Sunnylands and the Sunny Land of Palm Springs

Sunnylands and the Sunny Land of Palm Springs

A return to the fabled desert city of Palm Springs, CA, was on our radar after our terrific inaugural visit there last fall; we just had not anticipated that another trip would occur so soon. But fate intervened six monthsRead more

Paying Respects at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum

Paying Respects at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum

Bill’s and my visit to the imposing National September 11 Memorial and Museum during a recent trip to New York City was a potent reminder that the horrific events which occurred that day in 2001 bore such monumental significance that they becameRead more

Palm Springs: Mid-Century Modern Mecca, Hollywood Hangout and More

Palm Springs: Mid-Century Modern Mecca, Hollywood Hangout and More

Some of my favorite Frank Sinatra songs – “Come Fly With Me,” “The Way You Look Tonight,” and “In The Wee Small Hours of the Morning” played in my head as Bill and I were driving two hours east fromRead more

Carolina Raptor Center is for the Birds

Carolina Raptor Center is for the Birds

I’ve always thought of birds as the ultimate travelers, gracefully able to fly where, when and how they want. While I’ve admired birds from afar, I hadn’t spent much concerted effort learning about them. A couple of my travels haveRead more

Normandy, D-Day, and Remembrance

Normandy, D-Day, and Remembrance

“D-Day, June 6, 1944, was a day without precedent,” said our guide, Stuart Robertson of Normandy Battle Tours. We were on the Normandy coast of France, the region that was the site of the D-Day invasion and the subsequent 11-week-longRead more

Versailles — The Ultimate Royal Residence

Versailles — The Ultimate Royal Residence

It’s good to be king. Surely that thought occurred to King Louis XIV of France in 1682 when he moved his family and the seat of the country’s government to the Chateau de Versailles, the extravagant and majestic 2,300-room palaceRead more

First Impressions of Paris

First Impressions of Paris

“We’ll always have Paris.” That’s my favorite line from my favorite movie – Casablanca. Rick sure knew what he was talking about when he said his final goodbye to Ilsa. You change and your circumstances change, but Paris stays withRead more

The Secret Bunker Where Churchill Battled World War II

The Secret Bunker Where Churchill Battled World War II

The year was 1938. The times in London were tense and uncertain as Adolph Hitler threatened mass war in Europe. As a safeguard against sudden and unexpected air attack, the British government decided to establish a central emergency working refugeRead more

Help! We’re Imprisoned In The Tower of London!

Help! We’re Imprisoned In The Tower of London!

Under the gleam of the full moon, Bill, Ann and I were locked inside the Tower of London. Literally. Locked up in the formidable stone-walled complex on the bank of the Thames River that has served as a fortress, palaceRead more

A Panoramic Look at London

A Panoramic Look at London

London and Paris are two of Bill’s and my favorite destinations. How could they not be? Both cities are uniquely beautiful and enchanting, and have much in common: they  exude a vibrancy that belies their ages, revere their storied histories,Read more