#rural-charm

#rural-charm

Ghana is home to me - it's where I grew up, from the age of four until I returned to England for university - but its contrasts always surprise me. Below, waves crash violently into jutting rocks, but those rocks also form a protective circle, creating a pool calm enough for a child to play in.

"You have this kind of alienation between the two generations. The younger ones are trying to get closer to nature, but in a way we might roll our eyes at."

Milton is a picturesque location along the west side of the Hudson River, halfway between Albany and New York City, known for its pretty parks and river views.

Baqiao bridges, including the nearby Shisanba Bridge, typically appear in areas where the difference between river level and embankment is relatively small. Their upstream piers are shaped like tapered spindles with slightly raised tips, creating a distinctive structural profile. Stone slabs span between the piers, forming a bridge deck assembled through interlocking construction methods.

The expense, return on investment, and volume of investors needed to make it a reality did not make sense. I thought, 'maybe it's time to do something new.' The amount of money you need to run a restaurant in Brooklyn or Manhattan at this point is so crazy. If you fail, the loss is massive. Here, we were able to do a major renovation, we have a 100 bottle wine list, and we can use the ingredients we want and serve them at a decent price point because our overhead is not as bad.

Vermont actually resembles California - not because of its beaches but due to its distinct regions. For example, Burlington correlates to the Bay Area. And in the Northeast Kingdom, where I grew up, we classified everything below White River Junction as 'Southern Vermont.' Down there, half the towns seem to channel Boston or New York City, kind of like Santa Barbara to L.A., which makes the Kingdom something like Humboldt County - rural and spectacular, with a recalcitrant outlaw streak.

Long before they became destination stops, farm shops were practical lifelines in Cornwall; places where farming families sold what they reared, grew or made, and where local communities stocked their pantries. In a county shaped by smallholdings, dairy herds and mixed farms, the connection between land and table has always been close - and still, today, hyper-local food is something Cornwall does exceptionally well.

The Rural Cut places vintage fashion in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, among vineyards, open fields, and the animals that inhabit the land. As a Beirut-based stylist, I worked with a fully Lebanese team to create a shoot that feels authentic, where each garment and every frame reflects the textures, history, and rhythm of the rural landscape. Photography by Angele Basile / Instagram: @angelebasile Styling by Rinad Saad / Instagram: @rinaaaaddd

You can feel it in the fishing fleet hauled up on the beach, still part of daily life, and then a short walk away in bold contemporary spaces showing work that speaks far beyond the town. It shows up in events that belong to the people who live there; Jack in the Green spilling through the streets; Pirate Day turning the whole place into a shared act of play;

When you think of farming, what ingredients do you generally associate with a successful harvest? The basics certainly come to mind: fertile soil, plenty of sunlight and lots of water. But there are other variables that can also mean the difference between a crop of healthy fruits and vegetables and a large heap of organic waste. And it turns out that one of those variables is a very small hawk.

I'm passing through Kilrush on the first bright, blue-skied day after weeks of non-stop rain and it's warm enough to leave the coat in the car and think perhaps there may be a sniff of spring in the air. I hope I'm not being previous. I'm here to check out two places I've been following on Instagram for a while, having never been to this part of west Clare before.

Running a gîte in France is a fantastic way of generating income, whether you just want to top up your pension, make your second home pay its bills, or run a serious business to live from. Whilst there is a general description of what a gîte is, there are many variations and target groups to match. What choices are you going to make in creating a gîte? Rupert Springfield from Gîte Guru walks us through some of the choices in the

Last summer, I found myself in Venice during peak tourist season. The crowds were suffocating. Every piazza felt like a theme park, every restaurant seemed designed for Instagram rather than actual dining. Standing on the Rialto Bridge, packed shoulder to shoulder with thousands of other visitors, I couldn't help but wonder: is this really Italy? That question stayed with me long after I returned to London.

Naivety is an important quality to have when you start out, dreaming big and aiming high. But there are some important realities you should know before you begin.

When it comes to visiting France, Paris gets most of the attention, but don't overlook the country's gorgeous small towns. In these quaint destinations, many accessible by train, you can exchange the bustle of the city for wide-open beaches, mountain trails, medieval castles, and sprawling vineyards. From the French-German border to the Mediterranean coast to the mountainous intersection of France, Italy, and Switzerland, these small towns and villages (all home to less than 15,000 people) offer a slower pace and warm French hospitality.

Lovely Lussan in Gard, southern France, is officially one of the prettiest villages in France (' Plus Beaux Villages '). This pastoral region in the heart of Occitanie has everything an ardent Francophile could desire - picturesque villages, castles, gardens, vineyards, rich in culture and history, and great gastronomy. What to see and do in Lussan in Gard The medieval village of Lussan is perched on a hill, surrounded by rocky aromatic scrubland peppered with rosemary, lavender, thyme, sage and juniper.

From walking gently through Kotor's ancient streets to building a soulful, high-end life abroad, this guide blends mindful travel with smart expat strategy.