Tagged “travel”

Our 2024 Christmas present to each other was to take advantage of cheap winter flights and go somewhere we’d never been for a weekend. We settled on Venice and I’m so glad we did.

We stayed at The Venice Times hotel which was a great choice – well located near Santa Lucia station at the north-west of the island city and friendly, quiet and cosy. It was a little cold while we were there as we’d expected but the sun still shone most of the time and it was warm enough for us to occasionally sit by the Grand Canal to enjoy a spritz or glass of wine.

Among the highlights of our trip were:

• Lunch at Osteria alle Testiere
• The Peggy Gugenheim Collection
• Seeing and hearing Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons played live by string ensemble Interpreti Veneziani at Chiesa San Vidal
• Rialto fish market
• walking the winding streets, through networks of canals
• beautiful bridges, stunning views and the occasional boat-bus
• Ritaridiente mezcal cocktail at Chet’s Bar, Dorsoduro

With more time we would have taken a trip to Burano. But maybe next time.

I got home from Friday morning’s dog walk to find some records in the post. I’d recently deleted my Discogs wants-list having realised twenty years too late that it is far too addictive, and as a last hurrah had earmarked a last few key wants. One of those was The Blue Nile’s Tinseltown in the rain – a slice of Scottish pop perfection on Linn records – and I enjoyed a brief listen before heading back out.

First stop of the afternoon was a visit to Greater Govanhill’s office to collect their latest edition (more on this later).

On Fridays, Gomo Kimchi is open so I popped in for lunch and out of the rain. I resisted my usual urge to order everything on the menu, going for a kimchi toastie which was delicious.

During my work’s “summer Fridays off“ period I try to fit in one short trip and overnight stay outside the city, and this weekend was my chance. So I made the one hour drive to Kippen, stopping in at the lovely Woodhouse farm shop and café en route for coffee and a slice of apple pie.

Kippen is a gorgeous little village situated between Fintry and Callendar, near the Gargunnock and Fintry hills. Although not far to drive, it’s far enough outside the city that you might find yourself standing beside a pony outside the local coffee shop, as I did! With an hour to kill before check-in at my hotel, I enjoyed a stoat around the main street, some residential parts, the parish church and the local tennis club. I also stopped in at The Inn at Kippen for a half-pint.

I was staying at The Cross Keys, a cosy country pub/restaurant with a handful of rooms. Clair and I stayed there some years ago and enjoyed it, and happily their prices are still reasonable. Before dinner I enjoyed a pint in the pub then took the tiny trip up three stairs to the restaurant floor where I had the hake special. Since I was on my tod I had time to read my copy of Greater Govanhill while eating. This one, the Heritage edition, is full of insights into the history, landmarks, architecture, bars, shops and people of my local area and I loved it!

Saturday was a pretty chilled day. I made the trip home then hung around the house. Sunday started with a nice long dog walk in Pollok Park. Back home, I put on Tinseltown in the Rain again, this time with Clair beside me and Rudy on her lap. Rudy enjoys music (which is handy) and he looked happily tired and blissed out as Clair applied a premium-grade head scratch and the music played. That was my favourite moment of the weekend.

Later that day I played table-tennis with Phillip and Steve, with Pete coaching. Playing was great but hearing about Steve’s improved health was better.

Prior to Christmas we’d been talking about giving ourselves the present of a trip to London. However the train prices were pretty offensive so we opted for a different type of weekend trip – one that was rural, cosy and Rudy-friendly.

Friday’s check-in wasn’t til 4pm so we started with a drive to North Berwick. There, we visited the Lobster Shack. Clair had fish and chips while I had seafood chowder (which Clair admitted was the pick of the dishes). The weather was of the good January sort – chilly but sunny so we had a wee stroll along the beach and let Rudy have a run.

Charlton Gate cottage was perfect. We were in splended isolation, except for the neighbouring sheep and grouse. The cottage itself was comfortable with all the cooking and telly-watching facilities you’d need, plus a comfy bed.

On Saturday we visited Newbiggin-by-the-sea for more beach-walking fun.

Later that day we also paid a brief visit to Morpeth, which is a lovely town.

I really enjoyed my morning walks with Rudy. It was so peaceful and the sky and scenery were beautiful.

Thanks as always to my fam Clair and Rudy for a beautiful weekend.

My folks haven’t managed a holiday outside of Scotland in a long time. So it’s been nice to spend a week together in Spain.

Here we are, just about to board the No. 3 bus to Marbella’s old town.

Me, Clair and Rudy just enjoyed a lovely weekend break. We stayed at Drinkbetween cottage on Banchory Farm. While only 70 minutes drive from home it provided some lovely countryside isolation, with the bonus of nice nearby towns to visit nearby too.

The cottage has recently been restored by the farm owners and was the perfect environment to relax.

Our nearest neighbours were some colourful pheasants, a flock of sheep and three highland cows grazing in the fields opposite. Beyond them, there was a view onto the firth of forth and Forth bridges.

On the Saturday we enjoyed a short trip to the nearby towns of Aberdour via Burntisland, and moseyed down to the lovely Silver beach where we stopped for a coffee at Sands.

Clair brought and made beautiful food and at night we watched Captain Fantastic.

It was a reminder of just how great a well-needed change of pace and scenery you can get in a short distance and space of time.

Like most folks we didn’t holiday abroad during 2020 and 2021, when COVID was at its height. Trips abroad are a luxury and privilege so this was no hardship. However I’ll admit that once restrictions were lifted and things felt safer, we were pretty excited to head for some sun and good food, and set our sights on a first trip together to the south of France.

The location

We spent seven nights at Désir de Provence, hosted by owners Sylvie and Igor.

Dining out

La Bastide Bleue restaurant, Séguret.

Hotel Montmirail in Vacqueyras.

Beautiful local wine at Domaine Mathiflo in Suzette (right in the heart of the countryside).

Les Ramparts in Venasque – incredible nighttime view over the mountains

Monsieur Tu at L’isle sur la Sorgue, where we had a lovely meal of fish and wine by the canal.

Chez Serge in Carpentras.

Other highlights

Antiques market at Carpentras.

A day walking around the towns of Gigigondas, Seguret and Vaison La Romagne.

St Remy de Provence on a Wednesday morning for a fantastic market.

Carrieres Lumieres (caves featuring art installations) which was amazing.

Aix en Provence. Vasarely Foundation for Kinetic art. Lovely shops and vibe.

Chateau du Barroux was a stunning hilltop location with a castle, cobbled streets, a chapel and incredible panoramic views of the surrounding region including Mont Ventoux.

L’isle sur la sorgue – a lovely town which had an antiques market that blew Clair’s mind!

If we had more time

Hopefully on a future stay in the area we can visit Gord, Russelet (“the Colorado of Provence”), and Nimmes.

For a while now I’ve been enjoying this series of bite-sized travel guides from The Guardian, which puts the spotlight on a European town or city and hands over to a switched-on local to share food, shopping, cultural and green space highlights.

Some are more suited to my tastes and budget than others, but overall they’ve been good. And not just for far-flung places – on a recent day-trip east I checked out a number of the stops on their Edinburgh guide and it gave me a great basis for further exploration.

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Note: as I type this three weeks later, we’re about to re-enter tighter Covid restrictions, so I feel grateful to have had the opportunity for a much-needed change of scenery when we did, as it wouldn’t be possible now. I’m also thankful to everywhere we stayed for their care in taking appropriate precautions for their guests and generally for keeping going under trying circumstances.

In 2020 it's been pretty difficult to holiday abroad for two reasons: firstly, the small matter of a global pandemic; and secondly, the arrival of our Border Terrier puppy, Rudy. So we decided to make the most of our beautiful homeland, Scotland, and go on a road trip.

The plan was straightforward: we’d head primarily up the west coast, taking in new places and familiar favourites; we’d enjoy some “first holiday” fun with our furry pal; and over five nights we’d eat ourselves into a seafood-induced coma.

In reality, organising this holiday was trickier than we were used to, due to it being our first time searching for pet-friendly accommodation, a challenge which was compounded by many venues running at lower capacity due to covid considerations. However with the help of some great recommendations from friends, we found a handful of suitable spots.

In the end it worked out perfectly, and was a lovely way for us to celebrate our fourth wedding anniversary. Here’s the lowdown.

Monday

Following a quick stop to collect our hire car, we set off for Connel, near Oban.

The weather was decent, and there were early signs that Rudy would be a happy traveller. In fact we needed only one brief stop during the two and a half hour drive; at lovely Luss for a breath of fresh air and some shits and giggles (mainly shits).

By mid-afternoon we had arrived at our destination, The Oyster Inn, taken a moment to admire the view over Loch Etive, then donned our Covid masks to check-in and ditch our bags.

We made the 10 minute drive into Oban then enjoyed a saunter around the shops overlooking the bay, stopping to eat scallops at the harbourside Green Shack Seafood Hut. Aside from Rudy trying to eat everything on the ground around us, this was magic.

Later that night we ate dinner in The Glue Pot, our hotel bar-restaurant – Fish Pie and a beer for me, Scampi and a glass of wine for Clair. Good pub fare all round. The holiday was off to a fine start!

Tuesday

We started the day with breakfast in the hotel and it was a good’un: Clair opted for a “full Scottish”, and I had Eggs Royal (poached eggs, salmon, spinach, hollandaise sauce). With black clouds gathering ominously outside, this was exactly the kind of tasty fuel we needed.

We headed for Ganavan Sands and on arrival it was raining pretty heavily. However every cloud has a silver lining as this gave Rudy a chance to strut his stuff in his new Hi-Vis, waterproof jacket. We played fetch for a wee while and he had his first experience of paddling in the sea.

With our drookit dug in tow, we left for local historic attraction McCaig’s Tower, although when it became apparent that the final climb would be on foot in the rain we axed that plan, like the amateur adventurers we are. Instead we parked up in Oban and began hunting for lunch, while the rain continued unabated.

Frustratingly it was slim pickings for pet-friendly eateries and we endured a couple of knock-backs. Finally, after some frozen-fingered Googling, we found Markie Dan’s, like a pooch-friendly oasis in the desert. Clair ate fish and chips (which was dynamite) while I had chicken and rice soup and a smoked haddock and mozarella fish cake, washed down with a tasty local beer. Big up Markie Dan’s for saving the day! (And shout out to their toilets for unexpected X-rated vending machine weirdness.)

Sidenote: this wee lunchtime challenge prompted me to consider restarting a side-project I’d previously put on ice. The idea is an online directory of quality child and pet-friendly bars, restaurants and accommodation which – if you give it your current location – would list the places nearest to you. That would’ve been handy that day. Maybe someday I’ll get around to it.

With happy bellies we retired to the hotel for a rest, before it was time to head to Port Appin for dinner at the Pierhouse Hotel. Our pal Fiona is General Manager there and it had been on our visit-list for ages.

Despite bringing a canine companion we were graciously accommodated (thanks, David), although as it became clear how posh our surroundings were, we secretly began praying that the tiny terrier would be on his best behaviour.

The Pierhouse is beautifully located and the restaurant certainly lived up to its reputation.

For starters and mains we had:

• smoked salmon on cripy salmon skin;
• breaded oysters with squid ink mayo;
• a seafood platter;
• lemon sole; and on the side…
• samphire; and
• chips (obvs)

For dessert, Clair had the burnt cream, while I had their signature orange chocolate cremeux with buckthorn sorbet. (NB: despite the cast of other amazing dishes I’ve still to mention, as I look back on the overall trip I’m moved to award this dessert “Dish of the Holiday” – it really was off-the-scale!)

While dining, Rudy (who was stashed away under our table) was a bit of handful. In COVID-times, Scottish venues have no background music and are sparser than usual, so we were on high alert to catch any unacceptable doggy behaviours before they happened and marked us out as “the pain in the ass couple with the dog”. Fortunately, aside from a bit of potted plant nibbling and numerous escape attempts he didn’t do anything too visibly embarassing, although keeping one hand on him while trying to eat a plate of seafood was a bit like The Krypton Factor.

As we finished our meal, Fiona arrived to greet us and ushered us into “The Snug” for a whisky to cap the night (a Balvenie Port cask, and it fairly warmed the cockles.)

Fiona and crew are doing great things at The Pierhouse. It was lovely to catch up and a brilliant night overall.

Wednesday

We had time for one more breakfast at The Oyster Inn before leaving, and once again it hit the target. Clair went for the veggie scottish breakfast, while I had scrambled eggs and smoked salmon.

Our next stop was Glenmoriston, but before leaving Oban we had important matters to address. Following last night’s challenges with Rudy we resolved to find some superior chew-chews to keep him occupied during the remaining meal-times, so stopped in at a wee Pet Shop we’d noticed in town the previous day.

Enter Dynorod (not real name) – a stick of “Himilayan Yak Milk” that would usher in a zen-like mealtime peace we had hitherto thought impossible.

Tooled up and ready, we embarked on the most amazing sunshine drive from Oban to Kentallen (stopping at the Holly Tree Hotel for a great burger and walk along the pier) then through Ballachulish to Fort William. We’d travelled this route many times before, but this time the scenery looked even more incredible (especially just around Ballachulish). It was Scotland at its bonniest.

We then climbed over 1200 feet through the hills before settling at our destination, The Cluanie Inn. I can’t over-emphasise this: this location is stunning. You are literally right in the middle of the hills, with deer roaming free around you.

Spotting trestle tables behind the hotel we decided to check-in quickly then enjoy the last of the day’s sunshine with an al fresco beer. Unfortunately by the time I had returned with said beers, Clair was engaged in a battle of wills with the wee fella, who was going stir-crazy with all the space he found himself in. By relentlessly eating deer jobbies he kinda shattered our picture-perfect “beer in the hills” moment, but still, the thought was there…

That night we enjoyed a lovely dinner: I went for South Indian Garlic Chicken (the owners are Indian, so it seemed like a good time to change tack from seafood) while Clair had a roast pork stir fry. For desert we shared a Rhubarb and Apple Crumble with ice cream. Before bed we had a whisky and a game of Connect 4 in the lounge, while Rudy munched on Dynorod. Bliss.

Thursday

Breakfast at the Cluanie was great. Clair scratched a nostalgia itch with a bowl of Coco Pops, followed by a full Scottish. I had yogurt and muesli then scrambled eggs on toast.

Our next stop was Ullapool, way up north beyond Skye. Clair was really excited about this leg of the trip because she’d be reunited with The Seafood Shack and its owners, having enjoyed visiting earlier in the year as food photographer for their forthcoming recipe book.

The drive from Glenmoriston to Ullapool was beautiful, too, and sountracked perfectly by Clair’s “Alternative 80s” mixtape (taking in Television, Echo and The Bunnymen, Cocteau Twins) followed by our friend Andy’s excellent Go mild in the country playlist. Good times!

Arriving in Ullapool we made a beeline for The Seafood Shack and on arrival ordered 2 × Haddock Wrap (which Clair had been raving about for months). They were delicious. This gave us the necessary fuel to walk the Ullapool Hill Path which on a clear day such as it was offers fantastic views over the village, Loch Broom and the mountains beyond.

Back in the village we stopped back in at The Seafood Shack for Cullen Skink and Langoustines before it was time to check in to our home for the night, The Ceilidh Place. This hotel had been recommended by three separate friends and from the warm welcome (for both us and Rudy) and the lovely, cosy vibe, we could see straight away why people love it.

After check-in we had just enough time for a drink in their beer garden and a quick rummage around their bookshop before it was a time for a nap (this holiday business is pretty tiring…)

Later we headed to the hotel bar for a lovely dinner of Venison Stew (for me) and Fish and Chips (for Clair), sharing home-made baked cheesecake with berries for dessert. We chatted about some of our all-time favourite “long tracks” – Clair offering The Doors’ Riders on the Storm (no arguments from me) while I chipped in The Temptations’ classic Papa was a Rolling Stone.

Today was our wedding anniversary, and it had been nigh-on perfect.

Friday

Following a hearty breakfast (porridge for me; cooked breakfast for Clair) we had a wander around Ullapool. This was my first time visiting and I really liked the place. It’s a lovely, picturesque harbour village and, although fairly small, has plenty of good shops, great local food and drink, and friendly people of all ages.

Although you might think that visiting The Seafood Shack for a third time within twenty hours was bordering on the ridiculous, we popped our head in yet again for a farewell lunch. Clair had spineys (squat lobster) while I had mackeral paté with oatcakes. It was fantastic, yet again. What can I say – these folks really know their fish.

After vowing to come back to Ullapool again soon, we set off for Craigellachie, the final stop on our tour.

This was another enjoyable drive, alternating between countryside and busier roads and taking in not one but two football stadia: The Tulloch Stadium, home of Inverness Caley Thistle; and Mosset Park, home of the mighty Forres Mechanics. Sean Keveney’s 6 Music show was on the radio, and by pure coincidence the Uncle Frank’s Friday Floor Fillers section featured “Papa was a Rolling Stone” – which was every bit as good (and long) as I remembered it.

As we entered Moray Speyside we were deep within Malt Whisky country, and as fans of a dram it was exciting to pass one well-known distillery after another: Aberlour, Glenlivet, Cragganmore, Balvenie, Macallan, and more.

By 4:00 pm we arrived at our destination, The Craigellachie Hotel.

This place is great! It was definitely the poshest of our trip. It’s in a beautiful countryside location, has a lovely reception area and comfortable rooms, and an amazing bar-restaurant, The Copper Dog.

That night we had probably our favourite dinner of the holiday. For starter, Clair chose scallops with cauliflower pureé while I had haggis bon-bons in a home-made brown sauce. For our mains, Clair had their fish special: cod with sweetcorn and crab, with a side of mac and cheese. I dediced to push the boat out for our last night and had a ribeye steak. Every dish was amazing and unsurprisingly we had zero room for dessert.

To wash it down I had a Spey Valley 1814 lager then a Windswept APA. Both local and great. Clair had an Edinburgh gin.

A special shout out to the staff in the Copper Dog; they were all super-friendly and great with Rudy, including director Kevin who came over to chat before finding us a wee post-dinner table at The Quaich, their upstairs whisky bar. It would have been rude not to, so we retired there for a wee dram. With over 900 whiskies from around the world on offer it was tough to choose, but with Rudy getting tired and threatening to drag the family name through the mud in such a plush environment, we made it quick and I grabbed an Aberlour 12 (which I love) while Clair had a Glenrothes. This is a room you could definitely spend some time in, though!

Saturday

It was time to head home.

After a lovely breakfast at The Craigellachie, we made a brief stop at the nearby Aberlour distillery where I nipped into the shop to pick up a bottle of the same drop I’d had the previous night, with a wee branded glass as a souvenir.

We arrived home happy. It’s great to know you can have such an amazing holiday on your doorstep.

Thanks again to all the friends who provided recommendations.

I just made a first visit to Chicago. It was primarily to attend An Event Apart but I was lucky enough to have a little time to check out the city, too.

Firstly I want to thank all the friends who provided tips for things to do and see in The Windy City – Aleks, Susan, Jenny, Lucy, Alan and Karen, Collette etc – cheers!

Thanks also to Davie for jetting in from NYC to join me and Liam for a couple of days. I doff my cap to your knowledge of beautifully designed restaurants with really expensive menus 😉.

I also got the chance to catch up with old friend Nick Calingaert AKA Common Factor, a lovely guy and talented producer who DJed for me and my friends at a couple of our club nights back in the early 00s.

We only had a few days, but I felt we managed to cram in some good stuff. Here’s a summary of the highlights.

Eating out

• Swift & Sons
• Momataro
• Chicago Athletic Club (with its appropriately posh tag-line “Dine and Libate”…)

Bars

• Danny’s Bar
• Rainbo Bar

Record Shopping

• Gramaphone Records
• Dusty Groove
• Shuga Records, 1272 N. Milwaukee Ave
• Reckless Records

Cool Neighbourhoods

• Wicker Park area

Culture / History

• Architecture Boat Tour
• The Art Institute of Chicago

Things to do

• Millenium Park
• Cloud Gate (AKA The Bean)

And if we’d had more time…

• Go see the Cubs playing baseball at Wrigley Field
• Green Mill Jazz Club