I had mixed feelings about visiting Hiroshima and initially decided not to. I know a lot about the atomic bomb attacks on Japan. Back in the early 90s, I attended a three-week intensive workshop for teachers about nuclear issues. I learned about the science of the various kinds of nuclear weapons, the mathematics of radiation…
Nikko, Japan, nestled in the mountains north of Tokyo, is a small town, but is home to an incomparable assemblage of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Sprinkled around a national park forest above Nikko town is a collection of Shinto and Buddhist shrines and mausoleums that are breathtaking in their beauty and workmanship. Most of them date to…
Much of the time that I was in Japan I felt like a bumbling fool, and shoes were a big part of it. The Japanese have a lot of rules regarding footwear. Basically, you are expected to go barefoot in Japan pretty much anywhere inside. That was more difficult for me than you’d think. Disclosure:…
When my new friend and fellow blogger, Betsy Wuebker, posted about her visit to Pulau Ubin, near Singapore, it couldn’t have come at a better moment. I was on my way to Hong Kong but had just heard from my foster daughter, Krislyn, who lives in Singapore now. It turned out she couldn’t come visit…
My less-than-a-week in Hong Kong was a stimulating, perhaps over-stimulating, series of strong impressions. Here are some of the strongest ones: Housing in Hong Kong I booked an Airbnb room for my trip to Hong Kong, so I stayed in a residential neighborhood of Kowloon: the section of the city across the bay from central…
Hong Kong isn’t just one island; it’s a collection of islands and a piece of the mainland. I already posted about two destinations on Lantau Island: the Big Buddha and Tai O. The other island I managed to visit (besides Hong Kong Island itself) was Lamma Island. Lamma Island is the third largest island of…
People who go to Lantau Island in Hong Kong usually go for one of two reasons: to use the airport, or to visit the Big Buddha. But there’s another, somewhat less-visited tourist destination on the island: Tai O village. Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you click on an affiliate link and make a…
Stepping off the bus onto a concrete plaza on Lantau Island, I followed the signs reading “Big Buddha.” A distance of about a city block down a paved walkway, very wide, and edged with neatly-kept landscaping, was another plaza: a big circle. Signs pointed the way toward the Po Lin Monastery, the cable car, and,…
Victoria Peak, the mountain that looms over the skyscrapers of Hong Kong, is one of Hong Kong’s top tourist attractions. Although I usually prefer the more off-the-beaten-path destinations, I couldn’t resist going up there. I’d been there before and enjoyed the views. The ride up Victoria Peak While you could take the bus (cheaper) or…
On my recent visit to Hong Kong, I went to Hong Kong Park because my Lonely Planet guide mentioned an aviary that sounded worthwhile, and, since I was in central Hong Kong anyway, I thought I’d go check it out. It turned out that Hong Kong Park is a destination in itself, with an oddly…
How do you choose your accommodations when you travel? You probably take several things into consideration: cost, quality of the hotel, and location probably top the list. If you’re like me, you try to balance the three. I want the best quality possible within the amount I can spend. Often, though, I find that a…
As you know, I attended the TBEX travel bloggers’ conference in Lloret del Mar recently. While I was there, I was fortunate to be able to take a walking tour of Gothic Barcelona offered by Context Travel. They operate walking tours in more than 36 cities, “the world’s cultural capitals,” around the world. Context Travel’s unique selling…
On my last day in Guadeloupe, I stumbled upon a special little museum. I was on my way to the easternmost tip of Grande-Terre, the eastern “wing” of the butterfly that makes up Guadeloupe’s main island. Called Pointe des Chateaux, it’s a windblown, craggy place. On the way, I noticed a brightly-colored building, only catching…
If you’re an American of a certain age, as I am, the name Aeroflot will conjure certain images. Aeroflot was the airline of the “commies,” and it was considered one of the worst airlines in the world. We Americans didn’t fly Aeroflot. Partly because we didn’t, in general, visit the Soviet Union. They were the…
If you like Salvador Dalí’s art—even if you’re not such a fan of his work—the Gala Dali Castle in Púbol, Spain, is something you should not miss. This is not a Dalí museum. Dalí bought the building, a medieval castle, as a gift for his wife and muse, Elena Ivanovna Diakonova, who was called simply Gala….
I’m not much of a gambler, but my husband would gladly tell you a story about having to drag me away from the low-stakes slot machines at Lake Tahoe. I insist that my reluctance to leave had more to do with the generous free drinks I received than the slots themselves. Note: I originally wrote…
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…
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…
My trip to the Caribbean last month was my first solo trip. When I talk about solo travel, I’m not talking about when I fly somewhere to lead a workshop and then have a day free to explore whatever city I find myself in. I’m not talking about when I go somewhere to visit friends…
I explained in an earlier post why I chose Guadeloupe for my sabbatical travels, but apart from that decision, I didn’t know much about the place. I knew that it was French: not just that it’s a former French colony but that it’s still part of France. They even use the euro as their currency. I…
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…
(Nederlands versie beneden!) When I told people I was going to Lloret de Mar for the last week of my one-month solo trip (Guadeloupe, Martinique, New York, Lloret de Mar), the usual reaction was something along the line of “Lloret de Mar? But why?” Lloret de Mar has a reputation as a party city, along…
Approaching Fort-de-France, the capital of Martinique, by ferry, the most prominent feature of the harbor is the imposing collection of walls and buildings that make up Fort St. Louis, a 17th century naval base. (Zie Nederlands versie beneden.) Fort St. Louis is still a French naval base today; Martinique is still an overseas territory of…
Before my recent solo trip, I posted about my plans to travel with just one small 35-liter suitcase. It was a convertible one: it had wheels, but could also be used as a backpack. I chose what I brought along very carefully, and it all fit into that 35-liter bag, except for a small daypack holding…
As of today, my husband and I have been married for 25 years. When people hear how long we’ve been married, I get one of two possible responses: “Congratulations! We’re coming up on (fill in a number of years).” “Wow! How do you do it?” This post is directed at the second group, who wonder how…
Sometimes an ordinary activity you’d do on any vacation can turn into something special. On my recent trip in the Caribbean, I took two snorkeling trips …
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…
There’s not much left to show that the Arawaks ever lived on Guadeloupe. And it’s not completely clear what happened to them. One story is that they were all wiped out by the Caribs, who arrived in the 15th century. Another story is that they coexisted with the Caribs, but not for long, since Columbus…
The puddle-jumper Traveling from Martinique to the US involved three separate flights for me, and the first of these was on a Liat Airlines “puddle-jumper.” First, a 15-minute jump from Martinique to St. Lucia, then a half-hour jump to Barbados. If you know me, you know that fear of flying is an ongoing issue for…
I had two experiences recently that made me all the happier that Airbnb exists. Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links. If you click on one of them and make a purchase, I’ll receive a small commission. This will not affect your price. 1. A vision of paradise When my Airbnb host in Guadeloupe, Thierry, offered to…
I posted before about Guadeloupe’s quirky banana museum. Well, that wasn’t the only quirky museum I found there. The Musée du Rhum, or Rum Museum, is another one of those small museums filled with odd, disconnected collections of objects. But first, a disclosure: I was given free admission (normally 6 euros) in exchange for writing this…
As you might have guessed from my description of walking to Le Carbet waterfall #2, I’m not much for walking or hiking. It’s not that I don’t enjoy a pretty view or like to catch sight of a colorful bird or picturesque waterfall. I do. It’s just that I’m terribly out of shape, and that’s…