Eleven locations

Where are "you had to be there" locations for 2011?
You cannot go wrong with showing your face in these trendy eleven locations over the next 365 days:




1. Tallinn, Estonia

This beautiful old town has been named European Cultural Capital 2011.
Freedom Square, Kadriorg Palace, St Catherine's Passage and unbeatable charm makes this city the best place to escape to this year. Oh just one more thing Estonia joins the Eurozone this year ... sorted!





2. India/ Pakistan/ Bangladesh


I know this is cheating but all three of these countries are hosting the Cricket World Cup this year, and though you and I may not be fans of cucumber sandwiches, it is a superb chance to visit these countries when they are scrubbed clean for a worldwide audience.

3. Berkshire, England


Right so the wedding of the year will be happening, whether you like or despise the Royal Family this is a biggie - but with accommodation prices in London only just friggin crazy, be a lord and lady and head to the home of the future Queen Catherine: Berkshire. Windsor Castle, the Royal Ascot and other la dee da charms await!

4. Wellington, New Zealand


Rugger up - the Rugby World Cup will be held in New Zealand this year and if you love a good knees up with some chunky men then you should make your way to NZ's capital cool Wellington the Bohemian adventure center.



5. The Amazon Rainforest



Why not just do it - it's not that crazy get your activity adventure loving ass over to the Amazon and celebrate the UN's International Year of Forests in style! Float your way through the world's largest rain forest and you could experience Brazil, Peru, Columbia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana and some amazing wildlife.


6. Valencia, Spain


What is so special about Spain in 2011? Aside from cheap beer and sun this city is Europe's Capital of Sport 2011. This city is really up and coming and is almost pushing over Barcelona with beautiful architecture, great shopping and oh the beach!

7. Argentina

Voted top ethical destination two years in a row and with gorgeous landscapes, cosmopolitan cities and a buzzing culture, Argentina is a travellers paradise. Affordable and unforgettable.


8. Machu Picchu


Yes this sacred mountain appears on most people's wish list but this year is it's 100th anniversary since it was discovered by a foreigner. The Inca trail is mysterious and ancient and making this journey could be the best of your life let alone just 2011.




9. Chernobyl, Ukraine


The well known Chernobyl disaster which occurred in 1986 is considered the worst nuclear power plan accident in history. This year a  number of companies will begin tours to the infamous power plant site you will get to see the 'dead town' of Pipyay, as well as the 'red forest.' It is great to see this place turning it self around and I really hope it does well.

10. Washington DC


This place seems extraordinary
and is on my list this year, because I have not been and everyone is raving about it! If you love museums this seems to be Disneyland and I hear it is cheap too - history my love here I come!





11. Irish Year of the Craft

We have some very talented people in this country and this year we will celebrate their unique talents with the Year of the Craft. Craft fairs will pop up all over the country this Summer so you can buy pretty things for me and you but to see some items during creation get yourself to Co Kilkenny or to Carrick-on-Shannon in Leitrim for some meet the maker fun.

Well hello 2011!

Apologies for my long absence, I was attacked by a virus over the Christmas and New Year which I am hoping is not a sign of things to come this year - because I am planning on having a very happening 2011.
So after days in bed I cannot wait to get out and start living in 2011 and not surprisingly one of my top resolutions for this year is to look after my body - exercise, eating better, relaxing and pampering!

I am hoping to do a photography course this year, because I love photos so expect a whole host of photos coming up, oh and I'm going to try out my new 12 month project where I take a photo of the same location every month and pick the best four that encapsulate the seasons.

Of course I want to get out and travel, go places, do things, maybe start doing some more walking trails and getting away with friends or even by myself to explore the country, I've not decided on any foreign hols yet but I think I might look for some different places a bit closer to home rather than half across the universe!

Write about what I love - which I do here of course but I also hope to try and do it more often like get a full time job more closer to my passions.

Cook new things - I love to cook when I get the time, and it is relaxing and satisfying so this is a must!

I would like to become more patient this year, try to listen rather than speak too quickly. I am quite a hot tempered person so this would help relationships all round! Most of all I need to realise that only I can make myself happy so I need to stop relying on others to do this for me.

In essence: Read, write, learn, travel, exercise, relax ... and breathe!

Married in Marrakesh

Some women wait all their lives to slip a diamond on to their left ring finger and declare to the world that they are married. It took me several troubled conversations with Berber men in the souks of Marrakesh to realise, that I didn't have to wait for a knight in shining armour to save me, I was going to save myself – a quick exchange of a ring from one hand to the other -and life became much more easier to negotiate!

                                                                 “You like you buy .."

“Democratic price sexy ...”

           “You English, Irish, Scottish, Finish …?”

              “Yes try it on … very pretty on you ...”

     “You touch you buy”

All these chants, threats, and pushy statements become a way of life when waking through the gigantic maze that is the souks in Marrakesh, and they can be easily fobbed off with “My husband will buy it for me;” “My husband must see this;” “My husband has the money.”

 Once you flash the ring and those lines, you can finally relax and enjoy the madness that surrounds you.

I had left all my Moroccan souvenir shopping until Marrakesh, but 20 minutes into my shopping spree I had to sit down, have a drink and hatch a plan. I was overwhelmed, even shopaholics will become dazed here. The souk market is bigger than any shopping centre I have ever been in, the sellers can be aggressively pushy and there are so many pretty things to look at (but don't touch – touch it and you've bought it!).

My tip: Half the asking price of the item and bargain from there, if they let you walk away – your offer was too low, usually they will bargain no matter what the price.

Once you finalise your first deal you are ready to take them all on. Confidence is important and after a few tries you will gain a general idea of prices.

Some people return home with bargains galore, but if you land home with a beautiful piece that you paid over the odds for, but enjoyed the exchange or fell in love with then it is worth the extra few dirham. (My silver jewelled tea pot is well worth the smile.)

Teapots, perfume, handbags, scarves, jewellery (but not gold, it is considered evil), pottery, glassware, spices and slippers are items you cannot leave Marrakesh without. This is a fabulous city, modern yet ancient, dazzling yet characteristic.

We stayed at Riad Reves D'orient which was impossible to find but a complete treasure, I slept like an Arabian princess and the owners were just too nice and so pretty! We ate in Djemaa el Fna, the main square which must be experienced during the night so much more than during the day. In the sunshine it is a market square with souks, but at night it is an emporium of food, song, dance, snakes and tricks! The stall we settled to dine at had the only female cook on the square and the food was delightful, perfectly cooked – with an electric atmosphere around us. This is one of those places where photographs and even cam-recorders just can't capture.

There are plenty of sights to see in the city, but for a few days trip you will be busy enough shopping, eating and staring at the madness, that your days will be plenty filled!

I would recommend staying at riad, we also spent a night in a four star hotel and it was bitterly disappointing compared to the homely riad.

You cannot holiday in Morocco without soaking up the madness of Marrakesh and for the ladies it is quite refreshing to experience married life with all the bonuses, minus the problems!

The incurable travel bug

I hear it is raging and it isn't just contained in one country or even one continent - all over the world people are coming down with very serious symptoms of the travel bug.
I think you pick it up in foreign countries, because before I left this Emerald Isle I was fine, but then bang 2008 - a Round the World Ticket - and I've never recovered since. I can't even pinpoint what country I caught this damn disease in.
And don't be fooled this is a disease - an addiction that cannot be cured by medicine, it is all you ever think about - all you ever want to do.
You crave adventure, journeys and excitement - you spend all year researching a trip only to start all over again on the flight home trying to come up with a new plan for a different location.
The only cure for this awful bug is an expensive one, a cure that isolates you from friends and family (even partners) and leaves you thousands of miles away from home. The only cure is to travel, the alternative is to stay at home depressed, bored and unimpressed with the tedious chores life throws.
The only preventative to this bug is not to travel in the first place - do not encourage young people to "broaden their horizons" or to "go find themselves" because they always return home leaving themselves scattered across the globe and spend the rest of their lives searching for the missing pieces.
Sadly, I must admit to having this awful condition, it is something I will have to live with for the rest of my life - the chore of wanting to be somewhere else, see something new and experience different cultures.
I have made a list of some of the most common symptoms of the travel bug if you answer yes to 10 or more of these then  you too must accept that you have been struck down by the dreaded travelling bug.

Symptoms of the travel bug:

- You have a list of places you want to go, things you want to see
- You research your trips for more than 4weeks
- You own more than three travel guides
- You subscribe to airline/hotel/tour newsletters
-You visit travel websites once a week
- Books, movies, songs, blogs inspire your next destination
- You have visited more than 7 countries on holidays
- You dream of travelling day and night
- You watch/ read the world news with more interest than home news
- You take interest in world disasters and mentally note them as places to visit
- You love photos and travel photography
- You always want to go somewhere different - out of the ordinary
- You see young people with no jobs saying they have to emigrate and you think "lucky b#$tards!
- You know you would spend your lotto winnings on travel
- You look through old holiday photos regularly
- You feel twitchy, bored, uneasy
- You feel jealous when friends and family talk about their holidays
- You write a travel blog ...!

Walking pretty

I'm delighted with my 8 out of 10 score in The World's Most Walkable Cities Slideshow at Frommer's

And I Agree with their list 100%:

Florence - beautiful

Paris - a romantic delight

New York - visionary overload

Munich - Especially around Christmas

Edinburgh- chilly in Winter but historically perfect

Boston- Tidy city with plenty to cheers about! - get it?!

Melbourne - Unforgettable my favourite place in the world

Sydney- Well it is a must sand and opera

Dubrovnik, Croatia and Vancouver, British Columbia are on their list but as I have not been there I can't quite concur

So I want to add Dublin and London to my top walkable cities.

Both have history, modernity and fun things to look at - and you are bound to meet some very interesting people on your walks too.

These walks are good for your heart in every way - quickly, get your boots on!

No way out of Casablanca

I never ever want to hear anyone complaining about driving to Dublin, London, New York  ever again. Do you know why? Well they have rules of the road, non suicidal motorcyclists and em ... SIGN POSTS.

Yep a few sign posts dotted around that help you figure out:

1. where exactly you are and 2. where you are going.

It is always the little things we take for granted and while driving around Casablanca in a tiny blue Suzuki Alto trying to figure out how to get out, as cars and motorcycles and pedestrians came flying at us, it was sign posts we missed the most.

We had discussed at length putting Casablanca on our itinerary, as we had an inkling it could be outside of our driving realm but in the end we deemed it important enough for a one day trip.

And now looking back on the trip, I don't regret that decision – but after 2.5 hours driving around this crazy city looking for ONE sign out, I really wished we had bypassed this strange corner of Morocco.

But if you do decide that you want to put your life and the lives of your passengers at risk of death or  the very least a whole lot of arguing by venturing to this famous city – what can you expect to see and do?

Once you pass the shanty towns of Casablanca and creep further in to the city which boasts a population of 5.5 million you begin to see modernity at every turn. High rise buildings, shiny glass fronted offices, expensive cars and high street shops and as is inevitable you see poverty.

After making our way to a small train station we parked up for the night and got a taxi to Hotel Central, Casablanca. Located just on the edge of the old Medina it was sufficient for a brief one night stay. By the time we arrived we were hungry so we set off with some directions for the only restaurant we wanted to dine in: Rick's Cafe.

What we didn't expect was fancy bouncers on the door and a grilling about reservations, but we did get a lovely seat by the famous piano and enjoyed a much needed alcoholic drink before we sampled the menu. The meal was good, but not great and  it wasn't expensive by European standards but by Moroccan standards (which you quickly get used to) it was too much.

Aside from the Rick's Cafe and crazy driving (which if you are not bang in the middle of it is kind of a tourist attraction) the ONLY other reason to visit Casablanca, in my opinion is the extraordinary Hassan II Mosque.

The third biggest mosque in the world, holding 25,000 worshippers, with the world's  largest minaret and most importantly one of a very few mosques open to non-Muslims.

It sits over looking the powerful Atlantic which you can see through a glass floor inside. The mosque built for the Moroccan King Hassan II's 60^th birthday and cost around $800m. From outside the Mosque and it's spacious grounds are more than impressive, but to truly appreciate it you need to do one of the many tours inside. You learn about Muslim worship and you can marvel at the mosque's elegant design. Though be warned it is very difficult to photograph the interior.

A fascinating place that makes the hassle of Casablanca well worth the effort.

Now all you have to do is try and find you way of the city.

Hassan II Mosque, Casablanca 
Photo by Ewa www.dalekoniedaleko.pl. 

Casablanca (1942)

Captain Lois Renault: “What in heaven's name brought you to Casablanca?”

Rick Blaine: “My health, I came to Casablanca for the waters.”

Captain Lois Renault: The waters? What waters? We're in the desert!

Rick Blaine: “I was misinformed.”

Assessing Essaouira (pronounced Ess- ew-er-a)

The ancient walls of Essaouria

Our first night in Agadir was pretty uneventful, the downtown hotel we stayed in Hotel Kamal was
sufficient enough for one night. The real adventure started when we picked up our tiny Suzuki Alto
from Agadir Al Massira Airport he following morning.
The car was so small my luggage bag couldn't fit in the boot and had to be placed on the back seat!
I put my brave paw up to drive the tiny blue machine first, reminding my co-pilot to shout “right” at
every junction so I didn't start driving on the left and get both of us killed.
Once I had mastered a few round abouts and we had spotted a sign post for Essaouira we were
happy out. The drive out of Agadir along the coast was stunning – the Atlantic ocean to our left and
dry arid land to our right.
There are plenty of beaches only a few kilometers outside Agadir, many are renowned for their
great surf and kiteboarding, here you also have the chance to get a camel ride ont he beach and
also mix with Moroccan families as they enjoy the water edge activities. Little villages are usually
attached to the most popular beaches with one or two restaurants offering local and tourist food.
The road was quite big and of good quality but the speed limit was never higher than 80 which
made the journey quite long. The road winds up and down mountains, giving some great views over
the textured landscape. We were lucky enought to hit market day and so encountered loads of turcks
and lorries fileld with animals and farmers, met locals herding goats and some villagers driving
horse and carts to their nearest vilalge.
Dont' be surprised to find men pitching up along the road armed with bottles of Argan oil, the area
is well known for the production of this yellow fluid which is valued for its nutritive, cosmetic and
numerous medicinal properties. There will be many women's Co-operatives int his area too, as it is
very popular for women to work on the production of this oil.
We bought some Argan oil off a man along the road side who was very enthusiastic about
massaging a sample into our arms!
There were policemen in every town and village holding checkpoints on this route, one kept us
chatting for ages becasue his brother studies in Dublin and he wanted to practise his English, while
another pulled us over but let us drive on once we said we were Irish.
We arrived in Essaouira before the sun set and paid some guy to take car eof our car for 24 hours
before we got lost in the walled town looking for our Riad Al Medina.
This riad is so cute, our room had a double and single bed and decorated very pretty. This was our
first experience of a riad and we were more than impressed. (The breakfast here was superb!)
The open courtyard in the middle of the riad is genius and makes the place quite cool.
We wandered around the medina before having a mediocre meal in a hotel outside the medina.
Essaouira really comes alive at night, this is when locals come out to shop with their families and
friends, you can hear people bargainng, young girls giggling with their friends and the smell of
cooked and uncooked food wafts through the air.
We encountered some great characters along the way, one of them being Mohammad Cous Cous
– he was selling jewellery. We looked in his shop window and were quickly rushed inside. He
showed us several pieces and wooed us with his knowledge of Ireland and the Gaelic language.
When we failed to make any purchases he asked my friend “how many camels for her?” while
holding on to me. My friend bargained 5, but luckily I escaped his clutches. The camel line became
our new barganing tool in the souks!
After taking a walk down by the harbour and circling the medina a few times, we settled down at a
lovely cafe just up from our riad, ordered some mint tea and watched the world walk by.
Essaouira is recommended as a day trip in every guidebook on Morocco, and here I would like to
join my name to those voices – perfect for a nice day trip, but probably time to move on after that.