After months of exciting plotting and planning, the Kerrygold Ballymaloe Litfest got underway at the Grain Store in Ballymaloe last night.

THE excitement is really mounting, it’s just a week to this year’s Lit Fest at Ballymaloe, May 16-18.

I GOT a wonderful letter today beautifully hand-written by a woman who described herself as an octogenarian.

THE mere mention of Finca Buenvino creates a ripple of happiness and joy among those of us who have already discovered this hidden gem nestled amidst the sweet chestnut trees and cork oaks of the Sierra de Aracena in Andalusia.

So what new trends did I see in the US this time? Well as ever there’s lots going on and New Yorkers are always on the lookout for the new ‘big thing’.

GREAT excitement here, we have just hatched out a clutch of fluffy chicks in time for Easter.

OUR guest speaker at a recent Slow Food event was Sally McKenna, author of Extreme Greens, a book about the magic of seaweed.

I’VE ONLY just discovered how Mother’s Day came about.

WHAT a surprise the Indian city of Lucknow was.

THE iconic sites of Petra, Niagara Falls, the Tower of Piza, the Sydney Opera House, the Pyramids — these, and scores of other iconic buildings and monuments across the world, will be illuminated bright green on St Patrick’s Day.