Branch Out!

In the words of E. M. Forster, ‘what is the good of stars and trees, sunrise and the wind, if they do not enter into our daily lives?’  While many tribes in Indonesia still use tree houses for practical survival reasons, most are reserved for the wish lists of children worldwide. 

In an age of growing environmental concerns and ever-adventurous holiday packages, tree houses have now become a realistic and viable holiday solution for audacious adults and children alike.  Adventurous travellers (aka not afraid of heights) can soar above the stale continental breakfasts and drably decorated rooms of conventional hotels, by reliving their childhood dreams in breathtakingly peaceful and truly unique lodgings.  With all this abysmal British weather, I thought I'd create a fantasy list of the best tree-house hotels where intrepid travellers can, literally, go out on a limb for their next jaunt.

Sweden, Treehotel

These guys know tree houses.  Born from the film, ‘The Tree Lover’ by Jonas Selberg Augustsén, Scandinavia’s leading architects were inspired to provide a low-impact, sophisticated haven from the stresses of everyday life; by situating their Treehotel with spectacular views of the Lule river.  Treehotel, located just fifty kilometers outside of the city of Luleå, offers five breathtakingly innovative and unique tree rooms; the combination of groundbreaking modernity juxtaposed with the peace and purity of unspoiled nature, is sensitively executed so that the Treehotel physically complements the natural setting of the site.  For example, The Bird’s Nest treeroom is formed of recycled fallen branches and is accessed through a remote-controlled retractable staircase.  Other treerooms, which are of differing size, include The Mirrorcube, a light-weight aluminum structure which reflects the natural surroundings back onto itself, The Cabin, The Blue Cone, the UFO and even a Tree Sauna.  This is my pick of the bunch for a truly unique, extremely sophisticated stay in the heart of nature.

Tree house for 2, from £320 per night. http://www.treehotel.se/, +46 (0)928 104 03

Costa Rica – The Tree House Lodge

Replace the sounds of car alarms and sirens with the peaceful humming of crickets and the singing of parrots.  The Tree House Lodge is located on the Punta Uva beach, in the province of Limón, where activities such as surfing, white water rafting and natural educational classes are available.  It was constructed solely using fallen trees and recycled materials and with solar powered electricity and locally sourced food and furnishings, this venture is dedicated to maintaining the environment and the community.  Supporting this treetop complex is probably the only place you can feel like you’re doing good deeds while doing absolutely nothing at all.

From £186 a night, http://www.costaricatreehouse.com/, +(506) 2750 0706      

India – Tree House Hideaway, Bandhavgarh, Madhya Pradesh

Tree House Hideaway offers an absolute assault on the senses. Not only is the reception, bar and dining room open-air and filled with animal sounds, it also has a panoramic lookout point over the reservation’s highly populated watering hole.  The accommodation consists of five spacious tree houses adorned with vibrant tribal paintings, colourful fabrics and huge balconies with sensational views.  Open jeeps and experienced guides are on hand to provide tours around the reservation, which is home to the largest tiger population in India.

Treehouse for two, full board from £165, http://www.treehousehideaway.com/, +91 12442 22657

Mexico – Xinalani Retreat

For all the yoga bunnies out there, this one is for you.  This retreat centre is relaxation in a nutshell.  Set in a jungle overlooking pristine, white-sand beaches, Xinalani combines yoga facilities, healthy food and open-air accommodation.  This place is seriously dedicated to maintaining the environment by minimising their carbon footprint, encouraging eco tourism and avoiding land modification at all costs.

From £128 per person, per night. http://www.xinalaniretreat.com/, (+52) (322) 221 5918

Spain – Cabanes Als Arbres

Located just 52 miles from the heart of Spain’s cultural hub, Barcelona, Cabanes Als Arbres offers 10 fully furnished tree houses perched atop Douglas fir trees.  Hanging 10 metres above the forest floor, the site’s philosophy is to educate visitors about the environment, while providing comfortable accommodation in the heart of the forest’s natural ecosystem.  The Viletta home stay within the grounds provides more civilised amenities including a swimming pool, spa facilities and a bar.

Tree house for two including breakfast from £78, http://www.cabanesalsarbres.com/en, +(34) 625 411 409

Europe's Last Dictator

 I know it's been a while since my last docu-geek outburst but this particular one is worth shouting about.  After writing about a screening of it in London a while ago, I was eager to watch it when I saw it on the 'Community Channel' (I had never heard of it either), last week.  A good documentary stays with you for days after watching it, and Europe's Last Dictator, although not easy to watch, has done just this.

In a time of extreme political turbulence in the Middle East, the eyes of the world are often distracted from atrocities happening closer to home. For 14 years, Belarus has suffered at the hands of their totalitarian president, Aleksander Lukashenko. With interviews from families, friends and supporters of opposition leaders, combined with horrifying original footage of Lukashenko’s brutal, political crackdown of the post 2010 election protests, Europe’s Last Dictator exposes accusations of torture, state-sponsored murder and violent repression as reality.

Although a little insincerely narrated by Joanna Lumley, the main contributor is Irina Bogdanova, sister of Andrey Sannikau, one of Lukashenko's main political oppositions who was imprisoned in 2010 before suspiciously disappearing from jail.  People still do not know his whereabouts.  Andrey Sannikau's selflessness, determination and bravery are astounding and her wish to publicise the atrocities in Belarus are essential for the Free Belarus Now campaign.  So give it a watch, have a think and spread the word.

Travel in Groups!

Here's a Wednesday treat!

Pure.Meat.Heaven.

Me and the gals had a truly lad-dy night of carnivorous platters and beers at Bodeans over the weekend, and I think i'm still high on the vast levels of meat I managed to stuff my face with.  Bodeans offers everything from delicious sticky ribs to tender pulled pork and burnt brisket ends.  All portions are served with a generous helping of chips, coleslaw and lashings of barbecue sauce.

 When it comes to sauces, i'm a bit of a condiment slut.  Ketchup, salad cream, mint sauce, cranberry sauce, bread sauce, redcurrant jelly - you name it, I want it; but the combination of the ginormous meat platter with sticky barbecue sauce was just the business.  The meat platter was £22.95 between 2, but cheaper items on the menu include pulled pork and burnt ends baps from £6.95.  With branches in Soho, Clapham, Fulham and Tower Hill, you're bound to be near one, so there's no excuse not to check it out.

If the neon pink pig sign with 'BBQ' emblazoned across its podgy little tum doesn't do it, the 2 lonesome fish dishes will soon give vegetarians the message - MEAT RULES!

MOVE

On rainy days like this, it's only natural that we're all going to get itchy feet and dream of warmer places.  This video was created by Australian freelance filmmaker and illustrator, Rick Mereki.  The finished product was made by three weary travellers over 44 days. They took 18 flights to span 11 countries and 38, 000 miles in order to make this amazing short film. If the rain doesn't do it, this montage is sure to kick our travel bug into action!

MOVE from Rick Mereki on Vimeo.

Showstoppers!

In a weekend jam packed with Jubilee celebrations, I took myself off to the Southbank Udderbelly festival to see a friend in action, playing percussion for Showstoppers!  I know I'm bound to be a tiny bit biased but it was genuinely one of the best things I have seen for a long time and they only have two more Udderbelly shows left before they jet off to Edinburgh for the festival, so get on it quickly.

Showstoppers is an improvised musical, where the power of the show's theme lies in the audience's hands.  In our particular performance, people suggested everything from 'colonial India' to a 'vampire's crypt'.  For the next 70 minutes we were transported to India, and entertained with a story about a train journey, based on the orient express.  With sly interjections from  'the director', the performers were required to think of new lines and songs on the spot (including singing them in particular ways, such as 'in the style of Avenue Q', which they nailed).  I was genuinely mesmerised at their expertise and obvious intelligence at thinking up new stories and musical interludes immediately.  And not only that, the play was genuinely hilarious!

I'll be going back again; every single show is unique, as with each new audience, comes different story ideas.  I'm telling you folks - it's the best way to spend £15 and to top it off, there is a nice outdoor area to enjoy a cheeky bevvy post-performance.

Novelty Pavlova

I'm having a serious case of PJD today - Post Jubilee Depression.  However, every cloud has a silver lining, as there is still plenty of our Jubilee pavlova leftovers in the fridge.  As I was meticulously nestling each union jack berry into the cream, a thought struck me that pavlova is the perfect dessert for any (remotely novelty) occasion - from drawing birthday balloons, flowers, text and even the odd cheeky phallic symbol, the world's your oyster when it comes to pavlova creativity - so I thought I'd share this easy peasy recipe!  This particular recipe is from Mary Berry - it was tried and tested yesterday and turned out beautifully!

Ingredients:

• 4 egg whites
• 250g caster sugar
• whipping cream or double cream
• berries of your choice

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 120 °C.
2. Whisk the egg whites in a clean large bowl, with an electric whisk, until the whites are stiff enough to stay in the bowl when it is turned upside down - a risky test!
3. Keep whisking, while adding the caster sugar one teaspoonful at a time.  Continue mixing until all of the caster sugar has been added gradually, and the mixture looks stiff and shiny.
4. Cover a baking tray in baking parchment or grease proof paper and spread the meringue mixture evenly into whatever shape you fancy.
5. All ovens vary, so baking time cannot be exact, but usually the meringue will take between 1 hour and 1 1/2 hours to bake fully.  When the meringue is cooked, it can be lifted easily from the parchment.  Leave the meringue in the oven once it has been turned off to allow it to cool down gradually.
6. Whip the whipping or double cream in a bowl until thick and spread over the meringue base.
7. Place the berries onto the cream either in a shape or randomly and tuck in!!