Follow these paths for highs, lows of the well-travelled
From pub crawling in Dublin to hiking in Hong Kong, five must-do tours
New Age gurus advise you to follow your bliss. For travellers, I believe it should be follow the trails.
Some of the greatest and quirkiest destinations have been linked via common themes including culinary, alcohol, literature, music or physical activities.
Here are some of my favourites.
Awee dram, Scotland Like a lot of other members of the faithful, I’ve long considered Scotland’s national beverage to be more than a drink. For 500 years, the Scots have been distilling the essence of their country — the mountains, moors, lonely glens, skirl of the pipes, mist and myth into a single bottle.
The good news is that you can visit nine of the top malt whisky distilleries that are dotted across a 110-kilometre stretch of the Scottish Highlands on the Malt Whisky Trail.
The most popular stop is Dufftown, which is perched about half way between Aberdeen and Inverness and where residents once proudly rhymed, “While Rome was built on seven hills, Dufftown was built on seven stills.” The town’s most famous stills belong to the Glenfiddich distillery, where William Grant first produced the golden nectar on Christmas Day, 1887. Five generations later, Glenfiddich continues to be produced by the Grant family.
Before reaching Dufftown, make sure to drive the section of the A93 that winds from Ballater to Braemar. It passes the grey, stone home where Robert Louis Stevenson wrote Treasure Island and then rounds past the dark shadows of Lochnagar and the Queen’s summer home at Balmoral.
Listen to the music, Tennessee Tennessee claims to be the birthplace of rock ’n’ roll, country music and home to the blues. It’s a big boast, but after touring the Tennessee Music Trail, it’s hard to argue.
Among the highlights are stops at the Country Music Museum in Bristol and Sun Studios and the Stax Museum of American Soul Music in Memphis.
If you want a more up-close and personal experience with your favourite singer, make treks to Dolly Parton’s theme park in Pigeon Forge, or visit Loretta Lynn’s gift shop at her ranch in Hurricane Mills.
The ultimate pilgrimage is of course to Graceland, the Memphis mansion bought by Elvis at the age of 22. Keep an eye out for other famous visitors — the Graceland guest book includes everyone from Muhammad Ali to Julia Child, and Bob Dylan to the Beach Boys.
Lip licking, Louisiana Nowhere else on the planet does the food sizzle like Louisiana. The state features eight different culinary trails, ranging from New Orleans’ Creole Crescent to the spicy chow in Bayou Bounty.
If you are a big fan of Tabasco sauce, swing down to Avery Island in the coastal marshes in Cajun Country for a sprinkle of the red-pepperbased elixir. They’ve been firing up the sauce here since 1868.
Foodies should check out the culinary section of Louisianatravel.com for more information on restaurants and recipes.
The high life, Hong Kong The first time I visited Hong Kong, I never got past the staggering cityscape, the pointed rows of steel and glass or the crooked mazes of tiny shops and stalls.
Turns out there is a wild natural world surrounding the urbanity — mountain passes, pristine beaches and remote valleys. The best way to access the other Hong Kong is by hiking the MacLehose Trail.
First opened in 1979, the 100-kilometre trail is divided into 10 sections and weaves across Hong Kong’s New Territories, alternately rising nearly 1,000 metres and also plunging down to the South China Sea.
Brainy town, Ireland Everybody knows that the Irish have a natural gift for the gab, but they are also masters of the word.
It’s especially true for Dubliners; the city has produced four Nobel Prize-winning writers. There are a couple of ways to experience the place that inspired the likes of Swift, Shaw, Yeats, Joyce, Beckett, Behan, Heaney and Oscar Wilde.
If you are feeling academically inclined, wander over to the Dublin Writer’s Museum, with side stops at the Joyce Cultural Centre and Trinity College, home of the glorious Book of Kells and the place where both Swift and Wilde were educated.
And while the dulling of brain cells by downing a couple of pints might seem counterproductive when trying to understand the mysteries of Joyce and Beckett, there are a trail of pubs in downtown Dublin associated with the great men.
On the Dublin Literary Pub Crawl, two actors take groups on a walking tour of four historic pubs, performing scenes from the authors’ works and providing insight into their personalities and quirks. Ian Cruickshank is a Toronto writer.