this is a page for

Category: Travel

Seven Ways to Pack Lighter, Smarter, Faster

Here are my favorite, travel-tested tips culled from my own experience as a senior solo female managing her own luggage challenges with a few borrowed from my fav travel companions. Do your homework. Sounds simple, right? Check seasonal temperatures and precipitation for the region where you are traveling. A week or so in advance, add the major cities to your iPhone weather app and note variances in weather. Pack something …

Madaba, City of Mosaics

One of my most treasured purchases from a recent trip to Jordan is a pendant depicting the Tree of Life, a relic of Byzantine art, in amazing, microscopic mosaic detail. I was fortunate to meet the artist, a young man in his 30’s and the shop owner who detailed the seven month-long process he used to create the natural stone piece, requiring the aid of a super-strong magnification tool. He …

Ten Places to Travel Solo Right Now

For the first time since the Covid situation interrupted the travel plans of those of us hopelessly addicted to the exploration of other cultures, this summer is almost like the summer of 2019 but without the crowds and with a very appreciative group of Schengen countries who are open for business! You can travel solo, but not alone with any of the wonderful tours offered by companies like Globus Journeys …

Wine and Art …

In the Medoc region of Bordeaux you can find the lovely vineyards and winery of Chateau D’Arsac. Many families, including the Chateau’s owner, moved to this region when Algeria gained its independence from France in 1962. The Chateau is also a place open to artistic creation. Every year since 1992, the estate has acquired a signed work by a major contemporary artist. The vine and art are intimately linked here. It is indeed …

The Ladies’ Castle of Chenonceau

Famous for its location on the River Cher in France’s magnificent Loire Valley, evidence of a woman’s touch is evident in every design element and architectural aspect of this unique chateau. When gifted to his mistress Diane de Poitiers by Henry II, the storied improvements began with an extension of the beautiful arched bridge on one side of the castle and buttressed stone terraces creating four separate gardens were built, …