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Olana State Historical Site Captures America’s Idyllic Nineteenth Century
After spending time with the Roosevelts in the early mid-twentieth century, the next day we drove north along the Hudson River and stepped back further in time to the mid-1800s at Olana State Historic Site.
I confess I wasn’t familiar with the Hudson River School art movement before this trip. Yet the river’s mist that envelopes the Hudson Valley’s towns, vistas, and historic places, especially in the evening or after a rainfall, evokes the dream-like landscapes created by artists of
Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum Earmarks Critical Time in American History
Some of you might be wondering, “Why would he go there? Sounds boring.” Museums that open my eyes to a greater understanding of why my world is the way it is, and manage to entertain me at the same time, capture my attention. History geek that I am, the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Museum and Library located in Hyde Park on the river’s east bank, fascinated me with its interpretive and interactive exhibits about
Storm King Art Center Embodies Monumentality
Back to the beginning of our week-long road trip that began in New York’s Hudson Valley, the Storm King Art Center set a high bar for our expectations over the next six days. Located near West Point Military Academy on the river’s west bank, this 500-acre pastoral landscape of woodlands, wildflower and native grasses…
Eye-Popping Fall Scenery Dazzles Along the Mohawk Trail
Red maples, red oaks, sugar maples, sweetgums, sassafras trees, and ashes are among the most colorful October show-offs. The 69-mile Mohawk Trail now Route 2, winds its way from the New York border in northwestern Massachusetts east to Millers Falls on the Connecticut River. Indeed, originally the trail was a major east/west footpath for the Mohawk and other Native American tribes.
A Fall Road Trip to the Hudson Valley and Berkshires Stimulates the Senses
The Valley holds substantial riches. Majestic rolling landscapes form the banks of the river. quaint towns and villages charm travelers. Stately mansions of the nineteenth and early twentieth century’s rich and famous industrialists and a former U.S. president dot the river’s east side. Historic formal and contemporary gardens exemplify horticultural excellence. Public and private collections of historic and contemporary art surprise and excite visitors.
June is Gardeners’ Most Celebrated Month
“June is bustin’ out all over!” So goes the refrain of the Rodgers and Hammerstein’s tune from the Broadway musical Carousel. For weddings, Father’s Day, high school graduations, and now the annual celebration of emancipation from slavery, June brings the most beautiful weather of the year.
A Ferry Ride to Southern Italy’s Amalfi Cathedral
Crew members secure the ferry to Amalfi’s dock and lower the gangplank. I disembark, along with my tour companions, after the 45-minute sail from the town of Positano along Southern Italy’s acclaimed Amalfi Coast. We pass the queue of tourists and locals eager to board the boat and grab our now empty seats for the continued trip farther down the coast to Salerno and beyond.
Sailing Through Isle of Capri’s Faraglioni Rocks
One of three rocks off the Isle of Capri in the Bay of Naples, the trio are faraglioni, or sea stacks, coastal and oceanic formations eroded over centuries by wind and water. Waves bored a giant hole through the center of mezzo, large enough so that modest-sized pleasure crafts can sail through safely.
A Chance Encounter in
Santiago de Cuba Rewards Me
I get up early and leave the casa particular (a Cuban version of Air B&B) in Santiago de Cuba on the island’s east end to sit in the Parque Cespedes to write in my journal. The bright sun already begins to heat up the humid mid-summer air. In a short while, three of us will embark on a weeklong cross-country road trip to Havana with our hired driver Umberto at the wheel in his late model Toyota.
Shopping in Naples: The Grand Galleria Umberto I
This city kid has never been a fan of traditional shopping malls. I like open streets lined with stores where I enter a different environment as I step through a shop’s door. A mall’s artificial atmosphere is a fake experience.
The World’s Largest Hindu Temple Outside India is in New Jersey
Gazing at its majestic monumentality, you might think you’ve been transported to Delhi, India. But this Hindu mandir (temple) is not half a world away. It’s in Central New Jersey’s Robbinsville Township, just a quick one-hour drive from my Center City Philadelphia apartment. And it’s the largest Hindu temple in the world outside India.
San Miguel de Allende: One of the World’s Best Cities?
San Miguel is one of several sixteenth century Spanish cities established in what’s called the Colonial Crescent in the Central Mexican Plateau (Altiplano mexicano) a few hundred miles northwest of Mexico City. San Miguel carries the reputation of Travel+Leisure Magazine’s 2021 designation as the Best City in the World. That could be a burdensome responsibility for a town to measure up to, but so far, San Miguel continues to wear the mantle well.
Springtime in Paris: Where to Explore, Linger, and Dine
It was practically a spur-of-the-moment decision for us. Rick and I always plan months ahead for a trip. But we were only four weeks out this time when we decided to make a pond crossing for an extra-long late-May weekend trip to Paris to celebrate our twentieth anniversary together. We booked our flights using points on credit cards and rented an Airbnb apartment. Arriving at Charles De Gaulle Airport in the morning, we purchased four days of train and Métro tickets, plus museum passes, a time saver for avoiding long lines at ticketed sites. We bought no souvenirs, ate in cafes and bistros, rode the subway, and walked our way across Paris, managing to spend surprisingly little money. And nature’s gift? Good weather followed us everywhere
5 Days in Istanbul: A Gift of Time in a Favorite City
When war broke out October 7, 2023 between Israel and Hamas, the event truncated our plans to return to Tel Aviv after an exciting four-day adventure to Jordan. The outbreak shook our “travel mojo,” and we needed to leave the region as soon as possible. Our travel company, London-based Out Of Office, contacted us immediately, and at our request booked us on a flight from Amman, Jordan to Istanbul. I’m not usually a “slow travel” kind of guy. I anticipate a full schedule of places to see, adventures out of the ordinary to enjoy, and new people to encounter along the way. I take lots of photographs and record the day’s experiences in a journal. Yet, with no itinerary other than to meet four friends for a Viking Cruise sailing from Istanbul five days later, we found ourselves with the luxury of time to spend as we wished in “the city of the world’s desire.”
Getting from Here to There: Shakedown in Colombo, Sri Lanka
Just over two years later Rick and I joined Eva and Suresh, our Indian travel pals, for a month in their home country, including a nine-day visit in the middle of the journey to the island country of Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon), located off the southern tip of the subcontinent to the east. Aware of the 30-day restriction for re-entering the country, we visited the Indian Embassy in New York City a month before our U.S. departure
Escaping Israel: The Attack Shook the World And Upended Our Trip
In October, we planned a four-night stay in the city of Jerusalem, capital of Israel and a religious center of Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. The stay included a side trip to the West Bank’s Bethlehem and Jericho. Little did we know our trip would be upended by the unimaginable.
How to Choose a Local Travel Agency
When we pack our bags and hit the trail, Rick and I enjoy traveling by ourselves, or sometimes with longtime travel buddies Eva and Suresh. A lot of preparation goes into a travel adventure long before we board the plane. On trips to destinations that are culturally more familiar, like North America and most of Europe, we do our own trip planning––what to see, how to get there, and where to sleep. In non-Western countries, private tour companies provide us with professional
Traveling to Three Medieval Spanish Towns by Train
On our two-week trip to Spain, four of us took high-speed trains to three outstanding destinations that are well worth your visit. We made a day trip to Segovia; the other two cities took us south into Moorish Andalucía––Córdoba for two nights and Seville for three nights. Each place rewarded us with eye-popping sights. High-speed, modern trains hurled us rapidly to our destinations, while we relaxed in clean cars with comfortable seats, dreamily gazing at the Iberian countryside and small towns whizzing by
Three Stunning Churches Exemplify the Byzantine Painted Monasteries of Romania
Bucovina is the home of eight fifteenth and sixteenth century UNESCO World Heritage Painted Monasteries, collectively considered one of the world’s great Byzantine art treasures. Richly colored graphic scenes of dramatic Biblical events and the holy men, angels, and demons who oversaw them decorate both their interior and exterior walls and ceilings. Priests intended these scenes, here and at all the monasteries, to scare the wits out of illiterate villagers, inspiring them to lead pious lives.
El Peñol Erupts from Colombia’s Landscape
El Peñol, a 656-foot granite rock, juts out of the earth. No ordinary rock, El Peñol, a Colombian National Monument, attracts thousands of people daily, many who climb the 708 steps for spectacular views of the region. On its top, vendors sell handicrafts, trinkets, and tee-shirts. One pays for the privilege of experiencing a panorama of the countryside with about a five-dollar admission fee at the bottom of the stairs.