Photo Credit goes to Markus

If Paris is your choice of destination, then consider 201 St Germaine, which is situated on the left bank of the Seine. This apartment boasts 2,585 square feet of pure luxury. Every modern convenience is available, and, if that isn’t enough, you also have a concierge to cater to your every need at any time of the day or night! The Louvre and Orsay are within walking distance, as is Joel Robuchon’s L’Atelier.

Now if you really want to get away from it all to relax, and you decide that a holiday in Italy is just the thing for you, then The Belvedere Residence is the place for you. This lavish villa is situated on top of a hill in Coreglia Antelminelli in the Italian countryside – an absolutely perfect place to enjoy the slow pace of rustic Tuscan life.

This spectacular home has its own heated pool, every modern convenience you could wish for, a fantastic garden, as well as a beautiful 360 degree view of the Tuscan countryside. Although there are excellent restaurants close by, where you can sample and enjoy the local cuisine, you also have the option of having a local chef come and cook for you in your own kitchen! As with most great Italian food, all your meals will be made from only the freshest, local ingredients.

Lynette is a freelance writer for briefcases and lives in a small town called Korinberg in the Western Cape, South Africa, with her two dogs and two cats.

When we think of Italy, we picture the beautiful canals of Venice, the magnificent coliseum of Rome, the Duomo of Milano, the Ponte Vecchio of Florence and the beautiful landscape in the south. It it one of the greatest countries to visit in Europe if you are a tourist, but the political reality isn’t so nice. Italy is one of the most corrupted democratic countries in Europe. For the first time in more than 10 years, a “Presidente del Consiglio” was elected Prime Minister for the second time in a row. Italy’s unstable political situation brought 10 different governments in 10 years from 1990 to 2000. Also, when we think of politics, we automatically think of its link with organized crime. Now obviously when you’re backpacking in Italy this information isn’t very useful, you might even say: so what? I just want to visit the country! It’s true, if your planning on visiting Italy, you really shouldn’t care about the fact that Silvio Berlusconi is Europe’s richest head of state and is worth about 9.6 billion dollars, or that he controls 70% of italy’s media communication, or that he tried to vote a law that protects him from any fraud or criminal allegations, but it’s still very interesting to know.

I’ll be very honest, most people don’t really care about politics, they find it boring or annoying. But I guarantee you, when you study it and you understand it, it’s just like a game of Risk. It is all strategic and it is all about charisma and communication. Unfortunately, Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian Premier, has alot of money, a good image and alot of strings that he can pull to get what he wants, because he lacks integrity. For instance, several Mafia turncoats have stated that Berlusconi had connections with the Sicilian criminal association. The informers say Berlusconi met Stefano Bontade, then one of the mafia’s most powerful bosses, because he feared for his family’s safety at a time when Italy was plagued by a wave of high-profile kidnappings. In addition, there were several rumors in the parliament that brought people to believe that he’s had personal relationship with minors, which some were prostitutes. His wife even divorced him because he would attend birthday parties of 18-year-old woman and not even attend his own son’s birthdays.  Anyhow, on march 28th 2010, Berlusconi was revoted in parliament and is now, for the second consecutive time, the Prime Minister of the Italian Democratic Republic. So for all you backpackers out there, travelling Italy or that are planning on travelling Italy or Europe, have fun, and I hope this article picked your curiosity.

Most of us are accustomed to enter any fast food chain or restaurant when we need a bathroom. It’s normally not an issue to use the bathroom without buying some food. But it is quite the contrary in the Scandinavian countries however. You need to pay in train stations, bus stations and the doors at McDonald’s are locked! Yes! When visiting Oslo (Norway) a few years ago, we had to use the bathroom and considering that we had no hostel and we were too poor to pay for food or drinks, toilets were therefore not easily accessible. When we ran into a McDonald’s, it was a no-brainer for us to walk in and head to the bathroom. But to our surprise, the door was locked and we couldn’t use it unless we bought something.

All this to say that if you’re planning a trip to Europe, do prepare a budget for using the bathroom!

I’m glad to pee for free in North America