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MSC Cruises partners with Martha Stewart

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MSC Cruises – the Swiss-based world’s largest privately-owned cruise line – is partnering with internationally acclaimed home and lifestyle expert Martha Stewart on new, exclusive culinary and discovery experiences on board and ashore to make MSC Cruises’ guests vacation moments even more special and memorable. The partnership — themed Celebrate, Discover, Experience — includes specially curated shore excursions, celebration surprise gift packages, and onboard special holiday dinner menus and recipes.

“MSC Cruises is committed to developing enriching guest experiences and as such we partner with world-class experts in their field to create together something truly unique,” said Gianni Onorato, CEO, MSC Cruises. “Martha Stewart’s philosophy and passion for discovery is a perfect match for MSC Cruises and we are excited to bring her innovation, style and expertise to life in this special partnership designed to help our guests create memorable vacation moments with friends and family.”

“I’ve always enjoyed introducing people to new experiences, and I’m thrilled to be working with MSC Cruises on a partnership that embodies the true celebratory nature of travel, exploration and discovery,” said Martha Stewart. “The excursions showcase some of my favorite activities and help MSC Cruises’ guests discover some of the authentic and hidden treasures of destinations throughout the Caribbean. The holiday dinner menus and surprise gift packages encompass what I believe celebrations should include: good food, good company and commemorating great adventures and inspiration wherever we are.”

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Russian Aeroflot remains China’s ‘Favorite International Airline’

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Russia’s Aeroflot has been once again named the Favorite International Airline in China. The award was given to Aeroflot for the third consecutive year at the Flyer Award Ceremony 2019. The award ceremony was held today in Shanghai, the economic capital of China.

The awards are supported by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC). Winners are selected by the jury and by votes from frequent flyers and travelers.

The awards recognize outstanding participants in China’s dynamically developing tourism market. Previous winners include leading global airlines, including carriers that hold Skytrax 5-Star Airline status.

Aeroflot retained the title of Favorite International Airline at the competitive Flyer Awards due to its key competitive advantages: high service quality and flexible fare policy.

“The recognition of Aeroflot as the Favorite International Airline in China is confirmation of the effectiveness of our strategic efforts in China,” Aeroflot CEO Vitaly Saveliev said. “We offer our customers a wide route network and one of the youngest fleets in the world. Millions of Chinese passengers choose our airline for affordable ticket prices, convenient transit via our hub airport Sheremetyevo and high-quality service. Further development of service on Europe-Asia transit routes – one of the most competitive aviation markets globally – is one of Aeroflot’s key goals, along with the active expansion of the domestic route network.”

Aeroflot’s convenient routes encompass four key locations in China: Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Guangzhou. Aeroflot continuously adds new services oriented at the Chinese market. Earlier Aeroflot signed a partnership agreement with Alipay, China’s most popular payment system.

Aeroflot’s official website has a Chinese-language interface. Passengers receive menus in Chinese, and the in-flight entertainment system is available in Chinese. Onboard announcements are made in Chinese and the menu offers a special Asian set.

Aeroflot consistently enjoys wide recognition and popularity among consumers in the Chinese market. In January, Aeroflot was named Best China – Europe Transit Airline at the 2019 Stars Awards in China.

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Treatment and rest in one place: Resorts that help overcome addiction

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There are millions of people that need treatment for drugs addiction across the world. Many resources are currently available for people that need help to beat their addiction and mental health disorders. For most people, recovering from drug addiction is generally intimidating.

When a person is not sure whether they can overcome addiction, they find the idea of entering an ordinary rehab downright unappealing. As such, they may opt to enter a resort that helps people overcome addiction. This facility is different from a low-end clinic where people might share bathrooms or have small beds. It’s a resort-style rehab center that features luxurious amenities.

Many celebrities with addiction problems as well as stress, fear, and worry of visibility go to these facilities. Even executives that have trouble beating addiction go to these centers.

What is Resort-Style Rehab?

A drug rehab resort is a facility at provides treatment for drugs addiction in a luxurious surrounding and a vacation-like ambiance. The goal of establishing such a facility is to make recovering from drug abuse and alcoholism as easy and enjoyable as possible.

In addition to offering behavioral therapies and detoxification, residents in these centers participate in fun activities with an aim of promoting healthy living. A resort-style rehab can combine high medical care level with luxury amenities, a welcoming setting, and extracurricular activities that enhance addiction recovery

What are the Benefits of Rehabilitation Resorts?

When battling addiction, some individuals, like celebrities and executives, are concerned about their social status. Research indicates that social factors play a crucial role in recovery from addiction. The social status of some individuals is one of the reasons why they opt to go to resort-style rehabs.

What’s more, resort-style rehabs are situated in beautiful places like at the beach, desert, or mountains. This makes them hospitable and welcoming. Essentially, the focus is on the overall experience and comfort of the individuals undergoing treatment.

When a person has been struggling with addiction every day, going to a rehab in an idyllic, scenic location is more welcoming. It also offers a glimpse into the sobriety life’s beauty. Confidentiality and privacy are also protected in a rehab resort.

What Facilities Do They Offer?

Resorts that help individuals overcome addiction offer more than the amenities of the ordinary rehab centers. They go beyond creating the therapeutic atmosphere required to relax individuals into a recovery mode. Some of the facilities offered at these resorts include swimming pools, spas, gourmet restaurants, and first-class fitness centers.

Swimming pools provide a refreshing and revitalizing midday dip or downtime lounging. Spas provide aromatherapy, massage, acupuncture, hair and nail styling which help with personal hygiene and tension prevention. Gourmet restaurants provide chef-curated menus, health-conscious cuisine, seasonal and local ingredients, while catering for special dietary needs of patients. First-class fitness centers have different equipment, enough space, group classes, beautiful views, and personal trainers.

These facilities are important because they make undergoing treatment for addiction enjoyable. Individuals also get a chance to rest while undergoing treatment in one place. Things like nutrition and exercise are also important for addiction recovery. They give patients something to look forward to every day.

How Resort-Style Rehab Improves Treatment

Resort rehabilitation centers put the body and mind at ease. Inpatient treatment for drug addiction is generally a challenging process. It involves intensive schedule that needs the best efforts of the patients. Many people face withdrawal insomnia in the early sobriety stages. Getting sleep hygiene back on tract is therefore important.

Resort-style addiction centers provide treatment and rest in one place. This is very important for the overall recovery process. Intensive therapy work and fitness training are both important.

Resort-style facilities provide accommodation that is stylish and comfortable. This contributes to the recovery of patients by making the rehab a restful sanctuary. At the end of the day, patients have a place to relax and recharge.

Popular Destinations for Resort-Style Rehabs

Research shows that residential rehabilitation is considered the last resort for individuals with serious substance abuse problem. But, with so many resources for addressing and even overcoming addiction available, this should not be the case. Today, there are many locations with resorts that help with addiction treatment.

Popular destinations for these rehabs include Wickenburg in Arizona, Malibu in California, Crossroads in Antigua, and London in England. If you or a loved one wants to recover from addiction at a resort-style facility, visit one of these places.

About the Author

Frederick Moore is a columnist who focuses on drug use/abuse in the sport. His works aim to prevent athletes from improper drug use showing the consequences of abuse.

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Nevis Mango & Food Festival set for July 4-7, 2019

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Now in its fifth year, the Nevis Mango & Food Festival, which will take place July 4-7, 2019, is quickly becoming a serious contender for top spots in Caribbean food festivals and this year is shaping up to be another success.

Nevis mangoes, of which there are 44 varieties, are truly special and prized for their texture and flavor. They inspire culinary creativity among celebrity and local chefs who carefully select their favorites and turn them into everything from soups and salsas, to marinades, sauces, cocktails and fabulous desserts. Locals, however, happily eat them fresh off the trees!

As in previous years the 2019 festival will prominently feature the culinary talents of UK Iron Chef, restaurateur, cookbook author and frequent Food Network chef, Judy Joo. “Chef Joo fell in love with Nevis upon her first visit and we are thrilled and honored that she has embraced the island and the festival each year,” says Nevis Tourism Authority (NTA) CEO Greg Phillip. “Not only is Judy inventive and innovative in her approach to cooking with mangoes, but her stewardship of the event has been an encouragement to our local Nevisian chefs who take part in the festival and competitions. We look forward to another spectacular year.”

The four-day mango extravaganza starts with special “Mango Fest” menus at a number of local restaurants and also at many of the resorts. Guests from all over the island are happy to reserve their spots for lunches and dinners that feature this special ingredient. And, the chefs from Nevis resorts and restaurants will be joined this year with other chefs who will all compete in a mango cook-off on Sunday, July 7, at Oualie Beach for the final celebration and festival. With live music and food abounding, this is the day not to be missed.

Mark your calendars now for the 2019 Nevis Mango & Food Festival and visit  nevismangofest.com for more information.

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1st Global Gastronomy Tourism Startup Competition: Who made the list?

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The 1st Global Gastronomy Tourism Startup Competition recognizes the contribution of startups in the development of a more competitive and sustainable gastronomy tourism sector that works towards achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and its 17 SDGs.

The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and Basque Culinary Center (BCC), with the support of PromPeru have announced the finalists of the 1st Global Gastronomy Tourism Startup Competition, which recognize disruptive, inspirational projects having made an invaluable contribution to innovation in gastronomy tourism.

Over 300 initiatives were submitted from over 84 countries. Finalists were selected from Japan, Spain, Israel, Italy and the Czech Republic, ranging from new technologies, community-based tourism development projects, software initiatives and innovation-driven agricultural sustainability projects; all contributing to the advancement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The five selected startups will present their pitches to investors, gastronomy tourism experts and sector stakeholders within the framework of the 5th UNWTO World Forum on Gastronomy Tourism (San Sebastian, Spain) on 3 May 2019 where the winner will be selected by a jury.

The winning startup will be invited to take part in the Culinary Action accelerator programme during the second semester of 2019, where it will benefit from the mentoring and advice of the network of experts of BCC Innovation, a workspace in LABe’s Digital Gastronomy Lab project incubator, and a grant of up to 5,000 euros to cover the cost of accommodation and travel during this period.  All finalists will also be invited to present at the Ibero-American Gastronomy Fair (Miami, USA, 9-11 May 2019).

List of Finalists (in alphabetical order):

  1. ARB (Italy)

ARB provides farms, institutions, organisations and associations with technical assistance and support for multifunctional agriculture, diversification of agricultural activities, and innovation projects in agriculture.

  1. ARTHYLEN (Spain)

ARTHYLEN combines deep-learning and augmented reality technologies to facilitate the recognition of fresh products exposed in supermarkets, restaurants or warehouses in real time for hotels and restaurants.

  1. BITEMOJO (Israel)

Bitemojo is an award-winning innovative mobile app that offers a self-guided culinary experience via smartphone.

  1. DINIFY (Czech Republic)

Dinify offers a multilingual menu platform in which restaurants can publish and manage menus in multiple languages in order for travelers to read and order from restaurant menus in their native languages, no matter where they are and what their languages are.

  1. GINKAN (Japan)

GINKAN (SynchroLife) is the world’s first social restaurant review app with artificial intelligence based restaurant recommendations and cryptocurrency token rewards.

List of Semi- Finalists (in alphabetical order):

  1. BOTBOT (Singapore)
  2. CLOUDSALE (Lebanon)
  3. COOKLY (Thailand)
  4. CULTIVIUM (Mauritius)
  5. DINEER (Brazil)
  6. ECOMMUNIA PLANET(Spain)
  7. ESCAPPY TRAVEL (Colombia)
  8. FOLLOW THE FOLK (Spain)
  9. GET UP AND GO COLOMBIA (Colombia)
  10. KIMEGASTROBOT (Spain)
  11. LIMAFOODANDBOAT(Peru)
  12. LINGVO&FOOD (France)
  13. PLANT ON DEMAND  (Spain)
  14. POLOGASTRONOMICO (Portugal)
  15. TERTULIA ALGARVIA (Portugal)

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Love to travel? Like to eat? Why Portugal should be on your bucket list

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The gastronomy scene in Portugal is booming with the food scene finally stepping out of the shadow of Spain. While neighboring Spain often steals the limelight as a foodie destination, Portugal shouldn’t be overlooked.

Michelin has recently awarded 3 restaurants in Portugal with their first star. The country now boasts 20 restaurants with one star, and 6 with 2 stars, demonstrating that exceptional cuisine is served in restaurants across the nation.

To give travelers a taste of the country’s gourmet cuisine, the national airline TAP Air Portugal has introduced a “Taste the Star” program through which Michelin star chefs create exceptional local cuisine which is served to business class passengers.

Now is the time to visit as the best culinary destinations become tourist hotspots. Some of the finest foodie options in the country include exquisite codfish tasting menus in Aveiro to typical Portuguese snacks, known as petiscos, in Alentejo.

Portuguese cuisine hinges on 5 icons. First, the best fish in the world in the opinion of many renowned international chefs. Their habitat and specific geomorphological location in the Atlantic give the fish unique conditions for birth and growth that enable them to acquire a taste and texture hard to match elsewhere.

Second is the cataplana, a utensil that is the delight of gourmets and those who like to conjure up all the senses around the table. Cataplana is the word for both the food dish and the spherical pot it’s cooked and served in. This pork and seafood stew is found in the Algarve in Portugal.

The third icon of Portuguese cuisine is Port wine, considered both sumptuous and sensual. Its unique characteristics come from the soil, man’s hard work, and the sunshine that ripens the fruit. This region was classified as a World Heritage site by UNESCO, as well as the Lodges in Gaia where these wines age.

Next are the sweets of Portuguese cuisine, and they are divine. In the old days, nuns would prepare their recipes of sugar, eggs, and almond in the seclusion of their cloisters. The result of the balance between flavor, creaminess, and crispiness is another icon of Portuguese cuisine, considered a truly heavenly sweet – the pastel de nata (custard tart).

The fifth icon of Portuguese cuisine lies in the human factor. The country’s chefs are increasingly talented and winning more prizes, revolutionizing the richness of Portuguese cuisine with their creativity, boldness, and good taste. Currently, Portugal is proud to have a host of chefs who work at the highest levels of cuisine, using old-established recipes or more unusual methods that often enhance the flavor and quality of local products.

Along with these cultural food icons, are a number of other products that also help to distinguish what is eaten in Portugal. The Protected Denomination of Origin (DOP) meats from local breeds – Bísaro pig and black pig, Arouquesa, Maronesa, Mertolenga, Barrosã and Lafões beef, Barroso kid (charnequeiro and transmontano), Terrincho and Bragançano lamb – whose producers work hard to maintain their succulence and flavor.

Fresh fruit and vegetables are the basis of Portuguese cuisine and of its more Mediterranean characteristics, typical of a healthy, simple, and varied cuisine. They are the product of a fertile land, which is adopting the new organic production processes that are friendly to both consumers and the environment.

For seasoning, there is pure aromatic olive oil that is conquering international markets with every passing day. Fish, soups, salads, and cheeses are all seasoned with it.

And, surprise – there are wonderful mountain cheeses produced in Portugal that the world has yet to discover. The creamy, oily, or dry goat and sheep cheeses will make foodies bless the heavens.

Meia Tigela restaurant in Portugal

To accompany all this, there is one more delightful secret that is just beginning to be revealed – excellent table wines. Created from a new generation of winemakers and producers with a new vision for the cultivation of vines, Portuguese wines are exactly the right drink to accompany meals with great quality according to the region of the country in which you are dining.

Now all you foodie travelers need to do is plan your trip, and when you arrive sit down at a table and enjoy the food and wine as you toast your delightful experience.

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