The ship rocked back and forth ever so slightly, the same rhythm a parent rocks their infant who is on the cusp of falling asleep. Rain spit, enough to speckle the window, but not enough to streak it. Over my left shoulder, I heard one man say to another “the pawn goes here” and I knew someone was learning to play chess. A raucous uproar over my right shoulder told me someone played the winning card. The group was immediately shushed by others, but it made me smile. I was Continue Reading
Traveling during the holidays
Happy New Year! How has your holiday season been? Filled with family celebrations, gifts galore, wrapping paper strewn here and there? Too much food, too many calories and too many leftovers? But that isn't everyone's holiday. It certainly isn't mine, nor my friend, Kathy's. So what did we do instead? Travel. And travel we did, creating memories that will last longer than whatever the Amazon truck might deliver. Switzerland, two weeks, criss-crossing the country by train. Wow. Every Continue Reading
Norway – as authentic as it gets
I must have missed the fine print on the travel web site. “You will be offered fish, three meals a day, for twelve consecutive days. But don’t worry, the scenery will be worth it.” You know what? They were right, on both. Kathy and I have just returned from a twelve-day trip, aboard the MS Richard With, that sails the coast of Norway. This Coastal Express Cruise (https://www.hurtigruten.com/en-us/voyages/coastal-express-roundtrip) is part ferry, part cargo ship, part no-frills cruise, Continue Reading
“Today’s rain is tomorrow’s whiskey”
If they gave awards for the country’s best, Scotland would win the following: Our Scottish holiday started with the beat of a bass drum leading a 45-member pipe band in their colorful red and black kilts in the 2023 Pipe Band World Championships. It was quite by accident that we discovered this was happening in Glasgow after we landed there for our two-day rest between the end of our Ireland tour and the beginning of our Scotland tour. But we snapped up two tickets to the Friday Continue Reading