“The following morning at dawn I went toward it across the sands, my eyes fastened on this, gigantic jewel, as big as a mountain, cut like a cameo, and as dainty as lace. Then nearer I approached, the greater my admiration grew, for nothing in the world could be more wonderful or more perfect.” ~Guy … Read More
In the early 1980s when Herb and I lived in Chicago, we would often spend our Friday nights after work at the Acorn On Oak. The Acorn was a wonderful old place and a bit of a Chicago institution, known for its piano player and the best burgers in the city. We would always manage … Read More
If you’re looking for tour guides in the wine regions of Bordeaux, chances are you will run across the name Dewey Markham, Jr. The expat from New York who has lived in Bordeaux for the past 23 years literally wrote the book on wine in the region. His 1855: A History of the Bordeaux Classification … Read More
San Sebastián, Spain The air was still crisp with the cool lingering temperatures of late May, but in a way it felt like summer. Our tour bus had crossed into San Sebastián, Spain, and was making its way up a winding road to Monte Igueldo, a viewing spot overlooking Concha Bay. Thick cloud cover was … Read More
“And the sun poured in like butterscotch and stuck to all my senses…” ~Joni Mitchell, Chelsea Morning If Lisbon were a color it would have to be yellow. Yellow painted buildings, yellow tiled facades, yellow trams. And that big ball of a sun that bathes the city’s old architecture in a stunning, hazy light. Add … Read More
“I see skies of blue and clouds of white, The bright blessed day, the dark sacred night. And I think to myself What a wonderful world.” ~Louis Armstrong, What A Wonderful World I took my first cruise in the summer of 1994. It was a short, three-night affair on the Viking Serenade, a long-ago ship … Read More
Our cruise on the Crystal Symphony from Hong Kong to Beijing was packed with famous and fascinating places – a trip of a lifetime, as people often say. The final stop before disembarking in Beijing, however, was a bit of a mystery. Dalian, China – a financial center and seaport in northeastern Liaoning Province and … Read More
“Everything had changed suddenly-the tone, the moral climate; you didn’t know what to think, whom to listen to. As if all your life you had been led by the hand like a small child and suddenly you were on your own, you had to learn to walk by yourself.” ~Boris Pasternak, Doctor Zhivago All of … Read More