“The Jewel of Crimea” : Swallow’s Nest Castle

Swallow’s Nest Castle is an ornamental castle in the Ukraine, perched precariously on a cliff overlooking the Black Sea. The “castle” is a miniature – only 20 m by 10m, and 12 m high, which only adds to the enchantment. The lonely little house is 130 feet above the surface of the water, exposed to the elements, and looks like something from a fairy tale.

  

Swallow’s Nest has a long and eccentric history. The first building built on the cliff was a wooden cabin, built 1985, which the builder named “the Castle of Love”..... Fifteen years later, a German nobleman bought the land and promptly tore down the “Castle of Love” to make room for the beautiful Swallow’s Nest Castle which is still there today.

Three years later, however, he sold it and it became a restaurant. Throughout the 20’s, the building was used only as a tourist attraction, and in the 30’s it was used by a book club for meetings (awesome for the book club, not so great for everyone else…) After that, however, an earthquake damaged the cliff and the castle was deemed unsafe for visitors, so the castle was closed and empty for about 40 years. There was very little damage to the actual castle, but large cracks had appeared in the cliff. Fortunately, in 1968 restoration efforts began. The cliff was strengthened with concrete and the castle was cleaned up. The castle was fully functional again in 1975. It became an Italian restaurant, and still is to this day.

The castle was built to be decorative, not to protect, and therefore it’s really just a very fancy house. It is literally right on the edge of the cliff – parts of the balconies actually extend over the edge of the cliff, supposedly because a chunk of cliff fell away during the earthquake.

The castle is an architectural marvel: delicate and weightless, but at the same time grand and sturdy (so sturdy that it survived an earthquake 6 or 7 on the Richter Scale with no structural damage). The castle has two stories and includes a main foyer, two bedrooms and a guest room. A stairway climbs to the top of the tower.

 What to do? You can reach Swallow’s Nest by road, or by ferry, which provides a spectacular first view of the castle. The castle is not visible from the road, which adds to the feeling of seclusion. A small fee will get you into the grounds, which you can explore. Inside the castle you should probably have a meal, since it is mainly a restaurant. You can then go out on the decks for a spectacular view of the Black Sea and the distant shore. You can also walk the Tsar’s Path, a nearby scenic trail.

What do eat? I think everyone can figure this one out for themselves… don’t want to be redundant. But I love Italian food, so win-win all around.

Honestly, this place is unreal and I would absolutely love to go here someday. (Apologies for the overuse of pictures but I just can’t get enough of them.) Definitely near the top of my list.

More info.

“Venice of the Netherlands” : Giethoorn

The picturesque village of Giethoorn in the Netherlands looks like something out of a fairytale. It’s not Venice, but it is idyllic and uniquely enchanting in its own way. In Giethoorn there are no roads – only canals. There are footpaths along the canals, and beautiful wooden footbridges to cross, but all cars must be left outside the village.
 

 

There are four miles of canals total, lined with beautiful old cottages with thatched roofs dating from the 1700’s. (For anyone who doesn’t know: a thatched roof is a roof made of straw.) Giethoorn has about 3000 residents and most live in cottages on private islands which serve as yards. On foot, many houses can only be accessed by a wooden footbridge.

 

 

What to do? Cycling, boating, guided canal tours – or just explore by yourself and take in the idyllic charm of this little village. You can get around using punts, canoes, kayaks, or “whisperboats,” which run on electrical motors. The canoes are quite shallow, so punting is especially easy (you push your boat along using a long stick). Shops and restaurants line the canals and each has its own dock, so it’s easy to get out and explore wherever you want.

 

 

 

Giethoorn is not a long train ride from Amsterdam, so you could do a daytrip to Giethoorn as part of a larger trip. There are also some excellent B&B’s you can stay in, and the owners are apparently very welcoming and friendly. The B&B’s will often rent bikes and boats so that you so that you can explore the village on your own.

 

In the winter, Giethoorn is a popular destination for ice skating. I think it would be absolutely magical to skate along the canals on a winter evening.

 

 

What to eat? Most of the B&B’s have their own restaurant or dinner service, and will serve you delicious home-cooked food. You can also eat at De Lindenhof, which is pricey but apparently a fantastic experience. De Lindenhof serves five course meals (that’s my kind of dinner!) and the food is creative, delicious and well presented. De Lindenhof is inside a traditional farmhouse and is surrounded by beautiful gardens. De Molenmeester is another restaurant, inside a restored mill, which serves regional organic dishes.

 

The canals can get quite busy as the day wears on, so it’s best to get out and about in the morning or wait until the evening, but no matter when you go Giethoorn will be a charming experience.

 

Giethoorn Travel Guide.

“Cave of the Three Travellers” : Fangweng Restaurant

Imagine dining in mid air, hundreds of feet above a sweeping gorge with a beautiful river at the bottom. Cool? Terrifying? This is pretty much what if would feel like to dine in the Fangweng Restaurant, in the Hubei Province of China.

 

The restaurant, also known as "the restaurant near sanyou cave,"  or the "cave of the three travellers," is about 30 minutes north of the city Yichang, in the Xiling Gorge, a scenic range of cliffs and park. The cliffs are riddled with caves and the Chang Jiang river flows through the bottom of the gorge.

 

The entrance to the Fangweng Restaurant is marked by a small building that is pretty darn ugly. The real wonder begins once you pass through the building. To get to the main restaurant, you must take a precarious walk along a boardwalk built into the face of the cliff. The walk is said to be spectacular. On the left, the cliff face goes up almost vertically, and on the right only a small railing guards the boardwalk from the perilous slopes of the gorge and the river below. Historically, the cave was used as inspiration for many famous poets and artists.

 

When you arrive, you will be seated. Most of the tables are inside the restaurant, which is actually a naturally formed cave in the cliff – how cool is that?! The strange combination of being in both a Chinese restaurant and a cave makes for a pretty unique atmosphere. Some tables, however, are on a deck built out over the gorge. I can’t even imagine eating a mean with only a few deck planks between me and a sheer drop to the bottom of a gorge. The view is amazing, but I would be terrified (I’m not good with heights).

 

 
What to do? Well, eat, obviously. The best time to go is during the day, when the restaurant is not crowded, and the light is good for viewing the gorge. Other than that, you can hike, bungee jump, or take a boat tour throughout the valley, among other local activities.
 

What to eat? The menu consists of a combination of local specialties and traditional Hubei cooking. Dishes include freshwater fish, duck, pork and if you’re feeling adventurous, you could try turtle (not for me, personally). Most of the dishes include sauce, vegetables and strong spices.

 

I just think this would be a fantastic and breathtaking (but scary) experience you would never forget, and you would be hard pressed to find another place like this one.

There's not a ton of information on the Fangweng restaurant, but this travel blog covers it pretty well.