"The French take their festive platters seriously and spend lavishly on them. Christmas Eve, rather t..." — Carol Drinkwater

I travel so much that life has become a matter of honing things down to the barest essentials. Nowadays, I almost never go anywhere with anything more than hand luggage - and a laptop.

Warsaw's historic heart was deliberately almost entirely destroyed towards the end of the Second World War by the German occupying troops. After the war, it was painstakingly rebuilt and that reconstruction is perceived as expressing the nation's determination to survive, to conserve its history and its culture.

Reunion has been nicknamed the Rainbow Isle because it is considered one of the most integrated societies on the planet, and you feel that vibe wherever you go. There is joyousness, warmth and a sense of equality.

While the olive is high in fat, it's monounsaturated fat, which, in a balanced diet, can help control heart disease by lowering cholesterol levels.