Louisiana: Cajun Country, Crawdaddies & the Canada Connection

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  Louisiana and the Canada Connection   Louisiana: there is a strong connection between Louisiana and Canada. A good number of people in the Louisiana area came from Canada! We recalled learning this in history at school, but had completely forgotten about it, or at least I did.   French-speakers… Continue reading

Paraguay: Pride of the Guarani

[mapsmarker marker=”1″] We left Iguazu Falls on a high of blustering waterfalls surrounding us in a circle of thundering water, but we forgot to tell you about our excursion to Paraguay.   We booked a catamaran boat excursion down the Iguazu and Parana Rivers into Paraguay.   The Iguazu and… Continue reading

House Sit: Cleaning The Chicken Coop

Today we cleaned out the chicken coop at our house sit in Clairac, France. Yup! Easy Peasy.  Only problem was that fat Old Momma Chicken would not move. She’s nesting again! So we had to work around “Ms. Precious”.   The other 3 chickens had already been let out in… Continue reading

The End of That Little Road

I wonder what is at the end of that little road?! That question lead us to find some amazing places that tourists seldom get to see.  All the way through New Zealand, we slid off the main highway to see what was at the end of “that little road”.  … Continue reading

With My Eyes Closed

  “Want to go to Argentina?” I said to my friend D. “What? Argentina? Hmm… I don’t know… how long?” “Just a month. There is a great price out of LA.” “A month! I can’t get that much time off work.” “Are you sure? Have you asked?” “No. Ok, I’ll… Continue reading

Falling Down the Castle Stairs in Ireland

 [spacer height=”20px”] What a thrill it was going to be to actually stay in a real castle! We were excited. [spacer height=”20px”] [spacer height=”20px”] After spending a few days in Limerick and driving out to see the Cliffs of Moher, we were on our way to our first castle –… Continue reading

Shrimp Heads, Goose Feet and Szechuan Chicken

  The food in Beijing, China was absolutely nothing like any Chinese food I have eaten in North America or anywhere in the world, for that matter.   Because they were business dinners, we had fairly formal dinners in the better restaurants. All of the dinners were served on large round… Continue reading

CUBA: Let’s Do The Time Warp Again… It’s A Jump To The Left…

  If you have ever wanted to go back to the 1950’s, you can easily do it in Havana, or anywhere in Cuba (with the exception of the tourist resorts).   It’s fun to actually feel the Cuba time warp. For us, it was like going back to our childhoods…. Continue reading

Searching For Crocodiles By Flashlight In The Amazon

  Well, I have done some crazy things in the past, but this one about tops them all.   On a pitch-black night, in the middle of the Amazon Jungle, in Ecuador, we canoed on a swamp searching for crocodiles by flashlight, with a 12-year-old native Quechua Indian navigating.   We… Continue reading

History Is Boring

History Repeats Itself. Which May Explain Why It's So Boring.

  Some people find history fascinating; others find it completely boring. I used to be the latter, finding all those dates absolutely meaningless (stop scowling). Random dates and events seemed like completely useless knowledge. I wanted to know what was happening today! Not 500 years ago.     In high… Continue reading

Borneo River Safari: Gigantic Butterflies and Tree-Climbing Crocodiles

  Gigantic Butterfly   Relaxing on the deck before our Borneo River Safari, something moved beside my chair. I looked, and made a small gasp. There was a huge creature fluttering on our patio window a foot away from me! I stood up, stepped back… and took a closer look…. Continue reading

I Wish You Would Write About…

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  Recently, someone said to us, “I wish you would write about….”, and it occurred to us that we have never actually asked our loyal readers exactly what travel information they wish we would write about!    So this is your opportunity to say what you are thinking.   Don’t… Continue reading

A People Study in Aix (or Classic French Style)

  Aix is an elegant city with extremely well-dressed people, cobblestone streets, book stores, parks, gardens, and it has the beautiful Fountain la Rotunde at the end of the Cours Mirabeau, often compared to the Champs-Elysees street in Paris. There is a cultural air in Aix, and a hint of snobbishness.  … Continue reading

Belize, A Bit Of A Disappointment

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  Belize is a tiny Central American country on the Caribbean side, so that usually means amazing turquoise waters, white sand beaches, and Spanish-speaking people. Because I have wanted to go to Belize for about 10 years, I could hardly wait, but to be honest, it was a tremendous disappointment.  … Continue reading

The Golf Cart Pole Dance (and Other Golf Cart Disasters)

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  The day after we arrived at Isla Mujeres (Island of Women), a tiny island off the coast of Mexico near Cancun, we were all set to enjoy a lovely afternoon at the gorgeous North Beach, when the rain started. A downpour filled the streets to overflowing within a short time,… Continue reading

Trieste: Full of Surprises

  The trip from Venice to Trieste by train follows the curved coast of Italy and has some spectacular views of the towns dotting the hilly green coast and the Adriatic Sea.   We met the sweetest couple on the train. A Chinese couple that helped us with our luggage,… Continue reading

Panama: Crossing The Most Dangerous Bridge In The World

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  Our helpful Panamanian friends in Tonosi had recommended that the best way to get to the paradise San Blas Islands of Bocas Del Toro on the Caribbean side of Panama, was to take the new highway across the mountains of the Palo Seco Reserve.    Lucky To Be Alive  … Continue reading

Ireland: What You Need To Know

  The first thing you need to know if you’re driving around Ireland is that there are no traffic lights. That’s right, no traffic lights. Instead, there are 50 million roundabouts.  [spacer height=”20px”] On arrival the ten or more roundabouts just to get out of Shannon airport caused us great… Continue reading

Where On Earth Is The Kingdom of Tonga?

  Ever since taking an anthropology class at university, and reading about the Kingdom of Tonga, I had longed to go there.  Kingdom of Tonga   Anthropology of the Kingdom of Tonga   Reading that the bigger you are in Tonga, the more prestige you have, shocked me. There was… Continue reading

Driving On The LEFT

  “Now why in God’s creation would you take yourself ever go to Ireland if yer didn’t havta? The weather is bloody miserable! For God’s sake, it rains all the frickin’ time. Are you daft man? And the wind’ll go right through ya… give yer head a wee shake.” T’s solidly Irish… Continue reading