Home Decorators Collection

Go for European style decor and find  great products at Home Decorators Collection.

Upgrade your old deck, go for a stylish and charming European look and opt for Pegatha   32-1/4 in. x 1 in. Black Aluminum European Style Deck Railing Baluster (5-Pack) from Home Decorators Collection. Durable balusters keep their paint and shape for years to come. Plus, the metal look goes with many deck materials. A products that meets and excels your expectations. Great alternative to wood, with a good looking finish. High quality construction, full of lines and elegance will get you lots of compliments. These balusters make your deck pop when the sun hits them.

Transform  your cabinets and make them stand out, go for a sleek European look and get Dynasty Hardware   European Style 3 in. (76 mm) Satin Nickel Bar Cabinet Pull (25-Pack) from Home Decorators Collection. Very elegant design that pairs well with contemporary decor. You can also use these pulls for bathroom cabinets. Durable and smooth pulls  with a beautiful satin nickel finish. Perfect size and length for your cabinets to look fantastic. Go for a high end look to get your guests talking.

Go for a minimalist take and upgrade your doorways with CALHOME   79 in. Stainless Steel Modern European Style Sliding Door Track and Hardware Set from Home Decorators Collection. Made of high quality steel for long lasting durability. There are many styles to choose from to fit and compliment your living space. Pair with the right wood sliding door for a contemporary European style.

Go for a timeless and elegant European style and get Allied Brass  Prestige Regal Collection European Style Single Post Toilet Paper Holder in Polished Brass from Home Decorators Collection. Great construction toilet paper holder of sturdy brass. Changing a roll made easier and quicker. Go for a lifetime warranty piece that goes with your contemporary bathroom decor. Polished  brass won’t corrode.

Keep your dog safe in its containment, go European style and get a Lucky Dog   European Style 6 ft. H x 5 ft. W Kennel Gate from Home Decorators Collection. Smooth line panels, balanced coat finish and no sharp edges make it perfect for your contemporary decor. Its modular  panel system let you customize and help your dog feel comfortable

Bring in the Italian Renaissance to your patio and get Patio Living Concepts   European Park Style Four White Globe Plug-In Outdoor Black Lantern Patio from Home Decorators Collection. Find the best place in the patio and move this portable lamp around. Sturdy lantern patio is waterproof and weather-resistant. Provides great light when night falls and you can pick from two dim levels.

Go for a beautiful modern clock in a European style and opt for Uniquewise   12 in. W x 4 in. D x 25 in. H Solid Wood European style Pendulum Wall Clock from Home Decorators Collection. Great construction piece made of solid wood, gold pendulum and gold accents. Looks great placed in the kitchen in across the stove.

Fee the European style and visit Home Decorators Collection for a great collection.

Save big with Groupon’s wellness and beauty coupons

The USA is one of the most affordable western nations for many things. The cost of products and food for example, is extremely low. But unfortunately the same can’t be said of luxury services like wellness treatments, which cost a pretty penny due to the high cost of labor in the country.

That’s a blow for people who enjoy going to the spa once in a while to make themselves fresh. But wait, look at what we’ve found. Check out these wellness and beauty pages on Groupon and you’ll be surprised to see amazing discounts on a wide range of pedicures, massages, facials and more. Here’s an example of Austin spas.

austin spas

Top 7 Portuguese Culinary delights served in restaurants around Lisbon.

The bustling Portuguese capital, steeped in history and culture offers a most wonderful experience to any kind of traveller. With any such place comes also a cuisine that has had years of perfecting and therefore intricate and varied as the city itself. Whether you’re planning a trip to Lisbon any time soon or not, here are 7 local dishes that are definitely worth digging into.

Arroz de Marisco 

Shellfish from spider crab, lobster, cockles and prawns flavored with chili and a generous sprinkle of fresh coriander is tossed onto a soupy bed of rice, milder than a paella and less sticky than risotto.

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Photo: Adria Garcia 

Pasteis de Nata

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The infamous custard tarts served in every cafè in the city, are a bit of a staple delicacy enjoyed at any time of the day with an espresso or as the locals call it, bica. The Antigua Confeitaria in Bélem is said to be the most authentic, making theirs to the original recipe. Try them sprinkled with cinnamon!

Bacalhau

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Pateis de Bacalhau

Being a coastal city, Lisbon has a wide choice of fresh fish so it is a bit of a surprise that the Portuguese have a penchant for dried cod fished in far away seas. There are over 300 ways of preparing Bacalhau, the most common being small croquettes served with vegetables and mash potatoes.

Açorda

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Restaurants now do a very elaborate version of this dish compared to the original ‘poor man’s soup’ that consisted of water flavored with garlic and oil thickened with stale bread and egg. The sort of purée is covered with seafood (marisco) or served with small fillets of deep fried fish or both.

Frango à Piri Piri

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Chicken is treated to a thorough marinade before being grilled to perfection and served with chili oil or as the locals call chili: Piri-piri.

Ameijoas

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The simplicity of this favorite Portuguese dish is what makes it well, a favorite. For lovers of seafood this is a taste of heaven. Clams are briefly cooked in their own juices with a healthy serving of olive oil, plenty of crushed garlic and served with fresh coriander and lemon. So good you’d want to dunk the bread into those juices till the very last drop.

Presunto and Enchidos

Presunto is the Portuguese name for cured ham, which is usually dried in salt or smoked and then rolled in bright orange paprika powder. Enchidos refers to the wide selection of seriously spiced sausages and salamis. Give them a try or buy a few to take home.

Article sponsored by the Corinthia Hotels.

How to save money on a trip to London

The British Museum should be the core of your plans if you want to save money on a trip to London...

The British Museum should be the core of your plans if you want to save money on a trip to London…

Boasting all sorts of historic attractions of global significance, and a culture that is difficult to match elsewhere, London is certainly on the bucket lists of many travelers. Unfortunately for many these days, the capital of the United Kingdom is also a very expensive place to visit (much like the rest of Western Europe), with restaurant meals, hotels, and transport coming in as much more pricey than other destinations around the globe.

However, there are ways to save money on a trip to London so that you won’t end up on a one-way track to bankruptcy by coming here on holiday. To help you maintain the health of your bank account, here are three tips that will keep more of your cash where it belongs: in your pocket.

1) Get an oyster card

Whether it is a trip to museums, the Tower of London, or a trip to one of the most salivating food markets in the city, it is practically unavoidable that you will be depending on the Tube or the double-decker buses to get where you need to go. While public transit costs can add up quickly, getting an oyster card will mitigate this expense, as fares for this paperless payment method are discounted.

2) Rent a local loft

Prices of hotels and even hostels have you tearing your hair out? Welcome to the priciest aspect of a trip to London. While many resign themselves to biting the bullet in this respect, a better value option has emerged in recent years, as many have begun to turn their backs on pricey accommodations in favor of rental lofts.

Services like Housetrip allow you to track down an apartment that fits your tastes and your budget, while inserting you within a local neighborhood in London, rather than in some highly impersonal hotel zone. This accommodation option also allows you to cook in instead eating all your meals out, compounding the value and savings realized by staying in an apartment rather than a hotel or hostel.

3) Take full advantage of its museums

While it’s easy to fixate on all the cash that you will be forking over to eat respectable meals out and the costs of many tourist attractions, one thing that is incredible about London is the fact that many of its museums are free or charge to attend.

The best known of these is the British Museum, which is one of the world’s foremost authority on the artifacts in human history, containing over 8 million pieces in its collection from civilizations all over the world.

Others that are free or have free days also include the Natural History Museum, Science Museum, and the V&A, all of which are world class institutions in their own right.

Top Things To Know About Visiting Iceland

Learning the top things to know about visiting Iceland can always help tourists have a memorable vacation in this part of the world. Iceland is a unique country, especially given its location on the globe. This mountainous island country is practically situated between North America and Europe. Despite its close proximity to the Arctic Circle, one may be surprised to know that this country’s general climate is considerably mild compared to its Scandinavian counterparts. This is all due to the high volcanic activity in the region enabling a number of geothermal springs to thrive well. Iceland’s history began with migration. Although the Vikings are officially credited for its discovery, some scholars have debated that Irish monks arrived prior to their settlement. Until today, Iceland has been a popular destination for immigrants. The latest to arrive are usually coming from Eastern Europe or Southeast Asia.

Iceland

1. Nature: beautiful but deadly

The ecology of Iceland is one of the world’s finest ever seen by many travelers. However, one of the top things to know about visiting Iceland outdoors is that this is the part of the world where Mother Nature gets whimsically feisty. Glaciers are so tempting to explore, but they can often be the worst killers. They have a habit of crumbling when visitors least expect them. In fact, the unpredictable weather in Iceland can be very dangerous for those who have not acclimatized to its environment. Some people get sick because of the humidity and cold.

2. Where honest opinions can cause trouble

When people ask tourists “how do you find Iceland?” or “what do you think of Iceland?” they are not actually asking for honest opinions. This is one of the few things that surprised unprepared tourists and it is bad enough to cause unpleasant relationship with locals. If would be wise to stay positive when responding to this sort of question. This question is not actually posed to illicit frank responses but to counter the negative stigma caused by the recurring bad jokes about their country.

3. Don’t ever challenge their superstitions

Perhaps one of the most out-of-the-ordinary top things to know about visiting Iceland is that its locals are very adamant towards their belief of the huldofolk (invisible people). Anyone who thinks that no nation should believe in such nonsense in these modern times better keep it to themselves. This skepticism is just plain rudeness as far as the locals are concerned. People with an open mind generally do not have a problem with this kind of environment, especially those coming from countries steeped with spiritual or mythological traditions.

4. Hitchhiking is good, if you are patient

If there is one interesting about Iceland, it is the fact that this country is one of the very few around the world where hitchhiking is very safe. There is a very high percentage that drivers will be giving strangers a free ride. Outside Reykjavik, however, it takes an average of one hour of wait for every car to pass by.