Bagni di Lucca and Beyond

Posted by: Debra Kolkka | September 21, 2026

Paris

I flew from Helsnki to Paris on my way to Italy. I love watching clouds from the window.

The descent into Paris.

The next morning I walked with friends to Le Bon Marche, with a quick stop to admire the stunning Hermes shop, built inside the historic Piscine Lutetia, an Art Deco indoor pool from 1935. It is surely one of the most beautiful shops in the world.

The stunning Hotel Lutetia is nearby.

It is a short walk to Le Bon Marche. It was one of the first modern department stores, founded in 1838. It is one of my favourite shops in the world.

In Paris there are lots of lovely little gardens. We found this one near Le Bon Marche.

From there we walked across the magnificent Alexander III bridge, with its Art Nouveau lamps, cherubs, nymphs and winged horses. It was built between 1896 and 1900.

We had coffee at the Petit Palais, built between 1897 and 1900. It is the City of Paris Museum of Fine Arts. It also houses a beautiful cafe, a fabulous setting for coffee and cake.

Across the road is the Grand Palais. We tried the restaurant for lunch but it was booked out…next time.

We were in Paris for Design Week. One of the displays was at the Grand Palais. This one is called Joy as a Tool of Resistance. The Grand Bouquet aims to celebrate joy as a force of resistance and unity. It is a giant flower in the centre of a magnificent and beautiful room.

The main entrance to the Grand Palais is being renovated, but the structure is amazing.

We called into Angelina for refreshment.

We happened to be in Paris on the final night the Olympic cauldron was raised.

The Eiffel Tower was shining to the left.

The next date we went to the Musee d’ Orsay, the stunning museum built in the former Gare d’Orsay, a Beaux -Arts railway station dating from 1848 to 1914. It is one of the largest art museums in Europe.

There was a queue to be photographed under the clock.

We had lunch in the cafe under the other clock.

Step outside onto the terrace.

After walking through the Palais Royale,

we had an early dinner at the Breizh Cafe at 1 Rue de l’Odeon. We had delicious savoury buckwheat galettes followed by equally delicious crepes.

The next day we walked around the Marais district. I love Place des Vosges! We walked through a tiny entrance into this.

Then further into this.

The edges of the park are filled with stunning art galleries, shops and cafes.

We had a delicious brunch at the new cafe in the garden area of the Victor Hugo house. It is called Papapa and it is delightful.

My friends loved it too.

Thank you Paris for 3 wonderful days!!!! See you again soon.

Hermes – Paris, possibly the most exquisite shop in the world.

Le Bon Marche – Paris

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Posted in France, Paris | Tags: France, Paris

Posted by: Debra Kolkka | August 19, 2026

More Arles

I love Arles! The first post was getting a bit long. I took lots of photos in the town so I have lots more to share.

The main square is Place de La Republique. It has a large Roman obelisk in the centre which dates from the 4th century. It was originally located at the Roman circus and was moved to its current location in 1676. The fountain was built in the 19th century when the bronze states were also added.

The stunning Church of St Trophime sits on one side of the square. It is covered with Romanesque carvings. It was begun in 1100 on the ancient foundations of a 5th century basilica. It has a 13th century bell tower.

The beautiful cloister is adorned with 12th and 14th century sculptures.

Beneath the 17th century town hall are stone chambers built by the Romans.

Opposite the magnificent staircase is the small entrance to the underground.

Arles Market fills Boulevard des Lices on Saturday. It is one of the biggest and best in Provence. We timed our visit to be there on Saturday…we were not disappointed.

There is also a Wednesday market in Boulevard Emile with clothing, accessories and local food products. We will return in spring next year and stay for at least a week so that we can enjoy more of Arles and other gorgeous towns in Provence.

Here is a post I wrote about Arles on our visit a few years ago.Amazing Arles

Arles revisited

My favourite place we visited on our travels in spring was Arles. We have been before, but the stop was brief, so this time we stayed for a few days.

Arles is a gorgeous city in the Provence region of southern France. It is known for its connection to Vincent Van Gogh, who lived in Arles and created over 300 works inspired by its light, cafes and landscapes.

It is also famous for its Roman ruins. The Arles Amphitheatre is a massive 1st century arena that once held 20,000 spectators for chariot races and gladiators.

The ancient theatre was built for plays and comedy. It still hosts seasonal events today.

The Baths of Constantine offer a glimpse of daily life in an ancient Roman settlement. It dates back to the 4th century AD. The baths were once part of a series of buildings resembling a place. The Caldarium was a warm bath heated by the Hypocaust, the underfloor heating system. The Tepodarium was a warm air room. It takes a bit of imagination to recreate what it must have looked like.

Tough little wildflowers push their way through in odd places.

Nearby we found a tiny restaurant named after the baths.

We poked our heads in to try to book a table for the evening. The gentleman said just come back later…so we did. It turned out it was a one man show. He was the chef, waiter, dish washer and anything else that might have been needed. It was one of the best meals on our trip.

It is a delight to wander the streets of Arles. There are lots of interesting piazzas and tiny streets to explore.

My favourite shop was Moustique. It was one of those shops where I wanted everything inside.

This lovely shop was surrounded by lots of small boutiques and galleries,full of treasures. There was not a chain store in sight. I find it sad that many towns and cities are beginning to look alike. Arles has managed to avoid this. It is delightful to find individual shops where care has been taken to present interesting selections to choose from.

I will show more of wonderful Arles in the next post, including the incredible food market.

Sewing for 60 years

My mother used to make our clothes when we were children but she became a bit too busy as we got older. At the age of 13 I decided I needed to learn how to make my own.

Mum took me to buy fabric and a pattern. I found the pattern recently when I was searching for something else, prompting me to write this post.

After buying the fabric and pattern I thought Mum would lead me through the process. She didn’t. She told me to follow the instructions that came with the pattern and to tell her when I needed help. I got stuck on putting the zip in so she stepped in and did it for me.

I was off and running. I made most of my clothes from then on. I made clothes for my son until he decided it was not cool to wear clothes his mother made. I made most of the clothes in the shop I had in the city for 20 years.

I have had a life long addiction to fabric. Luckily, I still have an outlet to allow this addiction to continue. I make clothes and homewares that I sell in my friend Savva’s shop. I walk down to West End to spend a few hours each day to help sell them. I enjoy Savva’s company and get to chat with people who come into the shop.

Recently we have been playing with AI to create images for our Instagram page…What’s new at Sarva. This is the first one. We used a photo of the dress and asked AI to put it on my balcony in Italy.

Shopping in Portovenere.

Out for lunch.

Holidaying in Athens.

Savva’s denim dress on Santorini.

Savva’s dress in the Riviera.

We have a seaside theme coming up for spring.

There will be new things coming daily until I leave for Italy on 10th September. Drop in to 239 Boundary St, West End (cnr Corbett St) to see what we are doing. Savva does made to measure and alterations as well.

Follow us on Instagram, What’s new at Sarva, to see where our garments go.

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Posted in Brisbane, Fashion | Tags: fashion, hand made, sewing, shop local, Sj, What’s new at Sarva

Posted by: Debra Kolkka | July 28, 2026

Hastings Point…childhood memories

When I was a child I would sometimes go camping at Hastings Point, a tiny town in northern New South Wales. I was taken by my Uncle Bob, Aunty Rose and my cousins Sandra and Robyn, who were a little older than I was. I must have been about 7 or 8. These times were some of the happiest memories of my childhood.

Uncle Bob and family spent many holidays there and my family would drive down from Main Beach, where we lived, to join them on a Sunday, so there were lots of visits to Hastings Point.

At Hastings Point I would spend hours scouring the rock pools at low tide for sea life. I loved collecting shells and things washed up by the sea. I loved spending time with my favourite uncle who would be nearby fishing or digging oysters off the rocks. Lovely Aunty Rose cooked delicious meals and my cousins and I would slide on bits of cardboard down the grassy slope of Bogangar.

Much has changed in the area, but the caravan park is still there and the beach has not changed. It was a delight to return and take a walk along that wonderful beach. It was low tide so I got to visit some of the rock pools that fascinated me when I was a child.

Bogangar is in the distance.

On the way back we stopped for lunch at Paper Daisy in Cabarita…I must go back.

I am staying in Burleigh Heads with my son. It is another special place from my childhood.

A morning swim.

I love the Norfolk pines at Burleigh.

The Pandanus trees are great too.

There was a group of rock pool explorers at work.

The winter sky is amazing right now.

Below this cloud is the Burleigh Heads Library where I worked briefly many years ago. It is about to be closed, much to the dismay of locals.

I found a photo of my cousin Sandra, my brother Robert and me at Bogangar.

…and one of Aunty Rose, my mother and someone I don’t remember with my Robyn, Sandra and Robert, taken at Main Beach. I think our mothers made our beach attire. I had a wonderful beach childhood. Thank you Mum, Dad and the extended family.

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Posted in Australia | Tags: beach, Burleigh Heads, family, Hastings Point

Posted by: Debra Kolkka | July 19, 2026

Wineries in the Rioja region of Spain

La Rioja is the oldest wine producing area of Spain. It sits in the Ebro River valley below the Cantabrian Mountains.

The countryside is stunning, even when driving through on a dull day.

The vineyards surround the old town of Haro. It is the historic wine capital and has underground cellars and major foundational wineries. We visited a few.

The first was Bodegas Ysios with its spectacular building. There grape varieties are Tempranillo, Viura, Graciano Garnacha and other native species. Some of the vines are 100 years old. Their signature wine is Ysios Finca Les Naves. The winery is open for visits and guided tastings.

The interior is amazing as well. There are small tasting rooms and it is possible to do short tours of the winery.

The next one was Bodega Vivanco. The Vivanco family produced their first wine in 1915. The town looked great driving in.

The view from the winery is excellent in all directions.

Bodega Vivanco’s fourth generation winemaker, Rafa Vivanco Saenz, makes red, white, rose and sparkling. There is a shop, cafe and museum at the winery.

Next stop Bodegas Marques de Riscal. It has been named the world’s best winery in 2024.

The adjacent hotel designed by Frank Gehry was opened in 2003. This is not my photo. It is difficult to see the whole building when you are close. The best view was on the road driving away, but there was nowhere to stop to get a photos.

The company was founded by Camilo Hurtado de Amezaga, 6th Marques of Riscsl in 1858. The estate produces iconic Rioja and Rueda wines. Its cellar holds every vintage since 1862.

The grounds of the winery are beautiful and there are quiet places to sit.

The shop and tasting rooms are excellent.

There were some dramatic skies driving between wineries.

On another day we visited Bodega Marques de Murrieta. The winery was founded in 1852 by Peruvian born Luciano de Murrieta y Garcia-Lemoine. It was the first estate to export its wines.

It is in the most magnificent setting with beautiful gardens and stunning views over the area.

The sales and tasting rooms are beautifully presented and the young woman who looked after us was particularly charming. In fact all of the people we met in the Rioja wineries were delightful and knew their products well.

Lopez de Heredia has a striking tasting pavilion designed by Zahar Hadid. It was created to celebrate the winery’s 125 th anniversary. It is shaped like a wine decanter.

There is a great outdoor space for warmer weather.

Bodegas Muga is a family owned winery founded in 1932. It is one of the olny wineries in Spain with its own on-site master coopers, handcrafting all of its own oak barrels.

The changing weather on our way out of the region made for some great views from the car.

Rioja is a stunning region. The landscape is breathtaking. We were there in early spring when everything was turning green. I think it is probably the best time to visit. I am not particularly interested in wine, but Jim liked the wines he tried and a few bottles made their way into the car for the drive back to Italy.

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Posted in Spain | Tags: Rioja, Spain, wine, wineries

Posted by: Debra Kolkka | June 26, 2026

Prehistoric painting at Altamira caves

While we were in Santillana del Mar in the Cantabria region of northern Spain we visited the nearby Altamira Museum. It is a 5 minute drive or a 20 minute walk away. It is uphill with little shade, wear a hat or take an umbrella.

Around 40,000 years ago Cantabria began to be inhabited by early an early human species. It was the beginning of the Upper Palaeolithic period. This was a cultural period where the first manifestations of complex, abstract thought was in evidence. Art was part of this.

Along the Cantabrian coast caves inhabited during the Upper Palaeolithic period have been discovered. One of these is the Altamira Cave. The cave was occupied by man for two epochs, the Upper Solutrean, 18,500 years ago and the Lower Magdalenian, 14,000 years ago. I can imagine the excitement when it was discovered that the rock ceiling of the cave was covered in paintings. After the last occupation, around 13,000 years ago a landslide sealed off the cave’s entrance. The cave was no longer used and it was preserved intact for thousands of years.

The cave was discovered in 1868 and the Magdalenian paintings known as the Techo de los Policromos, Polychrome Ceiling, was first seen in 1879. When tourism hit the area in the 1960s the cave became one of the most visited sites in the country, beaten only by the Prado Museum in Madrid.

By 1977 Altamira was closed to the public, to halt the deterioration caused by visitors, and find ways to protect the paintings. When it reopened in 1982 visitor numbers were strictly restricted.

Eva, one of the delightful ladies we met at Hotel Casa Marques, where we stayed in Santillana del Mar, told us that when she was still at school, she was one of the five people permitted to enter the cave each week. She was very young, but remembers creeping in and almost lying on her back to be able to look up at the ceiling to view the paintings. She still remembers how excited she was and now realises how lucky she was to experience this.

To make up for the limited number of people permitted to enter the cave it was decided to make a faithful replica of the cave nearby. The Neocueva, New Cave, along with the Altamira Museum, was opened in 2001. It was built to enable visitors to see the paintings in the context they were created.

Before going inside, we are shown a film which shows the milestones in the history of the cave, the landslide and its subsequent rediscovery.

Come for a walk through the replica of the cave. It is very well set up, with imagined scenes of life within the cave and the ceiling paintings are exact copies of the originals. The artists used the same natural pigments used by the primitive artists and care was taken to recreate the textures, contours and colour variations.

It is amazing that we can see back so far in history. There is a real feeling of how people lived and seeing the paintings is excellent. There is also a museum outlining the history with artifacts collected in the area. I recommend a visit. There is a small cafe, excellent gift shop and an outdoor picnic area.

It is possible to book online. We were able to buy tickets at the ticket office on the day.

This is where we stayed in Santillana del Mar…The perfect place to stay in Santillana del Mar

Santillana del Mar…Sensational Santillana del Mar

A church and flowers in Santillana del Mar

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Posted in Spain | Tags: Altamira Museum, Santillana del Mar, Spain

Posted by: Debra Kolkka | June 20, 2026

A church and flowers in Santillana del Mar

Just before we left Santillana del Mar we found the magnificent Collegiate Church. For a modest fee of €4 we entered the stunning cloister of the church.

Cloisters always seem to be quiet, tranquil places, and we had this beautiful place almost to ourselves.

I love old stone faces, and here there were lots to keep me looking up. The faces are worn from centuries of wind and rain. Were they modelled from real people or just from the imagination of the artists who sculpted them? Each one is different and fascinating.

Some were more detailed.

The church began as a monastery in 870. The church we see today dates from the 12th century. It had 3 naves, a dome, transept, 3 semi-circular apses and a tower.

We entered the church from the cloister.

It is incredible to find these treasures are still around for us to see.

Walking through the town I noticed elaborate coat of arms decorating many of the houses.

All over Santillana del Mar flowers spill from pots and balconies.

Santillana del Mar is a wonderful little town. I am very happy we were there in early spring and saw the town without hordes of visitors. I have heard that it becomes seriously crowded in the summer. April was a perfect time to visit.

See the hotel we stayed at…The perfect place to stay in Santillana del Mar

More on Santillana del Mar…Sensational Santillana del Mar

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Posted in Spain | Tags: Cantabria, flowers, Santillana del Mar, Spain, spring

Posted by: Debra Kolkka | June 15, 2026

Sensational Santillana del Mar

Santillana del Mar in the Cantabria region of Spain is a stunning, entirely pedestrianised town, lined with 15th to 18th century stone mansions. Flowers tumble from window boxes and balconies. The cobblestone streets are lined with artisan craft shops, and lots of places to buy the famous Cantabrian anchovies. We were there in spring and it looked wonderful.

The name is misleading. The town is not on the coast, but a few kilometres inland. It is a significant stop on the northern route of the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage. The name is a contraction of Santa Juliana, an 8th century martyr whose remains are housed in the Santillana del Mar Collegiate Church. It is a Romanesque church and former Benedictine monastery.

The church sits at the top of the town and was our first stop after checking into the hotel. It started life in 870 as a monastery. It was transformed into a church over the 11th century. The church we see today dates from the 12th century. It is remarkably preserved. I particularly liked the many sculptures dotted around the building.

The main street has an old water trough probably used for washing and watering horses.

On the left we found a small park with more modern stone sculptures.

Then is was back to the main street. Come for a walk along the cobble stone streets.

There are lovely buildings, some with Cantabrian balconies.

There is lots of decoration on buildings.

There are interesting shops. Lots sell Cantabrian anchovies and chocolate.

The town is quiet small and is surrounded by green countryside.

We had lunch in this very sweet cafe.

Dinner was at this fun bar, the only place open that night.

The very best part of Santillana del Mar was staying at the Hotel Casa Del Marques, the subject of the previous post. In the next post I will show you the stunning interior of the church which we managed to find open just before we left the town.

Going home

We are now on our way back to Australia. It is time to return to our other lives. As much as I love Italy I am ready to leave.

We travelled quite a bit on this trip. We no longer have a garden to take care of so we have time for other things. There will be more posts on our Spain, France and UK visits to come.

As well as visiting new and favourite places, we like hanging around Ponte a Serraglio. I have my coffee and sfoglia most mornings at Bar Italia, across the bridge, and there is always someone there to have a chat with.

I still have some flowers to look after. Our tiny balcony has lots of pots to fill. We are very prominent in the village so I like to plant lots of colourful flowers. It is fun to watch people stand on the bridge and take photos of the village, including the bridge and the flowers. I like to think of it as my front yard.

A delightful young man named Peter has been watering the plants on the bridge while I am not there. This year the flowers have another friend. A couple from Brazil have taken an interest and the very nice man usually beats me to the watering. The plants are thriving with all the care.

The window flowers. The trees on the other side of the river are reflected in the windows.