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Is overtourism impacting our favourite destinations?

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Overtourism can be a big dream killer, especially if you’ve been saving up and looking forward to your trip all year.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">As the population of the world continues to grow, overtourism is fast becoming one of the more debated issues in the world of travel.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Many factors are at play when heading to your favourite destination, including cheaper flights, rising incomes and social media’s ability to put a laser-like focus on destinations that were once hidden from the world.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Headlines from around the world have highlighted that cities who are reliant on tourism dollars undergo an identity crisis when the boatloads of tourists become more of a problem than they’re worth.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"Tourism is like any other industry: it needs to be regulated and managed locally to prevent negative impacts," says Justin Francis, CEO of UK-based tour operator Responsible Travel told </span><a href="https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/how-to-stop-overtourism/index.html"><span style="font-weight: 400;">CNN</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In some of the world’s more popular destinations, such as Venice, Italy, the locals are already taking charge.</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/B016qhkhyLW/" data-instgrm-version="12"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="margin: 8px 0 0 0; padding: 0 4px;"><a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B016qhkhyLW/" target="_blank">One day in Venice is all we needed. It wasn’t the crowds, sitting police, expensive treats and excursions, or sore feet, that left us feeling sombre as we made our way back to the bus. The city of Venice is built on 118 islands! Its architecture is inspiring. However, it’s history and future is what left me saddened. Things like the Venetian Ghetto makes my heart sink. Not only my heart, but the city itself is sinking and doomed to sea level rise. As tourism soars and rents rise, the Venetian residents leave and the city's quality of life erodes. Venice, there is no other city like yours 💔</a></p> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/franncarver/" target="_blank"> Frances Carver</a> (@franncarver) on Aug 6, 2019 at 5:21pm PDT</p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"The main problem is 'mordi e fuggi' tourism, day trip tourism," says Guido Moltedo, Editor in Chief of Ytali, who claims this accounts for two thirds of visitors.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The city has introduced a new levy on day-trippers, which starts at 3 euros. By 2020, the fee will range between 3 euros and 10 euros, which are dependant on the time of year and the amount of visitors in the area.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">However, Moltedo is aware that it doesn’t solve the problem.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“The real problem is not getting more money, but reducing the impact of tourism."</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Other smaller countries are suffering as well.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Due to the popularity of the show </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">Game of Thrones</span><span style="font-weight: 400;">, Dubrovnik in Croatia has seen a popularity surge to locations such as its Old Town.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">With an increase of 8 per cent from 2017 in 2018 numbers, with a massive 1.27 million people visiting, the city needed to do something.</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/B01rfMWgTpO/" data-instgrm-version="12"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="margin: 8px 0 0 0; padding: 0 4px;"><a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B01rfMWgTpO/" target="_blank">Kayak into the deep blue... 🚣🏼‍♀️ 📸Credit to @aznlamaaaaaaa . . . . . . #Croatia #Dubrovnik #DubrovnikSea #DubrovnikSeaView #View #ViewAtTheTop #Kayak #DubrovnikKayaking #DeepBlue #Ocean #Nature #Crazy #FirstofTwo #Travelgram #Freedom #TravelPhotography #TravelEurope #EatPlayLive #Globetrotting #DoYouTravel #Lifestyle #IGTravel #IGWorldclub #IGCapturesClub</a></p> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/mlinhling/" target="_blank"> Marie-Linh NC</a> (@mlinhling) on Aug 6, 2019 at 3:08pm PDT</p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"Dubrovnik is successfully conducting a project called 'respect the city', with the aim of sustainable and responsible tourism development," says Romana Vlašić, director of the Dubrovnik Tourist Board.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"One of the measures is limiting the number of cruise ship passengers to 4,000 at the same time."</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">As the weather heats up around the globe, some people want to escape to the colder weather that can be found in Reykjavik, Iceland.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The annual numbers have jumped from 500,000 in 2010 to 2.3 million in 2018 and this means that the country has had to deal with a huge influx of people.</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/B1KgzokiZqD/" data-instgrm-version="12"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="margin: 8px 0 0 0; padding: 0 4px;"><a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B1KgzokiZqD/" target="_blank">One shot 🌊🗺 #waterfall #iceland #dji #trip #holiday #makeup #fun #me #cooking #a #b #c #d #e #f #foodporn #style #love #london #thegoodlife #vscocam #l4l #friends #fuck #ok #cooking #cool #photography #canonphotography</a></p> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/bgphotopl/" target="_blank"> BGphoto</a> (@bgphotopl) on Aug 14, 2019 at 5:21pm PDT</p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">However, instead of discouraging visitors, Iceland is looking to diversify the offerings for tourists.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">"Recognizing the strain being placed on Reykjavik and a small number of other sites, they have tried to promote areas further afield to ease the pressure on the 'Golden Circle,'" Francis says, referring to a popular day tour of geological attractions.</span></p>

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Croatian sweet Easter bread

<p><em><strong>Take a gastronomic journey to sun-drenched Croatia, with this recipe from Barbara Unković’s The Adriatic Kitchen, a rustic cookbook celebrating the best of slow cooking traditions.</strong></em></p> <p>Known in Croatia as sirnica, this Easter treat is similar to the traditional Italian sweet bread, Panettone. The addition of citrus zest, crystallised peel and allspice make this bread a special indulgence.</p> <p><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Ingredients:</span></strong></p> <ul> <li>1 teaspoon of sugar</li> <li>1/4 cup warm water</li> <li>1 tablespoon fresh yeast, crumbled</li> <li>3/4 cup of milk</li> <li>5 tablespoons of butter</li> <li>4 cups of plain flour, sifted</li> <li>1/2 cup of sugar</li> <li>1/2 teaspoon of salt</li> <li>4 egg yolks, lightly beaten</li> <li>1/4 cup crystallised lemon peel</li> <li>Zest of 2 lemons</li> <li>Zest of 1 orange</li> <li>1 teaspoon ground allspice</li> <li>1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg</li> <li>Milk to brush</li> <li>Limoncello to glaze</li> <li>Vanilla sugar</li> </ul> <p><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Method:</span></strong></p> <ol> <li>In a small bowl, dissolve the teaspoon of sugar in warm water. Sprinkle yeast over the water. Set aside in a warm place for 10 minutes until frothy.</li> <li>Place milk and butter in a small saucepan. Stir over low heat until butter melts. Transfer to a large bowl and allow to cool until lukewarm. Stir in the frothy yeast mixture.</li> <li>Using a wooden spoon, beat in one cup of sifted flour, followed by the sugar and salt. Cover with plastic food wrap and leave in a warm place until bubbly (about 20-25 minutes).</li> <li>Mix the beaten egg yolks and the remaining sifted flour into the yeast mixture. Add the crystallised peel, lemon and orange zest, allspice and nutmeg. Mix to a soft dough using a knife. The dough must be very soft and almost difficult to handle. It may not be necessary to use all the four.</li> <li>Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board. Knead for 10 minutes until it is smooth and elastic.</li> <li>Shape the dough into a ball and coat with olive oil. Place an oiled bowl and cover with a baking cloth or clean tea towel. Leave to rise in a warm place for 70-90 minutes, until almost doubled in size.</li> <li>Flatten the dough and knead for a minute on a lightly floured work surface. Shape into a ball, with the spine or seam on the underside. Cover with olive oil and place in a deep, oiled, 20-centimetre round cake tin. If the tin is too shallow, line the sides with baking paper extending it at least two centimetres above the rim of the tin.</li> <li>Score the top of the dough with three long dep cuts intersecting at the centre. The cuts need to be quite deep (at least halfway through the loaf) to allow the dough to rise up from the centre to form the traditional crests of Sirnica. Make the cuts swiftly and cleanly. Do not drag or pull the dough.</li> <li>Leave to rise in a warm place for 45 minutes.</li> <li>Preheat the oven to 190°C.</li> <li>Brush the top of the dough with milk.</li> <li>Bake for 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 170°C and bake for 20-30 more minutes until bread sounds hollow when tapped and a metal skewer comes out clean when inserted into the middle.</li> <li>Remove from the oven. Brush the top of the loaf generously with limoncello and sprinkle with vanilla sugar while hot. Leave in tin for 10 mintues beore transferring to a cooling rack.</li> <li>Serve at room temperature.</li> </ol> <p><em><strong>The Adriatic Kitchen is available from <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><a href="http://www.exislepublishing.com.au/" target="_blank">www.exislepublishing.com.au</a></span> and wherever good books are sold. Image credit: Tonia Hedley.</strong></em></p>

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