Did you ever go to Bari, that town so lovely as a nice twirled spaghetti dish?
Snuggled in the cosy arms of the Adriatic Sea, Bari is that great Italian aunt who has a never-ending supply of hugs and gelato. Imagine cobblestones that sway to the beat of your footsteps, having long since perfected the tarantella step in that long promenade and in those picture-postcard squares that radiate with a fuzzy warmth of atmosphere. Read more
Don’t Know Much About Romania Beyond Dracula? Let Me Fix That.
If the only thing that comes to mind when you hear “Romania” is a vampire with questionable dental hygiene, then I have fantastic news for you: my home country is so much more than spooky legends and pointy castles.
It’s time to pack your bags and fall in love—with fairytale landscapes, charming villages frozen in nostalgic time, painted monasteries that look like something out of a storybook, fortified churches that whisper secrets of the past, and a national obsession with sarmale (stuffed cabbage rolls) and mamaliga (our golden maize porridge love child). Read more
During my basic education years, I picked up a few facts about what would one day become my adopted home—the Netherlands. Tulips are Dutch (or so I thought, until I later learned they originally came from Turkey), Rotterdam is Europe’s biggest port (and from 1964 to 2004, it was the busiest in the world), and the Erasmus Bridge in Rotterdam is named after Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus, one of the greatest scholars of the Renaissance. I learned about Rembrandt and Van Gogh—Van Gogh later became my favorite—and about PSV Eindhoven, Ruud Gullit with his wild hair, and Marco van Basten (my brother was a diehard fan). Read more
When Etienne Gustave Frédéric, Baron van Zuylen van Nyevelt van de Haar (yes, say that three times fast), married Baroness Hélène de Rothschild—yes, those Rothschilds—he hadn’t yet inherited De Haar Castle. But it turned out, marrying her was the best thing that ever happened to the place.
Five years later, the Rothschild fortune finally reached the grounds of De Haar. And when it did, it didn’t just renovate the castle—it resurrected it. Baroness Hélène fell in love with the ruin, with its crumbling stones and ghost stories, and decided to turn it into a modern-day fairy tale. She hired none other than Pierre Cuypers—the architectural genius behind the Rijksmuseum and Amsterdam Central Station—and gave him twenty years (yes, twenty) to bring her vision to life. Read more
There’s just something magical about vintage stores. For me, every piece whispers a story — a forgotten past, a memory stitched into fabric. And if you’re anything like me, you’re going to fall head over heels for Bluebirds in the Backyard.
This isn’t just a vintage shop. It’s a full-blown fairytale tucked inside the walls of a breathtaking 18th-century building — Huis Roodenburch, to be exact. Rococo charm, art-deco elegance, and a deep sense of history all under one roof. Built in 1766, this former wine shop and printing house has worn many hats before becoming what it is today: one of the most charming hotspots in Dordrecht. Read more
If you ever want to test the strength of your friendship, don’t go to IKEA. Go to Mauritius, preferably during cyclone season. And, for extra spice, make sure a global pandemic starts right when you’re supposed to fly home.
I know, I know — Mauritius sounds like a dream: turquoise lagoons, white-sand beaches, fruity cocktails with mini umbrellas. And we had all that for about 72 hours. Then things escalated… both meteorologically and globally.