Belles on Location

Great places to travel and travel experiences from Travel Belles and Beaus around the world.

The Hiding Place: Haarlem, The Netherlands

In 1940 the Nazi’s invaded Holland and before long were rounding up Jews and political dissidents, sending them off to prisons, concentration camps and forced labor. In a tall, narrow home just steps away from the Grote Markt, an elderly clock maker and his two unmarried, middle-aged daughters put plans in motion to save as many as they could.

City Break in Porto, Portugal

When visiting Portugal’s second city, Porto, I found it was possible to escape the rat race for a weekend and return relatively refreshed, with by a wallet that didn’t feel as though it had accompanied Paris Hilton on a shopping trip. Unlike much of Western Europe, Portugal still offers travellers excellent value for money, even in the main metropolises of Lisbon and Porto.

Visions of Barneys, Gumps and Macys Danced in their Heads

Remember when you were little, and that Christmas catalog or the toy store’s Christmas ad came out (you know the one, with more than 20 pages of TOYS)? Did you circle everything you wanted and dog-eared your favorite pages for Santa, like I did? Imagine doing that now, in person. That’s what our Christmas outing in San Francisco is like. Like children on a new playground, we wonder in amazement at everything around us.

Napa Valley Girlfriend Getaway

Sometimes a girl just has to get away. Our girls’ weekend is an escape from all our daily duties and responsibilities and an opportunity to partake in a few of the things we ladies like best. At least once a year my friends and I take a long weekend in the Napa Valley and indulge some in wining, dining, relaxing, and pampering. Sometimes the weekend resembles a teenage slumber party, and at other times it can feel like life of the rich and famous. These escapes are always about reconnecting with each other and having fun.