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In travel news this week: the secret rules of British pubs, what it’s like inside one of Asia’s biggest fish markets, plus lasting love connections that began on trips to Italy and France.
Instant attraction
It was summer 2022 and California-based model Ambika Mathur was “feeling kind of stagnant” after breaking up with her partner and moving back in with her parents.
The Netflix show, “Emily in Paris,” inspired her to set off on her own European adventure, which is how weeks later she found herself cat-sitting in Milan.
Then, out of the blue, came an invite to a party on the Amalfi Coast. That’s how she opened the door to an intriguing fellow guest.
“He was glowing and glistening,” she says of the Italian man, “all tan and blue eyes.” Within days they were talking about marriage.
Here’s what happened next.
There was an immediate attraction, too, when American Kerri Cunningham met Hugh Grant-haired Brit Dirk Stevens on a ferry to France in the summer of 1993. The problem was, they were only teenagers on vacation with their families.
More than a quarter of a century after their teen romance had concluded and their lives were overtaken by marriage, bereavement and family ups and downs, they reunited in Ireland.
“It felt like some divine intervention that we were there for each other,” says Kerri. Before she left for the airport to return to the States, Dirk asked her, “Maybe we can make this work?”
British pub etiquette
British pubs have their own set of unwritten rules that it pays for international visitors to know.
For example, flat-roofed pubs should be approached with caution, bags of crisps (not potato chips) must be split open on the table, and warning bells ring out twice at the end of the night.
Find out more in our 21st-century guide to the great British boozer.
One chain of 800 British pubs requires further introduction for outsiders. Wetherspoon pubs are a cult-like institution in the UK, both among admirers, who love the real ale and “pub grub” sold at incredibly low prices, and detractors, who see them as everything that’s wrong with the country at large.
Here’s the astounding story of the “Spoons” empire.
At the other end of the scale, and on the northern edge of the island, Scotland’s “ghost” whisky distilleries are coming back to life. The reborn Port Ellen distillery on the Isle of Islay offers a luxury visitor experience, which includes, surprisingly, Chinese tea service.
Connecting across continents
California man Cameron Mofid has struggled with obsessive compulsive disorder since childhood, but the one thing that’s helped him cope is traveling the world.
Earlier this year, he became one of a handful of people in the world to have visited all 195 UN-recognized countries and territories.
“Visiting every country wasn’t just about geography,” he tells CNN. “It was about learning how to live with uncertainty, find calm in discomfort, and connect with people from every walk of life.”
Music is the message for Danny Kean, who has been traversing North America for 20 years, improvising on a piano in the back of his pickup. On each of his outings, he invites passersby to tickle the ivory for themselves.
“I love the idea of strangers becoming less afraid of each other,” he says. “This love for humanity drives me to keep doing good.”
Writer Kim Davis lost 10 years of her life to illness, injury and personal tragedies, which spurred her to seize the moment and set off to travel the world for a year.
Packing, of course, was a meticulous business. She told our partners at CNN Underscored, a product reviews and recommendations guide owned by CNN, what she’s brought with her.
Seoul’s biggest seafood market
CNN Travel’s Lilit Marcus tasted her way through the many rows of Seoul’s Noryangjin Fish Market, famous for its hundreds of vendors and its wide variety of fresh fish and live seafood. When she tried live octopus, however, she may have bitten more than she could chew.
In case you missed it
This tiny Southeast Asia runway was once considered “the most secret place on Earth.”
It was a Cold War base for the CIA.
It had become a shabby relic.
Now one of Europe’s grandest hotels is being restored to its former glory.
A man posed as a flight attendant to get dozens of free flights.
He’s awaiting sentencing for two convictions.
Nearly $10,000 for 500 grams of old tangerine peels?
Welcome to Xinhui, where “gold” grows on trees.
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