I like parks as much as the next person, but when I travel they’re not high on my list. I might pass through a park on the way to something else I want to see, or I might do a bit of people-watching in a park long enough to eat a sandwich, but that’s about…
Watersports in Marina del Rey, California
If you’ve read my blog at all, you know I tend to go for the more off-the-beaten-path, lesser-known destinations when I travel. Even when I go to a relatively popular place, like, for example, Romania, I seek out sights that the tourists don’t visit, like the painted churches of Moldavia. Or, visiting South Korea, I…
2 historic homes in New York City
If you’re on a budget in New York City and want to visit historic homes, the Theodore Roosevelt Birthplace Museum is an obvious choice. After that visit, I ended up also checking out the Merchant’s House Museum. These two historic homes in New York City both lend some insight into the lives of the 19th…
The Jane Hotel: Nautical Flair
When I entered the lobby and spotted the stuffed peacocks on the wall, mounted vertically with their faded tail feathers dangling, I knew the Jane Hotel wasn’t a run-of-the-mill hotel. I had suspected it already when I booked the room. First of all, it was suspiciously cheap for New York City—I paid $115 a night—yet…
Two pearls of the California mission system: Carmel Mission and Mission Dolores
We often forget that California history goes further back than the “49-ers,” the gold prospectors who hurried to California once gold was discovered in 1848. Carmel Mission and Mission Delores in Northern California are two pearls of the California mission system that arrived long before the Gold Rush. Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If…
Haight-Ashbury walking tour: A nostalgic trip
Back in the 1990’s, I lived in San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury neighborhood, the birthplace of the hippie movement and the epicenter of the Summer of Love. When my daughter was born in 1992, I decided not to go back to work right away. Paying for childcare would have cost much of my take-home pay, so it…
A walk along the Embarcadero, San Francisco, being a tourist
Pier 39, Fisherman’s Wharf, the Ghirardelli Chocolate Factory, views of the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz: these are typical tourist destinations in San Francisco. Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you click on one and make a purchase, I will receive a small commission. This will not affect your price. Those of us who…
A weekend trip from San Francisco into the Sierra
Here’s an idea for a weekend trip from San Francisco that my daughter and I enjoyed very much. We really skimmed the surface of each place where we stopped; you could easily make it a week-long trip. Nevertheless, it felt like a real San Francisco getaway road-trip: the freedom to travel where we wanted, stopping…