Q: My daughter says that she doesn’t want to eat meat. Is it OK for her to follow a vegetarian diet? A: Your daughter is beginning to make some of her lifestyle choices based on a wider view of the world rather than being driven solely by her own needs and wants. Talk this idea … Read more

Your growing toddler no longer needs to rely on his “baby” milk for the nutrients that his varied diet now offers, but he may still enjoy the comfort of regular feeds. Breastfeeding can continue for as long as you feel comfortable. Full weaning can be a slow process, and it’s best to go at your … Read more

As your toddler begins to exert her authority in all areas of her life, she will soon catch on to the idea that food is an emotive issue, and that she’ll get a good reaction if she refuses some foods, and demands others. Most toddlers experience periods of fussy eating; remain calm, and continue to … Read more

Multivitamins? The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends vitamin drops for all under-twos . It’s a good idea to continue to give your child a multivitamin and mineral tablet if he is a fussy eater, as it will contain a little of all of the nutrients he needs for growth and development. “Drops” may be your … Read more

Funny-face Hamburgers Your own yummy burgers will be better than any fast food, and you and your children can have lots of fun decorating the burgers with silly faces. Or, serve the burgers more traditionally in buns. 15 minutes 6–10 minutes, plus pasta cooking NOTE 4 child portions 1 tbsp olive oil 1 large shallot, … Read more

Madrid’s fabulous Royal Palace, inspired by Bernini’s designs for the Louvre in Paris, is one of Europe’s outstanding architectural monuments. More than half of the state apartments are open to the public, each sumptuously decorated with silk wall hangings, frescoes and gilded stucco, and crammed with priceless objects d’art. The palace’s setting is equally breathtaking. … Read more

Art Treasures in the Palacio Real Palacio Real Floorplan Stradivarius Violins The priceless “Palace Quartet” (two violins, a viola and violoncello) was made in the 18th century by the world-famous luthier, Antonio Stradivari. Vertumnus and Pomona Tapestries These exquisite tapestries in the Gala Dining Room were made in Brussels by Willem Pannemaker in the mid-16th … Read more

The world’s oldest museum has no fewer than 6 million items spanning 1.8 million years of world civilization. The collection was started with the bequest of a physician and antiquarian, Sir Hans Sloane, in 1753. In the 18th and 19th centuries travellers and emissaries, such as Captain James Cook, Lord Elgin, Lord Curzon and Charles … Read more

British Museum Collections Classical colonnade, British Museum Floorplan Middle East Some 6,000 years of history start with the spectacular carved reliefs from the Assyrian palace of Nineveh. Ancient Egyptian and Sudanese Mummies and sarcophagi are among 70,000 objects in one of the world’s greatest collections. Greek and Roman Antiquities Highlights from the Classical world (c.3000 … Read more

You’ll have an easier time seasoning dishes if you understand the five primary tastes the tongue can detect, as well as how it responds to “other” things (for example, the chemicals that give hot peppers their kick, carbonated drinks their effervescence, and peppermint candies their cooling sensation). When cooking, regardless of the recipe and technique, … Read more

3. Sour Sour tastes are caused by acids in foods. The sensation of sourness is detected by part of the taste bud (ion channels) interacting with the hydrogen ions in the acids. Quite literally, your sour taste buds are a primitive chemical pH tester. In cooking, lemon juice and vinegar are commonly used to make … Read more

6. Others In addition to the primary sensations of taste, our taste buds also respond to oral irritation brought about by hot peppers (typically from the chemical capsaicin), cooling sensations (typically menthol from plants like peppermint), and carbonation. The reaction to hot peppers is governed by a neurotransmitter called substance P (P is for pain

Virginia Utermohlen on Taste Sensitivity Virginia Utermohlen is an associate professor of nutritional sciences at Cornell University, where she studies individual differences in taste and smell sensitivity and how those differences relate to our personality and ability to perform. Do different people taste things differently? Yes, there are genetic variations all over the place. We … Read more

As with most of the world’s wonders, many said that the Golden Gate Bridge could never be built – the span was too wide, the ocean too powerful and deep, and the cost too great. But to many more, the Golden Gate, the name John Fremont gave the splendid strait in 1844 , demanded the … Read more

It’s impossible not to love these sturdy little vestiges of another age, as they valiantly make their merry yet determined way up the city’s precipitous hills. Yet these San Francisco icons came perilously close to being completely scrapped in 1947, when a “progressive” mayor announced it was time for buses to take their place. An … Read more

The Vatican is the world’s smallest nation, covering just 50 ha (120 acres), and is a theocracy of just over 550 citizens, headed by the Pope, but its sightseeing complex is beyond compare. Within its wall are the ornate St Peter’s Basilica (see Features of St Peter’s Basilica), the astonishing Sistine Chapel (see Sistine Chapel … Read more

Sistine Chapel Works Plan of the Sistine Chapel Adam and Eve God imparts the spark of life to Adam in one of western art’s most famous scenes, then pulls Eve from Adam’s rib. Creation God separates darkness from light, water from land and creates the Sun and Moon. Michelangelo veers towards blasphemy by depicting God’s … Read more

Features of St Peter’s Basilica Plan of St Peter’s Basilica Pietà Michelangelo carved this masterpiece  in 1499 at the age of 25. It is at once graceful and mournful, stately and ethereal. It has been protected by glass since 1972, when a man screaming “I am Jesus Christ!” attacked it with a hammer, damaging the … Read more

In many ways the task of helping your toddler to manage her behavior should become easier during year 3–4. Now that she has more ability to understand and reason, you will be able to explain, rather than simply state, that she should or shouldn’t behave in a certain way. “Jamie feared ‘the monster’ who lived … Read more

Behavior and consequences The previous sections have explained the principles of “praise good behavior; ignore bad behavior.” This section introduces “time out” as a more extreme form of “ignoring.” It should only be used occasionally, but can be extremely effective. Remember, also, to keep an eye on the A,B,C, of your child’s behavior. Look at … Read more