Okay, 2024 might not officially be over but some of us are already planning a trip/s for 2025. In this podcast, the last for the year, travel writer Natascha Mirosch talks a little about where she visited in 2024 but also offer some suggestions of trips and destinations you might like to put on your wish list - from cruising the Amazon to a new Orient Express luxury train journey, visiting the home of the world’s most famous cartoon dog and more.

You'll find links to the places mentioned in the podcast on the ExtraVirgin Food & Travel website.

Sonya Gellert has the enviable job of being a full-time food writer.

She’s done a host of fabulous things throughout a career that's taken her from Australia to Japan, the UK and back to Australia. She's been a travel editor, restaurant reviewer, editorial food and drink writer, copywriter and recipe editor. She’s written for Table Magazine UK, Escape magazine, delicious Magazine, Vogue Living, Huffington Post and more and worked with food luminaries such as Rachel Khoo and Donna Hay.

We're going to hear about Sonya's career trajectory, what she likes to cook and eat, what makes a good recipe, her favourite cookbook and foodie travel destination, what are the most searched-for recipes and more.

Thanks to the incredible popularity of the show White Lotus, Sicily is red hot right now.

In this episode, Natascha Mirosch chats with Carmel Ruggeri, former restaurateur-turned-tour guide, who runs extremely popular tours to a part of Italy not only blessed with natural beauty, but some of the country's best regional cuisine (cannoli anyone?)

Carmel and Natascha chat about everything from the places you shouldn't miss, to the hand signs you should, never ever use, to the regional food specialities you just have to try.

Carmel tells it how it is, with humour and refreshing honesty, her love of Sicily shining through in this (very entertaining) episode.