The Eastern Townships: Just over the border, Canada’s Cantons-de-l’Est seem a world away
This area became a favorite summer vacation destination for wealthy American Southern aristocrats, industrialists, and large landowners who avoided New England after the Civil War. They built impressive homes, and the grandest was…
Read MoreHuntington Beach: Surf City USA
More than just a song lyric, the cool and casual California surf scene goes on, with the big waves, sandy beaches, and laid-back lifestyle of Huntington Beach –Surf City USA.
Read MoreGotland: Pearl of the Baltic Sea
We spotted the towers of Visby’s medieval cathedral as we approached Sweden’s island of Gotland. We were there to see the Old Town, a medieval Viking and Hanseatic trading post with a ring wall, towers, and moat. It is so well preserved that it seems to have come to life from a fairy tale. Today, Visby is a modern municipality and cultural center, a fusion of the best of the old and new. You can shop for innovative local goods and modern Scandinavian designs in historic buildings along winding 13th century cobbled lanes.
Read MoreMobile’s Mardi Gras: First to let the good times roll!
Did you know that Mobile, Alabama is the birthplace of Mardi Gras in North America? New Orleans may be better known today for its celebrations, but Mobile has been letting the good times roll longer and prides itself on being the largest, family-friendly street party celebration in America.
Read MoreSarasota “Circus City”, USA: Where Fine and Performing Arts are in the Center Ring
A century or so ago, nothing else compared to the sights and sounds of the grand parade when circus wagons came to town. Anticipation built for weeks, sparked by advance cars and a profusion of posters.
Read MoreRevenge of the Ravens: The Story of Einsiedeln, Switzerland
When we were in the Lake Zurich region of Switzerland we used our Swiss Pass to take the train to Einsiedeln, in the Swiss canton of Schwyz. The Benedictine Monastery Einsiedeln is the largest abbey and oldest pilgrimage site in Switzerland. It is one of the most important pilgrimage sites for the Virgin Mary in Europe.
Read MoreRostock, Germany
Rostock’s historic Old Town has been meticulously restored, and what was once the Hanseatic League’s coastal defense area , Warnemunde, is now delightful seaside resort.
Read MoreLübeck, Germany
“This is Lübeck–where you find surprising places.” our guide, Jan Kruijswijk, told us as we walked along a winding alley and peeked through one of Lübeck’s 90 or so little arches and passageways.
Read MoreHip and historic Montréal
Montréal is the largest city in Québec, the second largest city in Canada, and the second largest French-speaking city in the world. How did we make the most of four days in the city?
Read MoreHoliday in Chicago
With its world-class shopping, dining, architecture, parks, museums, performances, and special events, it would be hard to top the holiday spirit of the Jewel of the Lakes, the Gem of the Prairie– Chicago.
Read MoreA synergy of nature, culture, and cuisine: a whale of an adventure in Charlevoix, Quebec, Canada
East from Quebec City along the north shore of the St. Lawrence is the region of Charlevoix, named for Father Francois-Xavier Charlevoix, Jesuit and first historian of New France. The area was shaped 350 million years ago by a 15 billion ton meteorite that left one of the largest craters on earth, extending 56 kilometers, west from Baie-Saint-Paul to east of La Malbaie.
Read MoreArkansas’ Ozarks: head for the hills
The essence of the Natural State is found in the soaring limestone cliffs, glorious vistas, verdant forests, colossal caverns, and cool, clear waters of northern Arkansas’ Ozarks.
Read MoreHolland America’s Mediterranean
Our Western Mediterranean cruise began in Rome, center of the empire that once controlled the entire area, and sailed westward to Lisbon, capital of Portugal, whose 15th and 16th century navigators helped build an overseas empire.
Read MoreHistoric York County, Pennsylvania: Factory Tour Capital of the World
York has come a long way since the days when William Penn sent surveyor Thomas Cookson here to lay out a new town in what was then the frontier. Cookson, an Englishman from Yorkshire, named one of the main streets after his king, George, and the town after the Duchy of York. Yorktown, as it was called in the from the mid-18th to early 19th centuries, became known as The White Rose City for the symbol of the House of York.
Read MoreA week in Virginia’s Blue Ridge
The 469 mile drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway is one of America’s most scenic road trips. This mountaintop roadway provides scenic trails and vistas from Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park to Smoky Mountain National Park in North Carolina and Tennessee. It also runs through a region of cities and towns rich in historical, cultural, and culinary experiences.
Read MoreGalveston, Texas: A treasure of an island
We were on an island with gentle breezes and shimmering water, the lyrics of the 1969 Glen Campbell hit dancing in our heads. We heard the “sea winds blowing” and watched the “sea waves crashing”, and “sea birds flying in the sun” — in Galveston.
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