By Derk Richardson  July 23rd, 2010 7:42 am  |  Comments (1)

Photo by Thomas Swick

Thomas Swick, who writes regularly for World Hum, has a knack for getting beneath the surface of place. When Afar came up with a random destination and sent Swick at the last minute on a Spin the Globe trip to Venice, Italy, he made the most of his spontaneous journey by swiftly and intimately connecting with a network of colorful locals.

His account, “Venice in Three Acts,” which you can read in the September/October issue of Afar, is full of magical moments and mysterious disappearances. But it stays grounded thanks to his engagement with members of an organization called 40xVenezia, dedicated to resuscitating authentic local culture and fending off the worst consequences of tourism.

In the video below, Skype Nomad Rebecca Campbell interviews a 40xVenezia activist who explains the group’s goals, as well as how to pronounce the name.

By Jennica Peterson  September 4th, 2009 10:07 am  |  Comments (1)

Amedei's 9 bar (left), the winner of the Golden Bean Award.

Every year the Academy of Chocolate votes on the best chocolate bar in the world. The 2009 winner of the Golden Bean Award–the top prize–was the 9 bar made by Italian chocolatier Amedei. The company describes the 9 bar as “a powerful, well-balanced dark chocolate, with a fresh aroma of cacao and hot cocoa, evolving into whiffs of citrus and toasted almonds.”

Be the judge yourself; sample the gold medal winners in all fourteen categories of the Academy of Chocolate Awards.

By Jennica Peterson  August 24th, 2009 8:25 am  |  Comments (0)

Chocolate "hot dogs" at the Eurochocolate festival.

Serious chocoholics should head to Perugia, Italy, from October 16 to 25, 2009, for the Eurochocolate festival. Reportedly 1 million people attend for the chocolate tastings, chocolate spa, chocolate igloo, and chocolate-themed nightlife.

If you go, you might stay at the Etruscan Chocohotel, “primo albergo al mondo dedicato al cioccolato” (the first hotel in the world devoted to chocolate). Rooms are on three floors: the milk chocolate floor, the gianduia chocolate floor, and the bittersweet chocolate floor.

Learn more about chocolate around the globe in the Curious Planet department of Afar’s premier issue.

Photo courtesy of parksam.