When my wife and I visited my sister in northwestern Italy in September 2014, we took a short trip to Savignone, near Casella, north of Genoa. From there, we set off to visit Senarega, a medieval town occupied only during the summers. The town is all very old houses, with narrow walkways for streets.
On the way, we stopped in Valbrevénna for lunch at Gargantua (Via Nenno Inferiore, 63B, 16010 Nenno di Valbrevénna [GE], Italy; phone +39 010 9690753, www.gargantua.biz).
My wife and I cruised from Shanghai, China, to Papeete, Tahiti, on the Insignia of Oceania Cruises (Miami, FL; 800/531-5619, www.oceania cruises.com), April 11-June 4, 2015.
About a month before our departure, I was placed on a relatively unknown restrictive diet. I immediately called Oceania Cruises and advised the company of my situation. I was told that, while they had never heard of a low-FODMAP diet, they would have the chef contact me upon boarding.
My longtime friend, John, and I took a trip through northwestern Bohemia in the Czech Republic the first week of May 2015. It was my fifth time driving through Bohemia since 1990. The roads we took through the picturesque countryside were mostly good and had little traffic. We stayed off the expressway.
To view the northern lights, my wife, Carolyn, and I took a 12-day/12-night round-trip “Norwegian Coastal Voyage” out of Bergen aboard the MS Trollfjord of Hurtigruten (Bellevue, WA; 866/552-0371, www.hurtigruten.com), Nov. 20-Dec. 1, 2014. The sky show and the beauty of coastal Norway did not disappoint.
Saigon, or Ho Chi Minh City as it’s been called since 1975 (though both names are used throughout Vietnam), is a bustling city.
9 days, 8 nights from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi. Highlights: In HCMC, city tour, evening food tour by Vespa scooter, cooking class/fly to Hôi An for cooking class/on drive to Hue˜, visit Dá Nang Museum of Cham Sculpture/in Hue˜, private dinner at restored royal garden house plus culinary tour/in Hanoi, water puppetry show. Land and internal air, from $2,990. Single supp., $625. Access Trips (Bainbridge Island, WA; 650/492-4778, www.accesstrips.com).
9 days, 8 nights through SPAIN’s Basque country and La Rioja region, Sept. 24-Oct. 2, 2015. Highlights: In Bilbao, walking tour of historic Parte Vieja, private tour of Guggenheim Museum/above Bay of Biscay, taste txakolina (spritzy white wine)/in San Sebastián, hands-on pintxos (finger foods) cooking class/tastings at five wineries. Land, $4,595 ppdo. Single supp., $895. Spanish Journeys (Wellfleet, MA; 508/349-9769, www.spanishjourneys.com).
