She left Vegas to live on a ‘Blue Zone’ island where people live past 100 years old

A New Life on Sardinia’s San Pietro Island

Sandego.net – In 2023, a trip to judge a tuna festival took food critic Debra Coltune far from the fast-moving rhythm of Las Vegas and toward an unexpected future on San Pietro, a small island off southwestern Sardinia in Italy.

Home to fewer than 6,000 residents, San Pietro offered Coltune a sharply different daily setting from the Nevada city where she had spent more than a decade trying to keep pace with constant demands. What began as a professional visit quickly became something more personal.

The island fills me with such joy.

Within a year of her first visit, Coltune had moved to San Pietro with her children, Aiden and Kaiya, as well as the family’s two dogs. Her move reflects the powerful appeal of places where life appears shaped less by relentless schedules and more by community, landscape and long-established food traditions.

Food, longevity and island life

Coltune arrived to assess tuna dishes, but Sardinia’s culinary identity reaches well beyond seafood. The region is widely associated with a largely plant-focused eating pattern, and Sardinia is one of the world’s five recognized Blue Zones—areas noted for unusually high numbers of people who live beyond 100 years.

That designation has made Sardinia a point of interest for travelers curious about longevity, food culture and slower forms of living. A diet centered on plants is only one part of the wider picture, but it remains an important element of the island’s traditional approach to meals.

For Coltune, the attraction was emotional as well as culinary. After years in Las Vegas, San Pietro represented a place where she felt a deeper sense of happiness. Her experience shows how travel can sometimes lead beyond a brief escape, opening the door to a complete change in where—and how—a family lives.

Other Islands That Inspire a Sense of Belonging

San Pietro is not the only island to leave a lasting impression on a visitor. Actor Billy Porter found his own dream destination while working overseas on a cruise ship in Greece.

Porter later returned to Mykonos for the series “My Happy Place,” revisiting the bright Greek island where he discovered both freedom and a feeling of belonging. For some travelers, an island’s influence comes from beaches and sunshine; for others, it is the chance to see themselves differently in a new environment.

Long-Distance Trails Beyond the Familiar Routes

Travelers drawn to wilderness have new reasons to look beyond the world’s most famous trekking destinations. In Kyrgyzstan, the Ak-Suu Transverse trail crosses the dramatic Mountains of Heaven on a 70-mile route that has become more accessible through a network of nomadic tents.

The arrangement lets hikers travel from yurt to yurt with only a day pack, rather than carrying several days’ worth of shelter, clothing and food. Previously, the route was largely the domain of highly committed climbers prepared to haul heavy loads through the Central Asian landscape.

That change makes the scenery available to a wider range of walkers while preserving the demanding nature of the journey. The route remains an expedition through remote terrain, but its new support system offers a different way to experience Kyrgyzstan’s mountain wilderness.

Europe’s Peaks of the Balkans provides another ambitious option. This 120-mile trail runs through Montenegro, Albania and Kosovo, crossing the Accursed Mountains. It is challenging, yet hikers who take it on during warmer months can encounter high limestone summits, glacial lakes, fields of wildflowers and humid cloud forests.

Both trails reward travelers willing to trade convenience for immersion. They also demonstrate that some of the most memorable hikes are found on routes where culture, borders and landscapes meet.

Heat Is Changing the Taste of France

Extreme summer heat has also been reshaping parts of France’s celebrated food and wine landscape. In the Champagne region, grapes ripened so rapidly that producers recorded their earliest harvest ever.

Earlier ripening brought a second consequence: sweeter grapes can produce more alcohol. Regulators have eased Champagne rules to accommodate the higher alcohol levels linked to the unusually hot conditions.

The effects of drought have extended beyond vineyards. Dry periods damaged the pastures where dairy cows would normally feed on grass, prompting farmers to add more supplemental feed to the animals’ diets.

That shift can alter cheese characteristics. Grass-fed cows generally produce milk associated with softer, yellower and more aromatic cheeses. When grass becomes less available, cheeses may become paler and less expressive in flavor. The changes offer a vivid reminder that climate conditions can affect familiar foods long before they reach a table.

How to Choose a Restaurant—and Other Unusual Travel Experiences

Chef, restaurateur and cultural commentator David Chang has shared practical signals worth noticing when selecting a restaurant. The people dining there, the menu itself and the person making the recommendation can all provide useful clues about whether a meal may be worthwhile.

Elsewhere, travel experiences ranged from a demanding cave ordeal following a devastating diagnosis to a visit to Hong Kong’s Museum of Disgusting Food, where visitors sample deliberately challenging fare. One participant described the reaction in stark terms:

I felt like I almost blacked out.

There were also repeat rides down one of Europe’s tallest waterslides, along with stories involving a heroic pilot, a panda delivery and a fashion spectacle. Together, they underline travel’s broad appeal: it can mean rebuilding a life on a quiet Mediterranean island, crossing mountain borders on foot, tasting the consequences of a changing climate—or simply agreeing to try something strange.