I still remember when I first noticed, like really noticed, lly book the biggest airlines, no question. It was almost a routine thing: collect miles, cling to loyalty programs, and just accept pricey fares like that’s what corporate travel is “supposed” to be. But lately, while I was working on assignments in international travel writing,…
My first impression of the towns and cities I saw on my first day out of Korea’s Incheon airport was how rapidly the place transformed into something I didn’t know. One road, packed and known and headed to Seoul, the other headed into New Songdo, strangely futuristic yet surprisingly calm. I had read about the…
The French-accented voice woke me up every morning in my cabin to announce our current location, weather conditions, and future forecast. The rhythm of life at sea quickly became familiar, almost meditative. As part of this unforgettable Antarctica travel experience, the crew moved through their daily routines with quiet precision, often accompanied by soft music that…
I came hoping that it would be a typical ceremony that was organized and predictable. Instead, I was quietly overpowered. It was one of those experiences that do not appear to be much at the time but which linger a long time after you have gone. On a sunny morning in Los Angeles, a graduation for Guide Dogs of America was held at a guide…
I did not think that olive oil would alter my perspective on culture. But in a restored mill in Urla on the Aegean coast of Turkey, it did. Pelin Omuroglu gave me a little blue glass of olive oil and bade me not to gulp it down. “Smell,” she said. Then, “slurp.” It was initially confused, but soon I understood her intentions and began to savor the oil.…
It was only after getting out on the water that I truly realized how big Lake Powell is. When the Colorado River streams down behind the giant sandstone walls, it becomes not a place but an ever-changing environment, a world of time, drought and silent water persistence. You read about such places in travel news…
The situation did not interest me when it was first encountered. I came to Dachau by train, which is the typical route that visitors take before they begin their bus journey through peaceful bucolic areas. The path included residential areas together with several retail outlets and one educational institution. The path did not provide any…
This day of February 22 started just like any other travel day I have learned to like. We were driving along Lake Pátzcuaro in Michoacan, passing through silent artisan villages that seemed to be miles away in time. The village of Erongaricuaro possessed that comfortable, inhabited quality that I seek on my Central America Travel…
The period of 1880-1920 saw the influx of immigrants from Southern Italy into the United States in great numbers, carrying their simple food traditions with them. One of these was pizza, a humble flatbread with small portions of cheese, sausage, or tomato sauce. Initially, a convenient, cheap meal, pizza, over time, has developed into a…
The downtown Havana hotel room was smoky, and the smoke lingered on the clothes long after a visitor left the room. I stood still and saw a group of full-throated European and North American men going around with cigars and glasses of rum, as if it were the city ritual. It was luxurious, almost extravagant—but…