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Italian Christmas Sides: 10 Delicious Italian Side Dish Recipes for Your Holiday Table
Delicious Italian Christmas side dishes for your festive table, from rosemary roast potatoes and Russian salad to roasted vegetables and fresh salads. A perfect Italian Christmas menu isn’t just about Italian Christmas mains: the sides are just as important and, often, the one thing that really makes you dinner stand out and what makes it truly Italian. Nothing killed the illusion of an authentic Italian meal faster that a slice of garlic bread! The great thing about Italian Christmas sides is that they are easy to make and cover a variety of needs. Roasted vegetables, creamy salads, fresh salads, potatoes are all great choices and complete your Italian Christmas menu…
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Dubai in one day: the best things to see (and how to see them)
One day in Dubai: detailed itinerary and best things to do in Dubai in one day, by a resident
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Mosaic class for kids in Rome: Arte al Sole lab review
Are you considering a mosaic class for kids in Rome and wondering if it is worth it? Read our full experience with Arte al Sole and get all the info. Spoiler: we loved every minute of this activity! My daughter is a maker: she loves ‘arts and crafts’, inventing and creating and so, on our last trip to Rome, I concocted a plan: what if I could find a kids creative activity in Rome that would allow her to have fun while learning an actual craft? I took to the web for ideas and quickly found something that seemed to tick all the boxes: a children mosaic class organised by…
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Tapsy Tour of Rome Review: a kid-friendly tour of Rome for curious families
Our review of the Tapsy Tour of Rome: discover what we loved about visiting Rome with the help of Tapsy the mole! Rome is a city of stories. Every corner, every monument and cobbled street has secrets to share with the interested visitors and this is what makes the city such an incredible destination for kids. I love this richness and every time we go, I make a point of teaching something about Rome to my kids. Rome is my hometown and, as a Roman history graduate, I feel passing on to them my passion for the city is a must, especially now that we happen to live abroad! However,…
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Great vacation rental apartment in Taormina: Mon Repos Avenir Review
A gorgeous apartment in Taormina, perfect for families, couples and anyone looking for a quite, green oasis to rest in one of the most beautiful towns in Sicily. This is our review of Mon Repos Avenir Taormina apartment. The last Easter holidays saw us exploring wonderful Taormina, in Sicily. We had been planning a trip to Sicily for a long time since we first visited Scopello, and the opportunity to go ended up presenting itself. Earlier this year we got invited to check out a new family-friendly apartment in Taormina and the request was so lovely and the apartment so promising, it didn’t take us long to say yes! We…
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Travelove City Family Kits review
Our review of Travel Love City Kits for kids, a new fun and educational way to discover cities with your children. I am always on the lookout for fun and educational materials to use on our travels and, lately, I came across a new one that seems designed for city lovers like us: city kits for travelling families. If you are a regular reader of this blog, you probably know how much we love exploring new cities. As a family, we love the buzz of a busy urban environment, the variety of the people you encounter, the seemingly endless means of transport and the many entertainment option. However, it would…
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Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona review: where to stay in Barcelona with kids
This is our review of the Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona Hotel, a large, family friendly hotel perfect for both business travellers and families visiting Barcelona with kids. I have been to Barcelona many times: as a student, as a young professional on business trips and more recently as a mother of two wonderful and energetic children. Over the course of the years, I have experienced accommodation of all types in the city, from almost-too-dodgy-for-comfort budget options to lovely self catering apartments. However, up until recently I didn’t have a good address for a hotel I would be happy to bring my kids to. Therefore, when the offer from Hilton Diagonal…
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The cutest headphones for kids: Cozyphones review
An item I am very fond of and I always carry on all our family trips are headphones. I discovered how useful they are last year, when the we tackled a 13 hour flight to California with the kids and, since then, I always make space for a pair no matter where we go. We tried several headphone types but there is one model that has blown the others out of the water for look, comfort and how happy the kids are to wear them: cozyphones. Cozyphones review Disclaimer: we received our cozyphones for free for the purpose of this review. All opinions in this post are, as always, our own.…
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Hilton Garden Inn Dublin Custom House Hotel review: a great family hotel in Dublin city center
This is a review of the Hilton Garden Inn Dublin Custom House, where our family spend a weekend in May 2017. We have stayed several more times since then and we now recommend it as family friendly accommodation in Dublin because of its convenient location, welcoming atmosphere and kid friendly policy. Last weekend was a special one for our household. We were celebrating our 8th wedding anniversary and, to make the day special, we accepted the invite of the Hilton Garden Inn Dublin Custom House to spend the weekend with them. We had never done a staycation before but we had a lovely time. Hilton is always a reliable address and…
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The perfect base to visit Northern Ireland: Hilton Templepatrick hotel review
This is a review of the Hilton Templepatrick hotel, in Northern Ireland. We stayed here for two nights in April 2017 and had an excellent experience. This is how we got on. Last week, myself and the kids went on a little adventure. My husband was in Madrid, so I decided i would make this mummy-and-us weekend special and planned a road trip to Norther Ireland. For an extra special time, we enlisted the company of the Italian grandmother and, on a sunny Friday afternoon, we set off to our multi generational holiday. Many reason made me choose Northern Ireland as a family destination. It is a short drive up from…
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Martinhal Cascais review: why you’d love this family resort near Lisbon
This Martinhal Cascais review is based on our experience in the family hotel and resort in April 2017. We spent there one night with our two kids, aged 5 and 6 and tried the Martinhal facilities such as the pool, the spa and the restaurants. During our last trip to Portugal, we spent two nights in Lisbon and one in the coastal town of Cascais. We had debated long and hard whether we should divide out time between these two locations or just stay in Lisbon. My husband thought moving would be too much hassle, I was tempted by the lure of a coastal Portuguese town in spring and eventually I found the…
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Martinhal Chiado review: great family friendly hotel in the heart of Lisbon
This is a review of Martinhal Chiado family suites, a gorgeous family hotel in the heart of Lisbon. We spent a wonderful Easter break here and this is what we loved the most about this convenient and welcoming hotel. A family city trip to Lisbon had been high on my travel agenda for some time. I visited Lisbon for the first time over 20 years ago and the city had left me with beautiful memories of diffused light, old world splendour and friendly vibes. I knew the city would prove a hit with both Philip and the kids but there was one element that stopped me from booking a trip there…
