A Sunny Southwold New Year Celebration!

It's been a year since I wrote my 'A Perfect New Year in the Seaside Town of Southwold' blog post where I introduced Southwold and picked my must-dos, and, as our trip is an annual celebration, here's 2014's travel review!

We arrived on the evening two days before New Year's Eve to get back into the swing of the seaside style of life and where else could we go first but The Lord Nelson - Southwold's favourite pub which stocks Southwold's famous Adnams beer. We had a lovely catch-up with friends and family who had arrived before and of course sampled their simple, homemade meals including fish and chips, veggie chilli and burgers!

There's lots of walking to be had in Southwold; on the beach, the pier, down the little streets but my favourite is the blustery Southwold to Walberwick walk which we do every year with the dogs. The walk takes you along the beach, through the harbour and across the River Blyth ending up in the pretty little village of Walberswick which contains one of my favourite pubs, The Bell where, I only discovered this year, they do the most amazing hot chocolate - perfect on a wintery day.

New Year's Eve came upon us and because we have three energetic dogs there was no relaxing before partying the night away but instead a very long walk from Southwold to Dunwich. I say very long, it was 8 miles but really enjoyable with ever-changing scenery from beaches, to woods, villages to fields filled with windmills. There were lots of photo opportunities on the way to The Ship - a lovely little pub in Dunwich. Getting a table was a struggle in this popular place but we managed to find the perfect place to sit all eight of us (and the dogs!). Here, we had planned on a light lunch ready for the journey back but the fresh-fish menu was too tempting so we stuffed ourselves and got a taxi ride back to Southwold!

It wouldn't be the same if we didn't see in the New Year with drinks at The Lord Nelson - Adnams Fizz all 'round, followed by fireworks on the beach. There's such a lovely atmosphere in Southwold on New Year's Eve... everyone meets at the beach, brings fireworks and the display starts before the countdown begins and Auld Lang Syne is sung by all. We returned to the house for a little party of our own before venturing down to the beach in the early hours with some wine and music... the perfect New Year's Eve!

After a morning walk to the pier, we decided to do something we had never done before in Southwold to celebrate the 1st day of 2015 - afternoon tea at The Swan - how very sophisticated! Some of the group were a little too jaded to come for delicious sandwiches, cakes and the most enormous scones I've ever seen so we had extra portions which no-one complained about! Despite it being 'afternoon tea', it's great in Southwold as everything is very laid-back and wellies, scarves and thick jackets are always acceptable!

A final run along the stunning shoreline next to the famous, brightly-coloured beach huts saw the end of another absolutely perfect stay in Southwold. I urge anyone who hasn't been to go, even for the day, although a day will leave you wanting to return as we're lucky enough to do every year.

This year's highlights (see others in my previous post!)...

• ·         The Lord Nelson every time - the best pub in Southwold!
• ·         Despite the moans the 8 mile walk from Southwold to Dunwich was a healthy highlight

This year's must dos...

• ·         Afternoon tea at The Swan - arrive hungry!
• ·         The walk from Southwold to Walberswick's The Bell for a gorgeous hot chocolate

Jane x

A Travel Review: Rambling in Rome

This is an honest travel review about the weekend I spent in Rome at the beginning of September. I'm making the 'honest' point now because I'm going to go against the 'I loved Rome, it's a must-visit' and say I had very mixed views on my time spent in the city. Maybe I've been spoilt with other amazing places, and although I had lots of fun, I'm not in a hurry to return to Rome.

We only had three nights in Rome so we got started on seeing the sights as soon as we got off the plane. We booked our hotel very last minute so the choice wasn't massive but Hearth Hotel just outside the Vatican was the perfect location and the staff were so friendly - also a plus we got to check-in early on arrival. After we dropped our bags we set off over the River Tiber which is beautiful in the sun to the Spanish Steps. I'm not sure what I was expecting but they were a bit dreary and grey.

After a walk through the Piazza di Spagna we arrived at our lunch destination of Gina. I tend to organise my travel itinerary around the places I'd like to eat in which actually does make it easier to plan things, especially in a city. Gina is a real find, located near shops such as Chanel and Louis Vuitton, it gives off a luxury vibe without being pretentious. The whole place is really white which is my idea of interior heaven but with unique American-styled artwork such as the American flag in Coca-Cola cans. The food is simple but tasty and came out very quickly - perfect for a daytime bite.

From Gina we walked to the Pantheon, one of Ancient Rome's best preserved buildings rebuilt by the emperor Hadrian in 126AD. We decided to join an English-speaking tour as the guy that stopped us to ask if we'd like to join was so nice! It was actually really interesting and we discovered a lot more about the building and the streets around it than if we'd just explored alone. The thing I was most fascinated with was the beautiful floor in many different marbles. The ruby red colour was like nothing I'd ever seen before. The Pantheon is an impressive sight so it's definitely one for the to-see list.

Our guide mentioned one of Rome's most famous cafes; Sant'Eustachio il Caffe located in a nearby piazza where they use a 'secret' method to create their coffee (the coffee machine is covered to avoid it getting out!). Being coffee lovers we had to go for an espresso - Romans tend not to drink cappuccino after 11am so when in Rome (I drank a lot of coffee!). The piazzas are lovely - one of the most interesting things in Rome. There's always some elaborate building and cute cafes with tables outside to people-watch and of course... gelato!

Pumped with caffeine we headed to the Trevi Fountain which again, unfortunately, did not blow me away. Perhaps we were unlucky with our timing as there was construction work going on and no water flowing so I can imagine it's a wonderful sight most of the time.

Our first evening in Rome was spent at Etabli which is one of the most gorgeous restaurant bars I've been to. It's like you're in someone’s home inside with wooden bookshelves, quirky little features, comfy leather chairs and mismatched table settings. It's got a really relaxed atmosphere with a great range of cocktails and they regularly put on live music. Luckily for us, it was jazz night while we were dining there and the young musicians were fantastic and played all night! The food matched the laid-back nature of Etabli - fresh salads, homemade pasta and delicious desserts. I would urge anyone going to Rome to visit.

Our first full day was 'nature day' - a day spent enjoying Rome's Botanical Gardens followed by a 'trek' up Gianicolo Hill to admire the view and have pizza as a reward at the top! My favourite gardens are in Melbourne, Australia, as I've said, I've obviously been spoilt as the Botanical Gardens did not impress me. Maybe in the height of Summer or Spring with the flowers blooming it is lovely but not so much in September.

After lunch we literally stumbled upon a massive park which felt more like someone's amazing back garden as within the grounds was a very impressive villa. Dotted about the place were ruins of bridges with Roman figures to admire, pretty statues and lovely steps. After I found out that 'Villa Doria Pamphilj Park' is Rome's largest landscaped public park laid out around 1650 for Prince Camillo Pamphilj, nephew of Pope Innocent X with the villa being the Prince's summer residence. This was the highlight of my time in Rome, hence the blog title - it was such a beautiful day well-spent.

After much walking (we got lost!), we had more to do... a leisurely walk back into the city and then a tour around the Vatican 'after dark' which I thought would be even nicer than if we'd visited in the day. For a limited time, the Vatican opens it's doors at night to a small number of visitors - we booked in advance and were lucky to get a ticket I think. We entered the impressive building and were guided by signs around the museums and stunning hallways admiring those amazing ceilings. The Sistine Chapel was somewhere which many people had told me I had to see so after passing through many exhibitions and marble rooms we were excited to reach the Chapel. It's a beautiful sight, the ceiling is obviously amazing but again, I wasn't overly impressed! It seemed like a big build-up to the Chapel which was a little bit of a let down. We wondered around a little (no pictures allowed) and then exited into the courtyard and as we did a grand firework display started. Then as part of the 'Vatican After Dark' an orchestra began playing - to me, the fireworks and music were much more beautiful.

For our final day we decided to be proper tourists and visit the Roman sights around the Colosseum. I found the Pallazo Venezia, which is often overlooked, an amazing building. It was built mainly with materials quarried from the famous Colosseum and Mussolini used it as his official residence - the horse and carriage on the top astounded me. There's a pretty cafe on top where we enjoyed a drink and lunch overlooking Ancient Rome.

Onto the Colosseum - I now wish I'd researched more into the origins of Colosseum before I went to Rome so I could understand the history fully and appreciate the sight a little more. Again, it's very impressive, the weather was beautiful and it wasn't too crowded and I'm glad I've seen it but once I'd looked out into the arena, I was ready to leave for more pizza! There's a few pizza places on Via di San Vito not far from the Colosseum and although we were advised to avoid the touristy places, we really enjoyed eating real Italian pizza under the vine leaves there.

We booked a table at Le Jardin de Russie within Hotel de Russie for our final meal in Rome - now that's somewhere impressive! The setting of both the hotel's bar and restaurant is so pretty; it's like a secret garden in the middle of Rome with greenery and waterfalls. We had a wonderful meal - champagne, seafood and Wagu beef followed by the most amazing melt-in-the-middle chocolate pot I've ever had. I would like to return to Rome just to stay (and eat!) at the hotel again!

Highlights...

•  Jazz at Etabli

•  A wonder around Villa Doria Pamphilj Park

•  The view from the top of Gianicolo Hill

Must Dos...

•  Enjoy a secret garden dinner at Le Jardin de Russie

•  Walk around Rome stopping off at the piazzas along the way

Jane x

Travel Review: A Katie & Jane Adventure to the South of France!

We've just been on a whirlwind trip to the South of France, spending 3 nights and 4 days in Cannes & Aix-en-Provence, so it’s only right we write a little travel review for anyone tempted by the beautiful South of France…

We flew into Nice with Monarch Airlines, made our way to the car rental part of the airport, and before we knew it we were driving on our way to Cannes in the new automatic Renault Clio enjoying some Va Va Voom – well when in France!

We wanted to visit an island while in France so we researched beforehand and booked into lunch at La Tonnelle; the only restaurant positioned on the small island of Saint Honorat off the coast of Cannes. We parked the Clio, hopped onto a boat and enjoyed a breezy, sunny 30 minute boat ride across the sea to the island, taking in the amazing yachts and helicopters as we went.

Lunch at La Tonnelle was perfect, we sat at a table overlooking the rustic rocks and calm sea and, as we wondered about a life lived on little (or large!) yachts that surrounded this picturesque island, we enjoyed delicious seafood and soy baked tuna, before stretching our legs as we walked the whole way around the interesting island which is inhabited only by Monks.

After a short boat trip back, while I had a power nap – we then began our drive to Aix-en-Provence which we imagined would be beautiful and breath-taking with the wind in our hair... but there was a huge storm, which meant for an hour of our journey we joined the French in driving very slow with our hazards on because of very poor visibility! It did make us feel better about not going for the soft-top car though!

The rain did not dampen our spirits as we arrived at our perfectly French hotel Le Mas d’Entremont. We were greeted by such friendly and helpful staff and shown to our garden room at the back of the hotel which despite the huge array of very tall trees, looked out onto Aix-en-Provence.

We didn’t arrive until about 9pm so we decided to eat & drink at the hotel restaurant, and the food was amazing! This was the first time we could practice our French too, and we joined others in the restaurant by having a long, drawn out meal with delicious fish, cheese, wine and lots of laughs!

We decided to get up early on Saturday so as not to miss the early markets in Aix. Jane has been going to Aix-en-Provence since she was a little girl and it was so great to be shown around by someone who has so many wonderful memories there.

Everywhere we go in the world we like to pick up a 'Katie & Jane keepsake', and we found a lovely little independent home-made jewellery stall where both our eyes went to a simple necklace with just a solid cloud in the centre – something about the ‘the sky’s the limit’ sprung to mind!

We then made our way through the cobbled streets looking at all the amazing shops – even a shop dedicated to just jam looked so inviting we couldn’t help ourselves but peer in for inspiration! The outstanding things about Aix are the smells, either from the amazing chic French women, to the freshly baked bread, every corner you turn powered up the senses!

We sat in one of Jane’s favourite spots; Les Deux Garcons for a refreshing drink and a bit of people watching while we listened to a Jazz trio outside, they even played a song I used to do a tap dance to when I was little, so we decided we had to buy the CD to remind us of the moment at home. We picked up a freshly baked baguette and some brie for lunch and made our way back to enjoy an afternoon soaking up the sun by the pool.

Saturday night is party night in Aix and we kicked it off with a light bite to eat at the fashionable Restaurant La Rotonde, before being welcomed by locals into Le Champ’s bar and partying with them in Le Mistral till the early hours! We also bumped into the owner too and asked very nicely if he could swap the regular deep house tracks for some Beyonce tunes for just 15 minutes…and he did, if you don’t ask you don’t get!

Sunday was another party night to celebrate Jane's Auntie Lynda's 60th so the day was spent enjoying a lovely breakfast at the hotel with Jane's newly arrived parents – the highlight here are definitely the homemade yogurts and fig bread, before another relax by the pool. The night was spent at Lynda’s surprise party in pretty Puyricard, just a 10 minute car journey from Aix. We spoke to lots of lovely people, practicing our French and learning that to describe a really decent, great person, you call them a ‘pêche’ – Peach!

Despite being tired (in a great way!) we made ourselves get up early on Monday for a game of tennis in the hotel's very picturesque court before packing and saying goodbye to Aix before embarking on our last French road-trip to Marseilles airport to fly home. Although it was a short stay, it felt like we'd been there a while and saw lots of the area, of course, we're planning our next trip with the aim to learn French very soon!

Highlights...

• The beautiful smells of Aix, whether chic French perfume or freshly baked bread
• The fish soup at Le Mas d’Entremont

Must Dos...

• A boat trip to the gorgeous ‘secret island’ of Saint Honorat
• Wondering around the morning markets in Aix

Katie x

Captivating Crete: A Travel Review

I've just got back from a week filled with sunshine, Tiropites (cheese pies) and history on the Greek island of Crete. Having visited a few of the 200 plus Greek Islands, Crete has the feel of the mainland thanks to its 650-mile loop of coastline. This year, we stayed on part of its beautiful coast near the sleepy resort of Elounda having visited Rethymnon and Chania in the past.

Although I try and book our holidays using my own steam instead of a travel agent this year we turned to our old go-to Thomson as we couldn't resist the ease of it all being nicely packaged together. Plus, my parents recommended our hotel, Aquila Elounda Village which we were only able to book through the company. We opted for half-board, something we don't usually do in Greece as we love to explore the little seafront tavernas but, after research discovered we could swap some of our half-board dinners for lunch so we went ahead and, as usual, Thomson gave us an excellent service.

I was very happy that Aquila Elounda Village surpassed our expectations (I am hard to please!) in every way. It's positioned perfectly in the middle of the two towns Elounda and Aghios Nikolaos; close enough to get a cheap taxi to but far enough away to not be affected by noise. 

Aghios Nikolaos is described as being an affluent town with the promise of spotting a few 'super yachts' within and, although it's a nice enough place with an unusual lake in the middle of the town, surrounded by welcoming restaurants, it wasn't as expected. It's quite rundown with a few of the usual touristy shops dotted around a number of nondescript bars. 

Elounda, the smaller of the two, on the other-hand was lovely - focused around a little harbour with a handful of traditional tavernas and bars we spent two nights here enjoying dinners of Greek meze, seafood and baklava.

The hotel's facilities were great; four restaurants, tennis courts, two saltwater pools, a beach with watersports and a peaceful spa. Although all that sounds like an expansive offering, it has a lovely small-hotel feel unlike our trip to Jamaica which was the opposite. The staff were so friendly and helpful and gave you a personal experience every time. I was slightly concerned about the food choice but the four restaurants each had a different feel and offered traditional Greek food with a twist. Mirabello overlooking the sea was our favourite for lunchtime shade!

It seems there are a lack of sandy beaches on the coast and surprisingly, as feeling the sand between my toes is usually a holiday must, I didn't actually miss it... in fact, I think I preferred the tasteful stone leading to the sea rather than worrying about getting sand in places I really didn't want! Again the hotel had a fantastic vibe with a beach bar, double sun-loungers (and comfy single ones too!) and a range of watersports from waterskiing to sailing. We opted to ditch the planned car hire (we liked the hotel so much we didn't want to leave!) and hired a jetski to admire the beautiful rugged Cretan coastline instead.

On one of our few days away from the hotel I ticked off one of my '101 Dreams'; to visit Spinalonga - the tiny island which my favourite book The Island by Victoria Hislop is focused around. We boarded a large boat at Aghios Nikolaos harbour and set off on a day cruising to see the many islands off the coast of Crete, followed by a swim in the bright blue Aegean Sea with our last stop being my most anticipated.

Spinalonga is located just off the coast of Crete and due to its location served a variety of roles and purposes over the centuries. It was initially walled to protect the ancient city for Olous, then in the late 16th century the Venetians built one of the most important defensive sea fortresses in the Mediterranean on Spinalonga. Moving forward to 1715 the Turks took over the island with 1,112 Muslims living there by 1881. In 1903 the Cretan State established a leper colony on the island and its first 251 patients arrived in 1904. Patients lived independently in their own houses, earned a livelihood on the island, grew vegetables and even got married and had children. As treatment for leprosy was developed the colony closed in 1957 and has reminded uninhabited ever since. 

The book 'The Island' is about a Greek family living across from Spinalonga's leper colony and their relationship with the island which goes up and down throughout the years. It's absolutely fantastic... as was our tour guide who told us about the history and secrets of the island whilst taking us around the empty, rundown houses of past inhabitants. After our tour we were able to explore the island ourselves and we managed to walk around the whole perimeter passing the hospital, churches, cemeteries, gardens and ancient architecture.

Having experienced Spinalonga and writing about it in my Kikki.K 101 Dreams journal there was nothing left to do for the rest of the week but relax by the pool, splash around in the clear sea and have a few leisurely games of evening tennis before indulging in some delicious Greek specialities!

There's not many places I'd feel confident enough about to recommend to friends (aside from Melbourne of course!) but Aquila Elounda Village is certainly one of them, in fact, I'm going to actively encourage them (and you!) to go!

Highlights...

• Cheese pies followed by the most delicious garlic prawns ever at Olondi taverna in Elounda
• Lounging in the hammocks in the gardens of Aquila Elounda Village whilst reading The Island for the umpteenth time!

Must-Dos...

• Enjoy a simple entree of bread dipped in local rosemary olive oil
• A tour of Spinalonga

Jane x   

Amsterdam - A Jam-Packed Long Weekend in One of the World's Most Lively Cities

As Amsterdam was on my 'I'd like to go' Pinterest board we decided to venture to the colourful city to celebrate two birthdays over the long Easter weekend.

Due to our short stay I spent a significant amount of time (too long!) researching into must-see places, the best restaurants and fun activities, and, although I think my friends took some time to get used to my organisation, the planning really paid off.

We wanted a central and funky hotel so chose Hotel V Frederiksplein which had fantastic staff, a great atmosphere and nice rooms. It's right outside taxi and tram stops so, although we often took on the fifteen minute walk into the centre in the mornings, there were a number of transport options which was perfect for us.

Day one saw a quick turnaround of unpacking at the hotel and freshening up before heading out for a five minute walk to the Heineken Museum, something the male members of the party were very excited about doing... I on the other hand, am not a fan of beer so wasn't so keen but it was interesting all the same. The Museum is not a working factory but you get to see the process of brewing, try the raw hops (yuk!) and then, of course, enjoy a few glasses of Heineken after being shown how to drink beer properly!

With food on our minds we walked to Rembrandtplein Square and enjoyed a quick bite to eat in a traditional cafe before heading to Xtra Cold Ice Bar. Going to the Ice Bar was not my choice but, as I'd experienced an ice bar before, I was happy to oblige... now I wish I hadn't! Unfortunately it wasn't quite the experience we'd hoped for - damp ponchos and gloves, salty drinks and rude staff. Thankfully, due to our group, we still had a good time together!

The night was made a million times better when I managed to get us into a 'secret' bar; Door 74. After sending a text and receiving a reply saying we were invited we knocked on a door with no sign and the lovely host peered through the spy-hole to greet us! As we entered there were about 40 people in a long atmospheric room and a bar stocked with every drink you can think of taking up the majority of the space. We were offered a menu full of unique cocktails of varying strengths - I managed one five star caramel cocktail complete with an apple slice and a piece of fudge and I was done. We absolutely loved it in there!

After a comfy sleep, we were up early skipping the hotel's continental breakfast (which was good when we had it) to go to The Pancake Bakery in the Jordaan District. There are a lot of pancake houses in Amsterdam but we opted for this one with a massive range of pancakes from English Pear to Greek Lamb and lots of rustic charm. Despite one member of our party not liking pancakes - these managed to turn him into a fan!

We spent the rest of the day walking around the Jordaan District, through the busy Leidseplein Square to Singel Flower Market which is the world's only floating flower market to admire the beautiful tulips. It's lovely to simply walk around Amsterdam and take in the attractive buildings and canals. I've visited Bruges before and will say I found it prettier than Amsterdam but I think Amsterdam is more fun!

Next up was the night I'd been most looking forward to - dinner at Asian fusion restaurant Momo followed by dancing at the nightclub Jimmy Woo (great name!). Momo did not disappoint, in fact, it surpassed expectations - not only was the food amazing as expected, the drinks, service and atmosphere made it one of my favourite ever dining experiences. We kicked off with cocktails and then decided to go for the tasting menu to share to give us a real taste for the whole menu. Every single course, and there were many of them, was simply perfect. I could have eaten there every night and cannot wait to go back.

Despite not getting back to our hotel until the early hours after a fantastic night at Jimmy Woo, we were up early for a two hour bike tour around the city with SANDEMANs NEW Europe Tours. I'd looked into a number of bike tours but found this one to be the best. Our tour guide Lars was fantastic and made even the most hung-over of us laugh out loud while showing us the city's most interesting sites. Beware... cycling around Amsterdam was a very scary experience! The city contains more bikes than people - they come from every direction! It was a highlight of the trip and I'd say go for it but be prepared.

Our last full day in Amsterdam was spent being proper tourists and visiting Anne Frank's House and the Van Gogh Museum which houses the biggest collection of Van Gogh in the world. Anne Frank's House was very interesting and moving. It was amazing to see the space the family lived in, hear about the history and discover even more about her story. Every time we walked past on previous days the queue was around three hours long so we went early and queued for about half an hour before it opened.

The Van Gogh Museum, although not my cup of tea, is set in Museum Square which is a sight in itself. It was a lovely sunny day and we spent some time eating hot dogs on the grass amongst the famous 'iamsterdam' sign people watching. Another place get your greenery fix is Vondelpark - the largest city park in Amsterdam.

Completing our tourist day we went on an evening canal cruise with the Blue Boat Company which I would recommend over the day cruise. We sat on the back of the boat with glasses of Heineken (of course!) and wine and watched the twinkling city go by. The earlier bike tour enabled us to see the city in the day and this during the night... perfect! 

After our cruise we enjoyed dinner at Restaurant Saray in the very hip De Pijp district. Saray serves the most delicious, traditional, homemade Turkish food - we had what seemed like a banquet and enjoyed every bite. I would have loved to spend longer in De Pijp and visited it by day too... next time!

Amsterdam was an interesting, energetic, unique city and I'd encourage everyone to visit it once in their lives. I'm certainly looking forward to going back soon.

Jane x

Highlights

• The bike tour with fantastic guide Lars
• Momo - for amazing food and a fantastic atmosphere

Must-Dos

• Anne Frank House - no visit would be complete without learning more about the history of Anne and her family
• An evening canal cruise to finish off your stay