Cards for travelers to keep in their wallet
Although you see lots of “don’t leave home without them” lists of things you need on a trip, only a few are truly essential. When you’re outfitting your wallet or purse for your upcoming trip, you need to carry no more than six cards.ATM card for cash. Don’t run the risk of carrying a lot of cash or the hassle of getting and signing endless travelers’... READ MORE
Mystical Morocco an exotic tourist mecca
From the High Atlas Mountains to the lonesome shifting sands of the Western Sahara, Morocco offers the visitor a labyrinth of stories, dreams, contrasts, mysteries and myths.But when I talk about my recent trip to this exotic country, friends often ask the same three basic questions. One: Why did you go to North Africa when there was so much turmoil there? Two: How was the food? Three:... READ MORE
Dick Van Dyke’s lucky life and funny times
Dick Van Dyke looks back and marvels.The way he sizes up his 85-and-counting years is summarized by the title of his new memoir, My Lucky Life In and Out of Show Business: dumb luck.Luckily, he had a lot of talent, too.Van Dyke writes proudly of his roles in one of television’s most beloved sitcoms (“The Dick Van Dyke Show”) as well as a classic film musical (Mary... READ MORE
NY’s Adirondacks for cool summer action
Last August, as most of the Eastern U.S. sweltered, I was experiencing the cool days and nights of the Adirondack Mountains in upstate New York, serenaded by the haunting call of the loons, which alternates between a watery yodel and a wavering tremolo.Tuberculosis patients once went to the Adirondacks “to take the cure.” Today, a few days in the Adirondacks can surely cure the... READ MORE
Living the good life in the heart of Italy
MONTE SANTA MARIA TIBERINA, Italy — As we turned off the main street onto an unpaved local road, I glimpsed a stone tower jutting up from a distant hill. It seemed impossibly high from our vantage point — were we really headed up there? Where else could this road lead? It was late May, and I was traveling with two friends to a destination wedding in the tiny town of Monte Santa Maria ... READ MORE
A natural beauty beyond words in Alaska
The most immediate, and dramatic, impression Alaska is likely to make on you comes from its sheer size. Alaska has more than twice the area of Texas, and is rimmed by more coastline than all of the other states combined. No wonder the Aleutian people named it “the Great Land.” MountMcKinley — the tallest peak in North America, at more than 20,000 feet — looms over Denali National ... READ MORE
Something different: a mystery vacation
Blindfolded, 1,500 miles from home, 70-year-old Paul White was being driven along a twisting mountain road to an unknown destination.No, it wasn’t a kidnapping, or even a mystery novel. It was a mystery vacation.From the moment White left his house in East Sandwich, Mass., until well into the 15-day vacation his wife spent two years planning, he didn’t know where he’d be... READ MORE
A trip back to rural wonders of yesteryear
The “T” intersection of two narrow roads that is the closest thing to the center of Syria, Va. (population 370) is the site of the Syria Mercantile Company. It was there that my recent journey into the countryside, as well as the past, began.Three gray-haired men rocked on the front porch dishing the local dirt. Tacked to a bulletin board beside them were hand-written notices... READ MORE
San Francisco’s Chinatown feeds the sens
Smack in the middle of San Francisco’s Chinatown, Portsmouth Square is a kaleidoscope of sounds, smells and colors. The cadence of Chinese dialects fills the air, and splashes of red and gold glow from shop windows to banners strung across the narrow streets.The rich smell of roast duck curls out of hole-in-the-wall eating places, blending with the faint smell of incense burning on... READ MORE
Palm Springs, California’s desert oasis
It is my favorite part of the show: A grand staircase appears on the middle of the stage, and among all the dazzling show lights the lovely ladies of the Fabulous Palm Springs Follies take to the stage one at a time, adorned in rhinestoned, feathered and flowered regalia. Watching Washington, D.C. native Joni Naber in her purple halo of a headdress gracefully descend the stairs with her... READ MORE
