This Week in the World: Week 18

Happy Sunday, and Happy Greek Orthodox Easter to those who celebrate! My friend Victoria (who is half-Greek) is hosting a celebration in her garden later today for a few of us and I’m excited to embrace her culture while dining on some delicious Greek food! Being outdoors here in London is becoming nicer and nicer everyday, especially now that the beautiful wisteria is blooming!

If you’re new here, ‘This Week in the World’ is a weekly recap of content ranging from around the globe. My hope is that each week, no matter where you are in the world, you’ll be able to feel more connected to it: through news, travel, food & wine… really, anything that appeals to the culturally curious. Let’s dive into the content I sourced for week 18.

TRAVEL NEWS, UPDATES + INSPIRATION

• June 9th is the set date that Americans can start visiting France again.

• Flights to Europe are more expensive than they used to be. Here are 13 affordable places to visit in Europe (both cities and countryside) to keep your trip within budget.

• Another country to add to your list: Americans will now be able to travel to Spain starting in June.

• Africa’s Elephants are in peril—but could travel help protect them?

• Delta is back to selling 100% of the seats on their flights, which means gone are the days of always having an empty seat next to you (sigh).

AROUND THE WORLD

• It is absolutely heartbreaking to see what is happening in India right now. Here are some ways to help and where you can donate to help those in crisis.

• Scotland’s election is this week (6th of May) where Nicola Sturgeon is up for re-election. I enjoyed this podcast on how if she is re-elected, it would likely mean another referendum for Scottish independence.

• The days are getting longer and warmer here in the UK (and American travelers will likely be able to visit without quarantine soon!) Here are 7 glorious outdoor spots to enjoy a cocktail and enjoy the sunshine here in London.

MISCELLANEOUS

• It may sound silly, but I’m so excited I got a UK credit card this week! (Fellow expats will understand why this feels like quite an accomplishment!) Since I was already a US Amex cardholder, I had no issue opening the British Airways Amex here in the UK. If you spend £20,000 each year, you also receive a companion voucher (and if you apply using this link, you will receive 9,000 Avios points if you spend £1,000 in your first 3 months).

• Are you keen to build your wine cellar but don’t know where to start? One of my favorite wine shops in London, Barry Brothers & Rudd has a great program where you can pay as little as £100 per month to have experts build and store your cellar. It’s a simple way to build a collection of wine perfectly tailored to your taste, and you can “cash out” to collect your wine at anytime. I think it’s such a smart idea and am considering starting one myself!

• Plastic gets to the oceans through over 1,000 rivers (way more than what we originally thought). Here’s what you can do to help.

• Can you have alcohol after the COVID vaccine? (The question all wine enthusiasts are asking right now).

• 6 documentaries on sustainability that will make you think twice about what you buy.

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That’s all for today. Happy reading and hope to see you back again next week!

xx

Whitney

This Week in the World: Week 15

It’s a very happy Sunday here in London, because it is finally our last day of lockdown! Tomorrow, restaurants can reopen for outdoor dining, shops are finally allowed to open their doors and so much I’ve missed about London will return at long last. My calendar is slowly filling up with dinner dates to see my friends, tennis lessons to sharpen my skills, my WSET certification courses and even a few trips scheduled for the weeks and months ahead! It feels so wonderful to have normalcy breathing into life again, even if it’s in small doses to start.

If you’re new here, ‘This Week in the World’ is a weekly recap of content ranging from around the globe. My hope is that each week, no matter where you are in the world, you’ll be able to feel more connected to it: through news, travel, food & wine… really, anything that appeals to the culturally curious. Let’s dive into the content I sourced for week 14.

TRAVEL NEWS, UPDATES + INSPIRATION

• 4 Things to Consider As You Start Traveling Again, According to Rick Steves

• Croatia Joins This List of Countries That You Can Visit Once Vaccinated

• Conde Nast Traveler: New York Debuts Nation's First Vaccine Passport

• I loved this inspiring read of “The women explorers who changed the travel world”

AROUND THE WORLD

• London shops and restaurants (outdoor dining) finally reopen tomorrow! Here’s where to eat outdoors in London (and where to eat outdoors when it’s raining).

• UK is in ‘national mourning’ for Prince Philip – what does that mean?

• Winemakers from Bordeaux to Burgundy have lit candles and even launched helicopters to help protect the young 2021 vintage from plunging temperatures, but there have been early reports of severe damage to some vineyards.

• Notre Dame’s Rector Says It Will Take “15 or 20 Years” to Restore Cathedral

• Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle to Reopen to Visitors This Summer (and visitors will also get to explore the garden at Buckingham Palace on a self-guided tour for the first time ever!)

WEEKLY FAVORITES:

• FAVORITE LISTEN: I really enjoyed this episode of Women Who Travel on “What we wish we had known before we moved abroad.”

• FAVORITE WINES: I started my WSET Level 2 Award in Wines certification this last week (which was so fun!) and tasted five different wines during class. There were two (very different but both delicious!) wines I loved that are worth searching for online to order yourself:

  • Domaine Bruno Sorg Gewürztraminer 2018 (Slightly sweet but such an incredible bouquet of melon, ripe peaches and indisputable notes of lychee that are absolutely outstanding).

  • Pio Cesare Barolo 2014 (A quintessential Barolo: pronounced oak, vanilla, blackcurrants and earthiness. High acid. High tannin. High alcohol… this clearly packs a punch! It has a long finish and would be great with a rich truffle pasta).

• FAVORITE EDUCATIONAL READ: I enjoyed this read from AP News that explores the U.S. Mexico border situation. Spin and semantics aside, migration to the U.S. from Mexico is increasing in a major way for the third time in seven years under Republican and Democratic presidents — and for similar reasons.

• FAVORITE INSPIRATIONAL READ: My neighbor is a big cyclist and yesterday got me excited about the idea of a group of us biking to Amsterdam for the weekend (it’s 136 kilometers from London to Harwich, where you then take an overnight ferry to The Hague, then bike another 64 kilometers). While that’s a journey I’ll likely spend some time working up to, it was fun to dream about. So when I stumbled upon this article titled “A cyclist on the English landscape”, a recap of travel photographer who spent the year pedaling the roads around the UK and snapping photos, it was a feast for the eyes and added to my inspiration for making that journey happen!

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That’s all for today. Happy reading and hope to see you back again next week!

xx

Whitney

This Week in the World: Week 11

Hello again, and Happy Sunday. I just finished eating some pancakes I made from scratch, which is quickly becoming a new weekend tradition (recipe below). I’m trying to drink in little luxuries like that… things I know I won’t have as much time for when life starts getting normal again (which, don’t get me wrong, I am very ready for!) It’s nice to feel like things are finally looking promising . I’ve seen a surge in travel planning inquiries (more HERE) and some more people have been watching online courses. It’s clear that travel is on people’s minds and we are all keen to get back out there!

If you’re new here, ‘This Week in the World’ is a weekly recap of content ranging from around the globe. My hope is that each week, no matter where you are in the world, you’ll be able to feel more connected to it: through news, travel, food & wine… really, anything that appeals to the culturally curious. Let’s dive into the content I sourced for week 11.

TRAVEL NEWS + UPDATES:

• President Biden pushes for all adults to be eligible for first vaccine by May 1…

• So, here’s where you can go once you are vaccinated: A country-by-country guide.

• The most popular question asked lately: “When will I be able to travel to Europe?”

• Here’s what you need to know about buying travel insurance with COVID protection.

WEEKLY FAVORITES

• FAVORITE LISTEN: There has been a lot of commentary about the Oprah interview with Meghan + Harry last week. I appreciated the well-balanced conversation from THIS PODCAST on the subject.

• FAVORITE RECIPE: The last couple of weekends, I’ve been making pancakes from scratch… which is oddly satisfying (and tastes better than just buying mix at the store). THIS RECIPE is the one I’ve been using— very easy and tastes great. Highly recommend to add a bit of novelty to your weekends!

• FAVORITE PLAYLIST: I’ve been listening to “The Great British Breakfast” on Spotify for years now (cheery tunes that are great for making breakfast on the weekends) but I might add that it pairs very nicely with the aforementioned pancakes.

• FAVORITE FIND: THIS POST I found on Instagram is a very helpful financial cheat sheet.

MISCELLANEOUS

• This Wine Company Will Pay You $10,000 a Month and Pay Your Rent to Work in Sonoma

• Outdoor dining in London opens four weeks from tomorrow! These Kensington and Chelsea streets have decided to close for pedestrian use only to accommodate for outdoor dining soon.

• You’ve likely heard about Sarah Everard: a 33 year old woman who went missing in London last week. Thousands of women have since shared stories on social media of harassment and fears of walking home at night. THIS ARTICLE shares some things that men can do to help make women feel safe.

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That’s all for today. Happy reading and hope to see you back again next week!

xx

Whitney