There’s more than food to feast on, too. A gallery showcasing works by Irish artists is an unusual find in a pub. As the village has moorings for vacation cabin cruisers, I can see this being a good story for a boating magazine.

Sign up for our free travel writing teleconference

When it comes to travel writing, think local. Unlike outside writers, you’re the expert on your own area. Having insider knowledge is often the easiest way to break into publications. (I go into this in more detail on the upcoming Get Paid to Travel as a Travel Writer Teleconference. You can listen in—it’s free.)

I should take my own advice more often. Although it’s only about 30 miles from my home, it’s 16 years since I visited Tarmonbarry. As I’m about to start writing an article on Shannon villages, my memories needed refreshing. (Just because a place was charming years ago, doesn’t mean it’s the same today.)

On the surface, Tarmonbarry is a typical riverside village where visitors don’t need to look far for a fishing tackle shop. That sparked another idea. Many Shannon communities hold fishing competitions. Why don’t I get a rod and enter one? I probably wouldn’t win any prizes, but I’m sure I could sell a humorous story to a fishing magazine.

Facts-and-figures research is obviously important, but there’s other research you can do to make your stories sparkle. (Something else you’ll learn on the free teleconference.)

Literature and history are a travel writer’s gold-mine. I often go digging to find what Victorian and earlier writers wrote about a locality. I then usually link the quote to how a place has changed—or not.

“A good puzzle would be to cross Dublin without passing a pub.” So says Leopold Bloom in James Joyce’s classic novel, Ulysses. I haven’t used it yet, but it’s a wonderful opener for a story about Dublin pubs.

Any writer can use quotes to color a story. But for in-depth research, local writers are often better placed. I said Tarmonbarry was a typical Shannon-side village “on the surface”. Great stories often lurk below the surface.

Travel Writing: Think outside the box

Although Ireland is often called the Land of Saints and Scholars, few writers get beyond recounting the story of St Patrick. To me, that’s a waste of some cracking good material.

St Barry, Tarmonbarry’s patron saint, is shamefully neglected. According to legend, he crossed the river Shannon in a stone boat and slew a water monster. If travel writers don’t relate the story, visitors will miss the hidden-in-backroads churchyard where the miraculous stone boat is kept.

At a nearby “holy well” dedicated to St Barry, there’s the remains of a monastic Dark House. An old belief that sleeping at sacred places could cure the mentally afflicted persisted until at least the early 19th century in rural Ireland. At St Barry’s Dark House, they were enclosed for three days and three nights.

As I have a passion for history, mythology and curiosities, I swoon over these kind of esoteric tales. The last time I visited Tarmonbarry it was for an article on Ireland’s holy wells and their associated legends and cures. I sold versions to both The World and I and World of Hibernia.

But the well wasn’t dry yet—I got a check from a less familiar source, too. When researching markets for your stories, think beyond travel publications. Who else might be interested?

My published credits include National Driller: “The No.1 publication among professionals in the drilling and water supply industries”. Somehow I doubt that the editor had ever received a story on Ireland’s holy wells before. I imagine it stood out from the usual submissions about fuel pumps and wastewater solutions.

Use your insider knowledge. Research the less obvious. Find a new angle. This will help to catch an editor’s eye and will make your stories stand out, too.

Editor’s Note: Join Steenie and other travel writing experts in two days as they reveal the secrets to getting paid to travel as a travel writer on a new teleconference. It’s free to listen in.

Recommended Reading:

• Uncovering the Magic of Ireland—For Free

• Hundreds of Reasons to Bring Your Camera When You Travel in Ireland

• A Life Less Ordinary as a Travel Writer

But some sun-block would be welcome. Early December and the afternoon temperature is nudging 70 F. Sunbathers are on Isla Plana’s beach, and children are building sand-castles. I can even see swimmers.

A blue sky, blue-water scene is unremarkable in the tropics. But this is Europe. I’m in southern Spain, on Murcia’s Costa Cálida—the “warm coast.” Whoever thought up the name wasn’t exaggerating. Summer temperatures soar above 90 F, and there’s an annual dose of at least 320 days of sunshine.

Some of Spain’s finest beaches…pink flamingos and therapeutic mud baths…steeped-in-tradition towns…all reasons to put Murcia in your “European escapes” notebook. But these are not the only ones.

On the coast, spacious furnished rentals are $508 to $635 monthly. Many quality apartments with sea views are under $127,000.

In small towns inland, prices are often half that. Within a short drive of beaches, some two-bedroom terraced houses that have never been occupied cost less than $64,000. Spain’s property crash has left the market down by around 40% from its heyday—sometimes more.

With banks offloading repossessions and developers slashing prices, almost every “for sale” property throughout the country is negotiable.

But fire-sale prices won’t last forever. Although relatively unknown at present, Murcia looks a good bet for the near future. For one thing, a new international airport at Corvera opens this summer. Although there’s currently a tiny local airport for budget carriers, flights aren’t frequent. My best option was to drive from Alicante airport, over the regional border in Valencia.

Another compelling reason is that Murcia has been chosen as the site for Europe’s first Paramount theme park. Last December, final planning permissions were given—all systems are now go for the 2015 opening. The park will be near the new airport, but many coastal locations are within a 30-minute drive.

It’s estimated both projects will boost Murcia’s visitor numbers by 5 million annually. With around 20,000 employees needed for the two sites, demand for accommodation will increase. Property values are at such rock-bottom levels, it’s hard to see how they can’t rise.

Between Andalusia and Valencia, Murcia is a secret region known only to the Spanish. Foreign vacationers go farther south to the Costa del Sol or north to the Costa Blanca.

So much of Mediterranean Spain is forested with concrete. But except for La Manga’s high-rise tower blocks, that’s not the case in Murcia. Along its 150 miles of mostly unspoiled Mediterranean coastline sit a handful of seaside towns, but they aren’t over-built.

Homes are mostly low-rise. Large swathes of coast offer up sandy beaches, hidden coves, peculiar rock formations and fishing villages…

Editor’s note: In the current issue of International Living magazine, Steenie’s full article goes on to reveal her favorite locations in this secret region…property prices and contacts…and more on rentals. You can get instant access to her article when you subscribe to IL with this link.

Perched in the hills above the Côte d’Azur in France, Grasse has been the world’s perfume capital since the 17th century. The countryside around this Provencal town is where the jasmine and roses that go into the country’s famed luxury fragrances are grown and harvested.

Its medieval core of skinny alleys and sunny squares celebrates all things flowery and fragrant. Shops overflow with lavender products, herbes de Provence and Savon de Marseille soap in myriad colors and scents.

Even the food is fragrant. I’d sampled lavender honey ice-cream before, but violet ice-cream was new. So was fougassette, a brioche-style pastry scented with orange blossoms.

I only intended on a quick look, but two hours somehow disappeared inside the International Perfume Museum. There’s a stunning collection of perfume-related objects spanning three millennia, greenhouses dedicated to the aromatic arts, and a viewing screen showing perfume featured in movies. (The 2006 movie, Perfume: The Story of a Murderer was partly shot in Grasse.)

Yet Grasse once reeked of unlovely things. In medieval times, it was a center for leather tannery. All changed when Catherine de Medici arrived at the French court from Italy and introduced the fashion of perfumed gloves. Seizing on the new craze, Grasse exchanged its stinking tanneries for scented glove manufacture. In the surrounding fields, a new flower industry cultivated blooms such as gardenia and tuberoses for their essences.

Before her appointment with Madame Guillotine, the extravagant Marie Antoinette had 18 pairs of gloves scented with carnation, violet or hyacinth delivered every week. The Perfume Museum’s most treasured piece is her traveling case with compartments for lotions and potions.

If anything, things got even more fragrant after the French Revolution. To mark the aristocracy’s demise, a Parfum de Guillotine was created for the masses. Napoleon Bonaparte was rather more high maintenance, splashing his way through eight quarts of violet cologne each month.

Offering free guided tours, Fragonard is one of the town’s three major perfumeries. It’s as well I’m not seeking employment as a nez (nose), because my chances are zero. Professional perfumers need to identify thousands of nuances. For a nez, alcohol, spicy food and smoking are absolutely forbidden.

There’s no hard sell during the sniffing session, and I was fascinated by explanations of the head, heart and base notes of various perfumes.

All real parfums contain 25% concentrated essence, “the soul of the flower.” An eau de parfum uses a maximum of 15% essence, and eau de toilette a mere 10%. As Fragonard only has Paris and Provence outlets, finding its products is difficult in North America, On Ebay, a one ounce vial of Belle de Nuit parfum resells for around $113. At Fragonard’s Grasse outlet, it’s €37 ($48).

You don’t have to be a fragrance enthusiast to realize that France’s scented south could provide opportunities for nosing out some serious profit.

Editor’s Note: If you’d like to learn more about ways you can pay for your life or travels overseas, including import-export, sign up for Fund Your Life Overseas, a free e-letter from International Living. Sign up here and we’ll send you a free report: Fund Your New Life Overseas With These 5 Portable Careers.

Prices have dropped nearly 40% in the old Roman port of Aguilas. © Lyle Mallen/Istock

Not needed: coat, scarf or sweater. But some sun-block would be welcome. Early December and the afternoon temperature is nudging 70 F. Sunbathers are on Isla Plana’s beach, and children are building sand-castles. I can even see swimmers.

A blue sky, blue-water scene is unremarkable in the tropics. But this is Europe. I’m in southern Spain, on Murcia’s Costa Cálida—the “warm coast.” Whoever thought up the name wasn’t exaggerating. Summer temperatures soar above 90 F, and there’s an annual dose of at least 320 days of sunshine.

Some of Spain’s finest beaches…pink flamingoes and therapeutic mud baths…steeped-in-tradition towns…all reasons to put Murcia in your “European escapes” notebook. But these are not the only ones. On the coast, spacious furnished rentals are $508 to $635 monthly. Many quality apartments with sea views are under $127,000.

In small towns inland, prices are often half that. Within a short drive of beaches, some two-bedroom terraced houses that have never been occupied cost less than $64,000.

Spain’s property crash has left the market down by around 40% from its heyday—sometimes more. With banks offloading repossessions and developers slashing prices, almost every “for sale” property throughout the country is negotiable.

But fire-sale prices won’t last forever. Although relatively unknown at present, Murcia looks a good bet for the near future. For one thing, a new international airport at Corvera opens this summer. Although there’s currently a tiny local airport for budget carriers, flights aren’t frequent. My best option was to drive from Alicante airport, over the regional border in Valencia.

Another compelling reason is that Murcia has been chosen as the site for Europe’s first Paramount theme park. Last December, final planning permissions were given—all systems are now go for the 2015 opening.  The park will be near the new airport, but many coastal locations are within a 30-minute drive.

It’s estimated both projects will boost Murcia’s visitor numbers by five million annually. With around 20,000 employees needed for the two sites, demand for accommodation will increase. Property values are at such rock-bottom levels, it’s hard to see how they can’t rise.

Between Andalusia and Valencia, Murcia is a secret region known only to the Spanish. Foreign vacationers go farther south to the Costa del Sol or north to the Costa Blanca.

So much of Mediterranean Spain is forested with concrete.  But except for La Manga’s high-rise tower blocks, that’s not the case in Murcia. Along its 150 miles of mostly unspoiled Mediterranean coastline sit a handful of seaside towns, but they aren’t over-built. Homes are mostly low-rise. Large swathes of coast offer up sandy beaches, hidden coves, peculiar rock formations and fishing villages.

The Bay of Mazarrón

Sheltered by low mountains, Puerto  de Mazarrón  is one of my favorite locations. An active fishing port as well as a beach town, it’s the Bay of Mazarrón’s focal point.  Its 15,000 permanent residents have a good range of shops and supermarkets as well as a covered market and Sunday street markets—it’s a proper town. But it also has stunning beaches, miles of promenade, a new marina, and numerous bars and restaurants.  Scuba diving, shore fishing and sailing are year-round activities.

The Bay of Mazarrón is strung with over 30 beaches and curious rock erosions, particularly around Bolnuevo. Looking almost otherworldly at sunset, a scenic road south to Águilas goes past hills splashed into bizarre colors by mineral ores. Head north and you’re into the Sierra Espuña National Park with its hiking trails. And, like anywhere in southern Spain, a golf course is never far away.

For a big-city fix, Cartagena is just a half-hour drive away from town. And the freeway network means it’s feasible to see Granada’s fabulous Moorish architecture on a day trip. Slam your foot on the pedal, and you’ll be swooning over the Alhambra palace in just over two hours.

Two-bedroom apartments of 80 square meters (860 square feet) in Puerto de Mazarrón rent for around $570 monthly.  I saw one ground floor apartment of 58 square meters (624-square-foot) in the Playasol zone for $92,000.

Close to paseo marítimo, on the central seafront, a 75-square- meter (807-square-foot) apartment with terrace costs $146,000. And just 50 yards from La Isla beach, a fully furnished 101-square- meter (1,087-square-foot) apartment with a terrace is selling for $152,000.

For something cheaper, look inland. Five miles from the coast is Mazarrón, the unshowy parent town of the port, with a solidly Spanish feel. An 82-square-meter (882-square-foot) apartment here is $66,000.

For more details on property in Puerto de Mazarrón contact Rafaela López or check out the website, here.

Around the Lagoon

“Europe’s biggest swimming pool,” the Mar Menor is a salt-water lagoon whose non-tidal, mineral-rich waters cover 60 square miles. The sea temperature here is normally five degrees above the Mediterranean’s. But really, the only way you know it’s a lagoon is from seeing La Manga’s towers in the distance.

Linked by a four-mile promenade with numerous café-bars and restaurants, Los Alcázares and neighboring Los Narejos are perfect for strolls or bike rides beside golden beaches. Los Alcázares is the larger location. It’s an attractive town on the mainland side of the Mar Menor—Murcia’s inland sea.

The Moors built several palaces in Los Alcázares and re-opened the old Roman baths. Many hotels in this area have spa facilities, and there are free mud baths farther up the lagoon at Lo Pagán. Near the mud baths, Calbanque Nature Reserve is a protected area with walkways, long beaches and a host of birdlife, including flamingoes. Thirteen golf courses are within a 35-minute drive.

Property prices are all over the place—some vendors seem to have already factored in the theme park. Only really suitable as a vacation home,  one bijou bungalow with a large patio but only 45 square meters (484 square feet) of living space lists for $104,000. Yet a three-bedroom house of 80 square meters (860 square feet) is $126,000. (More information here).

Bridging the Med and the Mar Menor, La Manga was disappointing. In the 1980s, this 11-mile strip had a fairly exclusive reputation among vacationers who came for tennis and golf lessons with professionals. Maybe it was different then, but it’s now mostly high-rise and charmless. If driving La Manga’s strip road, note that it ends in salt flats and marshes. It only connects to the mainland at its southern end. You’ll be turning back for a double dose of 11 concrete miles.

Down the Coast

On the southern stretch of Murcia’s coast you’ll find the old Roman fishing port of Águilas. Home to 30,000 inhabitants it’s crowned with a 16th-century fortress. Within its old town, Plaza de España is a handsome garden square lined with cafés. From here, it’s a short step to the port with its black-and-white striped lighthouse and seafood restaurants. The town’s beach, Playa del Levante, gets busy in summer, but many quieter coves are in the vicinity.

There are plenty of good opportunities for cash buyers here—some need-to-sell owners even include their cars as “gifts.” In the old part of the town, under the castle, one terraced townhouse of 67 square meters (721 square feet) had dropped from $145,800 to $89,000. With a sea view from the roof terrace, it’s being sold furnished.

Depending on size, lease length and facilities, monthly rentals are mostly $320 for studios to $635 for decent-sized apartments. One two-bedroom furnished rental through Casas y Sol is $520 monthly. Vacation rentals are usually substantially discounted in winter.

One 85-square-meter (915-square-foot) apartment I saw was being sold furnished for $127,000. Four miles from Águilas, a single-story house with sea views on five acres was going for $176,500. Electricity is through solar panels and a generator.

And in nearby Calabardina I found a 200-square-meter (2,152-square-foot) house with a garden and sea and mountain views being sold furnished for $215,000. For more details on property in and around Águilas, email here or see here.

It’s a wonderful place for a vacation, but I’m here working. Part of last week’s workload was lounging on a sunny terrace in a little Provençal hill town and eating grilled magret de canard (duck breast). As food and drink stories always sell, I also felt obliged to sample some lavender honey ice-cream…

On this latest jaunt through southern France, “the work” hasn’t stopped. And with so many appellations of Rhone Valley red and rosé wines from Provence to try, I’m laboring well into the night…

Although I call what I do work, others might call it indulgence. They’re not altogether wrong. Being a travel writer doesn’t only allow me to escape the long winter, it also lets me indulge many of my own passions.

For example, one day-trip last week was to the wine village of Chateauneuf du Pape. The surrounding vineyards produce one of the classic Rhone reds.

The only hardship about wandering around the village was the fact that I was driving. Being sensible, it meant passing up numerous free tasting samples. (Lesson learned: next time a wine village is on the itinerary, stay overnight.)

Travel writers get the chance to buy all kinds of lovely things from around the world. I haven’t a clue how much brightly patterned Provençal tablecloths sell for in North America. But I’d guess that if you find one, it’s more than the $13 I paid at St Cyr sur Mer’s Sunday street market.

Another southern France stopover where I could combine story material with shopping indulgence was Grasse, the world’s self-styled “perfume capital.” I joined a guided tour around the Fragonard parfumerie. I diligently took notes, then hit the factory shop to dither over which of the wonderful fragrances to buy.

Redolent of roses and gardenia, Belle de Nuit was irresistible. It’s pure perfume, not eau de parfum or eau de toilette. In the States you’ll pay around $113 for a 1fl oz bottle from an online retailer. In Fragonard’s Grasse outlet, the cost is an equivalent $48.

If I was in this part of southern France for a vacation, both St Cyr sur Mer and Grasse would be on my day-trip list. So when you know you’re getting paid to visit such places, it always intensifies the pleasure.

I always enjoy wandering around art towns, so I didn’t need much excuse to put the medieval hilltop village of St Paul de Vence on my itinerary too.

Chagall, Matisse and Renoir are only a few of the renowned painters who spent time here. Today, artists’ ateliers and galleries are around every corner of its labyrinthine stone streets. It’s a fascinating place to come if you’re seeking some original artwork.

If you’re new to travel writing, one way to build a story is around a theme—and every destination you visit should reward you with plenty of themes. And if you can combine a theme with a personal passion, all the better.

As Provence’s artistic heritage is staggering, I already have my theme.

Just for starters, Arles and St Remy inspired Vincent van Gogh; Renoir had a home in Haut de Cagnes; Picasso lived for a while in Mougins; Cezanne’s home town was the lovely harbor town of Antibes.

Art is woven through the fabric of this place. I’ll do the same when I write about it.

Editor’s Note: If you’d like to learn more about ways you can pay for your life or travels overseas, sign up for Fund Your Life Overseas, a free e-letter from International Living. Sign up here and we’ll send you a free report: Fund Your New Life Overseas With These 5 Portable Careers.

Since before Marco Polo’s time traders have crisscrossed the world buying low and selling high. Import-export is a business open to everyone; it doesn’t require special knowledge.

It’s something you can do on vacation—you don’t need lots of cash to get started. If you enjoy shopping and traveling, I can’t think of any job that’s likely to be more fun.

Over the years, I’ve crammed lots of “resell and make a profit” items into suitcases and hand luggage. Things such as alpaca scarves and hand-knits from Ecuador…lacquer work from Vietnam…shimmering Indian throws…amber jewelry from the Baltics…coral jewelry from Sardinia…pearl jewelry from Borneo and too much to mention from Thailand.

Not everything is yet labeled “Made in China.” Throughout the world, artisans still produce handcrafted objects of desire that carry serious mark-ups when resold in North America and Europe. And if you like something, chances are other people will like it too.

It wasn’t difficult to get $25 apiece for soft alpaca scarves purchased for a mere $4 in Ecuador’s Otavalo market. Alpaca wool is a luxury item, once reserved exclusively for Inca royalty. In the States you’d pay at least $60 for a scarf.

I was in Berlin in December and spotted these Ecuadorian alpaca scarves on a stall. The price tag was €30 ($40) which was cheap—they would be far more costly in a German store.

Then there’s National Geographic’s online store. Probably because I can’t resist jewelry, one thing that caught my eye was a set of three Saria Tareen bracelets from northern India. They’re gorgeous—brass bangles decorated with hand-painted flowers in porcelain-like enamel. According to the website, many Sarai Tareen residents are craftspeople making jewelry of horn, shell, beads, wood, and metal.

You might think $39 for three is a good deal. That’s until you track down an Indian wholesaler selling Sarai Tareen bracelets for $2.72 apiece. Wholesalers generally mark up their cost price by at least 50%. It’s almost certain that you could buy them cheaper still from producers.

Another example are Novica—wonderful beaded shoulder bags and purses in flower motifs from the island of Bali in Indonesia. Whether it’s for yourself or a gift for a friend, $40 for an exotic, hand-beaded shoulder bag probably seems reasonable to most people.

Not to me. Even a cursory glance at this website shows that Indonesian export wholesalers—the middlemen—are selling very similar shoulder bags for $20. Go to the source (who wouldn’t want a vacation on Bali?) and you’ll get them at the real price.

I found another Indonesian wholesaler with handmade Batik sarongs for $2.75 apiece. Batik is an ancient textile art that involves a specialized method of applying dye to fabric to create fabulous designs. In the 19th century, Dutch traders were so impressed by this craft that they brought batik artists back to Holland with them.

Like with beaded bags and purses, you can fit quite a few batik sarongs into a suitcase. These too sell for between $40 and $60 apiece. Multiply that by however many you choose to buy. When you know what you’re looking for, making a profit becomes a cinch.

Editor’s Note: If you’d like to learn more about ways you can pay for your life or travels overseas, including import-export, sign up for Fund Your Life Overseas, a free e-letter from International Living. Sign up here and we’ll send you a free report: Fund Your New Life Overseas With These 5 Portable Careers.

Recommended Reading:

• Hidden Gems with Income Potential in Nicaragua

• Funding a New Life and Travels in Argentina

• The Most Fun Way to Make Money in Mexico

Private health care insurance costs are very reasonable. For a 55-year-old man in good health, a standard plan costs $87 monthly. For a woman the same age, it’s $93.

As this region enjoys mainland Europe’s best winter weather, moving here can bring health benefits. Whether it’s water sports, golf, or walking, opportunities to stay fit abound.

Public transport is excellent, and many retirees find that they don’t need a car.

The region’s property market underwent a reality check in recent years. Even along the Mediterranean, quality rentals can be had for $600 a month (sometimes less). For buyers, bargains are plentiful. Major business cities follow a different beat, but numerous attractive homes elsewhere now fetch under $150,000.

“What drew us was the climate, the culture, and the laid-back lifestyle,” says Sue Walker. Along with her husband John, Sue lives in a small town in the wine-producing hinterland. With three-bedroom apartments under $80,000, prices in this southern region are exceptionally affordable.

There’s a place and a lifestyle to fit most budgets. For some it’s the coast; for others it’s one of the multitude of small castle-topped towns. The most popular cities command a rental premium. Typical rent for a one-bedroom city apartment is $900 monthly. In other cities half slumbering in a Moorish past, it’s $500 monthly—these cities resonate with storybook romance.

Many European second-home and retiree buyers have made new lives on the most southerly Mediterranean coast. For beaches and city life, a certain location here is one of my own getaway places.

The key to affordable living in this country is to live like a local, not like a vacationer. Local salaries vary considerably, but they’re among the lowest in Western Europe: around $20,300 per year, or $1,691 monthly.

Editor’s note: If you’re curious about the country and specific location in this article, all is revealed on page 21 of the current issue of International Living magazine. If you’re not already a subscriber, you can become one here.

But Jumilla’s annual Fiesta de la Vendimia to celebrate the grape harvest won’t happen until at least mid-August. So today, I can only imagine what it’s like when the water from the fountain in the Jardin de la Glorieta turns into a cascade of ruby-red wine—free wine. Talk about bad timing…

Jumilla is an historic town in the upper reaches of Murcia, a relatively unknown region of southern Spain. As Murcia’s hinterland is even less explored than its coastal fringe, few foreign visitors ever find their way through the hills to its wine towns.

So they don’t get to enjoy an $11 three-course lunch—wine included—in the San Agustin, one of Jumilla’s best restaurants. They won’t see its castle, Tuesday market, the colorful picture tiles in the Jardin del Rey, or the robes worn by Easter penitents in the town’s Museo de Semana Santa. (Holy Week Museum).

They don’t get to visit its wine bodegas, either. Sue and John Walker, an English couple living in Jumilla took me to Silvano Garcia’s bodega on Avenida de Murcia.

As I was driving to the spa town of Archena later, I had to forgo the full tasting extravaganza of 11 different bottles. If I’d known, I’d have stayed in Jumilla overnight.

I’m a wine enthusiast, so limiting myself to one tiny sip was self-inflicted torture.

Wine has been produced in Jumilla and neighboring Yecla since the proverbial mists of time. Archeologists recently unearthed a pair of golden ear-rings decorated with grape clusters—they’re around 2,500 years old.

Although I hadn’t heard of Jumilla’s red nectar before, American wine connoisseur Robert Parker certainly has. He rates it as one of Spain’s best, tipping it to out-perform the famous Rioja brand by 2015.

In Silvano Garcia’s bodega, bottled Jumilla D.O. (Denomination of Origin) of various vintages start at 3.95 euro, around $5. Vinahonda Crianza from 2006 (rated 91/100 on Robert Parker’s website) costs 5.10 euro ($6.75). It’s not widely available in North America, but I found it selling through two U.S. online vintners for $17.95 and $20.

At the bodega, you can also purchase young wine in five-liter plastic bottles for $6.50. It’s table wine—perfectly acceptable. And five liters is the equivalent of seven normal-size bottles. If you’re a frequent wine-drinker, you’d make some serious savings living here. At less than $1 a bottle, it’s very nearly as good as free…

Home to around 25,000 people, Jumilla is steeped in old traditions as well as wine. Sue told me about last year’s Holy Week procession. Some penitents walk through the old quarter barefoot, clanking chains behind them. All the street lights go out during the procession, so everywhere is plunged into darkness. It must feel like going back to medieval times.

And although it’s not exactly medieval prices, property values in Jumilla seem from another age. Spacious 85-square-meter apartments go for 60,000 euro ($80,000) and less. Renting a similar apartment can cost you as little 350 euro ($460) per month.

Look for more details on places, properties and living costs in my Murcia story in the next issue of International Living magazine.

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There’s a hidden Italy that’s as rich in castles, art towns, and vineyards as the country’s more familiar locations. Even glorious Tuscany contains secret spots—places where the living is sweet and homes remain affordable.

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From Paris to the provinces, French living is all about quality living. Superb food and wine, a rich and varied culture, access to the world’s best health care – and lovely homes to buy or rent. And it’s all less expensive than you perhaps realize.

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Blessed with golden beaches, late-night cities and wonderful food, Spain is a bargain. Enjoying mainland Europe’s best winter weather, the south basks in Mediterranean sunshine. But the less-discovered north also has its temptations.

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Why travel writing is the best job in the world. It’s a fun way to fund your new overseas lifestyle-and it’s so easy to get started.

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The fastest, easiest way to get paid to travel. How to quickly break into print, so you can be cashing in on perks sooner than you imagined. No experience necessary.

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There’s a hidden Italy that’s as rich in castles, art towns, and vineyards as the country’s more familiar locations. Even glorious Tuscany contains secret spots—places where the living is sweet and homes remain affordable.

Downloads

From Paris to the provinces, French living is all about quality living. Superb food and wine, a rich and varied culture, access to the world’s best health care – and lovely homes to buy or rent. And it’s all less expensive than you perhaps realize.

Downloads

Blessed with golden beaches, late-night cities and wonderful food, Spain is a bargain. Enjoying mainland Europe’s best winter weather, the south basks in Mediterranean sunshine. But the less-discovered north also has its temptations.

Downloads

Why travel writing is the best job in the world. It’s a fun way to fund your new overseas lifestyle-and it’s so easy to get started.

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The fastest, easiest way to get paid to travel. How to quickly break into print, so you can be cashing in on perks sooner than you imagined. No experience necessary.

The first beer of the night, a sparkling wheat beer called Kristall Weizen, cost a very reasonable €2.10 ($2.79). Around 30 minutes later, I ordered a second. This time, it cost $2.52. Snigger if you must, but it was thrilling to get the timing right and save 27 cents.

But while I was getting some local lowdown on nightlife in the city, Kristall Weizen’s price jumped to a horrific $3.85. As I’m rarely fussy about brands—all German beers are fantastic—it was time to get less choosy. I switched to a $2.13 Radeberger.

On the banks of the river Spree, Die Berliner Republik pub and restaurant operates as a Bier Börse, or beer stockmarket at night. Shown on monitors, the price of the 18 different draft beers on tap depends on how popular each is at any given moment.

Like with the real stockmarket, prices fluctuate according to demand—and there’s always the possibility of a market crash on your favorite tipple.

Although it sounds something of a tourist gimmick, on the night I visited the clientele was mostly German. If you’re wary about visiting strange bars on your own, it’s a good place to come. There’s a friendly vibe, and it’s easy to get involved in conversation—even if you don’t speak German. Berlin is an international city, and many people speak at least a little English.

It’s also a city where you can eat, drink and be entertained around the clock. Along with the bar, the kitchen in Die Berliner Republik stays open until 6.00 a.m. Yes, that’s six o’clock in the morning.

Although I easily resisted the jellied pork knuckle, hearty German food is the perfect match for beer. I started with Eastern European favorite soljanka soup ($5.98). It’s made from a sweet-and-sour tomato base, red peppers and smoked sausage topped with sour cream. If I’d remembered how filling it was, I wouldn’t have also ordered a pork schnitzel with potato salad ($18.50) too. Although delicious, robust portion sizes made it impossible to finish.

It was no problem getting a table on a winter’s night, but reservations are recommended for the legendary Sunday brunch (10.00 a.m. to 2.00 p.m.). All you can eat from a huge array of hot and cold dishes for $17.

Berlin is one of the best cities I’ve come across for quirky pubs. I’ve no space to tell you about any more of them here, but I’ve a bunch of other stories from my trip. I’m sure there are publications out there that would be interested in them.

If you could picture yourself doing my job, you owe it to yourself to find out more…

Editor’s Note: Fun…glamorous…exciting—travel writing is a career anyone would love. But what few people realize is this—it’s open to anyone. You don’t need experience, degrees in journalism or a background in writing. Steenie didn’t have any of those things—and you’ve just read about the type of lifestyle she leads today. If you’re ready to get started, go here.

Recommended Reading:

• Fish Funerals and Free Caribbean Vacations

• The Travel Writer and the Sea Urchin

• Travel: Getting Paid for Your Passion

Walk among almond trees and wild flowers in Murcia, Spain. © Dr Heinze Linke

Firmly in Spain’s sunny south, between Andalusia and Valencia, Murcia is one of the country’s autonomous regions that gets overlooked in the dash elsewhere— usually farther south to the Costa del Sol or north to the Costa Blanca. Relatively few outsiders know its ancient inland towns, sunny beaches or delicious cuisine.

I’ve always thought that southern Spain offers an agreeable lifestyle. Along with mainland Europe’s best weather and great beaches, attractions include mountains, historic towns and cities, fairly low living costs, inexpensive wine, and outstanding food.

And Murcia has it all. Spain’s “market garden,” Murcia’s hilly hinterland is patch-worked with groves of citrus fruit, almonds, olives and fig trees. Some areas are given over to salad crops and vegetables, often grown inside giant poly-tunnels greenhouses.  I won’t pretend poly-tunnels are pretty, but produce is certainly fresh and inexpensive. In markets, figure $1.30 or less for a kilo (2.2 pounds) of almost anything.  A pound of some of the sweetest clementines I’ve tasted cost $0.55 cents.

The regional capital is also called Murcia. With narrow streets, sunny squares and 3,000 years of history, it’s a lovely baroque city to stroll around.  Its bars are renowned for Spain’s most interesting tapas If you’ve never sampled a saffron-scented seafood paella, you don’t realize what you’re missing. Murcia ups the dining ante with delights such as roast suckling pig, herb-crusted lamb, sea bass cooked in mint and crunchy baby squid fresh from the Mar Menor.

And it’s not only vegetarians who go ecstatic over goat’s cheese with quince and walnuts, fried eggplant drizzled in honey, or markets that sell at least twenty different varieties of tomatoes.

Describing Murcia City’s tapas as “bar snacks” or “nibbles” would be crass. Sea urchins in cava…eggplant  pyramids with mozzarella cheese…chicken  livers with figs in a dried fruits sauce… pasta cylinders stuffed with scallops and boletus mushrooms…blood pudding  topped  with liver pate and a dip of tomato  jam…pastel de carne, tiny meat pies with flaky pastry…zarangollo, a regional specialty of zucchini, onion and egg. All these delights cost between $2.50 and $4.30.  I didn’t try every tapas bar—an impossibility—but El Secreto on Plaza Santa Catalina is hard to beat.

I was a month too late for Murcia City’s Ruta de Tapas extravaganza, but many towns organize similar events. For $2.50, you get a tapa and a beer or a glass of wine. Pick up a card, get it stamped at each bar on the route, and you have a chance to win prizes such as a weekend at Archena’s prestigious spa complex. (Around 18 miles from Murcia, Archena is the oldest spa town in Spain, an oasis of palm, eucalyptus, and lemon trees, see here).

One good hunting ground for tapas bars in Murcia City is Barrio del Carmen, the old town, especially in the adjoining squares of Plaza de las Flores and Plaza Santa Catalina.

It was pure coincidence that I stumbled across a wine-tasting event hosted by bodegas from the region’s north—three big glasses of quality wine for $6.35.  But it’s hard to avoid special events in Murcia. Cultural  highlights include mock “Moors  and Christians” battles, Easter Holy Week processions, and an offbeat spring fiesta— the Entierro  de la Sardina (“Burial of the Sardine”).

Usually in mid-April, the ‘Sardine’ fiesta includes a sardine’s last will and testament being read from the Town Hall balcony. Before the ritual burning of a huge papier-mâché sardine, things culminate in a crazy procession. Gigantes y cabezudos  (“giants and big-heads”) torch-bearers, demons and samba groups escort fish-themed floats stuffed with hundreds  of toys which get thrown  into the crowd.

In spa town Archena and the small towns of the Recote Valley north of Murcia City, English-speakers are scarce. However, I met one British retiree couple in Jumilla, a wine town with an entirely Spanish ambience. Sue and John Walker bought an apartment there three years ago. Keen hikers, they don’t have a car—public transport is excellent. Murcia City is only a 30-minute bus ride.

Sue has authored a book (Retiring The Olé Way). The couple also offer free Jumilla walking tours—they started it for fun as no English-language information existed about the area (see here).

John reckons they spend around $127 every two months on utilities. Annual water bill is $200, and monthly community charge (elevator maintenance, cleaning of communal areas, etc.) is $30. Internet and telephone bills are around $61 monthly.  Property tax is $229 annually.

Wine festivals, music concerts, saint’s day celebrations. In Jumilla’s small theater, the best seats in the house cost $6. A three-course lunch at San Agustin restaurant came in at $11. On that day, I feasted on red peppers stuffed with a cod mousse, pesca frittada, a platter of small mixed fish, then fresh melon. As in most Murcian restaurants, a free salad went on the table. Wine too. Jumilla’s bodegas sell five liters of robust red table wine—equivalent to seven normal-sized bottles—for $6.50.

And property prices are astounding. Take a look at Jumilla agent Hypnosinmobiliaria.com.  A 1,000-square-foot apartment for $41,000 is exceptional, but listings include other three-bedroom apartments  under $77,000. While similar-sized apartments rent for $445 monthly.  It might be time to come and explore for yourself.

Take a seat alongside the river Spree and enjoy the sun. © hsvrs/iStock

Take a seat alongside the river Spree, enjoy the sun, and take in the city’s old cathedral.

When it comes to lifestyle and location, it would not surprise me if one European city rarely enters your thoughts: Berlin, Germany’s capital.

Yet it’s now Europe’s third-most-visited city, outstripping Rome and Barcelona. Only London and Paris get more visitors. Americans are flocking to Berlin for a three-month dip, or to study, or even to find a gateway to a new life through artist, teaching, or business visas. Plus I’ve seen estimates that at least 10,000 British people live and work here, too.

I wondered why—surely it couldn’t be down to a hankering for northeastern Germany’s winters? Or a fascination for the dark side of history and the remains of a wall?

After all, nowhere comes with quite the same baggage as Berlin. Most people remember 1989 and seeing the jubilation when the Berlin Wall fell. But much of the rest of its 20th-century history is a grim catalogue of events: the Third Reich…the Cold War…communist East Germany’s Stasi police and their informants.

The boomer generation probably also recall John F. Kennedy visiting West Berlin in 1963 and proclaiming “Ich bin ein Berliner” to a city divided by a wall and ideology. Capitalist West and communist East were to stay divided for another 26 years.

Even after German reunification, when Berlin regained capital-city status, it seemed an unlikely candidate for Europe’s poster child. I visited in 1991, and so much looked charmless. To be honest, I was in no rush to go back.

But the past is the past. Today’s Berlin is a world-class city of 3.45 million people, one that has shaken off most of its post- reunification doldrums.  In almost all areas, the urban renewal and pace of change has been astonishing.  Now it’s a place I really could picture myself living.

Affordable rental accommodation, tempting property prices (apartments cost under $70,000 in some areas), and relatively inexpensive living costs are big attractions. Away from prime tourist spots, eating and drinking prices have more in common with eastern-European levels than western.

Hearty two-course lunches for under $10 aren’t hard to find. Along with a high-quality lifestyle, Berlin’s outstanding draw is the culture. By that, I don’t mean a high culture of opera, symphony orchestras, and exhibitions—though you’re spoiled for choice with those.

No, it’s more about the zeitgeist, a German word for the spirit of the age. Berlin has always been a city of its time, and to simply regard it as a World War II/Cold War museum piece of landmarks and monuments is to miss the point. From art to music and new tech start-ups, everything is cutting-edge, creative, and running at full throttle. If any European city beats it for insomniac hours or diversity of nightlife, I haven’t discovered it yet.

The restless vibe won’t appeal to everyone. But if “the alternative” has always been part of your life… if you loved New York in the 70s or London in the 80s…if you were ever drawn to bohemian culture, today’s Berlin may well fit your urban European dream.

Sure, some neighborhoods still have a gritty feel, but I’m comfortable with street art, eccentrically-tattooed people, and no-nonsense bars open until all hours. The only downside that might deter you from spending prolonged time here is climate.

But dress appropriately and Berlin’s tomb-cold winters are no problem. Or come in summer when the average temperature is 72 F but days often hit the high 80s F. The city erupts with festivals and everyone takes to the sidewalk cafés, lakes and beer gardens. There’s no shortage of public parks and gardens either—Berlin has over 2,500 green spaces.

The Property Market

Germany is Europe’s economic powerhouse, but Berlin property prices are way below those in London and Paris. In Paris, the square-meter (that’s 10.8 square feet) average tops $10,000. In central Berlin, $2,200-$5,000 is the norm. In some neighborhoods, it drops to between $1,267 and $1,520 per square meter.

Its mayor once described Berlin as “poor, but sexy.” Lacking in any major industry, it’s not a wealthy city, and around 85% of inhabitants rent their homes. It may surprise you, but only around 45% of homes nationwide are owner-occupied.

Germans attach no social stigma to renting. Even many of those who could easily afford a mortgage prefer to stay as tenants and spend any excess cash on the good life. When the Wall was still in place, there was certainly little desire to own in capitalist West Berlin—an island surrounded by a communist sea. Who knew what could happen?

But although Berlin’s renting culture may take years to change, there’s every chance it will eventually reach property-ownership levels seen elsewhere in Germany. Rising demand usually means rising values.

Foreigners can freely purchase property, but if for investment, it’s best viewed long term. Germans tend to regard property as a place to live or an ultra-safe investment—not for generating a fast buck. As lenders are extremely risk averse, the country hasn’t experienced housing bubbles—nor any subsequent busts. Transaction costs of around 12% also help deter speculators.

After1989, many East Berlin families moved to other parts of Germany. At one point over 100,000 apartments stood empty. This meant enticingly low rents for tenants. But they’ve risen in recent years.

Hackesche Hofe: Home to galleries, boutiques and restaurants. © TommL/iStock

Neighborhoods once blighted by high unemployment get transformed as the upwardly mobile move in.

Prenzlauer Berg is the prime example—some rents have shot up tenfold since reunification. Maybe I was blinkered 20 years ago, but East Berlin’s districts were never a total expanse of Plattenbau, the concrete-slab apartments. (You’ll spot some, but not as many as you may think.)

Prenzlauer Berg comes with leafy streets and numerous restored Altbau, literally “old-build houses.” These architectural gems date from the late 19th and early 20th century.

The gentrification process is now underway in parts of Kreuzberg and Friedrichshain, both colorful neighborhoods with bags of character. The alternative scene’s wilder front has moved on to a fairly tough district of south Berlin called Neukölln, but even some of its corners are now under investor scrutiny.

Long-term tenants are well-protected, usually on three- to five-year contracts, but reliable 3% to 6% yields beat many other non-property investments. If buying an untenanted apartment, you can rent it short-term to vacationers. According to the agents I met, no plans are afoot to restrict vacation rentals, as has recently happened in Paris and Barcelona.

For my recommended contacts here, see: Frontlineberlin.com and Aden-immo.com.

A Neighborhood Sampler

Berlin is comprised of 12 districts. However, many people still refer to the pre-unification names of the 23 neighborhoods of East and West Berlin. Here’s a sampler:

Mitte: Covering a huge area, Mitte is Berlin’s historic center. Iconic landmarks include the Reichstag, Brandenburg Gate, Unter den Linden, the Tiergarten, Friedrichstrasse (a major shopping street), Alexanderplatz of the Sputnik-inspired TV tower, and numerous museums.

See the city from the Chancellery dome. Gyi Nsa/iStock

That said, Mitte has no distinct character. Depending on where you emerge from a U-Bahn station, it can be monumentally grand, corporate, gentrified, artfully scruffy, or just plain dilapidated. It is home to the well-heeled, the working-class, welfare recipients, struggling artists, and guest-worker immigrants.

With its steel-and-glass towers, Potsdamer Platz is one of Mitte’s new faces. In contrast, the lively streets around Hackeschemarkt contain pre-war elements (see the sidebar on courtyards). This was one of the first areas of East Berlin to boom after reunification.

Once a West Berlin district, Wedding—pronounced with a “V”—comes into Mitte’s boundaries. Unemployment is fairly high, and Turkish shop signs are as common as German. It’s not on the tourist trail, but although unpolished, it’s no cultural wasteland—I found an alternative art fair taking place in the cubicles of the old public swimming baths. As demand drives up prices in hotspots like Kreuzberg and Friedrichshain, Wedding is receiving more investor attention.

Mitte property samples: In the Bernauerstrasse vicinity, you’ll find a 76-square-meter apartment in a renovated Altbau from 1900. The Berlin Wall once ran along Bernauerstrasse—it became notorious for escapes from apartment windows and through tunnels—you really would be living with history. Price: $278,000. In Wedding there’s a 39-square-meter tenanted studio. It was modernized in 2008, when the current tenant moved in. Annual rental income is $2,913, a 4.43% yield. Price: $65,700.

Prenzlauer Berg: Northeast of Mitte, chic Prenzlauer Berg is the most architecturally charming of the eastern neighborhoods. You’d never guess it was once a bastion of factory workers as well as nose-ringed, cockatoo-haired East German punks. But that was over 20 years ago. The sons of toil and the counter-culture have long since moved on.

Take a cruise through Berlin on the River Spree. © Nikada/iStock

For middle-class Berliners, Prenzlauer Berg is highly desirable. Sidewalks around Kollwitzplatz (site of a weekly organic food market) are studded with tapas bars, boutiques, wine merchants, and Italian restaurants. Another focal point is the red-bricked towers of the KulturBrauerei (“Culture Brewery”). Beer is no longer brewed here—its cobblestone courtyards are now filled with bars, restaurants, clubs, galleries, and a theater. During Advent, it’s the site of a Scandinavian-themed Christmas market.

Prenzlauer Berg property samples: You’ll find a well-maintained 45-square-meter apartment with stucco details and wooden floors in a typical Altbau constructed in 1902. Price: $114,000. There’s also a 72-square-meter apartment in a house dating from 1912.

Close to Schönhauser Allee’s shops and restaurants, the building was modernized in 2007. Price: $188,000.

Kreuzberg-Friedrichshain: Once pressed against the Wall, Kreuzberg was part of West Berlin—its most anarchic part. Although May Day still often witnesses mass street protests, it’s a fashionable neighborhood with elegant cafés among the second-hand clothing shops and kebab joints.

However, it’s still a byword for alternative lifestyles, the music scene, and multicultural flair—Kreuzberg has a large Turkish population. The twice-weekly Turkish market is an inexpensive place for fruit and vegetables. Especially in summer. X-berg (as it’s often written), is a honeypot for twenty-somethings from all over Europe. Not all residents appreciate the influx or the rising rents—many apartments have been turned into tourist accommodation. Late-night noise around party streets such as Oranienstrasse can be a problem.

Kreuzberg/Friedrichshain property samples: Close to in a restored period building constructed in 1910.  Nearby is a minutes from Simon-Dach Strasse’s nightlife is a 108-square-meter apartment in a restored Friedrichshein  Altbau  with a back garden. Price: $196,000.

Schöneberg:  South of the Tiergarten and the famous Ku’damm shopping street, Schöneberg is an attractive residential neighborhood in southwestern Berlin. I stayed here in City B (berlin-cityb.de, Doubles from $56).

Across the river Spree, Friedrichshain is Kreuzberg’s hip counterpart. Place-names like Karl-Marx-Allee and Rosa Luxemburg Platz indicate you’ve crossed into the former East Berlin. A mixed bag of bohemian charm and graffiti-splattered grunge, Friedrichshain’s claim to fame is the East Side Gallery stretch of the Berlin Wall, covered in colorful murals.

The heart of the district’s gentrification process is Boxhagener Platz, site of a Saturday flea market. Flanking one side of this square, Simon-Dach Strasse is ribboned with bars and supermarkets,  and Turkish take-out  spots on almost every block… a U-Bahn  station opposite…a Vietnamese restaurant  next door. Winterfeldplatz’s Saturday food market, one of Berlin’s best, was within walking distance. And as it had wicked black beer, smoking was allowed, and Janis Joplin wailed from the jukebox, I adopted the Bulow Kneipe as my local pub.

Nollendorfplatz, the heart of gay Berlin, was another easy walk. But judging by the crowd in the Amrit Indian restaurant and the Stagger Lee bar on Nollendorfstrasse, you don’t have to be of any particular sexual orientation to enjoy the nightlife. A plaque a few doors from the bar marks the house where Christopher Isherwood, author of Cabaret and Berlin Stories, lived from 1929 until 1933. I’m pretty sure he would still adore the ambience.

Schöneberg property samples: A 58-square-meter apartment in a restored Altbau with courtyard on Leberstrasse—where Marlene Dietrich was born—costs $124,000. Frontline has tenanted apartments (55 to 125 square meters) from $109,000 with yields of 3.5% to 4%.

There is nothing to look at anymore, everything has been seen to death.” D.H. Lawrence of Lady Chatterley fame wrote that in a poem called Tourists. Although travel is my life and I love it, his sentiment sometimes seems depressingly true. I’ve met people who endlessly consume “sights” instead of enjoying a place’s heart and soul.

From feedback, I know many IL subscribers envy my life—even if they don’t wish to emulate some adventures. But I rarely write about mainstream sights, expensive restaurants, or contrived experiences. I’d rather talk to bag-ladies in a bus shelter than go to another pseudo- medieval banquet or a hanky-flapping cultural show. They’re tourist illusions—and I’m happier in the real world.

Admittedly, sleeping in a railwaymen’s flop-house during a trip to Hungary was somewhat grim. (I got lost. It was late.) But even when things veer off course, it always feels like a glorious adventure. My adventure.  Not some cloned adventure foisted on me by the tourism industry.

What thrills me most about travel is meeting locals and hearing their stories. On my recent trip to Berlin, I skipped champagne Sunday brunch at the Adlon hotel ($100.50 a head) and visited the Volkskuche (“People’s Kitchen”).  Run by an ultra-left-wing collective, it’s an open kitchen operating in a former squat in old East Berlin.

I’m not in cahoots with any activists, but for $6.35 I got veggie pizza, two glasses of wine, and a beer. More importantly, I got to talk to locals and have my own adventure. The Berlin trip was stunning, but trips are often most interesting when I visit under-the-radar places. I’m less likely to be treated as a walking ATM—or suckered into things that I know are a waste of time.

I certainly have no desire to “take a river cruise and tick off London’s sights in quick succession.” Even if London was unfamiliar, the idea of ticking off sights is lamentable. One of the world’s most fascinating cities now reduced to the visual equivalent of sound-bites.

If ever there were a city to drift through and absorb, it’s London. If the only aim is to grab a photo before sprinting to the conveyer belt’s next box, why even bother going? Maybe it’s down to the consumer society’s throwaway habits—even memories aren’t supposed to last.

Or maybe it’s attention deficit coupled with information overload. You can view most destinations beforehand on video—investigate them on the Internet. Guidebooks ensure that nothing is a surprise. And now there’s a wretched “app” for everything, too. It’s like the world is being robbed of every ounce of mystery.

Apps? I call it being spoon-fed by pap. I’m not an infant, I don’t need a virtual nanny ordering me where to eat, drink, sleep, or go—or step-by-step instructions on finding places. If maps are necessary, I get them for free from tourist offices. So many recommendations are for “boutique” and “design” hotels. To me, a hotel is somewhere to sleep—it’s not some pretentious concept.  If the cost is more than $65 a night, it feels like robbery.

Spending less on accommodation means more money for travel. So I often stay in apartments. It’s fun trying out my language skills when picking up breakfast from a bakery or shopping at markets. After a couple of days, you get greeted like a regular.

Plus there’s more chance of having bizarre adventures. One time I stayed in Waltersdorf, a border village in eastern Germany’s Zittau Mountains. My reprobate landlord, a watchmaker, took me on a popular “local” walk—across the border into the Czech woods. This was where he bought contraband beer and tobacco from gypsies.

Now, I’m not suggesting every showpiece sight is worthless. But it’s baffling why Dublin’s top attraction is the Guinness Storehouse. Visitors pay $16.50

to avail of “a complimentary  pint” and shop for Guinness-related tat. As I can’t believe everyone is too lazy or timid to find a real pub heaving with Dubliners,  it can only be marketing  manipulation.

“Gondola rides are a must for every tourist visiting Venice”. Er—why?

I have never succumbed to the $100 gondola rip-off. Locals get around the canals by vaporetti, the water buses. “Must-sees” don’t exist in my book. Why visit the Louvre if you have no interest in art? And even if it’s your only opportunity, why go up the Eiffel Tower on a rainy, gray day? I only paid a horrendous amount to squint over Paris because the Tower topped my daughter’s hit list. Personally, I wouldn’t have bothered.

I’ve learned my lesson from past mistakes. It was never the country itself that disappointed. No, it was that mesmeric phrase, “xxx is a must-see.”  The reality of set-piece attractions doesn’t always match inflated expectations.  Especially when hundreds—sometimes thousands—of visitors are stampeding around.

Ecuador’s Mitad del Mundo, the center of the world monument, was seriously underwhelming. Thankfully I hadn’t paid $90 to straddle both hemispheres and witness some nonsense with an egg. I did it for free, but writing about such an abysmal time-waster was impossible.

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There’s a hidden Italy that’s as rich in castles, art towns, and vineyards as the country’s more familiar locations. Even glorious Tuscany contains secret spots—places where the living is sweet and homes remain affordable.

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From Paris to the provinces, French living is all about quality living. Superb food and wine, a rich and varied culture, access to the world’s best health care – and lovely homes to buy or rent. And it’s all less expensive than you perhaps realize.

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Blessed with golden beaches, late-night cities and wonderful food, Spain is a bargain. Enjoying mainland Europe’s best winter weather, the south basks in Mediterranean sunshine. But the less-discovered north also has its temptations.

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Why travel writing is the best job in the world. It’s a fun way to fund your new overseas lifestyle—and it’s so easy to get started.

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The fastest, easiest way to get paid to travel. How to quickly break into print, so you can be cashing in on perks sooner than you imagined. No experience necessary.

Europe’s sunshine doesn’t disappear in winter. It’s hiding away in southern Spain. Largely unknown to foreign travelers, Murcia slots between the regions of Andalucia and Valencia. Strung with beaches, its 156-mile coastline is called the Costa Calida—the warm coast. Summers can be blistering, but winters are really mild.

Learn more about Spain and other countries in our daily postcard e-letter. Sign up for IL’s free daily postcard here and we’ll send you a FREE REPORT: Live the Good Life in Sunny, Affordable Spain.

But as all vacationers need to eat, food stories are a travel writer’s staple. From London’s gastro-pubs to Bangkok street food, it’s a world of rich pickings. Admittedly, pickings are sometimes strange, but ‘strange’ is part of the job.

More on sea urchins shortly, but first to Murcia—a jewel of an art-and-culture university city. Once a Moorish stronghold, its old town is a warren of narrow lanes and little plazas shaded by orange trees, palms, jacarandas and magnolias. It’s also a byword for gastro-tapas. Small dishes of hot and cold food—tapas—are served throughout Spain, but Murcia takes the experience to new levels.

Most locals hit the tapas trail before dinner, but after a hearty lunch, an evening tapas feast is often enough for many visitors. There are bars all over the city, but there’s a wondrous cluster in Plaza Santa Catalina and adjoining Plaza de las Flores, a haven for flower-sellers.

Murcian tapa classics include michirones—plump broad beans stewed with cured ham, chorizo sausage, garlic, and sweet red peppers. Pastel de carne are flaky pastry mini-pies of minced beef, hard-boiled eggs and chorizo. A marinera is an anchovy-topped helping of Russian salad.

Most tapas cost $2.50 to $6.35. At the sophisticated end, my favorites included a pasta cylinder stuffed with scallop and boletus mushrooms in a bechamel sauce. Heaven on a plate for $3.80. But the $3.20 pastry parcel of blood pudding topped with a smear of foie gras in a sauce of dried fruits was just as good. The most I paid for anything was $6.35—for lamb braised in black beer, served in a creatively-latticed basket of crispy potato.

If you do intend writing about food, don’t forget vegetarian publications. The Murcia region is Spain’s market garden, so interesting vegetable combinations abound. One veggie delight is morcilla de verano. Although the name suggests “blood sausage” and “summer,” this meat-free tapa is served year-round. Sprinkled with oregano and toasted pine nuts, it’s eggplant braised in olive oil with minced onion and garlic.

Chefs also have the bounty of the Mediterranean and the Mar Menor, Europe’s largest saltwater lagoon. Now, although I could happily live on seafood paella, swordfish, shellfish and squid rings, I’m not enamored by the prospect of sea urchins. (Or rather, what sea urchins contain.) To me, the idea of scooping out and swallowing any creature’s reproductive parts is more repellent than mouth-watering.

Small, spiny and globular, sea urchins are a prized Spanish winter delicacy. What makes them prized is their contents—a five-pointed star of soft, orange roe. Some U.S. chefs euphemistically call these egg sacks ‘tongues.’ I’d call them appetite suppressants. Yes, they taste of the sea. But so does a mouthful of seawater.

I’m not going to lie and say “mmm—it was delicious.” It wasn’t. But for a travel writer, a sea urchin makes a great way to kick off a story about Murcia’s tapas bars.

Editor’s Note: If you’d like to learn more about ways you can pay for your life or travels overseas, including travel writing, sign up for Fund Your Life Overseas, a free e-letter from International Living. Sign up here and we’ll send you a free report: Fund Your New Life Overseas With These 5 Portable Careers.

Recommended Reading:

• The One and Only Time it’s OK to Duck a Tab

• Travel: Getting Paid for Your Passion

• Start a Blog to Fund Your Travels

There are wine merchants, estate agents, delicatessens, bakeries and beer gardens for summer. Concrete monstrosities? Not from what I can see.

With its numerous cafe-bars, boutiques and Saturday gourmet organic food market, Prenzlauer Berg is among the most sought-after neighborhoods of the former East Berlin, Germany. On warm summer evenings, Kollwitzplatz stays lively until well into the early hours.

Often built around an inner courtyard, many Prenzlauer Berg houses were constructed between 1880 and 1920. Although apartments were State-issued for 50 years, the houses remained in the original Altbau style. The name means “old build,” but most have been stylishly refurbished over the past 20 years.

A typical Altbau apartment has high ceilings, original wooden floors and a balcony. Grander buildings have facades with Jugendstilfeatures—Germany’s version of Art Nouveau. Although anti-socialist propaganda painted everywhere east of the Berlin Wall as architecturally dreary, Plattenbau (pre-fabricated concrete) apartments only account for around 15% of the city’s housing stock.

Compared to other major European capitals, Berlin property is remarkably inexpensive. For example, 89,900 euro ($117,000) buys a well-maintained, 45-square-meter apartment with stucco details in a Prenzlauer Berg Altbau dating from 1902. Prices like that don’t exist anywhere in London or Paris, let alone in their fashionable districts.

I had lunch at Endlos, a cozy brasserie-style restaurant on a street flanking Kollwitzplatz. (43-45 Knaakstrasse). Eavesdropping on conversations, it seemed quite a few diners were involved in IT. Berlin is at the cutting edge of European tech start-ups.

Like me, most chose the daily special: a three-course feast of goose liver on lambs’ lettuce, roast goose with red cabbage and dumplings, then chocolate mousse. At 12.90 euro ($17), incredibly good value. I could have eaten cheaper—many neighborhood places had three-course lunchtime menus from $10 – $13—but roast goose is irresistible.

In GDR times, Prenzlauer Berg was a workers’ quarter but with elements of the subversive, the avant-garde, and the bohemian. Ten minutes walk away, on Schönhauser Allee, the Gothic-looking KulturBrauerei is at the heart of the local cultural scene.

An old brewery with red brick towers and chimneys, its cobbled courtyards once echoed to the sound of rolling beer barrels. Now people come to eat, drink, shop, catch movies, experimental theater and poetry readings.

During the Christmas run-up, the Kulturbrauerei hosts the Scandinavian-themed Lucia market. It’s not remarkably different to Berlin’s other magical Christmas markets, but the hot spiced wine is called Glögg instead of Gluhwein—and lots of Scandinavian woolen gifts are for sale.

But Prenzlauer Berg still offers one taste of Ostalgie—nostalgia for the East German past.

Continue up Schönhauser Allee to Eberswalder U-Bahn station. Under the arches, Konnopke’s Imbiss is a traditional sausage stand that survived both World War Two and the subsequent decades of Communism. Konnopke’s has been in business since 1930. Wrapped inside a bread roll, a $2.50 Currywurst slathered in spicy sauce is gastronomic heaven on a Berlin winter’s night.

Look for more on Berlin and its property market in an issue of International Living magazine coming soon.

Here’s why. Cradles should be cosy, but the Cradle of the Renaissance feels rather too cosy in the tourist season. In many restaurants,  it’s often impossible to get a table. And if you don’t book a slot online, the lengthy queues for star attractions  leave you hot, exhausted, and short-tempered.

But Firenze—the  city’s Italian name—doesn’t close down in winter. Dominated by Brunelleschi’s spectacular Duomo (cathedral),  its medieval streets and stone palaces are far less crowded. So too are its museums and galleries. Plus, there’s the added enticement of theater and opera.

Wrap up well, tie your scarf in a fashionably Italian manner,  and you won’t feel the cold (average temperatures in February/March are 47 F to 60 F). If you haven’t brought a scarf, you’ve got a good excuse to go shopping.  There’s a dazzling array of designer stores, but Florence is synonymous with artisan workshops and quality crafts such as papermaking,  marble inlay, and leatherwork.  The Oltrarno, the artisan quarter  on the Arno’s south bank, is a happy hunting ground for all kinds of curiosities.

And on the north  bank, too, you’ll find unique stores worth a visit. I love the fact that people still buy pomegranate soaps and wondrous potpourris at the Farmacia of Santa Maria Novella, one of the world’s oldest—and  gloomiest—pharmacies.

It first opened  its doors to the public in 1612,  but Dominican  monks had made herbal elixirs since the 13th century.

Florence has an odd knack of weaving strands of its past into the present without  your even noticing.  Gazing in the window of a shoe store, I shouldn’t  have been thinking  about the Medicis—the city’s famous Renaissance rulers. Yet it suddenly struck me that some of those men must have been more high maintenance than their present-day counterparts. Cosimo de Medici had a collection of 600 pairs of shoes.

At the Neptune fountain  on Piazza della Signoria, I watched a teenage girl pull out a mirror and put on lipstick. That conjured up Savonarola—the fire-and-brimstone priest who lit the Bonfire of the Vanities on this very square. Even people’s mirrors went up in flames.

Florence is home to exquisite fashion jewelry and bijou accessories made from the minutest of glass beads. You’ll find art deco blue-bell earrings for $33.75 in Aprosio (Via Santo Spirito 11).

History and memory are everywhere. Walking down a street or across a square, it’s almost unnerving  to think you could be tracing the footsteps of Michelangelo.  Or maybe Dante and his poetic muse, Beatrice Pontinari.  But Florence isn’t just a romantic place to be, it’s a city to fall in love with…here are nine ways to do it in the city’s off-season:

1. Write a love letter in church: Via Santa Margherita  is the site of the Chiesa di Santa Margherita  dei Cerchi. Nicknamed “Dante’s Church,” it dates back to at least 1032  A.D. Dante reputedly met his Beata Beatrix (blessed Beatrice) here when they were both  children.

Beside Beatrice’s tomb,  baskets overflow with letters from lovers and the lovelorn, asking her to intercede for them.  Even if you’re not religiously inclined, go. It’s a gorgeous  place with frescoed walls and modern  paintings of the ill-starred lovers.

2. Passionate  padlocks: A silver moon  and lights dancing on the river—the view of the Arno from the Ponte  Vecchio is timeless. The bridge’s goldsmith  shops offer insanely-priced glitter, but there’s a less expensive way to show devotion.  Near the passage to the Uffizi, the river railings are festooned  with lucchetti d’amore, or love padlocks.

The padlocks symbolize eternal love. Couples write their names with a felt-tipped  pen on the lock before attaching it somewhere handy. The key is then thrown  into the Arno.

3. The Art of Love: In Florence classical nudes waylay you at every turn.  Michelangelo’s David in the Accademia Gallery is Florence’s best-known  unclad male, but there’s no shortage.  If you’re drawn to muscular heroes with swords, Perseus holding Medusa’s decapitated  head is a handsome  enough  lad. You’ll find him inside Piazza della Signoria’s loggia.

The Uffizi Gallery overflows with Renaissance art, but there are more than Madonnas  and chubby cherubs. Titian’s lovely Venus of Urbino  packs an overtly erotic charge.

Mark Twain called it “the foulest, the vilest, the obscenest picture the world possesses.” Not to me. This Venus is exactly how a love goddess should look.

4. Sunset Kisses: Winter or summer,  the place to watch the sun depart is Piazzale Michelangelo,  on the south side of the Arno. Touched  by a tangerine  glow, the panorama  of roofs, domes, spires, and Tuscan hills unfolds in a dreamtime  image. It’s an uphill climb to the terrace—if you need to conserve energy, take a taxi or bus 12 or 13.

5. Love Bites: Near Piazza Santo Spirito, Trattoria  da Ginone trattoria.  Slow-cooked traditional  specialties include osso buco (veal stew) and pappardelle pasta with wild boar sauce. Including the house Chianti wine, it costs around  $40.50 per head for three courses.

Five miles from the city, La Reggia da Etruschi in Fiesole delivers fine dining and a bottle of Chianti Classico for around $67.50 per head. A former monastery, its windows and summer terrace look across to Florence. Choices include ricotta-stuffed ravioli with black truffle shavings, risotto with wild mushrooms, and bistecca alla fiorentina—a grilled T-bone steak, charred on the outside and medium rare inside. (Via S. Francesco 18, Fiesole, Florence. Tel. 055 59-385.) The No 7 bus to Fiesole runs every 20 minutes from Santa Maria Novella station.

6. Wine and Dine: Wine is the nectar of love, so put an enoteca on your to-do  list. An enoteca can be a wine store, a wine bar serving snacks, or a restaurant with a huge cellar. All wood and marble, Casa del Vino (Via dell’Ariento 16) is a traditional-style wine bar with an extensive selection of wines by the glass.

I Fratellini (Via dei Cimatori 38) is a Florentine institution. This is a hole-in-the-wall fiaschetteria—the word derives from fiasco, which originally meant a wine flask. Whether filled with fresh sausage and eggplant, goat cheese and sundried tomatoes, or succulent roast pork, the $3.38 paninis are outstanding. Grab a glass of red, and you’ve lunched for $6.75.

7. A Bench for Two: Tucked behind Palazzo Pitti, the Boboli Gardens is a wonderland of fountains, statuary, and even an amphitheatre. If the weather is kind, pick up picnic supplies at one of Florence’s produce markets such as the Mercato Centrale or Sant’ Ambrogio. The park has plenty of benches.

8. The Night on the Town: Jazz Club Firenze serves up hot jazz and achingly forlorn blues. It’s open from 9 p.m. until late, with jam sessions on Wednesdays (Via Nuova de’ Caccini 3); closed Sundays and Mondays.

9. And so to Bed: If money is no object, the chandelier- hung Grand Hotel  Villa Cora is a lavishly restored 19th-century mansion in its own parkland near the Boboli Gardens. Classic rooms from $364 per night (See here.) Arise whenever you want by staying in a fully-equipped apartment in Palazzo Belfiore, a residence whose history spools back to the 14th century. Low-season rates from $142 nightly, or $972 per week (See here.)

Four weeks? I was leaving for Berlin, Germany in four days on a last minute assignment. So there was no chance of the tourist office helping me to get a free hotel stay or a special media rate. These things take time to arrange.

You have to fill in forms, provide credentials.

But I don’t enjoy spending my own money. Not if I can spend someone else’s. After all, travel writers give publicity to a destination which then helps ‘sell’ it to a wider audience. And studies have shown that readers pay far more attention to a travel story than an advertisement.

When on assignment for International Living, I get a travel allowance. But this doesn’t cover any activities or tours I want to take in my own time. On this trip, my brief was to write about real estate, lifestyle and Berlin’s Christmas markets.

But I’d spotted something I really yearned to do—a foray into Berlin’s musical past. During the 70s and 80s when it was still divided, some of my favorite musicians had lived and partied like demons in the city. I wanted to see where David Bowie, Nick Cave and Blixa Bargeld had hung out.

The three-and-a-half hour jaunt with Fritz Music Tours included a visit to the legendary Hansa Studios. I’d never been inside any recording studio, and the Irish rock band U2 had made their Achtung Baby album in the “Hall by the Wall”. It once was literally right beside the Berlin Wall. Musicians could see the armed border guards of an East German watchtower from its windows.

Admittedly, I didn’t expect IL’s editor to thrill at the idea of sending subscribers to Club SO36, an infamous punk hangout. And although I’m a fan, I’d be worried about readers with heart problems encountering Einstürzende Neubauten. This German experimental band—the name means Collapsing New Buildings—use drills and industrial equipment in their performances.

But I reckoned it wouldn’t be too difficult to sell an article either to a musical publication, or a UK newspaper’s travel section—they tend to like offbeat stories.

Trouble was, the private tour cost €45 ($59) per head. I had my husband (aka the “bag-carrier”), with me, who shares many of my musical tastes (though not Einstürzende Neubauten), so it would come to €90. Which is $118. Ouch.

But nothing ventured, nothing gained. So I dashed off an e-mail to Thilo Schmied, an ex-sound engineer who runs the music tours and asked if he could offer a media discount.

Nein. But Thilo gave me a contact name at the Berlin Tourist Office who might possibly be persuaded to fund the tour for us at short notice. Note ”us”. When I’m looking for freebies, the “bag carrier” turns into my “photographer”. I’m not exactly telling untruths—he does shoot videos any time I have to stand in front of the camera.

By now, I really was down to the wire. The e-mail to the tourist office didn’t go until the night before I left for Berlin. But it must have been persuasive. My contact not only agreed to fund the music tour, but also sent around a press pack by private courier to my hotel.

Tourist offices can often do a lot for travel writers—if you give them enough time. For example, I’ve seen everything worth seeing in Barcelona without paying a cent. In Estonia, Tallinn’s tourist office arranged a special private tour for me that wasn’t even on offer to visitors—I wanted to delve into the city’s ghost stories for a Halloween article.

So never be shy about asking if they can help fund all or part of your trip or special activity. It will keep your travel costs down. Of course, you generally need to have a track record as a writer or a definite assignment—and it’s expected that you’ll send them a copy of your story after it has been published.

By the way, the music tour is awesome.

Editor’s Note: Travel writers don’t just get free flights to interesting locations…free stays in expensive hotels…and free meals in top restaurants—they actually get paid to go to these places. Sound like something you could picture yourself doing? This industry is far easier to break into than you might think. At our upcoming Ultimate Event 2012, Steenie will be revealing the secrets of the trade she learned the hard way. Make sure you’re front and center.

You may ask “why Murcia”—a region that’s almost unknown to North Americans. Especially when Spanish property values have slumped. In many places, prices have plummeted 50% and more below their pre-crisis level. Some commentators suggest they may have even further to fall.

But in my view, properties are unlikely to get much lower here. This seems exactly the right time to stake a claim—and here’s why.

You see, this October, Paramount Pictures got the final go-ahead for a $1.5 billion theme park in Murcia to rival Disneyland Paris. Planned opening is in 2015 and the construction will deliver a huge amount of employment. I heard figures of 20,000 jobs mentioned. To serve the expected number of visitors, a brand new international airport is coming into operation next summer. The runways and terminals are built.

There’s a palpable feel of excitement, but at present you can still bag bargains. One place I visited was Camposol, a 15-minute drive from the beaches at Puerto de Mazarron. The new airport is 20 minutes away—around the same distance as the Paramount Park site. Small terraced bungalows (around 645 square feet) are on the market for 49,995 euro ($65,000).

This two-bedroom detached villa-style property with its own pool could be yours for 116,000 euro ($152,000). But that’s the asking price, not selling price.

The agent says an offer of 90,000 euro to 95,000 euro ($117,000 to $123,000) will probably be accepted. Back in 2007, such a property would have cost more than twice that…maybe a lot more.

Camposol is an urbanization—a 15-year-old residential village similar to North American suburbs. With something like 5,000 homes and 3,000 permanent residents, it’s a large and well-established village with its own golf course.

Unlike some smaller urbanizations, there’s almost everything in Camposol for day-to-day living: banks, bars, restaurants, a large supermarket, a computer repair store, hairdressers, real estate agencies, a veterinary surgery, a translation service, a health clinic and a dentist—and undoubtedly much more.

Camposol’s wine store and supermarket are Spanish, but I thought the overall vibe was British—there’s even an Indian restaurant. But if you were thinking of renting a property to those theme park visitors, it’s a sociable and friendly community where many British holidaymakers feel at home. As do the numerous retirees who rent properties and over-winter in this sunny part of Spain.

That said, it’s not only Brits who live at Camposol. It’s an international community and the neighbors are as likely to be Spanish, Scandinavian, French or Russian.

For a town with a more traditionally Spanish feel, I’d suggest Puerto de Mazarron on the coast. It’s still only 30 to 40 minutes away from the theme park site and new airport, and is a favorite with Spanish summer vacationers. Many apartments with sea views are around 1,200 euro to 1,500 euro per square meter. For example, a 70-square-meter (752-square-foot) apartment with a splendid lookout over the port is 99,000 euro ($128,000). And it’s acceptable to make a lower offer on properties here, too.

My full report on Murcian property to buy and rent—and my recommended contacts—will appear in an upcoming issue of International Living magazine.

Editor’s note: Steenie will be at IL’s Ultimate Event in February, along with more than 100 speakers, experts, and IL writers and editors. Every question answered, all plans devised. Find out more here.

I never imagined breakfasting outdoors in December. Not in Europe. Then again, I’ve never visited the Murcia region before.

I could definitely over-winter here. Mid-December, and midday temperatures continue to hit 68F – 70F. Roses are still in bloom; oranges hang from the trees. The temperature falls after sunset, but daytimes are hot enough for wearing shorts, bronzing on the beaches and even swimming if you’re really brave.
Today I’m in Los Alcazares—a seaside town that once had everyone from Phoenician traders to the Romans and the Moors come calling. It’s on the Mar Menor, a silvery-blue lagoon sheltered from the Mediterranean by the skinny La Manga isthmus.

With a Moorish courtyard and the town’s old thermal baths behind, La Encarnacion’s sunny terrace along Paseo de Concha looked the perfect breakfast stop. Skirting the harbor and the dark golden sands, the Paseo is the town’s promenade. In the distance, I can see almost the entire 18-mile length of the isthmus.

Europe’s sunshine doesn’t disappear in winter. It’s hiding away in southern Spain. Largely unknown to foreign travelers, Murcia slots between the regions of Andalucia and Valencia. Strung with beaches, its 156-mile coastline is called the Costa Calida—the warm coast. Summers can be blistering, but winters are really mild.

It’s easy to find winter lets along this coast. 200 euro ($260) seems the average for studio apartments, and two-bedroom bungalows are around 450 euro ($580) monthly. Plus, you can eat out so inexpensively. A three-course lunch—the menu del dia—is $11 to $13 in most places, and includes wine.

After a lunch like that, all I need is tapas in the evening—and tapas bars with interesting snacks are plentiful. Here, many “snacks” are more like meals. Some tapas only cost $2 or $3, but it’s hard to resist the fish. Last night I had a huge plate of chipirones (fried baby squids) for $8. A bottle of fabulous Rioja wine cost me $12…but if I had a home to eat in, I could have got the same wine for just over $5 in the supermarket

With a backdrop of sierras, Puerto de Mazarron is another likeable Murcian seaside town.

It has a couple of tower blocks, but there’s nothing resembling the nasty concrete forest of high-rises that mar other parts of Spain’s Mediterranean coast.

Like Los Alcazares, Puerto de Mazarron doesn’t die in winter—it’s a living, breathing, working town of around 15,000 residents. Some northern Europeans live here, but you can’t mistake you’re in Spain. Including the environs, the number jumps to around 35,000 people so there’s a good choice of supermarkets, shops and a covered market as well as traditional bars and restaurants. The handsome seaport city of Cartagena is only a 30-minute drive or bus ride.

Beaches stretch for miles either side of Puerto de Mazarron. Go east and you eventually hit La Azohía village, a hangout of scuba divers and shoreline fishermen (and women). To the west, Bolnuevo is where the wind has sculpted the rocks into bizarre shapes.

During summer, some of Mazarron’s 30 or so beaches become “themed” areas with a range of free sports and relaxation options. Playa Isla offers book loans and quietness; Playa del Puerto sets up disabled bathing facilities. Volleyballers and soccer players head to Playa Bolnuevo, while Playa Castellar turns into kiddie heaven with monitored activities and play facilities. There’s beach for everybody—even nudists are included.

Editor’s note: Whatever you’re looking for in Europe, Steenie has the answers. When you meet her at the Ultimate Event 2012, you can pick her brains on any European destination that interests you—though the focus of Euro-presentations will be Italy and Spain.

Whether you’re shopping for traditional wooden toys, nutcrackers, tree decorations or unusual gifts, nowhere does Christmas markets quite like Germany. And Berlin, the capital, has over 50 Weihnachtsmärkte to investigate in the four week Advent run-up to Christmas.

So far, I’ve visited four: the markets on Alexanderplatz, Potsdamer Platz (where there’s also an artificial tobaggon run), the Gendarmenmarkt, and the Scandinavian-themed Lucia market.

On one of the city’s most architecturally beautiful squares, the Gendarmenmarkt is my favorite. The food stalls here are really good–for both snacking and buying foodie presents. As you’d expect, the markethas a giant Christmas tree–there’s also a crib, and the churches on the square are illuminated like candle-glow. On the night I visited, there was entertainment too–carol singers, and pantomime skits taking place on a small stage.

I didn’t mean to buy anything–but of course, I did. A jar of walnuts in rose petal honey ad alvender and cinnamon marinade…a bag of apple chips….a magic mushroom and two birds with dazzling silver and crimson plumage for my tree…a pair of stripy woollen tights and a woollen beret.

Oh, and some hand-made greeting cards for next year.

But if you’ve never visited Scandinavia at Christmas, it’s also worth taking a look at the Lucia market. Adorned with white lights shaped like snowflakes, and with a carousel for kiddies, this market is held in the courtyard of an old brewery in Prenzlauer Berg neighborhood. I didn’t sample any elk bratwurst or buy a Finnish ax, but I can definitely recommend Swedish Glögg. Filled with almonds and raisins, it’s like Gluhwein—mulled wine. For an extra kick, try it with a shot of vanilla vodka.

Read more travel articles here.

And then it’s farewell, Romeo.

Like the Marquesa’s last illicit lover, the discarded bedmate plunges through a trap-door into the Well of Oblivion—a pit of sharpened blades. From battlements to dungeons, the walls of Castello Malaspina di Fosdinovo are thick. Nobody can hear his screams…

I’m in northern Tuscany’s Lunigiana, the “Land of 100 Castles”. Originally built in the late 12th century, Fosdinovo is one of its best. Crowning a hilltop, it’s a square, fortress-like structure with inner garden courtyards and gorgeous tapestries. Incredibly gruesome stories, too.

The amorous Marquesa, Cristina Pallavicini Malaspina, lived here in the 17th century. Apparently she had a paranoid fear that aristocratic lovers would betray her. So instead, she slaked her passion by having one-night stands with lusty lads whom nobody would miss. Her murderous reputation may be deserved. After all, why have a trap-door in a bedchamber?

The castle has another three of these deadly traps. So it’s best not to go poking around where you shouldn’t. There may be more still awaiting discovery. Tumbling down a hidden hole and getting skewered by centuries-old sword blades seems a rather unpleasant way to end a vacation to Italy…

Like the Medicis, the Malaspinas weren’t overly scrupulous in how they made problems disappear. The torture room displays a nightmare vision of instruments such as spiked handcuffs, tongue thongs and clamps to crush the head. Some enemies rotted in the dungeons. Others were hung on an iron arm that jutted from a tower wall. And there they stayed until life had fled.

The beauty of the Renaissance was matched by brutality. The violence of the age sometimes even spilled over among the family. One Malaspina baby was kept locked inside a cage-like crib made of iron. The child’s uncles had murdered his father.

As you’d expect, Fosdinovo lays claim to being haunted. Bianca Maria, the errant daughter of Jacopo Malaspina, met a particularly nasty end. Her crime was to fall in love with a peasant. She was initially sent to a convent, but this didn’t stop the lovers meeting again. And so her father walled her up to die of starvation inside the castle. Sharing her fate was a dog, the Malaspina symbol of fidelity, and a wild boar, symbol of rebellion.

That’s not as far-fetched as it sounds. Instances of immuring (walling up) wanton wenches occur throughout medieval Europe. During recent excavations at the castle, chained skeletons belonging to a girl and two animals were unearthed.

You can visit Malaspina di Fosdinovo castle every day except Tuesday. Guided visits are 6 euro. You can also stay here. Including breakfast, room rates start at 100 euro ($133).

Editor’s note: If “Fairytale Europe” is as enchanting to you as it is to Steenie, then mark your diary. The upcoming IL Ultimate Event is the biggest and most important event on your calendar. We’ll cover every destination offering opportunity for the would-be expat, retiree, investor, and traveler right now…including Italy, France and Spain. We’ll have more than 100 experts in attendance—including Steenie.

Recommended Reading:

• How to Fund a Trip to Italy by Creating a “Travel Tour”

• Homes for Under $70,000—and Other Glittering Prizes of Uncharted Italy

• Beyond the Tuscan Obvious: Sculpture, Spas, Sand, and Wilderness

Yes, I know I’ve disparaged “the Costas” in the past. Spain-without-the-Spanish…paunchy northern Europeans overdosing on sun, sex, and cheap booze…hideous plastic donkeys…concrete jungles…acres of lookalike vacation homes.

So why Alicante? Well, there’s a big difference between seaside cities and purpose-built resorts. Alicante is lively, sunny, and inexpensive, for sure. But it’s also charming, fairly sophisticated, and its ambiance is as Spanish as that of Madrid.

A Mediterranean city of over 458,000 people is obviously no secret. But most visitors are Spaniards—the majority of foreigners only encounter Alicante’s airport. There are flights from across Europe, as it’s the gateway to sprawling Benidorm and other Costa Blanca resorts.

Yet Alicante also has splendid beaches—eight in total. San Juan beach alone stretches for over four miles. Below St Barbara’s Castle, an old Moorish fortress, there’s a marina, parks, shady plazas, cinemas, and a theater.

Lined with palm trees and paved with 6.5 million marble tiles, the Explanada is the promenade. It’s perfect for the paseo, the evening stroll when everyone is out-and-about, eating ice cream and chatting outside café-bars. For a cool-down non-alcoholic drink, try iced horchata—made from tiger-nut milk. The city center is also partly pedestrianized, so traffic isn’t a nuisance.

Flanked by the Explanada, El Postiguet is Alicante’s pristine town beach. Like all Spanish beaches, it’s free. If you haven’t got your own paraphernalia, you can rent an umbrella and two sunbeds for $17. Public transport is excellent, and regular buses serve beaches farther from the center.

As Alicante keeps traditional Spanish hours, your body clock may need adjusting. If you want an early lunch, think 2 p.m. Most stores and offices close for the three-hour afternoon siesta. They don’t reopen until 5.00 p.m. for the shopping/work evening session.

My favorite restaurant is Casa Ibarra, cornering Plaza Santissima Faz and Calle Mayor on the old town’s edge. With a choice of starters and mains, the two-course menú del día at lunchtimes is a bargain $14—a bottle of house wine is included.

At night, I don’t go out to eat until 9.30 p.m. or even 10.00 p.m. Lunch is so filling, I usually opt for tapas instead of dinner. Cod or ham croquettes, green peppers and patatas bravas (fried potatoes in spicy sauce) are staples, but you’ll also encounter unusual morsels such as squid stuffed with morcilla (blood pudding).

Depending on choices and portion sizes, a couple can feast well on a tapas selection for $28—sometimes less. In most bars and restaurants, beers cost $1.40 to $2.10 and a bottle of Rioja wine is $11 to $14. There are numerous tapas bars in the modern quarter and Barrio Santa Cruz. With its little houses and flower-filled lanes huddled below the fortress, this is the city’s oldest neighborhood.

But a tapas crawl is only the start of things. By midnight, I’m usually heading to Ruta 13 or El Tributo, a couple of goth/heavy metal bars behind the Mercado Central, the covered food market.

As for the weather, the Costa Blanca climate is arguably the best in Europe. It averages 325 sunny days each year, and humidity is low.

Even on escapes, I’m drawn toward real estate agencies. Prices in Alicante have plummeted since the Spanish market went into free fall. Five years ago, you wouldn’t have got a poky beach studio for $127,589. Nowadays that buys a furnished one-bedroom (484 square feet) with sea views, five minutes from central Alicante.

Within the city, a three-bedroom apartment (968 square feet) on Avenida Salamanca is $170,215. But prices are all over the place, and much depends on a vendor’s need to sell. And $163,175 buys another 968-square-foot apartment at Virgen del Socorro, just 300 yards or so from the beach.

Long-term rentals are plentiful. A two-bedroom furnished apartment (753 square feet) close to beaches in the El Altet suburb is $567 a month. A bijou one-bedroom bungalow (484 square feet) with a small garden and shared pool in a development near Muchavista beach is $539.

See my report in the September issue of International Living for more details and contacts. You can get instant access to the online archive when you subscribe with this link.

You too could get paid for your travel stories. But maybe what’s stopping you is those nagging questions—the ones I always get asked at cocktail parties. Like:

Q: Truthfully, is it easy to get published?

A: Yes, as long as you don’t initially shoot for the stars. Most new writers make the mistake of sending full-length feature stories to the major travel glossies. Your chances of getting published are greatly increased if you concentrate on smaller publications or niche magazines that use travel stories.

Another way to break in is with short ‘postcard’ length pieces such as those in International Living. Numerous publications pay for 200-300 word snippets about restaurants, hotels, new attractions, museums, etc.

Q: Can I realistically make a living at this?

A: I do, and I live in Ireland! And if my home was in Asia or Latin America, my income would stretch a lot further. OK, you’re unlikely to get fabulously rich from travel writing, but I wouldn’t swap my life for any other.

There are many “tricks of the trade” to boost your income. No space to go into details about press trips and getting comped by hotels here, but I’m not called the Queen of the Freebies for nothing.

Q: When you’re a first-time writer, what are the easiest stories to sell?

A: Stories about your own backyard. Editors love “insider knowledge”—and it doesn’t matter if your backyard is Chicago or Ecuador. Everywhere is a travel destination to somebody. Think of how many magazines about your own region you see on newsstands. Editors are always looking for new ideas of where to go and what to do—or a fresh take on old favorites.

Q: What special equipment do you use?

A. Nothing special. Sometimes I travel with a laptop, but I usually take lots of notes and then write up stories when I get home. But I do think a camera is essential. Most editors want photos to illustrate a story—and if you can also provide the photos, you’ve made his/her job easier.

Finally, I’m always asked where I most want to go back to. Well, if you put a gun to my head I’d say Iceland, but really, it’s impossible to answer. I’ve visited so many wonderful places, it’s like trying to choose a favorite wine, book, or piece of music. Most people have limited vacation times. They need to make the difficult decision of picking a single destination, and then hope it works out. But when you’re a professional travel writer, it’s like being given a feast—you get to visit places that few holidaymakers ever do. New Zealand…Eastern Turkey…China. I doubt that I would have ever seen any of them if not for my job.

Editor’s Note: If you’d like to learn more about ways you can pay for your life or travels overseas, sign up for Fund Your Life Overseas, a free e-letter from International Living. Sign up here and we’ll send you a free report: Fund Your New Life Overseas With These 4 Portable Careers.

It has a special walnut route, and the nuts are brand-protected by an AOC appellation just like French wines. Near the chateau-topped village of Castelnaud, there’s even a museum devoted to walnut culture.

On my last visit to the area—the locals call it by its pre-Revolution name of Périgord—I visited a number of traditional markets. Two of the best are the Wednesday market at Piegut-Pluviers and medieval Sarlat-la-Canèda’s renowned Saturday market. If you confined your shopping spree to walnut products alone, you could easily fill a couple of baskets.

The Dordogne does far more with its walnuts than simply attack them with nutcrackers and stick them into a bowl. Walnut oil is for salad dressings—it adds a hint of sweetness—and it’s also used as cooking oil. There are walnut cakes, breads and crunchy macaroon-style biscuits. You can drink walnuts too: walnut wine, liqueurs, aperitifs and  digestifs. The alcoholic base for the green walnuts that get picked in mid-June is usually red wine, brandy or eau de vie.

But walnuts are only the start. Whether it’s for a week or a lifetime, shopping at a traditional market is one of France’s great pleasures.

Here in the Dordogne, country breads include crusty baguettes and pain de miel, sweetened with honey. On one butcher’s stall I saw rilletes, a potted paste of pork used as a spread. There are farm-smoked saucissons (sausages) made from sanglier (wild boar); saucissons flavored with garlic, juniper berries, herbs and much else besides.

Marinated olives—20 different varieties of them. Redcurrants and blackcurrants; honey melons, cherries and early season garriguette strawberries; artichokes and asparagus. The array of cheeses is overwhelming—almost every stall-holder offers samples. Creamy cabécou goat cheese is the Dordogne’s only AOC variety, but there are cheeses from every region. One of my own favorites is Bleu d’Auvergne, which is milder than the more famous Roquefort.

The Dordogne is also a land of ducks and geese. Some farms offer the chance to see the gavage—when ducks are forced-fed with corn to fatten their livers for foie gras (the name means “fat liver”). Animal rights organizations take a dim view of gavage, but I have no problem with it.

Curiously, it wasn’t the French who invented the idea. Ancient Egyptians force-fed geese and ducks with figs—it was the Romans who bought the idea back to Europe. If you do buy foie gras, also pick up a jar of confit d’oignons doux—sweet onion preserve—they go perfectly together.

Other duck products you’ll see at country markets include tins of confit de canard. This is chunks of duck preserved in its own fat, and it’s just as delicious as rosy slices of fresh roast duck. On the butcher’s stall, gésiers are duck gizzards. In restaurants, they’re usually served warm and delicately sliced with a salad—sometimes with smoked duck breast. Admittedly, gizzards—the muscular second stomach of a bird that grinds up indigestible foods—are something of an acquired taste. But you won’t know the taste unless you try.

Truffles are the “black diamonds” of the Dordogne. As with ceps and girondelle mushrooms, fall is when to buy them fresh. However, you’ll find preserved truffles all year ’round—a few shavings transform even a simple omelet into haute cuisine. But they are fairly expensive and in the “treat” category. At Sarlat, the cheapest price I saw for the tiniest jar of truffles was $21.

Even so, imagine being able to shop like this whenever you chose. And with some cracking village houses on the market for under $110,000, why couldn’t you? I’ll share more details from my Dordogne property finds in February at International Living’s Ultimate Event.

Editor’s note: We’re beefing up our Europe presentations like never before at the Ultimate Event 2012: France, Italy, Spain, and Ireland will all be well represented. Come with your toughest questions. We’ll have all the answers. Registration is now open.