Canadian Hamish Gordon talks about his family's move to Mallorca in the 1970s, the island's complex history and its current cultural renaissance beyond Europe's sun-soaked getaway.
Three Epic Rides
Pelotons of cyclists emerge this time of year, small streams at first, and then as the weather warms, in far greater numbers. A sure sign of spring. They stream along exurban back roads across Canada. It’s no longer just a European thing. Each weekend, my husband Tim is among them and has been for years, long before it was de rigueur. Yes, I am married to a MAMIL—a middle-aged man in lycra.
Some call road riding the new golf for networking and dealmaking among the business elite and those who want to be. Easier on joints but the type of sport where mental toughness is critical. It’s also perfect for ageing athletes who enjoy kicking butts of those decades younger. Others ride to raise money for worthy causes. To be sure, the vast majority of hardcore road riders are male—not the toodler from vineyard to vineyard like me—I’m talking the “where’s that 19% grade so I can feel the burn” type of rider. This is by far and away a guy thing.
Tim tries to explain it to me. “It gets me outside. My body moving. I feel connected. It’s even kind of a spiritual thing," he says.
Ok, this notion of connecting with one’s higher self on two wheels made me curious. If you could road ride anywhere in the world, where would you go? And what life lessons, what epiphanies, might emerge? With lycra and pedals packed, I agreed to set off on a road rider’s odyssey to learn more about these MAMIL creatures and their bucket list of epic rides.
Check out Native Traveler's full-length BAHAMAS show!
Chef and writer Phillip Pearce says it best, in introducing his Native Traveler feature:
I know I’m not alone in the excitement I’m feeling. My clothes feel too heavy. My head, lighter. My life from four hours ago in cold, wet Toronto begins to feel like an archaic mainland memory, sluggish and grey. Our wide eyes take it in from above and I can’t wait to walk out onto the tarmac, and feel Exuma all around me.
Click the red circle right below to experience more of etherial Exuma.
Grand Isle Resort & Spa
Philip Pearce
Chef/Writer
Cameron Hepple
Canada's Bahamas Tourism ambassador
Memories of Surf, Sand & Sun on Great Exuma
Chat 'n' Chill's Famous Conch Salad
Conch (commonly pronounced "konk") is the Bahamas' national food and a true Bahamian delicacy. It can be eaten steamed or deep-fried, but we would argue that the best way to try it is freshly chopped in a conch salad.
Chat 'n' Chill, located on Stocking Island just across from Exuma's main harbour, is famous for its open-air bar and waterside conch salad shack—well worth a visit if you're in town! The chef will take the conch from the sea, crack it open, and prepare it right in front of your eyes. Mix in some locally-grown tomatoes, onions, peppers, and Bahamian sea salt, and voila! Your fresh-from-the-ocean meal is ready.
Watch Chat 'n' Chill's Chef Ronaldo expertly whipping up some conch salad in the video below.
Hidden Treasure
As we come down out of the clouds and the islands of the Bahamas stretch out beneath us, window shades go up and our necks strain to look out the windows of our airplane. Cara and I are flying over Grand Bahama, then New Providence, the big island of Andros to our right, and then the Cays of Exuma are stretched out in a line ahead of us. It looks like a painter's palette down there, strokes of cream-coloured sand bars and crystal blue water punctuated with the dark, lush green of the inner islands. I know I’m not alone in the excitement I’m feeling. My clothes feel too heavy. My head, lighter. My life from four hours ago in cold, wet Toronto begins to feel like an archaic mainland memory, sluggish and grey. Our wide eyes take it in from above, and I can’t wait to walk out onto the tarmac and feel Exuma all around me.
A Secret Corner of Paradise
"I have never seen water so blue," says Native Traveler Senior Producer Cara Ferguson of her first glimpse of Exuma, as their plane descended for landing. No stranger to stunning tropical destinations, Cara was awestruck by this lesser-known district of the Bahamas, consisting of over 365 islands, also called cays. Great Exuma is the largest of these cays. Cara traveled here with Toronto-area chef/writer Phil Pearce whose embedded local connections gave them a vivid insider's perspective. Hear all about this in our Exuma show feature.
Cara insists their home base on Great Exuma, the Grand Isle Resort & Spa, was a highlight. "Their villas make for a wonderfully private experience," she explained. "Of course, expect all the trimmings of 5-star accommodations, but it's the care and personal touch of the people who work here that really put this luxe resort over the top."
Flyfishing, diving, snorkeling, great food, and more—Cara says you can even buy your own piece of paradise at this resort. The pictures below speak for themselves.
Check out Native Traveler's full-length AROUND THE WORLD TRAVEL show!
It's quite a thing to ditch life as you know it and take off to explore the world. Today we celebrate this spirit of open-ended adventure and the life lessons therein—big and small. We learn about how and what happens when you do this as a family. We also look at the best of authentic street foods around the world—often the fare of choice for those budgeting to stay on the road as long as possible. Enjoy!
Kim Dinan
Kim Dinan is an author and adventurer. Her writing has appeared in Parks and Recreation magazine, Northwest Travel magazine, Trailer Life magazine, Go Explore magazine, and OnTrak magazine, among others. Her popular blog, So Many Places, was named one of the best outdoor blogs by USA Today and has been featured online by such sites as Huffington Post and BuzzFeed. Her debut memoir, “The Yellow Envelope,” hit shelves 4/4/17.
Heather Greenwood Davis
Heather Greenwood Davis is a Contributing Editor at National Geographic Traveler. She is also an award-winning freelance writer, columnist, TV and radio personality and the voice behind GlobetrottingMama.com—an internationally-acclaimed family travel blog. Heather advocates for travel as a tool for both education and family bonding, themes that often appear in her storytelling across various media.
KF Seetoh
Hailed as “Food Guide Maven” and the “Guru of Grub” by The New York Times and CNN respectively, KF Seetoh has been championing street food culture in many ways. He was accorded and recognised as Singapore’s Food Ambassador by the late former President Mr SR Nathan. After a decade of professional stints in the media industry, KF Seetoh put a lucrative photography business aside and founded Makansutra.
ABOUT THE WORLD STREET FOOD CONGRESS:
The brainchild of heritage and street food maven KF Seetoh of Makansutra, the WSFC was created in 2013 largely to capitalise on all the relevant aspects and opportunities of heritage street food culture around the world. It seeks to address three most pressing points of this culinary Street Food culture which serves to be the Pillars of the event:
- To Preserve… it’s foodways, heritage and celebrate the culture.
- To Professionalise... with a new thinking of delivering, serving and entertaining with street food culture.
- To imagine new Possibilities... to seek a new space for tomorrow’s world of street food soldiers to defend and game on.
ABOUT WORLD STREET FOOD CONGRESS 2017:
Date: 31 May to 4 June 2017
Venue: Mall Of Asia (MOA), Manila
The World Street Food Congress 2017 (WSFC17) will be held in the Philippines again, in what CNN calls one of “the world best food destinations”. In 2016’s WSFC, a record 73,000 food wise and hungry people came for the 25 stalls from 12 cities and patiently tore into Iga Bakar, Chocolate Martabak, Prawn Paste Chicken Burger, Truffle Paella Lechon, Nambo Banana Sticky Rice and much more.
ABOUT MAKANSUTRA:
Founded in 1997 by entrepreneur-photojournalist KF Seetoh and headquartered in Singapore, Makansutra (S) Pte Ltd is a company that celebrates and promotes food culture. They endeavour to share and celebrate all aspects of the culinary kingdom through their food guides, online content, eateries, specialised events, projects, and TV shows.
To quote the American author and journalist Bill Buford on food: “It is an identity, culture and history. It is science and nature, and botany. It is earth. It is our family, our philosophy, our past. It is the most important matter in our lives. It is more than its ingredients... But it is also just dinner. It is serious, and not.”
The Yellow Envelope
Wendy and I stepped out of a creaky, multicolored boat onto the dust-packed bank of the Tungabhadra River. The river ran dark and lazy as a slough. Three women in colorful saris beat their laundry on rocks near the riverbed. A small gang of boys splashed and shrieked in the sleepy current, as naked and skinny as baby birds. We started a slow, meandering walk along Hampi’s main road. Heat pulsed from the dirt streets and crawled up my legs as we shuffled past coffee shops, tourist hostels and roadside stands that sold tiny Ganesh figurines.
Across the road a teenage boy sat slumped in a black and yellow rickshaw that he’d parked in the shade under an outcropping of boulders. He perked up when he saw us. “HELLO,” he waved. “HELLOOO! YOU NEED RICKSHAW?”
Check out Native Traveler's full-length ALGONQUIN show!
Here we celebrate ice out on the lacework of lakes and waterways across Canada, but specifically that of Algonquin park—Canada’s oldest provincial park three hours northwest of Toronto. We talk lost canoe routes and tripping techniques. We take a look at one of Ontario's most beloved wilderness lodges. First, though, we mark the 100th anniversary of the death of a Canadian art icon, Tom Thomson, in Algonquin Park and the making of a Canadian legend.
The Happy Camper
A Perfect Fall Day on Canoe Lake
Sundry Algonquin Tips
Off the Lake
Whitewater raft on the Madawaska River. Hike and mountain bike on park trails. Beckon wolves to answer at evening Wolf Howls.
Local Chow
Book ahead for breakfast, lunch, or dinner at Arowhon Pines—a historic wilderness lodge with food rivaling top tables anywhere.
Wildlife
Watch for moose, deer, fox, wolves, beavers, loons, blue herons, etc. Hang your food in a tree and make noise in the bush so as not to find black bears.
Rituals
Ice out, of course. Spring fishing for lake trout. A visit to Thomson’s Cairn and Totem Pole Memorials on Hayhurst Point. Tripping Big Trout Loop.
The Experts
A Canoe Lake fixture, the Portage Store offers complete outfitting, tripping advice, and guides. See here for park info and attractions.
Other Required Reading
Northern Light by Roy MacGregor—a crash course in local lore. The Last Guide: A Story of Fish and Love by Ron Corbett.
