Travel
A sleepy Austrian spa town where WWI began: Bad Ischl
On a trip last summer through Austria, while driving through Upper Austria (Oberösterreich) when we passed near Bad Ischl and decided to stop and stretch our legs. Bad Ischl was well-known among court society in the past centuries. the saltwater springs located here were discovered back in the 16th century, but it only became a…
Read MoreRelaxing in Ubud’s Lotus Cafe, Bali
The town of Ubud, in the center of Bali, Indonesia, is a relaxing place to visit. My sons and I had fun exploring when we were here for a holiday and made Ubud our base for some days. One place we stopped off at a few times in our wanderings around town was the pretty Lotus…
Read MoreDubai’s ‘Venice’
Madinat Jumeirah is the so-called Venice of the Dubai. We were here on our 24-whirlwind race around the Dubai during a short stop-over on a flight to the Maldives. If you’re in the Dubai, it’s worth getting to Madinat Jumeirah for a short wander. We stopped here on our quest to see everything of interest…
Read MoreMedieval architecture and beer in Freistadt, Austria
Freistadt is located in the Austrian Region of Upper Austria (Oberösterreich), the is the largest town of the Mühlviertel region. This used to be one of the last border fortresses on the route leading to Bohemia. Today, it’s just a few kilometers from the border of the Czech Republic. Freistadt has impressive medieval architecture, including…
Read MoreA spring day in seaside Sperlonga, Italy
During the Easter weekend, my kids and I had a perfect day in the beautiful beach town of Sperlonga, Italy. I’ve already written about this pretty little beach town on teh Tirrenian Sea, half-way between Rome and Naples. See my earlier post about the resort town once the favorite of Emperors. But my day-long escape…
Read MoreThermal Tuscany – San Filippo ai bagni
Tuscany, Italy, is a pretty nice travel destination. Every time I go to the Tuscan countryside, I find myself fantasizing about moving to some old, Tuscan farmhouse and spending my time in that peaceful, rolling landscape. My son goes to a running camp in the Tuscan region south of Siena, and I’ve already written about…
Read MorePrague’s Old Town Square clock
Every hour on the hour in Prague’s historical center, Town Hall’s historic, astronomical clock chimes the hour as the crowds below watch. The astronomical clock, on Prague’s Old Town Square (Staromětske naměsti) stands at the base of the 14th century Town Hall. The clock itself was constructed in 1410, making it the third oldest astronomical…
Read MoreGoats grazing in the trees? Morocco
Strangely for a city girl, I spend a fair amount of time surrounded by goats. I’m often out in Italy’s Abruzzo region, which once was widely known as a region with more goats than people. And way back in the days of yore, becoming a shepherd was among the most popular career choices for local…
Read MoreVienna’s plague column
I’ve already written about Plague art in Vienna in an earlier post, concentrating on the impressive Plague column and the monumental Karlskirche. Both of these monuments were erected to commemorate Vienna’s emergence from tragic outbreaks of the Plague, and both are well-known landmarks of modern-day Vienna. The Plague, otherwise known as Bubonic Plague or ‘Black Death’…
Read MoreThe doors of Essaouira, Morocco
I’ll definitely focus a future post on the picture-perfect coastal city of Essaouira, in central Morocco, with its impressive walls, its position as an outpost on the Atlantic, its windy coastline, and its past as a Portuguese colony. But today, I want to concentrate primarily on the colorful doors of Essaouira. This is one of…
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