Save your pennies—or rather, your dollars—and splurge an art-centric weekend in Ireland. Two of the country’s finest properties, the five-star Merrion Hotel in Dublin and the ultra-haute Ballyfin, in County Laois, have teamed to offer Inspiring Irish Art Weekends that showcase each property’s museum-quality art collection. I haven’t stayed at The Merrion, but I have … Continue reading
Where: Gaststrube Pürstner, Vienna; operated by the Purstner family for three generations. Menu: Traditional, prices from 7.20-23 Euros (most in the 14-16 E range) Dish: Spinatnockerl (Spinach spätzle with ham and blue cheese), came with a side salad for 7.80 Euros. Portion was huge. Why: I asked the concierge at the Palais Hansen Kempinski for … Continue reading
Last spring, I had the good fortune to spend one all-too-brief night at Great Fosters, a four-star country-house hotel with a royal pedigree set amidst 50 acres of gardens in Egham, England. The royal connections for the mid 16th-century main house (converted to Elizabethan design in the early 20th century) are deep—witness the original royal crest … Continue reading
I attained enlightenment in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Not the lights-flashing, God-appearing, Hallelujah! type of enlightenment, but rather a far-more-subtle, restorative, all’s-right-with-the-world kind. This enlightenment hit me not while clambering over the Giants Causeway, not while swigging a dram of whiskey at Bushmills, nor while white-knuckling my way across the tightrope known as the Carrick-A-Reed … Continue reading
One of my favorite scenes from The Sound of Music is when Maria and the kids stage a puppet show for guests of the Baron. Perhaps that’s why the news of the Salzburg Marionette Theatre celebrating its 100th anniversary caught my eye. Since 1913, this family owned Theatre has staged productions that include Shakespeare’s The … Continue reading
While gadding about Great Britain by rail (especially easy with a BritRail pass), I stumbled into this delightful tea room, while exploring Chalmers Close, one of the many inviting alleys that radiate off the Royal Mile. The entire shop looked like a Hollywood set, and Christine, the proprietor, was right out of central casting. I … Continue reading
Bath, a UNESCO World Heritage city and home to England’s only hot springs, is an easy day trip from London via train. I only spent about six hours in this delightful city—with most of that exploring the Roman Baths and the Thermae Bath Spa’s New Royal Bath, but I hope to return and immerse myself … Continue reading
On a map, Ireland’s northwestern corner appears as if a giant stepped on it, splaying the land into fingers webbed by a raggedy-edged coastline. Wind-scoured headlands cradle swaths of sand, forested valleys shelter shimmery ponds, and heath-clad mountains overlord barren peat bogs. It’s expansive yet intimate, tame yet wild. In spring, like much of the … Continue reading
Be Bond, James Bond: Put yourself behind the wheel of an Aston Martin and tour some of the iconic locations featured in The Spy Who Loved Me, From Russia with Love, and Skyfall. On the Luxury Ashton Martin 007 package, you’ll drive an Aston Martin DB9; stay two nights at Isle of five-star Isle of … Continue reading
Despite all-but confirming it to memory, I glanced once more at the message on my screen as the Eurostar, the high-speed train from London, docked in Paris’ Gare du Nord station. “I have managed to get all days off while you are here,” my doppelganger had written. “Did I mention how excited I am! Feel … Continue reading
