Word from
Traveller HQ…
What's exciting us
this month
COVER ILLUSTRATION
KINETIC MESH
PHOTOS
VICTORIA LING, ALAMY, GAYLE WHEATLEY
FOUR-POSTER DREAMS
Spending the night in
Sleeping Beauty’s castle,
in an enchanted German
forest, was the realisation
of a childhood fantasy for
one of our team.
A NEWGREEN FAIRY
Génépi is our new winter
drinks crush. Similar to
absinthe, it’s all the rage in
the ski resorts of France’s
Savoy region. Yum.
SHARK ATTACK
We got to try Hákarl –
Iceland’s famed rotten
shark dish – in Reykjavik.
Our verdict? A tad cheesy,
but strangely moreish.
Once you’ve tried vodka in Moscow, you’ll
never want to drink it anywhere else. It
must be to do with the local water, but
like single malt fresh from the cask in a
Highland Distillery or a Pilsner in Prague,
the fiery spirit just tastes better there. It’s
smoother, crisper and more flavoursome
–
especially after the third shot.
With our new route launching this
month, I’ve been on a fact-finding
mission to discover just howmuch of old
Moscow – once renowned for its historic
grandeur, legendary decadence and,
yes, its vodka drinking – remains intact
in the 21st century. You can read about it
on page 75. I, for one, am already
plotting a return visit.
One person who probably didn’t
imagine he’d want to repeat his trip was
writer Matt Glasby. For our monthly
challenge we sent him to Méribel to see if
he could survive a ski trip with a large
group of girls. Did he overcome his initial
fears and join the fun? Find out on page 59.
And in London, we met up with the
lovely Anna Hansen. One of the UK’s
most exciting new talents, she’s
winning fans everywhere with her bold
fusion cooking. As part of a bigger story
on where chefs eat when they’re not
toiling in their own kitchen, we joined
her at her lunch spot of choice to talk
about her favourite restaurants (p82).
Indeed, we’ve already made several
reservations off the back of it. Enjoy the
flight and I’ll see you next month.
Simon Kurs,
Editor
If there’s one
thing I’ve learnt
this month,
it’s this…
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E D I T O R ’ S
L E T T E R
