“Be faithful to your own taste because nothing you really like is ever out of style.”  said Billy Baldwin, an American interior designer. Over the next weeks we’ll peek into the very different homes of our VIVA creative friends, to understand how lifestyle, design and individual character come together. This…

I have a number of towns I call MY TOWN. Places of great meaning, a spirit of home or a place of belonging. My towns are located in the Uk, Central Victoria in Australia and beachside in Lorne, also in Victoria.  I’ve asked  others about where they would call ”…

Hi! It’s Linda Linhart here continuing the series of articles about travels in Italy. A great response to the last article on  Loving Lucca, so thank you. Today we head to the beautiful region of Umbria and its major city, Perugia. It’s in central Italy and right next door to the…

Viva 70 brings you  a series of conversations with people doing interesting things in their later years (50- 85 plus). This week I caught up with Linda Linhart who’s just returned from spending a month in Italy. Linda tell us a little about yourself and why this trip to Lucca?…

Strolling along a café strip the other day I looked up to see a woman dressed in a 60’s style black shift dress, low leopard print heels and carrying a black straw bag. It was a hot day and her grey hair was pinned into a messy up-do. Rose gold…

I love retirement for many reasons. I have more time to play and explore my home town instead of keeping commuter hours. I also don’t have to dress conservatively in work clothes. My wardrobe has more colour and a greater variety of casual clothes. I experiment and where possible buy…

I wanted a different kind of holiday. I was 65. My funds were limited. I was travelling solo and I wanted an adventure. I decided to spend 6 weeks teaching English to high school students in Bali. I checked out volunteer organisations, signed up and headed off with an Indonesian…

I was at dinner with friends last night. It was a mixed group of some older people like myself and a lovely group of 30 somethings.  As the conversation moved along, the name Marie Kondo came up. The younger set and one of my older friends exploded into shared ecstasy…

When we think of dry gardens Mediterranean climate gardening comes to mind. Areas of low rainfall and hot, dry and long summers.  The landscapes of Greece and Southern Italy with Olive tree groves, dry dusty soil of poor quality and long stretches with little of no rain. As I sit…