Guggenheim Museum by night Visit the highlights in Spain’s Basque Country to enjoy the best in architecture and cultural heritage. (@IshayGovender), for The National, Aug 2018 Three weeks in the Basque Country, an autonomous region in northern Spain, where the icy waves of the Bay of Biscay meet the misty green valleys, may be [...]
More tourists are flocking to Lisbon each year As Portugal’s economy strengthens, more visitors are supporting restaurants old and new. (@IshayGovender), For Business Day, May 2018 Strewn across the Seven Hills, Lisbon’s azulejo (ceramic tile)-covered buildings stack together forming countless arches through which the famous yellow eléctricos, or trams pass, rickety over the cobblestones [...]
A road trip through Portugal’s dazzling south, for Woolworth's TASTE Magazine, April 2018. From atop of the ragged schist cliffs of Praia do Castelejo near Vila do Bispo in the western Algarve, a paraglider launches, with long strides and a short run-up. He lifts off and floats over the golden sands below, a circle of surfers [...]
Featured in Taste Magazine Ben Shewry, head chef and owner of Melbourne’s Attica is known for his thoughtful dishes incorporating Australian Aboriginal ingredients and his generosity to staff and colleagues. We caught up with him during the World’s 50 Best Restaurant Awards in the city, where Attica ranked at number 32. I decided [...]
Live band at La Negrita The cultural capital of the Yucatán peninsular, Mérida is a compact city rich in colonial history with cosmopolitan flair and has the region’s broadest span of dining options, from market stalls and mobile kiosks to glamourous dining in lavish haciendas. Mérida Food Guide, written for Fine Dining Lovers. [...]
Featured in Marie Claire Magazine Before you head to Jamaica’s Caribbean beaches, immerse yourself in Kingston – the home of Bob Marley’s reggae, rhythm and blues. Written by Ishay Govender-Ypma for Marie Claire SA magazine, August 2017. Thirty-six. Both Robert Nesta Marley’s age at death and the number of years that have passed [...]
Gilbert's Lamb Curry Traveling across South Africa, Ishay Govender-Ypma goes in search of a curry that defines the nation. Written for Fine Dining Lovers. Is there one definitive dish that South Africans love and prepare? It’s common knowledge that the country comprises a variety of cultural, ethnic and religious groups, with as [...]
Kylie Kwong, seasoned chef and TV celebrity is loved for her Australian-Chinese food and her Australia-on-a-plate approach. We caught up with her recently. Written by Ishay Govender-Ypma for Fine Dining Lovers, 15 June 2017. image: Penny Lane Sydney-based chef and restaurateur, Kylie Kwong, opened her famed Billy Kwong restaurant in 2000. Since [...]
Taste Magazine Jamaican Jerk – succulent barbequed meat - rubbed in a savoury, spicy paste and turned over fragrant hardwood coals is central to the food culture in Jamaica. Ishay Govender-Ypma takes a big bite….Written for taste magazine, October 2017. “I DON’T EAT IT, but I’ll jerk it for the people,” Nikuma Carl [...]
Based in U.S since 1988, Dominique Crenn, the only woman in the country with a two-star Michelin restaurant: Atelier Crenn in San Francisco, talks to Ishay Govender-Ypma about her home town of Brittany, France, DNA testing and calls out the BS amongst chefs. Written for Woolworths Taste Magazine, September 2017 issue. I go for it [...]
South Africa’s food capital offers wheels, wedges, and wine aplenty. Written by Ishay Govender-Ypma for Culture Cheese Magazine , July 2017. A Cheese Excursion Through Cape Town. [Note this article is written in American English] Feature in Culture Cheese Magazine For visitors and armchair travellers alike, Cape Town conjures visions of majestic Table Mountain, [...]
Elegant and trendy – Helsinki wears both well, as this harbourside capital of Finland caters to a smorgasbord of interests. Helsinki Food Guide written for Fine Dining Lovers. The culturally-curious, design and architecture nerds, snow-bunnies who seek cross-country skiing and ice–swimming, and gourmands, are amply provided for. REINDEER, SALMON & BERRIES Liisa Eskelinen, who founded Day With [...]
Kalsarikännit for SAA Sawubona magazine Pantless drinking at home – Ishay Govender-Ypma gets to grips with kalsarikännit in Finland. Written for SAA Sawubona inflight magazine, July 2017. You’ll remember this. Opening credits roll to Bridget Jones’s Diary. Renee Zellweger’s character sits on the couch in her Christmas PJs, glugging wine, staring down her [...]
This cultured dairy just might be Iceland’s most adored export.Written for Culture Cheese Magazine, for the Wheys Less Traveled column, July 2017. (This article is written in American English) skyr breakfast bowl With its coal-black volcanic rock beaches, bright blue glaciers, steaming hot springs, and thundering waterfalls, Iceland is stunning. Most of its 325,000 [...]
Wattleseeds Aboriginal cooks and chefs weigh in on the native ingredients made popular by famous restaurants in Australia. Written for Fine Dining Lovers, 1 June 2017. Rayleen Brown A Café Up North At Kungas Can Cook, a café in Alice Springs serving food like burgers, salads, ice teas, pies and brownies, [...]
Waterfront. Perth Food Guide. Perth, in Australia’s southwest, is said to be the most isolated city in the country. It’s calm and laid back with a young but growing food scene. This Perth Food Guide was written for Fine Dining Lovers, 7 June 2017. American English used. Central Bites Moana Coffee - [...]
Nostalgia, for a homeland long departed, lies at the core of the Cuban diaspora’s quest for cultural identity. Dishing out memories at the kitchen table is one way that the legacy is passed on. Written for Financial Mail Travel Magazine, May 2017 Dining on Memories of La Patria by Ishay Govender-Ypma written for Financial [...]
Following the evocative rhythms of a city in rapid flux, Ishay Govender-Ypma immerses herself in the soundtrack of Havana, looking for clues that reveal its heartbeat. Havana, Cuba's Vibey Capital. For Marie Claire SA, May 2017. Lunch Time Band THEY SAY YOU HEAR THE LIFE before you see it in Havana. Prior to my travels last November [...]
Drive the country from coast-to-coast searching for the best in street food, cheese, convent pastries and cannoli. Ishay Govender-Ypma explores Sicily on a culinary road trip. This article was written for SAA Sawubona inflight magazine, June 2017. A ghostly mist settles over Erice on Sicily’s hilly western face, once a medieval fortress town and the [...]
Green Berlin is not the future, it is happening today. Berliners are propagating the message that cramped urban cities can transform to accommodate a safer, more sustainable future. Ishay Govender-Ypma examines three projects in progressive Kreuzberg for Business Day Wanted Magazine. In 2011 former French Minister of Culture Jack Lang remarked: “Paris is always Paris, but [...]
