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maltatoday SUNDAY 31 DECEMBER 2017 37 Travel Mushrooms are a weird bunch of creatures. Okay we usually use 'creatures' for animals, and mushrooms are not animals, but hey! they are certainly not plants either. It's true that for centuries fungi were lumped with the plants but they have been found to be so different that they were eventually assigned a kingdom of their own. So what's the difference between a fungus and a underground or under the bark or whatever it's growing in. Mushrooms love humid, shady conditions, like forest floors. We don't have much forest but nonetheless we have hundreds of fungi species. Mushrooms can be tiny and inconspicuous, others larger and showy. One rare species is the strange scaly-stalked puffball (M. musmar) which looks like a large rusty nail sticking out of the ground. And yaay! a couple of these were spotted at Foresta 2000 some days ago. A great find to end the year! 590 SCALY-STALKED PUFFBALL Visit Friends of the Earth's website for more information about our work, as well as for information about how to join us. You can also support us by sending us a donation - www.foemalta.org/donate GREEN IDEA OF THE WEEK 493: BHere is a delicious recipe for orange & almond cake, just in time for some holiday baking! www.foemalta.org/fab/food/veggies/oranges/ DESTINATIONS FOR 2018 Text Victor Falzon Photo Desirée Falzon ruins in the Carthage city of Bysra or wander around the ancient Roman baths of Antonious, the largest baths outside of Rome. Archipelago Sea, Finland When tourists think Finland, they natu- rally gravitate towards Helsinki in the summer or Lapland in the winter. But Finland has 25,000 miles of shoreline with innumerable islands, all of which are worth exploring if you're looking for an off-the-beaten-path kind of holiday. The archipelago has a subarctic glamour, with eerie, sunlit summer nights and dark winter days, its rocky, tree-lined islands dotted with storybook wooden cottages. Hike, bike, or drive the islands; or hole up on one all your own. Japan Visitors to Japan have increased threefold over the last few years and are predicted to continue to rise and for pretty good reason. Though on the other side of the planet, and a little difficult to get to, travellers will find Japan as thrilling as their journey to get there is long. Tradition runs alongside mod- ern life with shrines and temples all over the country. The scenery is stunning with steaming hot springs and national parks. Travel to Tokyo for a taste of modern city life and the world's most frenzied fish market, while the Kii Peninsula, including Kyoto and Osaka offer some of Japan's most lauded attractions, just without the crowds. Three quarters of the countries landmass is covered in mountains making Japan an ideal destination for avid skiers. Salina, unlike the rest of the Aeolian Islands north of Sicily, remains largely unspoiled Built on the former capital of the Carthaginian empire, Tunis sports a long and varied cultural history that can still be seen in every facet of the city's architecture Finland has over 25,000 miles of shoreline and innumerable islands that are worth exploring What's in season - December The start of winter signals the start of the local citrus season! Savour the delicious taste of local oranges, lemons and tangerines, and ensure you get a daily dose of vitamin C to boost your immune system. Although they are now considered to be typically Maltese, citrus trees are not indigenous to our islands. Lemon trees were brought to the Mediterranean in the first century, but orange trees were only introduced later, by the Arabs in the 9th and 10th century. This year we published the AgroKatina report about the local fruit & vegetable supply chain, and the pocket guide highlighting when local fruits & veggies are in season. Find out more on www.foemalta.org/agrokatina, where you can also order a free copy of the pocket guide.