Travel

Note: In May 2015 I visited Albania to experience a week-long, once-every-half-decade folk festival held in the southern town of Gjirokastër.  The festival was terrific, and the journey to it held pleasant surprises aplenty.  Here’s an account of those encountered on Friday, May 8th. “Someone told me, `I guess Albania’s OK, if you want to eat roots.’ We eat more …

The Baja is truly magical, and so vastly different from the rest of the country.  However, there may come a time when you need to venture beyond the sea and desert landscape and make your way to the mainland.  Of course, you may also find yourself on the mainland and desperate to explore this unique world that so many people …

La Paz is the largest city in southern Baja and is a rich and eclectic mix of modern cosmopolitan and old town Mexico.  It is a city much like many others all over the world, but there is something unique about La Paz.  The Malecon is scattered with a plethora of coffee shops, restaurants, bars, hotels and plenty of places …

In the tidal pools of the Baja California peninsula, there are profound signs of life – more life than what can be imagined on land.  With enchanting beauties, the peninsula is located off Mexico’s northwestern coast.  The landmass divides the Gulf of California from the Pacific Ocean.  The edge of the ocean is a home to white periwinkles, prickly urchins …

We stopped in the lovely town of Mulege (pronounced moo-la-hay) for a coffee.  What started out as a much-needed coffee with the added bonus of homemade cakes and pretty decent WiFi, turned into an unscheduled two week stay.  Mulege is a quaint town situated on the east coast of Baja, at the north end of the Bay of Concepcion.  There …

We love Puerto Vallarta.  We like the area in the heart of the old city, with cobblestone streets, not the high rise hotels just south of the airport, all white and glossy, nor the new development called Nuevo Vallarta.  We stay at Los Arco’s, named for the famed monolithic rock formations out in the bay.  We return yearly because we …

Wanderlust often takes me to far flung places, yet a times, I have the throbbing desire to discover more of the good old US of A.  Recently, while visiting New Orleans, I remembered that Natchez, a mere two hours away, had always pulled at my heart strings.  It did not take long to discover the green line on the map …

I was a teacher for 32 years and my husband still works nine months a year.  We successfully raised our two kids and now we’re happy to get away from the frigid place we call home, Maine, for those impossible months of January, February, and March. (We don’t ski, snowmobile, ice skate, or even go sledding, so why are we …

Already steeped in Mexican colonial history after a stay in Guanajuato and San Miguel de Allende, we drove 27 km, away from city hustle and bustle to the iconic town of Dolores Hidalgo.  At 6500 feet altitude, the air was pristine and crisp, and the sky an unnatural blue.  Looking around as we parked in the “Jardin” or central heavily …

Not hardly, these days, if it involves commercial air travel and it’s not First Class…getting there means mostly hassle and discomfort.  Our redeye flight to Berlin was unexpectedly pleasant (a little plug here for Air Berlin – free drinks in coach! Inseat Entertainment with your own monitor and program choices, decent meals free in coach).  Our first stroke of luck. …