How to Celebrate Hogmanay in Edinburgh!

08/04/202508/04/2025wareontheglobe Leave a comment

I spent New Year’s Eve 2024/2025 in Edinburgh, Scotland for its grand, internationally renowned Hogmanay festival! Hogmanay in Edinburgh had long been on my “bucket list” and I was super pumped for all of the Hogmanay events. Unfortunately for me, most Hogmanay events were cancelled in 2024/2025 at the last minute due to “extreme” winds… which did not really pan out. Regardless, I still had a wonderful time in Edinburgh celebrating Hogmanay. And, I did A LOT of advance research on Hogmanay events available for the foreign public to attend. This post compiles my research for those attending Hogmanay next year. And full disclosure, I am no expert nor am I Scottish – I am simply sharing my research.

A Happy Hogmanay Cocktail from Edinburgh! This is at Cannonball Restaurant near the Castle.

HOGMANAY IN SCOTLAND!

Hogmanay is the Scottish word for New Year’s Eve, and Hogmanay is a BIG holiday in Scotland. Having been celebrated since at least the early 1600s, Hogmanay is now synonymous with festive merrymaking on December 31st in Scotland (not just Edinburgh). Scottish celebrate the arrival of the new year with family, parties, music and good fun. Trust me when I say this is more than a big New Years Eve celebration or party, Hogmanay is a legitimate holiday, similar to Christmas in my opinion, and its incredibly important to the Scottish people. We learned from our local tour guides that one important Hogmanay custom is “First Footing”, where family and friends celebrate the New Year at midnight and the following day by visiting each other’s homes with gifts of Scottish whisky and coal.

Edinburgh dressed festively for Hogmanay.

Hogmanay is celebrated across Scotland, but the largest celebration, and the most accessible to non-Scottish visitors, is in Edinburgh, Scotland’s gorgeous capital. Edinburgh’s Hogmanay celebration generally lasts four days, with the biggest celebration being a grand street party on December 31st. Edinburgh’s Hogmanay is welcoming and accessible to foreigners, but it requires advance planning, and most events require a ticket.

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Airport Lounge Review: Marhaba Lounge, Dubai International, Terminal 3, Concourse B

11/03/202510/03/2025wareontheglobe Leave a comment

Dan and I spent a little over two hours in the Marhaba Lounge in Dubai International (DXB) Terminal 3, Concourse B in December 2024, after spending a week in the Maldives and a few days in Dubai. While we were sad to leave, the Marhaba Lounge provided a decent send off. We arrived in the Marharba Lounge before 6:00 AM (we had an 8:30 flight) and had a pleasant, albeit crowded, experience. We would certainly return.

Dubai.

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An October Wine Tour Through Tuscany (from Florence!).

04/03/202508/03/2025wareontheglobe 1 Comment

We took our second Tuscan wine tour from Florence in October 2024. Our first Tuscan wine tour was back in 2016 and we had so much fun, we booked another when in Florence last October (2024). This year’s wine tour was similar to the 2016 tour but with some notable differences, which I will explain in this article. There are many, many wine tours from Florence through Tuscany at varying price points, so do your research before booking. I highly recommend a Tuscan wine tour from Florence if you have the time, and Grape Tours is a decent outfit offering such tours.

On our wine tour back at Fattoria Corzano e Paterno in 2016.

Like our 2016 tour, we met our tour guide and group in Oltrarno outside Grape Tours’ shop and wine bar, only about a 10 minute walk from our hotel in Santo Spirito and 20 minutes from the Duomo area. We arrived right on time, so we only had time to climb into the van before departing Florence for the Tuscan countryside. I suggest leaving extra time walking to the tour, as there are many beautiful panoramas to photo graph en route along the Arno River. Our first stop was about 30 minutes from Florence proper, at Fattoria Corzano e Paterno. This was also our first stop back in 2016! Our guide provided some information on Tuscany during our drive, but most people “shut their eyes” for the drive.

Everyone woke up as we pulled into the rocky driveway of Fattoria Crozano e Paterno. Fattoria means “farm” in Italian, and Fattoria Corzano e Paterno is a winery as well as a farm producing delicious cheese and olive oil. We began our visit at Corzano e Paterno with a walk to the edge of the vineyards. We didn’t go in as it had recently rained (and the ground was muddy), and it was harvest season, so workers were busy harvesting the grapes. It was cool to see large grapes on the vines and employees working with the grapes. We also walked through the barrel room and saw more grape harvesting in action after visiting the vineyards.

Arriving at Fattoria Crozano e Paterno.

We’re ready to taste the wine.

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Restaurant Review: Mandhoo Restaurant, Conrad Maldives

25/02/202524/02/2025wareontheglobe Leave a comment

Dan and I visited the Conrad Rangali Island Maldives for the third time in November 2024. We had visited each of the Conrad’s 11 restaurants on prior visits except Mandhoo. As such, Mandhoo was a must visit for me on this visit. Honestly, we had been avoiding Mandhoo because it had always been billed, at least in our opinion, as the resort’s health food restaurant, and we just felt like that was not the vibe we were going for on vacation. While Mandhoo may have one or two healthier dishes than some other places, Mandhoo is just a normal restaurant with something for everyone. We will definitely return.

Mandhoo from afar.

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Where To Find The Best Cocktails in Antigua, Guatemala.

18/02/202517/02/2025wareontheglobe Leave a comment

I did quite a bit of research on where to find the best cocktails and drinks in Antigua, Guatemala before our visit last summer. My research paid off. This post shares great cocktail spots in Antigua, Guatemala.

Cute Antigua, Guatemala.

Nahuales Mixology & Mayan Cocktails, a Fuente Mall and Foodcourt, 4a Calle Ote. n° 14, open daily 6 PM – 11 PM.

By far, our favorite cocktails in Antigua, Guatemala were at Nahuales Mixology & Mayan Cocktails. Named for the Mayan concept of the “nahaul”, or the cultural concept that everyone’s birthdate shapes ones personality and energy and based on birthdate, everyone is assigned a “nahaul”. As best I can describe it, a nahual is a Mayan sign that includes a related spirit animal, stone, metal, number, color and other unique information. We learned a lot about nahauls in Guatemala, and I never really understood it totally…but its important. Nahuales bar has the book of all nahauls onsite and can help you find your own nahaul.

This is an explanation of nahuales from the Museo Mira Flores in Guatemala City.

In any case, Nahuales Mixology & Mayan Cocktails is located in central Antigua inside an Antiguan strip mall of sorts. While small, the bar is very cool featuring an interesting menu and often a live DJ. Many of the cocktails on the menu are named for specific nahuales. We tried two cocktails each here, and they were very well made. Honestly, the best we had in Guatemala (except maybe tied with Cocktail Lobby in Guatemala City). The mixologist was also really great and even let us sample Guatemalan moonshine (which I didn’t even know existed). We highly recommend Nahuales for a true local cocktail bar in Antigua. Go to Nahuales Mixology & Mayan Cocktails for Mayan cultural information, excellent cocktails and a fun vibe.