by Popes and royalty.

The scenery is also beautiful, lots of quintessentially Italian vistas of warm coloured valleys and hilltop medieval villages like Assisi, Spello and Montefalco.

If you’re looking for the wine road less travelled try the reds produced around Umbria’s Torgiano and Montefalco which are supposedly full of character and visit the estates of La Carraia and Lamborghini where new local red blends are being tried and tested.

Review by: Kat Mackintosh

Photo by flickr user pizzodisevo

Sacred Spaces in Northern Territory, Australia

Throughout the ages many cultures have conceived of geographic space and expressed those conceptions in a variety of ways. One expression of these conceptions has been the establishment of sacred geographies. Perhaps the oldest form of sacred geography, and one that has its genesis in mythology, is that of the aborigines of Australia. According to aboriginal legends, in the mythic period of the beginning of the world known as Alcheringa - the Dreamtime - ancestral beings in the form of totemic animals and humans emerged from the interior of the Earth and began to wander over the land. As these Dreamtime ancestors roamed the Earth they created features of the landscape through such everyday actions as birth, play, singing, fishing, hunting, marriage, and death. At the end of the Dreamtime, these features hardened into stone, and the bodies of the ancestors turned into hills, boulders, caves, lakes, and other distinctive landforms. These places, such as Uluru (Ayers Rock) and Kata Tjuta (the Olgas Mountains) became sacred sites. The paths the totemic ancestors had trod across the landscape became known as Dreaming Tracks, or Songlines, and they connected the sacred places of power. The mythological wanderings of the ancestors thus gave to the aborigines a sacred geography, a pilgrimage tradition, and a nomadic way of life. For more than forty thousand years - making it the oldest continuing culture in the world - the aborigines followed the Dreaming tracks of their ancestors.

During the course of the yearly cycle various aboriginal tribes would make journeys, called walkabouts, along the songlines of various totemic spirits, returning year after year to the same traditional routes. As people trod these ancient pilgrimage routes they sang songs that told the myths of the Dreamtime and gave travel directions across the vast deserts to other sacred places along the songlines. At the totemic sacred sites, where dwelt the mythical beings of the Dreamtime, the aborigines performed various rituals to invoke the kurunba, or spirit power of the place. This power could be used for the benefit of the tribe, the totemic spirits of the tribe, and the health of the surrounding lands. For the aborigines, walkabouts along the songlines of their sacred geography were a way to support and regenerate the spirits of the living Earth, and also a way to experience a living memory of their ancestral Dreamtime heritage.

Located in the center of Australia, the massive rock formations of Uluru (Ayers Rock) and Kata Tjuta (the Olgas) are the most prominent and well known sacred sites of the Aboriginal people. Rising 346 meters high, with a circumference of 9.4 kilometers and covering an area of 3.33 square kilometers, Uluru is the single largest rock outcropping all of Australia. The beginning of Aboriginal settlement in the Uluṟu region has not been determined, but archaeological findings to the east and west indicate a date more than 10,000 years ago, though some archaeologists estimate that human settlement in the region actually dates from at least 22,000 years ago. ‘Uluru' is simply a place name meaning which is applied to both the rock and the waterhole on top of the rock. The thirty-six rounded rocks of Kata Tjuta (meaning ‘Many Headed Mountain’), are located in the same National Park as Uluru. By Aboriginal tradition only certain elderly males may climb the rock but despite this tradition the Australian government allows tourists to make the climb using a metal chain installed in 1964. The Aboriginal tribes also request that visitors do not photograph certain sections of Uluru, mostly gender-related, for reasons related to traditional beliefs. Ayers Rock was created a national park in 1950 and in 1958 was combined with the Olgas to form the Ayers Rock National Park. Uluru is listed as a World Heritage Area for its natural and man-made attributes.

Review by: Martin Gray

Photo by Photography: Martin Gray

Gardens in Netherlands

Here is an academic garden from the time of the Renaissance and the foundation for the Dutch bulb industry.

Founded in 1587, the Hortus Academicus was amongst the earliest botanical gardens in Europe. Carolus Clusius, a Flemish doctor and botanist also known as Charles de L'Ecluse, planned Europe's earliest botanic garden here. As Prefect of the Royal Medicinal Garden in Prague, he started a collection of tulips from seed. He subsequently became founder, designer and first Prefect of the Botanic Garden here and over six hundred bulbs were planted at Leiden by 1593. He was appointed professor in 1594. His 16th century garden, the Hortus Clusius has been restored to the original plan with paths of crushed white shells.

The Japanese Von Siebold Memorial Garden commemorates the garden's connection with Von Siebold who was a doctor working in Japan who sent back most of his plant collection to Leiden in 1823. His name is familiar from plants such as clematis and Hosta sieboldii. He made many other introductions including wisteria, tiarella and epimediums.

The Orangery here was designed by the Protestant French designer Daniel Marot.

In this town-garden plant museum much of the planting is in very large containers and everything is well labelled. It contains a number of interesting old trees dating from the 17th century including semi-tender trees in tubs which are moved into the Orangery in winter.

The greenhouses have splendid collections of plants including Cycads and a collection of many different passion flowers. In a rose garden laid out in the 1930s a central sundial is surrounded by those species from which all cultivars are descended.

Situated off a typical quiet Dutch canal-side street, the garden today is a centre of serious botanical studies. www.sisley.co.uk

Review by: Tony Sissons

Photo by flickr user gumuz

Birdwatching in Sandakan, Malaysia

Sandakan is the main entry point in Sabah, Island of Borneo, East Malaysia for Sepilok and the Bornean jungle. Around a 30 minute drive from Sandakan, Sepilok is famous for the Orang utan Rehabilitation Centre, well worth a visit around feeding time for Orang utan as well as some good birding is to be had here. A little touristy but then the element is on knowing that some of the Orang utan have come in from “the wild” for the free food frenzy that takes place daily. Likewise, rehabilitated Orang utan may wander off at their leisure back to the wild so it’s a big bonus for the species. Really close views and great photo opportunities abound (as long as you tear yourself away from the new birds all around you)!

A raised boardwalk also keeps you well above the rainforest floor which allows a quiet approach: if you manage to get there early and be one of the first out to the platforms you will hopefully come across birds such as Chestnut-winged Babbler, Diard’s Trogon as well as a macaque or two. To be fair though the birds are still around with all the people there. Orang utan was seen at Sukau on the lower Kinabatanangang River and Dannum Valley on the trip for the purists among us too. Other birds here included: Little Spiderhunter, Indian Cuckoo, Fiery Minivet, Scarlet-breasted Flowerpecker and Large Woodshrike.

Great birding though happens with an early start to visit the Rainforest Discovery Centre (RDC) at Sepilok, situated a few hundred metres from the Orang rehab centre. Looking over the large lake our first birds at dawn were two Bat Hawk which flew over calling excitedly, albeit somewhat strangely for a hawk: no doubt eyeing the three or four swift / swiftlet species, hawking and drinking above the lake with interest.

Walking alongside the lake brings you to the highlight of RDC (and indeed Dannum Valley) which are the canopy walkways. Here, you can climb Bristlehead Tower and at 17 metre find yourself at eye-level with Black & Yellow Broadbill, Little Green Pigeon, Rufous Woodpecker and Violet Cuckoo among other Asian gems while you nestle comfortably alongside in their canopy world. We were told the Bornean Bristlehead here were nesting and hence very quiet for our visit with none being seen by us although on this visit we weren’t here long enough to give them a chance. There was a picture of them on the tower, I suppose as some sort of compensation! Endemic to Borneo and in a family all by itself, this strange beast is a must-see bird for birders everywhere! Also here were Rufous-collared Kingfisher, the large and raucous White-bellied Woodpecker, Jerdon’s Baza, Rhinoceros Hornbill and the local version of White-rumped Sharma; White crowned.

We stayed in town at the Sabah Hotel but if you’re here for birds and animals I’d suggest staying in Sepilok. Try Sepilok Jungle Resort for ease of location and a wide range of room types or if going to the Kinabatanangang River they have Bilit Adventure Lodge where “jungle cruises” are the order of the day and well worth a couple of nights. If birding at Sepilok you could do four days easily just going round and round the RDC.

Review by: Alan McBride

Photo by Alan McBride