Harvest Sun: Where to go in October

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Though it may seem that Nature is winding down for the year in October, really she's just engaged in changing outfits...

For one thing, it's time to start indulging in the results of the harvests that take place all across Europe at this time of year. In Italy, you can catch the Slow Food Festival in Milan, the Perugia Chocolate Festival and the beginning of the white truffle season, and in France, mellow out at the Armagnac Festival or Sauveterre de Rouergue's Cider and Chestnut Festival. Grape harvests are happening everywhere, just as the vineyards turn from green to flame-red and orange; try the Loire Valley or the Germany's Mosel area. There's some fantastic mushroom-picking to be done in parts of Eastern and Northern Europe, too, and the Retour des Alpages folk festival in romantic Annecy is one of the few occasions on which cows really do get to wear flowers behind their ears.

It's also worth remembering that although there might be a little chill in the air, Mediterranean waters are still warmed through from the Summer despite the chaos of seasonal tourism being finished with (- but beware of a busy spell during school half term).

An English harvest is a worthwhile experience in itself if you know where to look – apples and pears are being converted rapidly into cider and enjoyed with cheeses and chutneys (- visit the annual Somerset Fair at lovely, rambling Hestercombe Gardens and look out for other regional events on Apple Day on 21st of the month) and annual oyster festivals are being celebrated with relish in Falmouth and Colchester.

There's no sense in waiting indoors carving pumpkins on Hallowe'en anymore, since times are apparently too scary for children to come trick-or-treating, so why not have a grown-up experience (or at least an old-fashioned one) instead and head to Chalindrey in France for their less-than-commercialised Fete des Sorcieres? Or if you're feeling inclined towards more extreme spookiness, pick one of our famous haunted spots.

Of course, if you'd prefer to avoid ghoulishness altogether, how about timing a trip to India for Buddhist temples and glorious Himalayan scenery to coincide with the magical Diwali period?

If a little peace is what you’d really like, try Hawaii or Mauritius – perfect at this time of year – or watch Summer fade out in style in New England, where the forests' Autumn colours are at their glorious peak, or in Japan, where the Momiji (maple) trees splash the green and yellow hills with blood-red against a cobalt sky.

And don't forget, if you want to be at Oktoberfest, they make an early start on the beer during the final week of September!

October favourites

	Buddhist Monuments at Sanchi Temples in Bhopal, India A story of Buddhism written in 15 centuries' worth of stone temples resides at Sanchi. Beginning in the 3rd Century BC during the Sunga period with the 'Great Stupa', an delicately-carved but massive hemispherical temple, it continues through the construction of the huge gates, covered in narrative carvings, and many other stupas and temples in diferrent, later styles. All the monuments have been carefully restored and the many artefacts discovered within have been well-preserved. The immediate area is unspoiled enough to evoke a sense of the great history of the place, consisting of nothing more than the village of Sanchi and the surrounding countryside. Review by larapiegeler Photo by UNESCO
	Darjeeling Himalayan Railway Trains in Siliguri, India Beginning in Siliguri at the foot of the mighty Himalayas, the little, blue and red Darjeeling Himalayan steam railway climbs over two thousand metres into the mountains, peaking at Ghum and finally reaching Darjeeling at 2,200 metres above sea level. It was opened in 1881 by the Eastern Bengal Railway Company in the form of a treacherous, crazy trail of loops and steep gradients, and though it was gradually improved and is now owned by the Indian Railway Company, it is still just about the most thrilling, history-infused steam train ride you could ever hope to experience. It was once used for goods as well as passengers, chugging on through years of searing heat and overwhelming monsoons, and it even transported military personnel during the Second World War, but it was awarded UNESCO World Heritage status in 1999 and now only carries passengers. You’ll see plunging gorges beneath ancient steel bridges, vast mountain panoramas, pine forests, towering rock faces, wild rhododendrons and, of course, the famous interlocking shelves of tea plantations along the way. Review by larapiegeler Photo by flickr user Joe Gratz
	Hestercombe, near Taunton Gardens in Taunton, United Kingdom This Somerset garden was designed by the famous one-two punch of Edwin Lutyens (architecture, bones of the garden) and Gertrude Jekyll (abundant color-coordinated plantings). The house, which houses the Somerset fire brigade, is not open to the public, but everyone says it isn’t worth it anyway. Yet it makes a fabulous backdrop for the Victorian terrace, which is flanked by two long stone rills. Opposite the house is the pergola walk. The sunken square formed by all these features is called the Great Plat, which is a large parterre garden broken up into geometric spaces and planted with a succession of color, from spring delphiniums to summer cannas. Noted Lutyen’s touches include the elliptical steps and the use of stone to create the spaces within the gardens — these are seen at their finest here. Enter the gardens through the Chinese gate, which has a cutout that lets you peek in, and onto the terrace, planted in lavender, catmint and other purple and silver plants. There is another garden at Hestercombe, an 18th-century landscape garden that was discovered only in the 1990s. Peter White was working nearby, and would take his lunch into the woods at Hestercombe. Gradually, he noticed remnants of the garden that had been built between 1750-1786 by Coplestone Warre Bampfylde. White was so taken with the garden, that he has been instrumental in its restoration, and is now chief executive of the Hestercombe Gardens Trust. The combination of the 18th-century landscape garden with its path through woods and carefully planned “natural” views and the Lutyens-Jekyll Edwardian garden makes Hestercombe one of the finest garden visits anywhere. Review by Marty Wingate Photo by Photography: Marty Wingate
	Oktoberfest Festivals in Munich, Germany Now a contender for the title of 'world’s largest public celebration', Munich’s Oktoberfest begins in late September, running for around 17 days to mid-October. It began as a royal wedding celebration in 1810 and is now effectively a beer festival, when local breweries conspire to brew dangerously darker, stronger fare and drench the city in joyous, drunken revelry. Regional food is also a vital component, and whole roast chickens, sausages and various indulgent Bavarian specialities are cooked freshly and sold to passers-by amongst the street carnival shows and traditionally-outfitted locals. Review by larapiegeler Photo by flickr user Taekwonweirdo
	Momiji season in Japan Parks in Osaka, Japan November is the time to enjoy the brilliant colors of the momiji (Japanese maple trees) in the forests, parks, and temple gardens throughout Japan. Kyoto's temples and surrounds are especially well known for autumn colors but there are many other areas as well. Taking a stroll or having a picnic under the blazing autumn colors is a Japanese tradition much like the similar custom of sakura viewing in spring. Review by Mike Lyvers Photo by mikelyvers
	Chillingham Castle Paranormal in North East, United Kingdom Chillingham is a fine, austere, square-edged Mediaeval Castle surrounded by idyllic woodland and beautifully-kept formal gardens. It has been owned by the Earls Grey since the 12th Century. Delve deeper and the place lives up to its name: concealed in the bowels of the castle are a dungeon decorated in prisoners' ancient carved graffiti and a torture chamber, which still contains its original iron maiden, rack, thumb screws and other nightmarish implements. The castle’s history is one of bloody deeds, momentous battles and tragic stories, it has seen many royal visitors, withstood the Northumberland border feuds and been besieged on several occasions. Possibly as a direct result of its chequered history Chillingham is now regarded as the most haunted castle in England. It boasts reports of at least six ghosts, which have attracted a great deal of media attention, plus the visitations described by Lady Tankerville, who lived there in the 1920s and believed she had seen the castle in a vision before she knew of its existence. The 'official' ghosts are described as a haunted portrait of Lady Mary Berkeley, who lingers in search of her cheating husband, the white lady of the pantry, who is said to have been poisoned, a creeping shadow in the bedroom attributed to a long-dead suicide and voices in the library. The drunken revelry of the castle guards is also allegedly re-enacted in the courtyard at night, and the bones of a small child were found in the 1920s, bricked into a thick wall said to regularly swallow up the ghost of an eerily glowing 'Blue Boy' after his nightly wanderings. It is possible to stay overnight in the tapestry-hung bed chambers, and hold functions there in the richly-decorated banquet rooms. Review by larapiegeler Photo by www.chillingham-castle.com
	Diwali Festivals in Mumbai, India Celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs and Jains, the festival of Diwali is a time to celebrate hope and the triumph of good over evil by the of lighting coloured lanterns and fireworks displays. For this reason Diwali is often called the ‘Festival of Lights.’ The festival takes place over five days, the main celebrations and the biggest fireworks displays happen on the third day. Children have school holidays and lots of families take the opportunity to spend time together. They also celebrate with big meals and giving gifts, though like Christmas, it is also a time for charity. As well as light displays there are Melas or street markets during Diwali with food, music and circus style entertainment. People wear new clothes and women paint traditional patterns on their hands with henna. Diwali is celebrated at the end of October or beginning of November. Review by World Reviewer Staff Photo by flickr user harpreet thinking
	Italian Truffles Original Gifts in Umbria, Italy Their location a mystery to our inadequate human noses, truffles grow half a metre underground in symbiosis with various trees, and can only be found with the help of specially trained dogs (since although pigs are more naturally talented in this art, they tend to render a truffle-hunt pointless by unceremoniously eating the spoils there and then). Renowned as a powerful aphrodisiac and historically only found on the tables of the very wealthy, truffles are delicately and incomparably delicious, with a heady, earthy, warm aroma. They have been revered as a culinary delicacy since the fourth century, when some of the world's finest minds surmised that their presence must be the result of lighting striking the wet ground. It is widely agreed that Italy's truffles are the world's finest, and the Urbani family have been hunting down fresh ones and making them available to enamoured, grateful food lovers since 1850. There are a number of different species, each available at a different time of year, including the Bianchetto and the Summer Truffle, but the best are the White Truffles, harvested between October and January, and the Black Winter Truffles, harvested from November to March. Black truffles have a smooth, mushroomy aroma and even, black skin, and are deep brown inside with a flush of dark purple. They are often used in pates or cooked with meat, whereas white truffles have a fresher, more pungent scent with a cream-coloured, marbled flesh and are more frequently used raw, finely shaved over buttered pasta or soup. Fresh, in-season truffles are hard to beat but the preserved kind are hardly a disappointment, and are great in all kinds of recipes. Review by larapiegeler Photo by flickr user Kjunstorm
	Mushrooms and Elks in Sweden Activity Courses in Norrland, Sweden Mushrooms can be found growing in many of the wild places of Europe – both the edible and not-so-edible varieties – and the proximity with and understanding of nature is one of the most appealing factors about hunting them. The dense, unspoiled forests of Sweden are an excellent place to begin. In Vastmanland, for example, there's a centuries-old tradition of mushrooming and an equally well-honed list of gorgeous recipes to match. With Nature Travels, you can spend a week in a mini-suite in the grounds of a restored manor house, in the middle of glorious nowhere, and explore the environment. The guided mushrooming course will set you on the right track to locating, identifying, gathering and even cooking the edible species yourself in the manor house kitchens, under the guidance of a local chef. The rest of your week can be spent elk-watching, wolf tracking, canoeing or simply enjoying the scenery at your own pace. There will also be a chance to spend the night in the forest in a traditional tent, and enjoy dinner cooked on an open fire. Review by larapiegeler Photo by flickr user (Bill and Mavis) - B&M Ph
	Salone del Gusto Festivals in Milan, Italy Bring your stretchiest pants to Milan at the end of October for this celebration of Italy’s culinary glories. Buying food and eating it are the main occupations during this five-day festival, and regular meal times are not popular. The Salone del Gusto Market is a network of interlocking lanes of market stalls, all enticingly named, beautifully laid out and in full compliance with the ‘Slow Food Manifesto’. Quality and taste are no longer the only criteria for the exhibitors; ethical production, fair trade principles and carbon footprints all matter here, and are now of just as much interest to tourists as to the professional visitors, who take the whole experience extremely seriously. Workshops, talks and tasting lessons provide an educational aspect to balance the itineraries of potential binge-eaters. The Slow Food manifesto is the principle at the heart of a number of festivals across Europe now, held at different times of year and focusing on various cultural and regional culinary themes. Review by larapiegeler Photo by flickr user Malcolm M
	Fête des Vendanges Harvests & Food Festivals in Rhone-Alps, France Although Cotes du Rhône is a popular cheap tipple, the area also produces some of France’s finest vintages and it all begins, of course, with the harvest of the grapes. To celebrate the hard work of the grape-pickers of the village Tain-l’Hermitage coming to an end, and the beginning of the creation of grand crus, you can get hands on, helping to prise the remaining grapes from their stalks. However feel free to sit back and enjoy the festivities of music, dancing and a moonlit flotilla parade through the town, which all kick off with an aperitif at 11am. There are also leisurely games of petanque (bowls), a more heated wine tasting competition and all the high point of the celebrations is the crowning of the Queen of the grape harvest. All this is accompanied by a soundtrack of slurping, chewing and the laughter of people who have been drinking wine all day. Review by Alessia Horwich Photo by flickr user batega