This week it’s time to inject a little more sophistication into your life with a wine tasting Traincation to Bordeaux…

What’s all the fuss?
Grape Escapes are a company dedicated to the wine industry and specialise in knowing what’s hot in the world of wine tasting. They offer the public wine tours to five top French wine regions and one in Spain too. They’re a very successful company with a large number of clients that return year after year. Their growing popularity is the result of providing excellent trips, fantastic customer service, and (most importantly) the best tipple.

Get away from the daily grind with a trip to The Bordeaux Wine Tasting Tour. This tour includes a two night’s stay in a choice of city centre hotels, and a fully guided day tour in either Medoc, Graves and Sauternes or St Emillion. Also you’ll be treated to an early evening tutored tasting session of three or the best regional wines in a traditional bordelaise bar. Along with the wine there will be a selection of cheeses and meats, as well as a host to keep you informed and entertained. To finish off the day there will be a four course gourmet dinner in a city centre restaurant, again accompanied by three of the local wines.

As mentioned above there are four different day tours you can choose from, we at Global Cool have chosen Graves and Sauternes tour. On this tour you firstly go on a tour of the Pessac-Leognan, which is known for both reds and dry white wines. You will then visit two chateaux for a tour and tastings of their wines. After you’ve spent some time for lunch, then you will head to Sauternes which is well known for its sweet dessert wines. After enjoying the tastings of the wines, don’t forget to capture the stunning view of the vineyards. However you can check the website for more information on the other day tours.

Getting there
Travelling to Bordeaux, France from London is very easy, and you can even enjoy a couple of glasses of wine on route to get you in the mood! Firstly you catch the Eurostar to Lille then make a simple same station interchange onto the direct TGV to Bordeaux. So what are you waiting for?

Picture it

Here comes the science bit…
Global Cool wants you to lead a green and happy life. This article can help you to be green by taking the train instead of the plane to keep the planet happy.

Pics: PA Images

By Emily Rycroft

We don’t know about you but all these lean, leggy fashion looks in hot sunny colours on the streets is really boosting our summer spirit. And there’s no better way to get in the holiday mood than starting your vacation from the moment you leave your doorstep. So, this week we help you find your fashion personali-tea on Traincation in France. Who knows, with any luck you might even bump into Lady Gaga with her signature random teacup…

What’s on?
On Saturday fashion lovers everywhere will be at Paris’s Le Bristol Palace Hotel for Thés à la Modeaka Fashion Tea Time. Right in the centre of rue du Faubourg St Honoré, this kitsch hotel provides the perfect setting for summer ethereal looks and autumnal French garb. We love tea as much as Lady Gaga so get ready to watch models strut their stuff whilst chomping on some freshly baked croissants. Just outside the doors is one of Paris’ most prestigious shopping districts too.

Grab a cuppa (or something a little stronger) and settle down in the bar. The hotel’s extraordinary pastry chef Eric Fréchon will satisfy your sweet tooth with one of his spectacular creations (pictured).  Don’t be put off by the unusual things he can do with a pigs bladder (don’t ask!) as his chocolate and pastry selection will be fashion-themed and incredible. Past shows have included displays from YSL, Givenchy and Versace.

Getting there
Did you know that city centre to city centre it is actually faster from London to Paris than it is to Leeds? And with the ridiculous fares to airports these days, the Eurostar is cheaper too. Take a morning Eurostar on Saturday morning right into the heart of Paris, or leave on Friday after work and fit in a bit of the Quartier d’Été Festival. There are over 200 concerts taking place in parks across Paris, with many free performances. It’s a fantastic way to soak up city life with a bit of va-va-voom.

Traincation tip
Want something to do on the journey? Keep yourself entertained with this Lady Gaga video featuring some outrageous fashion, a teacup and the meaning of pokerface…

Bang for your buck
You have two options: You can either arrive in Paris and dine in style minus the expensive price tag – with your Eurostar ticket you can get 50% off food at some of the best hang outs in town. Or you can arrive in Paris with a Ryanair ticket and all you will get is a long queue for an expensive taxi to your hotel. It’s your call.

What are you doing this weekend? We want to hear all about it in the comments box below or on Twitter @traincation…

By Emily Rycroft

If you’re feeling a bit blue this Monday morning with the wedding of the decade over and no more lovely short working weeks for a while, don’t despair. Escape to another continent without even leaving Europe with an African-inspired Traincation to Cozes…

What’s on?
The 21st edition of Festival Plein Sud will come to Cozes again this year, paying homage to African culture and heritage. The festival allows free expression for speakers who can tell us about the realities of their countries. Once a year this small French village is taken over by sand, camels and African drums to celebrate everything about this great continent. By day explore the African markets selling traditional wares and crafts. Or visit the Animation village for camel training and to watch the fantastic belly dancing show.

In the evening be inpsired by the artistic fashion shows, followed by Faso Denya‘s ‘New Generation’, a fantastic display of dancing and drumming. The Cinema South Festival will be playing a series of short films by African directors too.

Continues below…

PROMOTION

Fancy seeing Kasabian, Plan B, Arctic Monkeys and loads more fantastic acts at an amazing European music festival this summer? We’re giving two Global Cool fans the chance win a Traincation for you and a friend to Gurten Music Festival in Bern, Switzerland from July 13-18.

Getting there
There are two routes to Bordeaux from London. You can either travel via Paris or take the slightly easier route passing through Lille. Board the 5.04pm Eurostar to Lille station and sink back in your seat with a nice glass of wine. Upon arrival, stop for a quick bite at Lille station at Pain a la Ligne, right next to the ‘London Welcome Kiosk’. They serve great sandwiches and a decent cup of coffee too. Once you are fully refueled it is an easy same station change for the connecting train to Bordeaux. The nearest station to Cozes is Saujon, around 2 hours from Bordeaux. The journey into Saujon is beautiful; keep your eyes open for the picturesque port of Ribérou, where the sunset bounces off the water.

Traincation tip
We have discovered the swiss-army knife of electronics. Presenting the Ventus Eco Media Player: Listen to all your favourite music, watch movie clips, access radio stations, browse your photo albums and read text files – all without the need for external power or batteries! This innovative MP3 also has an integrated emergency phone charging function and a built in torch. Wind it up for one minute to get 45 minutes of power.

Bang for your buck
You can book a combined Eurostar and TGV ticket from £109 pp return. Sometimes it may be cheaper to easier to book each leg of the journey separately, with the £69 Eurostar deal and an uber-cheap Prems Fare starting from £19 single.

What do you think of our Traincation Inspiration this week? Let us know on Twitter @traincation or in the comments box below…

If you’ve been watching Heston Blumenthal’s Mission Impossible, you’ll have seen him trying to transform cinema snacks with some seriously dodgy substitutes to make the experience of the evocative film Perfume believable. If you don’t fancy the smells of rotten fish, new born babies and sperm surrounding you in a cinema, but you do fancy the idea of a story all about tastes and smells then forget the film and pick up the book. It’s completely unforgettable, has an unbelievable ending and it’ll put redheads in demand – intrigued? Read on…

What’s all the fuss
Grenouille’s life is all about scents – he’s born without his own, hates those of others, but finds love in a handful that he desperately wants to hold to. It’s these smells – the ones in which he finds beauty – that transform his character and make a man with an amazing superpower become evil. His love is for virgin redheads: he hunts them, kills them and tries to catch their scent before they die. He becomes a perfumer with an aim to recreate the beautiful scents of these women, and eventually creates one for himself. The story becomes its meatiest when he moves to Grasse and discovers one particular girl (Laure) who he decides is too young for him. During the two years he waits for her, he kills a series of women who all look very similar until Laure’s father realises that his daughter is in store for the same fate. I’m not going to say anymore (I know I always do this but I couldn’t rightly tell you the end of a book, could I?!) except that what follows is a hanging that becomes an orgy, and a group of thieves with whom you really would never want to have dinner.

Pick it up if…
…you wish you were on a bus in France for your everyday commute, you like a good murder or two, and you like to see everything around you in a slightly different way. If you’re sick of the dodgy smells of public transport the descriptions in this book will make them all disappear, or at least transform a walk into a cult murder mystery with a gothic backdrop.

By Emily Rycroft

If your Valentine’s weekend wasn’t up to scratch why not treat yourself to a Traincation mini-break in Nice…

What’s on?
The Nice Carnivalis the highlight of the Côte d’Azur in winter, and is one of the biggest and most popular carnivals in the world. Starting on February 18 this year, the festival will run until March 8. The stunning carnival parades are exaggerated by the enormous space and beautiful architecture of the Place Massena square. The theme for this year’s parade is the story of the “King of the Mediterranean”. Thousands of musicians and dancers, aboard tanks extended up to 20m high, will participate in the display.

At the Promenade des Anglais let the ‘Battle of the Flowers’ commence! Elegant floats of exquisite flower arrangements glide through the parade (pictured top right). Ornately costumed participants launch thousands of flowers into the air and crowds. In the evening, make your way to the Albert I Gardens for the ‘Parade of Lights’. Nice hosts a spectacular show of visual animations projected on enormous screens in the square. All the floats are also illuminated and the parade continues in a truly magical display.

Fancy seeing Kasabian, Plan B, Arctic Monkeys and loads more fantastic acts at an amazing European music festival this summer? We’re giving two Global Cool fans the chance win a Traincation for you and a friend to Gurten Music Festival in Bern, Switzerland from July 13-18.

Getting there
Escaping the British weather on the Riviera was the fashionable destination for wealthy Brits in the 19th century, and it’s still the perfect winter break, with a great mix of good weather and interesting culture. Board a morning Eurostar from London and in 80 minutes you’re in Lille. Nip into one of the many station cafés and pick up a croissant for the short wait for the TGV connection. You do not have to lug your bags far at Lille as the TGV connection is within the same station. Even at 186mph the views from the window are outstanding.  Lay your eyes upon lush, green fields and quaint French villages until Lyon when the train passes into the Rhône Valley. Your journey will weave across the River Rhône en route to Marseille, past magnificent viaducts and hills (right). Get your camera ready for the entry into Côte d’Azur, with pretty boats in the harbour, rocky headlands and untamed wilderness.

Traincation tip
Make the most of the wonderful scenery with a free Friday playlist dowload from Fairshare music. Grab a beer from the on-board bar, plug in your headphones, sit back and enjoy the new sights with new music.

Bang for your buck
The Eurostar to Lille is cheaper than any other French destination. Book early and take advantage of their £65 per person deal.

Tell us all about your Traincationing adventures on Twitter @traincation or in the comments box below…

By Lauren Moore

There’s something about cruises, they sound so exotic; like something only the rich and famous can do. Looking in to them, they are definitely something you have to save for, but you can save money by taking a flightless cruise. That way you can chill out from the second you step aboard the ship.

Leaving from Southampton, you can take a European cruise where you’re able to visit the Canary Islands, Spain, Greece and France. Or if you want something a little different, the African cruises departing from the UK take in Malta, Spain, Portugal and Tunisia.

Flightless cruises aren’t limited to Europe though; there are cruises to the Caribbean that also depart from Southampton, taking you off to Barbados via Madeira.

Cruises are known for their entertainment, so unlike flying where you have to pay extra for headphones to hear whatever crappy film has been put on, you will get to watch shows, play in the casino, have a drink or just take in the view as you sail.

Think of how relaxing it would be to go on holiday without having to hang around in an airport departure lounge; instead your holiday starts straight away.

The popularity of cruises is down to the number of places you can visit in one holiday, however, if you have a lot of time to take in the world, cargo ships are also a really interesting way to travel.

While you may not get the same sparkle and jazz of a cruise ship, the small number of people allowed to travel on a cargo ship makes it a memorable experience.

If you travel in this way, you also get to experience the less touristy areas of a country due to the cargo ships stopping in different ports to the cruise liners.

Where would you go on your dream cruise? Tell us in the comments below…

Image via nydiscovery

As part of our upcoming Do It In Public campaign, Global Cool brings you our guide to the best summer festivals, including how to get there and back without having to dig your car out of a field that looks like northern France circa 1918. Continuing today with Meltdown festival…

Who
Paolo Nutini, Seasick Steve and former Fratelli Jon Lawler’s new project, Codeine Velvet Club, are all must sees.

What
Richard Thompson is this year’s guest director of this eclectic festival (previous directors have included Elvis Costello, David Bowie and John Peel).

When
11-21 June, 2010

Where
Southbank Centre, London

Why
Paolo Nutini, one of the main attractions at this year’s Meltdown, discusses the entertainment on board his tour bus…

How
The Southbank Centre is easy to reach by train or underground, just hop out at Waterloo Station. To plan your journey use this public transport journey planner…

I write from another impressive train station in Paris – Gare du Nord – about to depart en route to Lille. So far the travelling has been absolutely stress free. The language barrier was nothing to worry about and myself and Liz (Liz especially) found that we had more French than we thought, so logistics and general getting around was a cinch.

Travelling by train has given me so much joy in actual transport. I am completely relaxed and really feel the difference in getting from gig to gig. Even in comparison to travelling by car or van, train – with its motion and its space, its comfort and its sound – is almost luxury to me now. I even took my guitar out to play on the train last month when I travelled home to Ireland via Sail Rail to my brother’s wedding (Sail Rail is where you take the train from London to Holyhead and ferry across to Dublin – and it’s only £29 people!!! www.sailrail.co.uk) so that will give you an inkling as to how enjoyable and “free-and-easy” this kind of travel is.

I had a great night last night, absolutely lovely. Rodrigo Y Gabriela played a wonderous gig.  They are completely stimulating so I’ve already asked for a few little lessons from them. They invited some of their most personally influential artists to play with them last night, Al di Meola and Trio Joubran, who are, if you don’t know them, some of THE most influential musicians in the entire universe….. but I didn’t have a clue who they were to be honest and was like “Howeyiiiiiizzzz” in my thickest Irish hello accent when I met them in the hallway! I love when people freak out when they see an artist they absolutely adore and they lose their mind and I’m completely oblivious to that fact and just treat them like anyone else. But they are like anyone else anyway, just like the rest of us. So in the words of Michael Caine: “You are a person – and that’s all you’ll get from me”.

Au revoir……over and out……10 4……..seeyiz!

wallis x

I write drunkenly (but not disruptively!) to you all from a lovely evening in Nantes on the first show of the European tour with the infinite and incredibly effortless talents of Rodrigro y Gabriela! A lovely crowd here tonight, thank you for the kind welcome.

Getting here was kind of hilarious!  We arrived in Kings Cross St Pancras’ impressive train station and that travel tingle immediately kicked in. It’s just myself and Liz (my manager), our luggage and two guitars to carry for this tour, and it was our first experience with the Eurostar so I made jokes about “when are we going in the hole” and “tunnel of love” and other such childish things, only to realise that by the time I finished my jokes, we were already through to France – Zoom! We were booting it through the countryside in comfort, space and tranquility. Lovely start.

AND we arrived 4 minutes walk away from our hotel – whoop! – that never happens on a plane!

Right now I’m on the train back to Paris, passing by lakes and oddly shaped trees and lush countryside with my laptop in front of me and a buffet carriage a few steps away. People are relaxed and pleasant-faced – I’d forgotten how nice train travel was.

Anyways, we ordered a taxi last thing tonight to bring us back after the gig, but the taxi arrived at the far far far end of the venue at another entrance which is locked by a 5 foot gate and angry-type fencing surrounding the gate, so we had to get a laugh-out-loud foot boost over the gate from one of the lovely guys working in the venue. I got over relatively easily, but not as nimbly as I would like to have thought I could get over it, and Liz started laughing half way through her jump over the gate and got stuck on top of the gate! I love the image of her leaning on some fella’s clasped hands, pissing herself laughing while the fella was like “Come on! Come on!”.

Getting here was a doddle, being here was lovely – good times!