Calling all cheese lovers! Rosie Khdir ventures to the Normandy region of Orne to discover the history of Camembert, a cheese that went on to become a world favourite.

Once upon a time in a small village called Camembert in Normandy, lived a dairy farmer called Marie Harel. In 1791, in the midst of the French Revolution, Marie offered refuge to a priest from the Bouvoust Abbey in Brie.

In return for her hospitality the priest told her the secret of making cheese in his region and so Marie created her own and named it after the village. It was marketed at Vimoutier where many cheeses from the village had previously been sold.

The recipe was handed down through the generations and in 1890 Eugene Ridel invented the famous wooden box that we still package it in today. This packaging, along with the progresses of the industrial revolution saw Marie’s cheese reach ultimate commercial success.

It went on to inspire many artists, one of the most prominent being Dali’s, who used a melted Camembert as inspiration for his famous dripping clocks!

If you wish to learn more about the famous cheese “pie” that gets taste buds tingling the world over, why not visit La Maison du Camembert in the very village where it all began. The Museum itself is shaped like the circular cheese and visitors are able to sample fresh batches of this French delicacy.

Is you fancy a trip to the Orne region P&O Ferries can help you on you way, with Dover to Calais trips crossing starting at £30 for a car and up to nine people. From Calais it is just a short drive to Camembert.

Image credit: pdphoto.org

Tags: France, History, Lifestyle, P&O Ferries by Rosie Khdir
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If you are visiting Paris this summer and are worried about the sweltering heat in the built up capital, fear not, as you can relax on the sands of the Paris Plage. Rosie Khdir discovers the summer tradition down by the shores of the Seine.

In the summer time, Paris is usually avoided due to the hot and humid weather and flood of tourists that take over the city. If you are a visitor this year, you can cool down from a day’s sightseeing or shopping on the sandy banks of the river Seine.

The Paris-Plages were trademarked in 2002 and are run by the mayor of Paris during the months of July and August. There was initially a single beach on the Rive Droite but on 2006 a second beach was added on the Rive Gauche.

These stretches of the river bank are coated in white sand and there are sunbeds and volleyball nets, comedy performers and even floating swimming pools. Every year new exciting features are added, attracting more and more visitors – in 2007 the figure topped four million.

The beach at La Villette Hosts a variety of water sports and boating, including Kayaks, pedalboats, sailboats, canoes, all available to the public at no charge until 9:00 p.m.

The more traditional beach stretches from Pont Neuf to Pont de Sully and features parasols and chaise longues, all free to rent as well as fountains and mini pools to help you cool off. Both beaches have waterside cafes for food and refreshments.

Topless sunbathing is not allowed and swimming in the Seine is not permitted due to safety reasons. The beach will be open from 20th July to 20th August 2010, daily from 8 a.m. to midnight.

Let P&O get you there; a crossing from Dover to Calais in a car with up to nine people starts from just £30.

Image credit: Jean-David et Anne-Laure

Tags: France, History, Lifestyle, P&O Ferries by Rosie Khdir
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The 2010 FIFA World Cup kicks off in South Africa on 11 June, if you didn’t already know that (ahem). But what with volcanic ash clouds and BA strikes you might be wondering if there are any alternative routes to the Rainbow Nation. John Hillman looks at the options.

Getting to South Africa by land would constitute and adventure of such Livingstonian proportions, that only the very bravest consumer of Ray Mears survival DVDs would cogitate on an attempt at the 6000 miles between Dover and Cape Town.

The easy part is, of course, getting from England to the continent, via any one of P&O Ferries’ 25 crossings a day from Dover to Calais. From there it’s just a matter of heading down through France, across the Pyrenees Mountains into Spain and down, down, down all the way to the port town of Algeciras on the southern Atlantic coast. Then it gets interesting.

From here your journey will take you through at least ten separate countries, which include some of the poorest on the planet. You will possibly experience the unnerving sensation of driving through the middle of a country in the grips of civil war, encounter official corruption on a truly epic scale, and spend most of your time wondering where your next tank of petrol is coming from.

However, you’ll also discover that some of the happiest and friendliest people in the world are those who have very little, experience sights and sounds that will stay with you forever, and develop an arsenal of pub stories to rival even the combined force of Lord Nelson and Lemmy from Motorhead.

So in answer to the question, yes you can drive to South Africa 2010, you just should have started planning it a bit sooner than now. As far as we are aware no-one is actually driving from the UK to SA. However if you know of anyone en-route then please do let us know, just so we may marvel at their refreshing disregard for modern utilitarianism.

Image Credit: 300td.org

Tags: Lifestyle, P&O Ferries by John Hillman
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This is the ultimate culinary festival for those who appreciate true Belgian gastronomy. Rosie Khdir’s taste buds are tingling at the thought of Culinaria Square.

Culinaria Square is a four day festival devoted to the gastronomy of Belgium. It was launched in 2009 and following its phenomenal success it is back for another year.

Last year saw 14,000 people from Brussels, Wallonia and Flanders gather to experience the cooking of some of the country’s most revered chefs, and this year look set to be another winner.

The 2010 Culinaria² will take place on the Tour & Taxis, a large 20th century site located at the centre of Brussels.

The way it works is 16 of Belgium’s finest chefs, who together hold an astonishing 26 Michelin stars, split off into teams of four to create four menus and each Chef cooks his own dish. The result: a delicious and very unique Michelin standard meal.

Not only will people get to enjoy an exquisite meal they will also have access to seven workshops where visitors may be able to uncover the secrets of great cooking; these will be in a variety of languages. There is also a food market so you can buy some of the best ingredients for your own cooking.

Tickets for this event are quite pricey, but if you feel like spoiling yourself, Culinaria² is definitely the place to do it. The event starts on 3rd June and ends on the 6th June and for more details you can visit the official site www.culinariasquare.be.

P&O Ferries does a great value service from Hull – Zeebrugge, or you can take the Dover – Calais route from where it is just a short drive along the E40 to the Belgian border. Prices start at just £30 for a car and up to nine people.

Image credit: carlosluz

Tags: History, Lifestyle, P&O Ferries by Rosie Khdir
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Building sand castles at the beach is a classic summer pastime for most people, but in The Hague, the Dutch go a step further. Rosie Khdir discovers the sand sculptures of Scheveningen Beach.

From 29th April until 28th June Scheveningen Beach is awash with towering sand sculptures as part of the 19th International Sand Sculpture Festival.

As The Hague was recently named the Top Sport City 2009, by Sport2B consultancy, the theme for this year’s artwork is sport. Sand carvers from all over the world will come together to create 14 sculptures on the beach pavilion terraces and two much larger sculptures on the boulevard near the Kurhaus and the Pier.

The technique behind such artistry consists of layering the sand, which comes from the river Maas, in a wooden mold and compacting it with water and petrol hammers.

The secret to a strong and long-standing sculpture is the type of sand used. It is for this reason that the beach sand is not used; it is rounded due to tidal wash and wind, making it harder to model with. Sculpturing sand is less eroded and has a rougher structure in order to stack it up to a higher level.

The sand is then carved with special tools to create beautiful masterpieces that stand several metres tall. Past subjects have included Greek Mythology and Disney scenes!

To witness these beautiful pieces for yourself, why not hop on a ferry! P&O Ferries runs a great value service from Hull – Rotterdam.

Image credit: Jeroen Kransen

Tags: Lifestyle, Netherlands, P&O Ferries by Rosie Khdir
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As the Pride of Bilbao begins its final summer’s service on the Portsmouth-Bilbao route (says John Hillman)whale watchers have their last chance to join P&O Ferries and the Biscay Dolphin Research Programme on-board for a marine wildlife workshop.

A selection of Europe’s leading cetacean and seabird researchers will be on hand during selected crossings to teach people how to spot and recognise a whole range of fascinating sea animals.

The course is open to the general public and is unique in its approach, combining a fantastic opportunity to experience a real marine biology field trip with the comfort and facilities of one of the fleets most impressive cruise ships.

The 2010 workshop dates have been confirmed as 3-6 June, 12-15 June, 18-21 June, 3-6 July, 13-16 September, 22-25 September and 25-28 September

On-board you can try your luck at spotting anyone of over 20 cetacean species, Fin Whale, Common Dolphin, regular Beaked Whale and many hundreds of different types of bird. The group in fact records record whale sightings all year round and has been instrumental in documenting just how important an area the Bay of Biscay is to marine wildlife.

Of course you can expect to enjoy your trip in the very comfortable surroundings that the Pride of Bilbao has to offer, including en suite cabin, cinema, bars, restaurants and even a casino. However the real attractions will be our on deck where the Biscay Dolphin Research Programme will be on hand to provide a Full programme of events including deck watches and presentations.

Image credit: dufspix

Tags: Lifestyle, P&O Ferries, Spain by John Hillman
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With cities like Brussels, Bruges and Antwerp surrounding it, it is not hard to see why Ghent may have been overlooked by visitors to Belgium. Rosie Khdir reveals the delights of this medieval canal city.

Ghent is a historic city, filled with the weird and wonderful. It is apparently the “veggie capital of Europe” and in 2009 the city even launched ‘Donderdag Veggiedag’ (Thursday Veggie Day) to encourage its residents to give up meat and fish on Thursdays!

The most prominent part of the city as you walk around seems to be its history, visible from the gothic and medieval architecture. The scenic old Graslei harbour is elegant and striking, and medieval cathedrals and the Gravensteen castle sits grandly around the central public squares – the largest car-free area in Belgium.

Ghent is divided into two sectors, the historic centre and the artistic quarter both of which are easy to navigate by foot, with signposts at 114 locations.

As for sightseeing you can go and see The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb, a unique altar piece situated in St. Bavo’s Cathedral. It was painted by the Van Eyck brothers in 1432 and is considered to be a milestone in art history.

You can also visit St. Michael’s Bridge, the Old Belfry, which is an official UNESCO site, and the many old houses that decorate the historic water front.

Ghent is also filled with interesting museums such as the Design museum, which displays furnishings of all ages, from Renaissance to Art Deco, Art Nouveau and retro. There is also the Museum of Fine Arts, St. Peter’s Abbey Arts Centre, the School of Yesteryear and the World of Kina: the Garden, where you can see more than 1000 plant species and live tarantulas.

Now if that doesn’t tempt you, maybe these facts about Ghent will. It has 475 restaurants, 250 different sorts of beer, 74 parks, 56 large and small market squares, 30 hectares of pedestrian space in the city centre (this is the largest in Belgium), 19 museums, 5 abbeys, 2 medieval castles, the largest street festival in Europe (The Ghent Festivities). To top it off, no other city in Belgium has as many classified buildings as Ghent.

Convinced that it is worth a visit yet? Well I should hope so!

P&O Ferries can help you on your way with its Hull – Zeebrugge route. Alternatively you can take the Dover – Calais route from where it is just a short drive along the E40 to the Belgian border. Prices start at just £30 for a car and up to nine people.

Image credit: RussBowling

Tags: Belgium, Lifestyle, P&O Ferries by Rosie Khdir
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This post is not for those with a lack of willpower; well, when it comes to shoes. Rosie Khdir struggles against her own shoe-buying addiction as she reveals Holland footwear gem, Shoebaloo.

When you think of Holland and shoes, a heavy wooden clog probably springs to mind. But no more. From now on when you think of the Netherland, you shall think of Shoebaloo!

Shoebaloo is shoe haven for anyone who appreciated exclusive brands like D&G, Prada, Dior and Jimmy Choo. Items almost hover in the windows of this futuristic shop and you feel more like you’ve entered a museum of luxury shoes, than a store.

It started out in the 70s as a small 30m² shop, situated in Jordaan the “hippy quarter” of Amsterdam and sold Spanish boots called Botas Camperos – very popular at the time I assure you.

A men’s shoe store at the Koningsplein followed, and then later a store at PC Hooftraat selling both men’s and women’s luxury footwear and a women’s store in Leidsestraat.

In 2005 a Shoebaloo store opened on the Cornelis Schuystraat which specialises in men’s and women’s bags and accessories. The most recent shop to open is the Flagship store on the Kruiskade in Rotterdam.

So if you are looking for a high end shopping experience with all your favourite big names, Shoebaloo is the place to go. To get there with ease, and to save more of your money for Shoebaloo purchases, P&O Ferries provides a great value service from Hull – Zeebrugge.

Image credit: tomcole

Tags: History, Lifestyle, Netherlands, P&O Ferries by Rosie Khdir
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