How can a building ever be the “best”? Can such a loaded word ever universally apply to a single human-made structure (or anything for that matter, as in, this gelato is the best)? Example. The Burj Khalifa in Dubai is the most dominant skyscraper on the planet – by far – but is it the … More

One of the top lures of the Persian Gulf and Arabian Peninsula, Israel, Lebanon, Egypt and, indeed, the Arab world and Levant as a whole, is the food. Or the foods, to be more precise. The smells of the markets and suq stalls, the skillful use of spices, the gorgeous artistry and care that props … More

The inimitable, nonpareil resort island of Thailand and, perhaps, Southeast Asia, is big and eclectic enough to offer a different kind of holiday experience to a kaleidoscope of travellers. Indeed, what can you not do in Phuket? Like to party? See Patong. Care for culture and temples, traditional markets and villages? Phuket has that too. … More

Mexico and the all-inclusive. From Mazatlán and Acapulco on the Pacific to the Yucatán Peninsula, the siren call of these one-stop-shop, turnkey resorts proves impossible for scores of beach-hungry burnout victims from North America and Europe to resist. After all, for busy careerists with umpteen irons in the fire – jobs, mortgages, bills, kids – … More

Zef style: what the new Cape Town and, indeed, South Africa is all about. MC, producer, performance artist and satirist Watkin Tudor Jones a.k.a. Ninja is the current embodiment and personification of zef, the counterculture youth movement which translates from Afrikaans as “common”. In practice, however, zef is so much more. For a 101 lesson, … More

I scream, you scream, we all scream … for gelato. Or ice cream as it were. The best time to gorge on a sinful cone of the frozen stuff is just ’round the corner in Europe. Which got us in brainstorm mode: where to score the best gelato/ice cream by the beach on the continent? … More