29 December 2019

I was lucky to travel to Nepal with my local Rotary charity and although I’ve been to Tibet, China, India and Nepal before, this was a very special trip. Nepal has some of the most beautiful scenery in the world and 10 UNESCO World Heritage sites of which we managed to see 6 whilst we were there. I was impressed by some of the amazing charity work going on in Nepal. One such example was the Rokpa Guesthouse where we stayed in Kathmandu. The charity ROKPA originally started about 40 years ago as a soup kitchen for the homeless in Kathmandu by a Swiss actress, her father, and a Tibetan Lama called Akon Rinpoche. Later they opened a children’s orphanage offering the children a home, education, lots of affection, and recently, vocational training, most of which is funded through the proceeds of the Guesthouse which is now managed by the first generation of orphans who grew up there. There is also a women’s workshop on site where women are trained to become seam mistresses so they too can also help maintain the orphanage and at the same time support their own families. It’s a great example of a sustainable charity, and if you’re ever in Kathmandu, I would encourage you to stay and support this wonderful project. We chose the Rokpa Guesthouse, not only to support the good work it does, but also because it is a three-minute walk to the Bouddhanath Stupa which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is one of the largest stupas in the world and one of the holiest sites of pilgrimage for Tibetan Buddhists. The area around the stupa is surrounded by Tibetan monasteries and the local community is made up primarily of Tibetan refugees who fled China in 1959. It’s the closest thing you’ll get to being in Tibet - without actually going there. The stupa suffered considerable damage during the 2015 earthquake but was fully repaired within just 18 months, funded solely by private donations from international Buddhist groups and the help of a lot of dedicated volunteers. An amazing achievement. We also visited all 3 of the UNESCO World Heritage Durbar Squares – ‘Durbar’ meaning Royal Palace – so the squares in front of the three royal palaces of Kathmandu and nearby Bhaktapur and Patan – all of which were ancient city-states in the Kathmandu Valley. Each square is really an open-air museum with fantastic examples of medieval palaces, temples, pagodas, pavilions, shrines and statues. Restoration from damage caused by the earthquake is still ongoing at these sites, and interestingly, there is a lot Chinese money financing these projects. Just one word of warning: Kathmandu city has some of the worst air pollution in the world, so a short stay is recommended. We also spent a day at Swayambhunath, also known as the monkey temple, and again one of the oldest religious sites in Nepal located just outside of Kathmandu with spectacular views of the city. From Kathmandu we flew to Pokhara for a few days and then drove south east to Bandipur which is a beautifully preserved ridgetop town which was for centuries an important stop on the India-Tibet trade route. Most people haven’t heard of Bandipur, so it’s crowd free, although there are a few tourists and Bandipur is doing its best to encourage them to come and stay. The lovely old traditional wood and brick mansions have been restored and turned into guesthouses, restaurants and coffee shops. The main thoroughfare has been pedestrianised and the streets and air are clean, which was most welcome after the pollution of Kathmandu. Being a ridgetop community, it has some gorgeous views of the Annapurna Range and is wonderful walking country with several nearby villages to visit. We spent a day with a guide who took us on a 12 km walk to the nearest village and back. From Bandipur we drove to Chitwan National Park and stayed in a quiet lodge on the Rapti River overlooking the national park. In 2012 all the lodges within the park were closed for conservation reasons, and this is the closest you can get to it. We were designated our own naturalist and guide upon arrival and as all the excursions were included, we were busy with morning and evening boat rides, an all-day jeep safari and a village walk where we met some gorgeous children eager to give us flowers as we passed. Throughout our stay we saw plenty of crocodiles, deer, monkeys, exotic birds and even a gaur, the Indian bison. One of the most prolific creatures in the park was the Great One Horned Rhino who, from a distance looked non-threatening, but whose huge footprints found on the banks of the muddy river was a good indication of their massive size and weight! Our stay at the lodge was full of lovely touches - such as an evening river ride followed by a glass of wine on the river bank as the sun went down, or our final supper outside in a glade lit by a fire and candles – all beautifully done, and highly recommended.

01 September 2016

There are many special places in Southwest France: Bonaguil is one of the largest and best restored castles in the area; Richard the Lionheart's own bastide of Penne d'Agenais; the ancient village of Pujols above Villeneuve-sur-Lot, and Villeneuve-sur-Lot's own midweek farmers market, an unpretentious gastronomic feast. There are also prehistoric sites and caves, hiking, boating, and kayaking on the River Lot. A little further north, just east of Bergerac, is Chateau des Milandes, Josephine Baker's chateau, near Sarlat. Josephine Baker is one of my personal heroines: a generous, humanitarian visionary, and the greatest cabaret star of all time. Her story is now celebrated in the Chateau des Milandes, the beautiful 15th century castle she bought in 1947 after renting it for many years. She transformed it into a home for her 12 adopted children, as well as a successful avant-garde tourist attraction. Josephine Baker was born in St Louis, Missouri and began her career in Vaudeville before moving to New York City during the Harlem Renaissance. She was an early civil rights activist and refused to perform in America to segregated audiences. She soon moved to Paris where she became the first world famous African-American entertainer. Her iconic banana skirt costume is on display at the castle along with other memorabilia. Josephine Baker was also active in the French Resistance during World War II and was made a Chevalier of the Legion D'honneur. Later, after a series of financial problems she went bankrupt and tragically lost her Chateau. She was rescued by Princess Grace and given a home in Monaco. Today Chateau des Milandes can be seen in all its glory with its stone towers and turrets, sculptures, gargoyles and chimeras, stained glass windows, extensive gardens above the Dordogne River with a magnificent arboretum of trees. Chateau des Milandes is one of the most beautiful buildings in the Perigord Noir. Lovingly curated by the de LaBarre family, it is an impressive tribute to the life and work of Josephine Baker. It also has one of the best falconry shows in the Med. If any of these destinations whets your appetite for gardens, pink wine, fine food and the sun of Southwest, give me a call for a trip to remember.

01 September 2016

Latour-Marliac: The Origin of Monet's Water Lilies Claude Monet's garden at Giverny is one of the most beautiful gardens in the world, but it would not exist without the great nursery of Latour-Marliac in Southwest France. Latour-Marliac is the origin of Giverny's iconic water lilies and Monet's epic La Nymphéas paintings. Latour-Marliac is a superb horticultural garden now open to the public in the village of Le Temple-sur-Lot and is one of the hidden pleasures of old Aquitaine. The nursery was founded in 1875 by Joseph Bory Latour-Marliac for the commercial cultivation of water lilies. An expert botanist he successfully hybridized the European white water lily with wild varieties from around the world. Eventually he created a collection of water lilies that had a palette range from yellow, fuchsia to deep red. Monet saw these plants for the first time at the 1889 World’s Fair in Paris where they were unveiled along with the Eiffel Tower. Monet's first order is on display at the nursery museum. Latour-Marliac's water lilies were also championed by the great English gardener Gertrude Jekyll and are grown in gardens all over the world. The Latour-Marliac gardens today feature many acres of water lilies both hardy and tropical, as well as dream-like lotus pools, oriental gardens with a koi pond, rose gardens and bamboo forests (Latour-Marliac was also an expert in bamboo cultivation with many exotic species). The Café Marliacea offers lunch and dinner among the tropical water lilies. You must try the lotus tea! The Latour-Marliac Nursery is quite easy to find, just outside Villeneuve-sur-Lot, about 50 kilometres from Bergerac and is well worth a visit if you're staying in the area.

29 August 2016

Some journeys you remember forever. My husband and I trekked in the Indian Himalayas, finding it just as stunning as the more popular Nepal trekking routes, if not more so, and certainly freer of crowds. This was a two week Himalayas trek in far northern India. It was a journey into a land of light and unworldly vistas. The Garwhal Himalayas of the Uttaranchal district, unlike areas of Nepal, are relatively unknown. We met no other westerners during our time trekking on these ancient trade routes. First you have to get there. From New Delhi we travelled by train to Haridwar, then by small bus across many of the prayangs, the sacred confluences of rivers that drain into the Ganges, to the village of Mundoli, where the last road ends. We camped that first night in a mountain field shared with the ponies that would carry our supplies. As the sky cleared at sunset, the great peak of Trisul was suddenly visible. The first day's trek was long, sunny and hot and we passed many villages with their terraced farms rising far above and below us. The rhododendron trees, larger than the largest English oaks, were in full scarlet blossom. Our trek was literally garlanded with the fallen flowers. We camped near the village of Wan, at one of explorer Eric Shipton's old campsites, below a forest of Deodars – cedars the size of California redwoods. The Himalayan Griffon Vulture is a common sight and one day we were thrilled to see a Golden Eagle gliding in the thermals. One of the greatest secrets of these treks is the Shrangrila-like quality of the valleys, so warm that bananas are grown and it always seems like spring. This was also a singing trek organized by Candy Verney, a choir leader from Trowbridge. We sang every night under the bright Himalayan stars, and were often joined by the local villagers who shared their songs with us. It was a wonderful example of communication, with song our only common language. Other highlights of the trek included the Aarti Ceremony on the River Ganges in Haridwar, in which floating candles in flower leaves are released with a prayer, and the stunning sight of Nanda Devi herself, the highest mountain in India, surrounded by her circle of sanctuary peaks. I have many more Himalayas Trekking adventures similar to this one available. These are not mountain climbing expeditions and involve no extreme dangers, they are however real treks and require reasonable health and walking skills.